The Rise of Shiroi Nami – Chapter 23

“Come with me now, upstairs, straight to the hospital floor. The doctors here are the best on the planet.” Okamoto’s arm is outstretched and trying to usher me back to the elevator. I shake my head and pull both him and Rin out of the range of prying ears.

“It doesn’t matter. Whatever Gen has engineered for me, it’s permanent, I’m sure. He would do anything to kill me, and he wouldn’t mess this up. I’m already several days into the infection, anyway.”

“Please, Yumi,” Rin pleads, and my heart skips a beat as he takes both of my hands in his. “It’s worth trying.”

I shake my head. “I don’t want to spend my last hours on a hospital bed. I need to start my corporation. Even if I never lead it, it needs to be in place.” My voice shakes along with my lower lip. “Shintaro or Kazuo or you could run it in my absence.”

Okamoto looks between Rin and me and takes a step back. “Are you sure?” When I nod, he sighs. “I’ll go get us a car and escort you to the bank.” He strides off to the front lobby.

“Yumi…” Rin’s eyes fill with tears, and I raise my hand to wipe them from his cheek.

“Don’t cry. I don’t think I can go on if you cry.”

He pulls me into a fierce hug, holding me to his chest as tight as he can. “I can’t lose you,” he whispers into my neck.

I close my eyes and relish this sweet moment. He loves me, and I love him. We would both do anything for each other.

I pull back a fraction. “Listen to me now before we do anything else. If I die, you have to promise me you’ll… uh…” I try to recall all the words I read in Isao’s diary. “There’s this thing… This procedure. Fuck. I can’t remember the terms.”

“What?” His eyebrows draw together.

“You have to save my body. If I can transfer to a new clone, my eggs from this body can be harvested for offspring someday, as long as this virus Gen made hasn’t killed them off. I think, oh! Yes. The eggs can be frozen. Yes.” I nod my head and tears fly everywhere. “Yes, freeze them. The new body can’t have kids.”

He sinks in despair. This is not the conversation he thought we’d be having, or ever have, upon my death bed.

I never expected to die on this trip.

But I’m not dead yet.

And I still have work to do.

Right. Back to the matter at hand.

“A new body and the ability to still have kids, Rin. We could go on from here.”

“But…” The turmoil in his eyes hollows out my stomach. “What if it’s not you? What if you’re different?”

My throat closes up. I hadn’t considered that Rin might not love me or care for me in a new body. Shit.

“I would still be me,” I insist, but he looks dubious. Fuck, fuck, fuck. This is all happening too fast!

“Rin! Yumi!” Okamoto calls out from the lobby, waving his hand and beckoning us.

“Just promise me you’ll do it. You’ll save my body,” I insist, and Rin nods.

“Of course. Whatever you want.”

We run to the car and slip in the back with Okamoto. The vehicle races off, but silence looms around us in our seats. Okamoto stares outside for several blocks before tearing his eyes from the window.

“Tell me something,” he says, his voice soft. “Why would this man, this Miyazawa, want to destroy you and others from your mission so badly? He seems determined to do the most damage in the least amount of time.”

“It’s a long story.” I try to cut things off there, but it’s not happening.

“Indulge me.”

“Every society has its problems, right?” He nods. “Gen’s family were not the most prosperous people on the planet. His parents chose a simpler life for themselves in the countryside with a farm. When they realized he was smart enough for these missions, they enrolled him in the specialty school in the city, the same as I was. But he lived in the dorms and never had much in the way of conveniences. He was picked on, and then he learned to fight, both with words and with the sword. He turned around and became the bully.” I shrug, trying not to let my emotions surge up again. “And he’s always hated my family because we had so much more than he did.”

Okamoto’s face is unreadable. The car turns another corner and avoids a crowd of people carrying signs and chanting.

“I thought your society had a more amicable arrangement for the distribution of funds, goods, and services.”

