Chapter Forty-Five – Corpo Shit Show

Chapter Forty-Five – Corpo Shit Show

“Never assume that corporate incompetence is corporate maliciousness.

Corporations don’t care about you or yours. They don’t aim to hurt you. The reason you were hurt was because not hurting you would require a sacrifice of effort or money or both that’s too big to be excused.”

–Anonymous PR specialist, 2028

***

I parked my bike on the rooftop parking lot, slipping into a free space that was ‘reserved for visiting samurai’ according to a small sign hanging above it. It was right next to the handicapped parking space too, so not a big walk from there to the door.

I silently appreciated that it was on the far side of the reserved handicapped parking spots. There was a small space in my heart for cripples, and I appreciated that they didn’t block the spot off just for some upjumped samurai or whatever.

Interestingly enough, it wasn’t Eric who ran out to greet me, but some woman that I didn’t recognize. She was in corpo chic, a tight skirt and a weird top that had large openings on the side that showed off the curve of her hips.

I didn’t let my eye linger. Who knows if Lucy had convinced Myalis to tattle on me. “Hey,” I said as I pushed the thought aside. Instead I was wondering what Lucy would look like in that kind of outfit.

“Hello, Stray Cat,” she said. There wasn’t nearly as much formality there as I’d come to expect from Eric.

“You’re a new face,” I said. “Is Eric busy?”

“Ah, Eric was promoted,” she said. “Though he will still be available as your liaison. Did you come here to speak with him?”

“Hmm? Nah. It’s fine. I called ahead. Well, my AI called ahead. I’m here to see how shit’s going.”

She nodded, then gestured to the entrance a little ways behind her. “I’m prepared to give you a summary of events, if you wish? Eric and a few of the others working this case are making time to meet you in boardroom seventeen-G.”

“I’ll take that summary, sure,” I said. “Also, what’s your name?”

The woman smiled. “Piper, ma’am. I’ve been working here for almost a year now. If my inexperience is an issue, I’m certain Eric can fill you in better.”

“It’s fine,” I said. “So, summarise away?”

Piper nodded and I followed as she started towards the entrance. “The majority of the projects only really started yesterday morning. Prior to that we completed a partial sweep of the entire sewer system. Four locations were discovered with hidden Antithesis threats, though only at a yellow-danger level. Cleanup teams were dispatched in the afternoon and they’ve reported successes on all fronts.”

That was… concerning. Probably not all that surprising, though. Antithesis needed biomass. Shit had plenty. “Is there anything in place to notice that before it turns into a clusterfuck beneath our feet?”

“There are systems in place. Or there should be. They were mostly offline, malfunctioning, or missing,” Piper said.

“Of course,” I grumbled.

“In any case, the surveys should be complete by this time tomorrow.”

“Slower than I thought it would be,” I said.

“Yes. We’re having a difficult time with the hiring process. And the payment structure is complicated by the discovery of those nests.”

“How’s that?” I asked.

Piper shrugged, then held the door open for me. “Antithesis presence means that the survey work is now high-risk. That means better pay, but it also limits the workers that are certified for danger pay to begin with. I think we’re having the surveyors that were meant to continue exploratory work instead look into double-checking previous areas for a more complete layout.”

I nodded along. “Thanks. So survey work is all well and good. What about the actual work?”

“That’s coming along. But we’re running into more complications. Most of them are expected. Some of the infrastructure around the sewage facilities is crumbling and will need repairs. Some of the equipment is sub-par. Some of it is ancient. Then there are some areas that are owned by specific corporate entities.”

“Wait, parts of the sewer system are corpo-owned?” I asked.

“Only some segments. But yes.”

I shook my head. There was no way having that kind of stuff be the property of a corp was a good thing.

“We ran into some issues there. Here, if I may?” Piper asked.