It took another two days for us to come up with, and implement, temporary measures to keep the government running. We couldn’t just disassemble the control system, not quickly and easily anyway, so we had to work around it.

  In the end we decided to create a series of administrative AIs to both protect and manage the control system until the new government could be put into place. The AIs would be limited they wouldn’t be able to put any sweeping changes into place, and once the new government took power, it would be up to them if they wanted to keep or dispose of the support network.

  Rather than using my standard template and having plush animals, we decided to just use a sleek robotic shape for these AIs. That way, people wouldn’t immediately associate them with me.

  “Nyx, are you sure these things will be able to keep this city running?” I grumbled as I watched the first pair of featureless androids go to work.

  “Evelyn, these are Class II administrative AIs, similar to Sir Froggington. Unlike the frog, who is optimized for teaching, these models use highly advanced data models to streamline infrastructure and create contingencies for future crises. They are more than capable of ‘keeping this city running’,” Nyx explained, using Dusty’s body.

  “Well, good. I think we should still stick to the original plan and make two more. They may take a whole day in the matter reconfigurator, but it’s better to have backups,” I grumbled. “Do we have any idea how long it’ll take to disassemble this control system, so it can’t be used to hold the city ransom again?”

  “The beavers, Zettabyte, and Barricade are all inspecting the endpoints, but it looks like the former council spent years redirecting the processing, databases, and control systems of the city’s utilities through this room. It’ll take a little while to untangle it all.”

  “Yeah, it’s better to take things slow and steady on that front. Wouldn’t want to fuck it up and have all our efforts to this point go to waste.”

  As I turned away from the control room and made my way back out of the council building, I made a quick call to the others.

  [The first administration AIs are in place. Nyx assures me they should be able to keep the city in one piece until the new government is ready to take over.]

  [Good job!] Nora replied.

  [What are you planning to do now? Heading straight back here?] Angeline asked.

  [Eh… I’m not exactly eager to sit in a conference room and debate the merits of giving the civilians one more vote than the corporations, and vice versa, or how to implement a voting system in a city that didn’t have one before. Especially now that Mirage is involved.]

  [He did apologize to you,] Sharron reminded me, [and I’m pretty sure he was being genuine too.]

  [I know! He’s weirding me out,] I grumbled. [Besides, I understand why the different factions would want one more or fewer votes, but I honestly don’t care which one comes out on top. It’s at the politicking stage, and at the end of the day, the undercity is probably going to end up getting ignored by the new governmental body, just like usual.]

  [You know, you could push for some undercity representation on the new council,] Hel suggested.

  [I already know that both the civilian and corporate factions would immediately push back on that. Besides, most of the undercity is still controlled by gangs, and whomever got on the council would only be in it for their own gain.]

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  [So, just like everyone else then,] Nora giggled. [If you’re not coming back, where are you headed?]

  [Angeline and I were talking this morning, and it looks like a large part of the council’s PMC forces have left the city, including the two remaining superheavies. I’d like to take a quick look and figure out what they’re up to before heading back.]

  [Alright, just keep us informed. It’s not like we’re going anywhere.] I could hear the disappointment in Sharron’s voice. It’s not like she, nor any of my other friends, wanted to be there any more than I did, but the talks needed a neutral party to mediate. I felt a little guilty.

  [Tomorrow, I’ll stick around the entire day, and one of you guys can take the day off. Everyone’s been working hard on this. I’m not the only one that should be allowed to escape.]

  [Why tomorrow?] Sharron asked.

  [Because I’m already out here, and I really want to check that these PMC fucktards aren’t doing anything stupid. If I’m fast, maybe one of you could take the afternoon off instead,] I said.

  [Then what are you waiting for? Go fast! Get back here ASAP,] Angeline replied in a half-joking manner. Despite her tone, I knew she was just as stressed as the rest.

  [Alright fine, see you all soon.]

