The Bridge Trilogy Part 52

saw them setting up a camera."

The entire facade of one of the new buildings seemed to ripple, to crawl slightly. Laney closed

his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, discovering a faint trace of pain residing there from the break. He opened his eyes. "But I never got up to anything."

"Whatever." Rydell sounded slightly hurt. "I just thought you ought to know, is all."

Something was definitely happening to that facade. "I know. Thanks. Sorry."

"I'll let you know if I hear anything," Rydell said. "What's it like over there, anyway?"

Laney was watching a point of reflected light slide across the distant structure, a movement like osmosis or the sequential contraction of some sea creature's palps. "It's strange."

"Bet it's interesting," Rydell said. "Enjoy your breakfast, okay? I'll keep in touch."

"Thanks," Laney said, and Rydell hung up.

Laney put the phone back on the lacquer tray and stretched out on the bed, fully clothed. He closed his eyes, not wanting to see the new buildings. But they were still there, in the darkness and the light behind his lids. And as he watched, they slid apart, deliquesced, and trickled away, down into the mazes of an older city.

He slid down with them.

12. Mitsuko Cliia used a public dataport in the deepest level of the station. The Sandbenders sent the number they'd given her for Mitsuko Mimura, the Tokyo chapter's "social secretary" (everyone in Tokyo chapter seemed to have a formal t.i.tle). A girl's sleepy voice in j.a.panese from the Sandbenders'

speakers. The translation followed instantly:

"h.e.l.lo? Yes? May I help you?"

"It's Chia McKenzie, from Seattle."

"You are still in Seattle?"

"I'm here. In Tokyo." She upped the scale on the Sandbenders' map. "In a subway station called

s.h.i.+njuku."

"Yes. Very good. Are you coming here now?"

"I'd sure like to. I'm really tired."

The voice began to explain the route.

"It's okay," Chia said, "my computer can do it. Just tell me the station I have to get to." She

found it on the map, set a marker. "How long will it take to get there?"

"Twenty to thirty minutes, depending on how crowded the trains are. I will meet you there."

"You don't have to do that," Chia said. "Just give me your address."

"j.a.panese addresses are difficult."

"It's okay," Chia said, "I've got global positioning." The Sandbenders, working the Tokyo telco,

was already showing her Mitsuko Mimura's lat.i.tude and longitude. In Seattle, that only worked for business numbers.

85.

No," Mitsuko said, "I must greet you. Jam the social secretary.'

Thanks," Chia said. "I'm on my way.'

With her bag over her shoulder, left partly unzipped so she could follow the Sandbenders' verbal prompts, Chia rode an escalator up, two levels, bought a ticket with her cashcard, and found her platform. It was really crowded, as crowded as the airport, but when the train came she let the crowd pick her up and squash her into the nearest car; it would've been harder not to get on.

As they pulled out, she heard the Sandbenders announce that they were leaving s.h.i.+njuku station.

The sky was like mother-of-pearl when Chia emerged from the station. Gray buildings, pastel neon, a streetscape dotted with vaguely unfamiliar shapes. Dozens of bicycles were parked everywhere, the fragile-looking kind with paper-tube frames spun with carbon fiber. Chia took a step back as an enormous turquoise garbage truck rumbled past, its driver's white-gloved hands visible on the high wheel. As it cleared her held of vision, she saw a j.a.panese girl wearing a short plaid skirt and black biker jacket. The girl smiled. Chia waved.

Mitsuko's second-floor room was above the rear of her father's restaurant. Chia could hear a steady thumping sound from below, and Mitsuko explained that that was a food-prep robot that chopped and sliced things.

The room was smaller than Chia's bedroom in Seattle, but much cleaner, very near and organized. So was Mitsuko, who had a razor-edged coppery diagonal bleached into her black bangs, and wore sneakers with double soles. She was thirteen, a year younger than Chia.

Mitsuko had introduced Chia to her father, who wore a white, short-sleeved s.h.i.+rt, a tie, and was supervising three white-gloved men in blue coveralls, who were cleaning his restaurant with great 86 WUII;,n, Gibson energy and determination, Mitsuko's father had nodded, smiled, said something in j.a.panese, and gone back to what he was doing. On their way upstairs, Mitsuko, who didn't speak much English, told Chia that she'd told her father that Chia was part of some cultural-exchange program, short- term homestay, something to do with her school.

Mitsuko had the same poster on her wall, the original cover shot from the Dog Soup alb.u.m.

Mitsuko went downstairs, returning with a pot of tea and a covered, segmented box that contained a California roll and an a.s.sortment of less familiar things. Grateful for the familiarity of the California roll, Chia ate everything except the one with the orange sea-urchin goo on top. Mirsuko complimented her on her skill with chopsticks. Chia said she was from Seattle and people there used chopsticks a lot.

Now they were both wearing wireless ear-clip headsets. The translation was generally glitch-free, except when Mitsuko used j.a.panese slang that was too new, or when she inserted English words that she knew but couldnt p.r.o.nounce.

Chia wanted to ask her about Rez and the idoru, but they kept getting onto other things. Then Chia fell asleep, sitting up cross-legged on the floor, and Mitsuko must have managed to roll her onto a hard little futon-thing that she'd unfolded from somewhere, because that was where Chia woke up, three hours later.

A rainy silver light was at the room's narrow window.

Mitsuko appeared with another pot of tea, and said something in j.a.panese. Chia found her ear-clip and put it on.

"You must have been exhausted," the ear-clip translated. Then Mitsuko said she was taking the day off from school, to be with Chia.

They drank the nearly colorless tea from little nubbly ceramic cups. Mitsuko explained that she lived here with her father, her mother, and a brother, Masahikth Her mother was away, visiting a 0

2.

87.

relative in Kyoto. Mitsuko said that Kyoto was very beautiful, and that Chia should go there.

"I'm here for my chapter," Chia said. "I can't do tourist things. I have things to find out."

'1 understand," Mitsuko said.

"So is it true? Does Rez really want to marry a software agent?"

Mirsuko looked uncomfortable. "I am the social secretary," she said. "You must first discuss this with Hiromi Ogawa."

"Who's she?'

"Hiromi is the president of our chapter."

"Fine," Chia said. "When do I talk to her?"

"We are erecting a site for the discussion, It will be ready soon." Mitsuko still looked uncomfortable.

Chia decided to change the subject. "What's your brother like? How old is he?"

"Masahiko is seventeen," Mitsuko said. "He is a 'pathologicaltechno-.fetis.h.i.+st-with-social- deflcit,'" this last all strung together like one word, indicating a concept that taxed the

lexicon of the ear-clips. Chia wondered briefly if it would be worth running it through her Sandbenders, whose translation functions updated automatically whenever she ported.