<Snipped quote by Tank O The Lake>
*For a moment's breath, a glassy deepness seems to stretch across the device at my touch, as if glinting against space itself before blinking back to its proper palette*
When will they set off the first one?
*Hoists it over my shoulder with no apparent effort now*
NAOMI: When we're at the spot. But they can't hang out there forever, so I'd say...
*She looks at her watch and cringes.*
NAOMI: Haul ass.
*Naomi speeds to a light jog as they pass city limits. Out here, the city seems to just drop off--or, more accurately, the habitation of it does. New, or at least maintained buildings cut abruptly into abandoned storefronts and apartment complexes, wind sighing through broken windows. Eventually, they start to see bright yellow signs posted on boarded-up doors, reading in both Chinese and English:*
WARNING
RADIOLOGICAL CONTAMINATION AREA
This building has been CONDEMNED by order of the PEARL RIVER DISTRICT, TECHNOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CHINA, SOL COOPERATIVE. Radioactive contaminants in this building are a PROVEN HAZARD TO HUMAN HEALTH, and unlawful residence in this building is a CLASS IV CRIMINAL INFRACTION, PUNISHABLE BY A FINE OF U10,000 AND/OR A PRISON SENTENCE NOT EXCEEDING ONE YEAR.
*Underneath is written a list of health hazards connected to nuclear fallout, as well as instructions on how to report radiologically-contaminated locations or items. Judging by the tarps strung up over the windows, and the way some of the doors have seemingly been broken open, it seems like certain elements of the population have been ignoring the signs for a while.*
*Eventually, the buildings wear down to mere rubble and ruins. What little work was done to keep the other buildings from collapsing over the last century was clearly not bothered with here. Slowly, but surely, the loading dock appears in the distance, glimpses of it poking through the ruins. It's located down a slope; from this height, it's possible to see all of the several dozen guardsmen in exosuits patrolling, as well as the tunnel leading into the ocean, the manned checkpoint, the four guard towers, and the electrified fence. It's also possible to locate the tunnel's maintenance door right below and to the side of its main bulkhead.*
NAOMI: There's the prize. Keep your heads down; they'll take it off if they spot us creeping.