“We do,” I assure him as the car takes off again. My voice steadies as I enter my well-trod journalist mode. “No one is homeless. Everyone has health care and food. Everyone can vote in the elections once they’re twenty years old. Gen’s parents chose the farming life. He talks a lot about how ‘poor’ they were… are,” I correct myself. “But the fact of the matter is they’re happy with their simple house and minimal belongings. I interviewed them once, and they were proud of Gen. Very proud. He’s just a jealous creature, always coveting things other people have. I think that’s why he and Narumi hit it off. She’s giving him a life he never had before. And it’s not like he’s ugly or anything, on the outside at least. He’d be the perfect catch if his soul weren’t so corrupt.”

Okamoto nods as the car comes to a stop in front of the First Bank of Hikari. “I understand now. I was once a jealous young man, too. I learned differently, the hard way.”

Oooooh, that sounds like a juicy story.

I wish I could stick around to interview him about his past.

I wish I could live forever.

Sometimes, I think that’s a terrible idea.

Sometimes.

He extends his hand to shake mine. “This is not over. You have my full support.”

“Thank you,” I say, nodding and keeping my eyes tear-free. The door to the car opens, and Rin and I leave Okamoto behind.

I stop on the sidewalk with Rin and just stare… Stare at the building, stare into space. Everything feels like a dream. Like hell, I’m not going to die. No way. I’m going to get on a ship and go home and sleep in my own bed someday. This is not the end.

This is denial.

This is anger.

This is despair.

I will not despair because that means Gen has won.

“We can turn around and go home,” Rin says, squeezing my hand.

“Home?” My throat burns with the word, and Rin cringes. He knows we have no home.

Shintaro’s smiling face greets us outside of the lobby of the First Bank of Hikari. Towering over us is a building of gleaming glass and metal. Dozens of people file in and out of the lobby and the garden plaza to the side. It’s what I would expect of a bank — money, money, money. Show it off, but not too flashy, with the tallest building in the ward.

“There’s my sister,” he says, opening his arms for a hug. I shoot him a wary look. “Come on. Show me some love.”

I roll my eyes as I allow him to hug me. But the effort feels genuine, even if it is out of character for him. When he pulls away, he straightens out my hair and my clothes.

“You look a little rumpled. Do you want to change before going into the bank? First impressions are everything.”

“If first impressions were really everything, then Rin and I wouldn’t be dating, don’t you think?”

“Ouch,” Rin says, and then he reluctantly chuckles. “But she’s right, of course.”

“You haven’t been watching the news?” I ask Shintaro.

“No, why?”

“Nothing,” I say, and Rin stares me down. I’m not sure I can handle telling Shintaro everything Gen said and what I’m in for. Best to move forward.

One of the front doors of the bank swings open, and Kazuo comes striding out. Watching him approach, I notice the signs of stress I’ve been ignoring for the past few months. New lines have formed around his eyes, and his hair has a few streaks of gray. Still as handsome as ever, but now he has more of the fatherly feel that my own father always had.

“Are you ready, kako?” he asks, gesturing us forward. “How did the mapping go?”

“Just fine,” I lie, not looking at Rin. “My backup plan is in place. Do they have the records from the data device?”

“Yeah, I handed them over two hours ago. The actuaries are working along with the estimators to assess everything we had in there. I think they’ll be pleased.”

I nod like I know what the hell he’s talking about. From my limited research on what I expected to happen, they have a team of people who will assess the worth of everything I brought in. They determine the bank’s risk of getting involved with us and loaning us the credits we need to get our corporation off the ground.

Really, I’m the one taking an enormous risk here. Because even if I get this corporation running and ally with both Kiiroi Yama and Shiroi Nami to do a hostile takeover of Aoi Uma, I’m not sure I’ll live long enough to hold the Sword of Hikari and take control. I glance at Kazuo and Shintaro as we stride into the lobby. They believe in me. I need to believe in myself.

I turn to Rin. “I know the plan was to split up from here, but…”

“I’m coming with you.”

Shintaro and Kazuo glance at each other, no doubt wondering about our somber nature. Let them have this peace, for now.

