A.A. Catto, Reave and their three guardians reached the first intersection. As they waited for the traffic control to change, the guardian who seemed to have the role of leader looked at her questioningly.
‘Where do you wish to go, miss?’
‘The Orchid House.’
A.A. Catto waved her hand towards the slim pyramid that stood a few blocks away, towering over the surrounding buildings. The guard looked at it and then back to the girl.
‘If we took the main throughways it would be a longer walk, but there would be less possibility of incident.’
A.A. Catto grinned at him.
‘Let’s take the back streets, huh? I’m sure you boys can take care of any incident.’
The guardian bowed deferentially.
‘As you wish, miss.’
Reave looked round dubiously, but didn’t say anything. Despite the time he’d spent in Litz, he was still afraid of the menacing nighttime city.
They crossed the intersection and walked on down the throughway for another block. Then they turned off into a side street. It was like entering another world. The bright lights were left behind. Dull yellow street lights replaced the flashing reds, greens, blues and golds of the main streets. They had only walked along the mean back way for a few minutes when a group of figures loomed up in front of them. The three guardians spread out in front of A.A. Catto and Reave, their hands going to their long nightsticks.
Faint glimmers of light were reflected from the shoulders of the figures that clustered round the lamp standard. A.A. Catto felt a tingle of excitement run through her. They were one of the notorious juv gangs that roamed the back ways of the city, terrorizing anyone who strayed away from the bright lights.
The guardians ushered Reave and A.A. Catto out into the middle of the road. They spread out and formed a loose line between their charges and the juvs. As they came closer they could make out their distinctive outfits. The light had reflected from their shiny silver jackets. They were woven out of steel thread, with solid metal shoulders that rose into twin spikes on either side of the wearer’s head. There was also another steel plate set between the shoulders, which bore the emblem of the wearer’s gang. The outfit was completed by black tights with a decoratively padded crutch and heavy black knee boots, and, of course, the haircut. The juv haircuts varied from month to month. Right then, they were favouring it close cropped at the sides and very long over the top and back, with an elaborately curled quiff hanging down over their foreheads.
As A.A. Catto and her companions came within a couple of metres of the juvs, she saw that there were eight of them. They all appeared to be between the ages of twelve and fourteen. The tallest of them pulled a telescope knife from a pouch on his wide, studded belt and snapped it open. The guardians’ hands dropped to their stunners. The juv raised his hand, inspected his fingers. He jabbed at one offending nail, grinned wolfishly and flicked the knife shut.
With the three guardians keeping themselves between their charges and the gang, A.A. Catto and Reave walked slowly past. A couple of the youths made obscene gestures, but none of them seemed to fancy taking on the heavily armed guardians. Reave kept looking back until the darkness once again swallowed up the gang. He let out his breath in a noisy gasp.
‘Thank Christ that’s all over.’
A.A. Catto looked at him contemptuously.
‘Were you frightened, then?’
Reave nodded.
‘Damn right I was frightened.’
‘The guardians would have looked after us.’
Reave looked doubtful.
‘If they’d decided to jump us, any one of us could have got a knife in the gut.’
A.A. Catto pursed her lips.
‘They wouldn’t have jumped us. They knew the guardians would have burned them down.’
‘From what I’ve heard that wouldn’t deter them. They can be totally suicidal if they feel like it.’
A.A. Catto sneered.
‘From what you’ve heard?’
Reave shrugged but said nothing. They walked on in silence. The rest of the journey was uneventful until, just a short distance from the towering bulk of the Orchid House, they passed the dirty grey lights of a backway greasy spoon. A ragged figure was huddled in the doorway. As the small group walked past, it suddenly twitched and leaped to its feet. It quickly dodged past the guardians and grabbed at A.A. Catto’s arm.
‘Please miss, let’s use your credit card, just for a meal, please miss.’
The voice was high and vaguely female, but the figure was too filthy and tattered for anyone to say, for sure, even whether it was human. A.A. Catto tried to shake it off, but it clung on with grim determination.
‘Please miss, just a meal, let’s use your card.’
The guardians swung round and pulled out their nightsticks. As the first blow struck, the creature fell to the ground screaming. It jerked and twisted, covering its head with its thin arms and pulling its knees up to protect its stomach. The guardians continued beating on it with their clubs until it ceased to move. Each time a blow fell there was a dull squishing thud. A pool of blood slowly spread over the surface of the road. When the figure lay still, one of the guardians prodded it with his toe. Satisfied that there was no sign of life, he hung his nightstick back on his belt. His two companions did the same. From the doorway of the greasy spoon a group of more ragged figures watched silently. They continued to stare as A.A. Catto, Reave and the three guardians walked away.
It was only another block before they reached the throughway and the imposing entrance of the Orchid House. No more of the back area people bothered them. As the black glass doors of the Orchid House slid open, the guardians saluted, turned on their heels and marched away. A.A. Catto and Reave entered the foyer and the huge doors hissed shut behind them.
After the back ways, the Orchid House was an opulent paradise. The triangular floor was made from a single piece of polished marble. It was dominated by a huge fountain. The three walls, crossed by tier after tier of apartment balconies, sloped slightly inwards, and rose almost as far as the eye could see. They met at a point over a thousand metres above. Artificial sunlight streamed down from a huge white sphere set in the top of the pyramid. Cascades of flowers and climbing plants hung like long garlands from the balconies. They were a splash of wild colour against the white walls.
Reave followed A. A, Catto towards the lifts. These were black spheres that rose from the floor. At rest, they sat in hemispherical depressions at the side of the foyer. They moved in straight lines, parallel to the wall, without any visible support. Reave still hadn’t figured out how they worked. A.A. Catto touched an illuminated stud on the side of the lift and a section of the side silently opened. She stepped inside and Reave did the same. The interior of the lift was lit by a soft red light. Muted music came from a hidden speaker. A.A. Catto pressed the control for the ninety-third floor. Reave ran his fingers through his hair.
‘Sure is good to be back home.’
A.A. Catto’s eyes narrowed. She looked sideways at Reave.
‘Don’t get too pleased too soon, honey.’
Reave turned and looked at her in surprise.
‘What’s wrong now?’
‘You’ve been giving me a pain all evening.’
‘Oh, come on.’
‘Come on, nothing. You’ve pissed me off, and you’re going to pay for it.’
‘Please, isn’t it a bit late in the day for more games?’
A.A. Catto held up her ring finger.
‘No games, sweetie. You are going to suffer.’
Reave opened his mouth to speak. He thought better of it, and closed it again. If the fancy took her, A.A. Catto had enough dope in the apartment to keep her awake for days. The game could go on for ages. He felt sick to his stomach. The lift stopped at the ninety-third floor and Reave followed her out, fingering the collar round his neck.