  I cut the call just as I exited the council building, before jogging over to the nearby Kodiak. As soon as all my bears were on board, I slammed the hatch close button and directed the vehicle to the convoy’s position.

  It only took a few minutes to clear the city, and head to the area we’d seen the military force in earlier this morning. The heavy armor hadn’t made much progress. Superheavies were notoriously slow even on paved roads, but I was still surprised to find them farther from the city than before.

  It was an impressive collection of armor, one that probably would have given the Denver contingent that had approached the council building a run for their money. I just couldn’t figure out what they were doing so far from the city.

  “Nyx, have you picked up any communications from the tanks? Are they in contact with the council?”

  “They’re keeping chatter to a minimum, and communication is limited to inside the column,” Nyx replied. As I observed the column through the exterior cameras, Dusty, the current Nyx proxy, raised an eyebrow. “We’ve apparently been spotted. The commander has ordered all tanks to halt, not to make any aggressive movements, and he’s sending out a wide-band message. He wants to talk to you.”

  “Someone wants to be reasonable? Will the wonders never cease?” I muttered. “Is he on the radio now, or…”

  “He’s the commander of the Anvil of Dawn, the superheavy with the dozer blade on the front. He appears to be stepping out,” Nyx explained.

  “Grand. Let’s see what he wants to say, shall we?”

  The Kodiak swooped low, coming in next to the long line of armor, slowing only when it approached the tank in the middle of the formation.

  The Anvil of Dawn was a different type of monster from the other super heavies. It didn’t have a massive main gun like the others. Instead it had four IFV-sized turrets and nearly a dozen sponsons. It was a mobile fortress, not a weapon of mass destruction.

  As I stepped out of the back of my vehicle, the commander waved from the top of the monster. He was fairly young, had brown hair, and was wearing something similar to a traditional military uniform. He also had huge bags under his eyes and stubble. It seems like he hadn’t left his post in a while. “Thank you for not firing first, ma’am.”

  “Don’t call me ma’am, it makes me sound old,” I grumbled. “Do you want to explain what you and your men are doing out here? Although I appreciate you taking the fight outside the city, I find it a little suspicious that you waited so long to do so.”

  “We have no intention of fighting here ma’am,” he answered, standing up straight. “I represent a small coalition of PMCs, and when we heard about the council attempting to drop a plate we withdrew from combat in protest. After we saw the council had drawn the ire of the samurai, we decided the best thing to do was terminate our contracts, and move on. It’s just taken us a few days to scrounge up the supplies needed for the trip and we couldn’t get moving until this morning.”

  I stared at him for a couple seconds. “You’re just… leaving? You can do that?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Don’t get me wrong, having access to a superheavy tank means that my group was one of the best-paid PMCs in the city, but all the money in the world wouldn’t convince me to slaughter civilians, or go up against samurai. That’s not what me, and my men, signed up for,” the man explained.

  “You almost sound reasonable,” I mumbled. “Why couldn’t more people have been like you?”

  The man scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “With all due respect, ma’am, most PMCs are just in it for the money. It’s pretty much the only upside of the job.”

  “Okay, fair,” I conceded. “If you’re leaving the city and no longer in the council’s employ, I don’t see any reason to stop you. I was worried that you were sent out to do something dumb, like trying to knock out the utilities in revenge for capturing the council or something.”

  “We’re not stupid enough to do something like that, ma’am. We saw what you did to the last two superheavies that got in your way.”

  “Fine, go on. If you leave it just means the council has even less pieces to throw around, and that’s fine with me. Just be warned, I’m watching you, and if you deviate from the highway before you’re out of the Calgary area, I will be back.”

  “I wouldn’t dream of it, ma’am,” the young commander replied. He quickly saluted me before scrambling back into his tank. A few seconds later the entire column began to roll forward again.

  “Well, that’s one concern taken care of,” I said as I walked back to the Kodiak. “Without their superheavies, the council is all but defanged. Now we just have to deal with the far more terrifying part of this changeover. Politics.”

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