On the thirtieth floor of the building, the lobby has gorgeous views of Shin-Osaka ushering in the late afternoon. Instead of sitting in the cushy chairs, I pace in front of the window and go over potential answers to questions I expect they’ll ask.

The doors to a large conference room open, and a young man steps out.

“Miss Minamoto?” He strides forward with his hand out. I try to wipe the sweat off my hand without him noticing before we shake. “Thank you for joining us today. Please come in. The board is looking forward to speaking with you.”

Shintaro touches Rin’s arm. “Can I keep you back and talk to you about our plans for after?”

I glance between the two of them, and I realize that this is my decision — my decision alone to start a corporation that will soon be on its own without me. Because after what happened today at Kiiroi Yama, I know, deep in my heart, that my backup plan is less than ideal and might not even work. With only eighty-seven-point-six percent of my consciousness mapped, I might never come back whole. This is it for me.

As it should be, right?

Humans were never meant to live forever. I’m not a vampire, after all. Blood grosses me out.

“Stay here,” I encourage Rin, squeezing his hand. “You would just sit in this meeting and not do anything, anyway. Kazuo will come with me. I’ll be right on the other side of the doors.”

I’m introduced to a dozen people in the conference room, all of whom I forget their names almost immediately. Damn my short-term memory. It’s the worst. After shaking everyone’s hands, we sit down at the large table, and I glom onto the only person who seems important enough for me to talk to — Emida Bando, Executive Vice President.

“Miss Minamoto, when we heard the stories of your ship, we thought it was all some practical joke,” Emida says, beaming. Everyone around the table nods and murmurs. “Not that Aoi Uma would do such a thing. They are far too conservative for jokes.”

“I’m sure that’s the case,” I say, placing my hands on the table, one over the other. I want to appear poised, relaxed, and ready, not nervous. “Aoi Uma doesn’t strike me as the jester type.”

“Indeed, you’re right.” She clears her throat, and we pause as I thank the person who sets a glass of water in front of me. I sip from it, and the cool water slides down my burning throat. “Before we get to the heart of the meeting and talk numbers, we would like to hear from you first. It’s uncommon for us to loan money to someone who wasn’t raised here and knows our system inside and out. So we want to be sure that you have the best of intentions for both Hikari and its people. We wish to know the long-term purpose for your corporation besides what you’ve put down on the application.”

I close my eyes for a moment and picture the application that Kazuo and I filled out together. We’re not hiding anything from them.

“Let me be completely honest with you all.” Several people sit up and pay attention. “I didn’t want any of this to happen. Our mission was to come to this system, do some data gathering, and maybe land if we didn’t detect any life signs. This was supposed to be an in-and-out mission, no frills, no funny business.”

This elicits a chuckle from down the table.

“So imagine our surprise when we were shot out of the sky and thrust into the center of an ugly rivalry between two corporations. It’s like being stuck between two warring families or countries on Old Earth.” I take a deep breath and let it all out. “If I had my way, we would get into a ship and head home to let them know that this place has serious problems. Your birth rate is next to zero. Corporations fight over every last shred of resources, and you divide your people into useless castes, castes that we got rid of generations ago on Earth. The yakuza are out of control. And worst of all, you’ve let androids take away your humanity.”

The room becomes ice cold… or my fever spikes. I’m not sure.

“But, Hikari also has a lot to admire,” I say, softening my tone. “I love walking the streets here and watching people take care of their businesses and homes. If you enjoy excellent food, there are plenty of amazing places to get a fabulous meal. There are opportunities here for people to start their businesses and live a comfortable life. Or they can take their earnings and try something new. I’ve seen compassion and love on a scale that’s warmed my heart and given me hope for the future.” I place my hand over my heart and think of Rin. I remember dancing with him at the nightclub and feeling the press of bodies around us, the humanity of the masses just trying to enjoy life in the space of a dance song.

“And I know you had even more to live for before Aoi Uma, before Aka Matsuba. Before your wars, you prospered and grew, and now you want to recapture that time before you became a corporatocracy.” I press my finger on the table, and I look around the room at the faces of men and women who know I’m calling for change, drastic change. “It’s time to go forward, away from this mess you’ve gotten yourself into.”

