Chương 75: Book 2 - Chapter 4 - A Night Out

When Sharron's RV approached the shelter everyone in the area came out to watch. My semi was a spectacle, but I'd made enough of a name for myself that people would leave it alone. That, and there were usually heavily armed bears within view. The RV on the other hand, if left outside, would have scavengers climbing all over it within seconds. Unfortunately, I didn't know what was stronger, Class 1 security systems or the will and tenacity of every scavenger in the undercity.

In all honesty, I'd place money on the scavengers. That's why I was waiting at the garage door when Sharron arrived, along with a half dozen bears. It was a statement. The RV is off limits. Even though only a couple of people saw her drive inside, the word would get out soon enough. The large camper landed on the southside of the garage, near the residence area, and Sharron bounced out.

"Hey Evelyn, thanks for letting me crash here." She glanced around the cavernous structure, concentrating on my new production area before walking over.

"Last time I was here this place was just a lot full of rubble. This is quite an improvement." I laughed, "I couldn't have done it without Barricade's help. The man does good work. I've been meaning to drop by and thank him, but I'm just constantly busy these days." Sharron gave me a strange look, "What could you possibly be busy with? You just got back."

"The Guiding Light." Sharron shot me a puzzled expression, so I just sighed.

"It's complicated, and probably something only the residents of the undercity care about. Let's talk about it later, the kids are excited to meet you." She smiled as I led her over to the residential area. I opened the door, not to a ballistic hug from Issi, but a calm atmosphere.

"Everyone, this is Sharron, a friend of mine. She's the one that helped clean up the Antithesis attack a couple weeks ago." The kids just kind of stared, but Jane stood up and introduced herself.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Jane Claire, and these are Edward, Jennifer, and Isabelle." She said, pointing at the kids one by one. I knew that Jenny was a little shy around people these days, I was more than a little surprised that Eddie and Isabelle were so quiet.

"She's not going to bite you." I said, "As a matter of fact she's one of the nicest people I know." The two kids exchanged a glance, then Eddie spoke up.

"Are you really a Samurai?" He asked.

"I am," Sharron smiled, "I'll even show you my power armor later if you want."

"If you're good!" Jane added. That got Eddie smiling. Isabelle on the other hand was still quiet.

"Issi, what's the matter?" I asked. The girl half hid herself behind Jane, "You're not here to fight the bad plants again are you?" As soon as the Antithesis were brought up Jeni tensed up, so I rushed to clear up the misunderstanding.

"No no no. She's living in her RV… a moving house, and needed a place to park for a few days. There are no more Antithesis around, and even if there were, the bears would protect you. Ok?" Issi jumped up.

"Do you really have a drivable house? Is it big, can I see it?" We all laughed at that, and thankfully Jeni relaxed a little.

"Sure, I wouldn't mind showing you all my place." Sharron replied. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Jane stepped forward and put on her best 'I'm in charge' voice.

"After dinner. We have a guest, so best behaviour." The kids all nodded. In the back of my mind I couldn't help but wonder how our best would stand up to someone not from the streets. It turns out, not that bad. At least Sharron didn't judge us on our atrocious table manners. I'm not sure if it was because she was polite, or if her standards were a little lower because of her time living as an indentured servant. Either way, it was an enjoyable meal.

After the meal we took the kids out to Sharron's RV so she could show off her suit, and so Issi could see the inside of the camper. The little one was more enamoured with the idea of a traveling home than Samurai tech, and Sharron was more than happy to show her new home off. We spent a good hour there before escorting the kids back to the residence to get ready for bed. Once they were all tucked away, I took Sharron out for a quick tour of the area.

One of the few advantages about living in the undercity was most of it was open, or active, twenty-four seven. Down here everything was lit by artificial light, so a standard 'day' had no real meaning. Most undercity residents had never even seen the sun, so why would they care about where it was in the sky? The main roads, lit by incandescent lights, neon, and even the occasional hologram, were brighter. Even if the signage was lewd, or upsetting, the extra light gave a little extra sense of security.

Ever since I'd moved into the shelter there'd been a lot more signage in the area, the streets were filled with street vendors, and the mood was generally positive. I guess people just felt safer with a Samurai around, even if I wasn't doing much. I did have bears patrolling the exterior of the shelter, but they were purely for self defense. It seemed like none of the nearby gangs were interested in testing my defenses, and the lack of hostile shakedowns really did wonders for the morale of the locals.

Sharron and I had just stepped outside the shelter when I felt the need to get something off my chest.

"Sorry I didn't contact you when I left Seattle, I heard you were still busy with the sea incursions so I didn't want to bother you." Sharron looked at me with a raised eyebrow, "Ok fine, I got distracted and forgot, and now I'm feeling a little guilty about it."

"Don't worry about it." She broke out into one of her trademark smiles, "I know you wanted to get back to your family, and I was busy working." She paused, "Speaking of which, you mentioned dealing with something here, the 'Guiding Light'?" At the mention of Guiding Light I scanned the crowd, some people looked up in alarm, but most ignored our discussion. Not getting involved was the best way to survive down here.

"They're a cult, a dangerous one, and no one in their right mind would want to be associated with them." I shrugged, "I'll figure out a way to deal with them."

"If they're so dangerous, how come I've never heard of them?"

"I doubt that any topside news outlets even bothered to publish what happened to the undercity the last time they showed up.

""Which was…"

"A lot of people died." I shook my head, "You're not from around here, it's not something you should have to deal with, but while I'm investigating I would appreciate it if you'd look after my family. Just in case."

"You're not going to do anything stupid are you?" She asked.

"Probably not. I'm just planning on doing some recon, and light investigation, for now."

"And if you DO get in trouble, I'll be sticking around, just in case." She smiled again, "Now, I thought you were going to show me around. If I'm going to be here awhile, I should know the basics." I smiled, in spite of myself.

"Ok fine, there's not much to see, but I can show you the highlights." Unsurprisingly, there wasn't much to show. The highlight, and centerpiece of the district, seemed to be the shelter these days. I did show Sharron the Terminal, Leah's shop, and the stacks; she was already familiar with the scrapyard, and main lifts, which made the tour quick. Instead of landmarks, we spent time perusing some of the dozens of stalls selling animal hoodies, picking up street food, and just generally wandering around.

It was the first time I had to actually relax in a couple weeks, and was a nice change of pace, not having to worry about people dying, or the world ending. We didn't even get attacked, or pickpocketed once. In the end, it was a really nice night.