Chapter Fifty-One - Wake Up


    Chapter Fifty-One - Wake Up


    John Hopkins-Pepsico University is proud to announce the addition of a Consumer Neurosciences course for our Spring 2025 curriculum!


    --Excerpt from JHUPc Message to Students, 2024


    ***


    Catherine, I believe you should wake up now.


    A small jolt hit me. It wasnt quite painful, but it was still startling, a buzzing snap that started in my skull then travelled down my spine, lightning-quick.


    I sat up, almost fell off of the... bench I was on, then grabbed onto the edge of a table to steady myself as I regained my bearings. The temporary cafeteria? Someone had shut the rooms lights off, though there was still light coming in from the other rooms nearby, as well as the low murmur of people at work.


    Rubbing my eyes, I sat up on the bench that Id apparently used as my bed. I was going to be sore, I just knew it.


    Blinking, I realized that someone had draped a thin blanket over my shoulders, and placed another rolled-up bundle of cloth down to serve as a pillow. Lucy? That would be very much like her. I smiled, then lost the smile to a jaw-cracking yawn. What time is it?


    It is six-seventeen AM.


    Oh, shit, how long did I sleep for?


    You had ninety minutes of REM sleep. Sufficient to be functional. Though I imagine that a few more hours would have been better for your overall health.


    Yeah, I feel that, I said as I tilted my head way to the side and worked a crick out of my neck. The blanket and makeshift pillow was a nice gesture, but a real bed would have been awesome. Still, I couldnt complain. A nap was a nap. Whyd you wake me up?


    The situation hasnt yet gotten to the point of being out of control, but your intervention will be needed soon.


    Oh, that was Myalis-speak for everything was going to shit.


    I stood up, then looked for my helmet and found it waiting on the corner of the table. I started to slide it on, then stopped and put it back down. Hey, got something like... super coffee? Nothing like that Mind Crank Ultra shit, I just need something to wake me up.


    I can provide something for that. Budget?


    I shrugged. A few points, I dont know?


    Points Reduced from 51,590, to 51,586


    A can clunked onto the top of the table without much ceremony. I picked it up and looked at the label. There was a cute pastel cat snoozing on a pile of cartoony alien corpses. The label read Cat Nap Cure.


    Is this custom? I asked.


    I had a nanosecond to waste.


    I rolled my eyes and popped the tab, then took a sniff, then a pull. It was pretty mild. Soda with a hint of bubblegum flavour. Not entirely to my tastes, but very much something Lucy would like.


    Functioning on a mix of stimulants and determination.


    Well, hes an adult, I said. Did Manic get any sleep too?


    Lucy found her a place to rest. She is still sleeping.


    Alright, so where have things gone to shit? I asked as I left Lucys headquarters.


    There are three major fronts. First, a group of civilians have begun preparing a protest in the centre of Downtown. It hasnt yet gained much traction. My social engineering suggests that if not addressed, that will change, especially if the civilians learn of any potential food shortages.


    Fuck, I said.


    Second, the displaced River Heights citizens have decided to take out their anger at their displacement on you and the militia as a whole. Several members of their group are on the board of directors of the shell corporations who run the militias finances. They have passed an emergency vote cutting off the militias pay.


    Are you... for fuck sakes, are they stupid?


    Yes.


    Well, at least that was confirmation of one thing.


    Stupid and angry and impotent. Though once the news that they wont be paid reaches the Militia, its possible that a number of them will defect.


    Yeah, predictable. Whats the third problem?


    The number of antithesis testing the defences on the edge of town has increased significantly over the last five hours. No one else has noticed a pattern yet, but from what Ive noticed a constant increase in the number of aliens pushing the walls, and they are pushing from different angles and against different parts of the defensive line.


    Testing our defences, then? I asked.


    Thats my read on the situation. Its likely that there wont be a big push until the antithesis probing finds an area of weakness or their numbers increase to the point where that no longer matters.


    I paused by the exit, wracked by temporary indecision. Three problems. Which one did I need to stomp out first?


    Which one was going to make things worse for us in the immediate future?


    When will we be announcing the food shortages? I asked.


    The militia was planning on making an announcement around nine AM.


    Okay. Send them a message to delay that for a bit. I have enough points to buy food to feed an army, if need be. Well manage for the day. The walls are still holding against the probes?


    So far, yes.


    Then theyll hold for a few more hours. Let the people who are sleeping sleep. Theyll need it. Which leaves the River Heights problem. I smiled. It was nice, being able to reduce my problems to something I could focus on immediately. Lets go pay them a visit right now, shall we?


    ***