“Miss Minamoto,” Emida says, leaning forward, “I admire your strength and dedication. But you’re asking a lot of Hikari. We haven’t had a democracy here in a long time. I don’t think the citizens here will change as fast as you want them to.”

I nod and sit back in my chair, looking to Kazuo for some help. I’m exhausted and ready to pass out.

“I think you’re underestimating your own people,” Kazuo says, jumping to fill in the gap I’m leaving. “I’ve spent countless hours talking to average citizens, and they know as well as we do that change has to come. They’re ready to make their voices heard.”

The following silence is so complete, I can hear the noise of a crowd outside.

Emida swivels in her chair and faces the whole table. “We’ve read your mission statement, to bring a representative from your world to ours to teach us how to install a real democracy here through a parliament or diet.”

I hold up my hand. “It’s my understanding that you will call it a parliament because we will not be putting an emperor on the throne here. At home, our empress is only temporary. She has helped shepherd our world to democracy, and she insisted the governing body be called a parliament. She is not a permanent part of the government, and neither will her son be a permanent part of your government. It’s our intention to link our worlds for the good of us both.”

“And why would you not just let us govern ourselves?” A man to Emida’s left asks. “Why do we need to get aliens involved in our way of life?”

Emida stares him down until he apologizes under his breath.

“No. He’s asking an important question,” I say, hoping we’re close to the end of this meeting. “Look, I would love for you all to govern yourselves back from the brink of extinction because, let’s face it. That’s where we are right now. You have no children to inherit your world. Instead, you’re willing to let Aoi Uma stuff your humanity into androids that they control. You need help. A lot of help. My ship showing up here now… My very presence in this room, asking for this loan and starting this corporation, is a fulcrum. This is a point upon which everything can turn and shift for you. There are only two ways to go from here — forward with me and a new way of life or backward to everything you’re about to lose.”

A collective intake of air causes everyone in the room to bristle. The room’s lighting grows darker, and a rumble of thunder pulls my eyes to the window. That’s interesting. A storm is incoming, and my head is fine. But maybe it’s not a cause for celebration, considering my body is disintegrating.

Emida addresses her board. “Has anyone’s opinion changed upon hearing Miss Minamoto’s statements?”

Several heads shake. One woman raises a hand, and Emida nods her head but doesn’t indicate whether that one vote goes against or in favor of us.

She stands up, and I swallow down my fear. This is it.

This is the decision that makes or breaks me.

“Miss Minamoto, your request for a loan in the sum of four billion credits has been approved. Kazenoho Corporation is certified as of 16:36 on Day 331 in Year 3146.”

Kazuo grabs my hand and squeezes it, but all I can think of is the number four billion credits. No matter what I do now, I’m in debt to Hikari.

I stand up and shake hands with people around the room, and I’m comforted that almost everyone seems pleased — no, happy — to meet me and talk to me.

Holding back tears, I try to act like this is only the beginning of a long life here, when I know that this is the end for me and the beginning of a new world others will oversee.

I’ve done my part.

I hope I haven’t saddled my loved ones with unspeakable debt for all eternity.

The door to the conference room swings open, and several men and women stalk in, their manner dark and foreboding.

“Ms. Bando, we need to get you and the board to safety. There’s a car waiting on the roof.”

“What’s wrong?” Emida asks, waving to others on her board to pay attention.

“There’s a giant crowd outside, a protest of some kind, and they are close to storming the building.”

Kazuo and I grab for each other at the same time and push past the security at the door. Rin is at the window, his eyes locked on the scene outside. We run over next to him and press our faces to the glass.

Down below, a mass of bodies, thousands of people, stretch from the bank’s front entrance far out into the streets. They chant, but I can’t hear their words, and they hold up signs I can’t see from so far away. A wallscreen on the opposite side of the lobby switches to a newsfeed, showing the crowd from up close.

And their wishes are crystal clear.

“We! Want! Change!” a woman shouts into the camera.

Yes, the revolution has begun.