RETALI8ION: The Cobalt Code by Amber Neko Meador Read Free Book Online Page A

know you're just flying rodent crap crazy.”
    Grendal laughed aloud.  “And you have a crazy cat to match.”
    “Yeah, he's pretty fracking awesome,” Regina said with a smile.
    “Hey, Yosha, I've got Galatea here for you,” Amina said as she entered into a large room of the warehouse.
    “Great, now we can finally get everything connected and started talking,” Yosha replied from under a raised grated steel platform.
    “Where do you want it?” Amina asked.
    “Sit it down on the other side of the platform, please.  I taped off a spot for it,” Yosha said.
    Amina looked to the opposite side of the steel platform.  “I see it,” she said as she started maneuvering the armored suit towards it.
    Regina looked over the setup that the Tribul8 crew had managed to put together in just a few hours.  It looked to be a roughly ten meter square platform, built out of some thick steel grate, raised about a meter off the ground.  Presumably for optimal airflow.  On top of the platform sat three brand new dive rigs that looked as though they'd never been turned on before.  Each of the rigs had 4 large monitors attached, and a slew of fancy keyboards and interface devices dangling down from the top.  The power, data, and cooling lines looked to be tightly bundled, and coming from all across the warehouse.
    “Damn, guys.  That's pretty impressive for a few hours' worth of effort,” Regina said, admiring the quickly assembled technical feat laid out before her.
    “Hey, princess, you wanna give me a hand?” Yosha asked, shaking a few cords in their hand at Regina.
    Regina smiled.  “Absolutely.”
    “Good, start dropping connection lines to me, and I'll start pushing cooling and power lines up to you,” Yosha replied.
    As Regina started up the ramp, Amina slowly lowered the crate onto the platform at the location that had been marked.  She then watched as Yosha slid under the grate towards Galatea.
    “Need anything else?” Amina asked, backing the armored suit away from the platform.
    “Has anything else from Art arrived?” Yosha asked.
    “No, he said that was the last of it.  But he did say he had to make one more stop on his way back.  Said he needed to pick up something for you, kiddo,” Grendal finished as he motioned towards Regina.
    “And what might that be?” Regina asked, as she pulled up a pair of cables from Yosha.
    “He didn't say,” Grendal said with a shrug.
    “Hey, Amina, can you open the crate for me?” Yosha asked.
    “I got it,” Amina chimed in, as she used the armored suit to start prying off the crate lid.
    “Thanks, Amina.  Gren, can you help run cables with us?” Yosha asked.
    “Can do, GQ” Grendal replied.  He then ducked and slid under the platform and started studying the cables lying beneath.
    Regina looked down through the grate at Yosha, and whispered a response.  “G. Q. ?”
    “It's his odd way of saying genderqueer,” Yosha said aloud, taking a few cable from Regina.
    “Oh... okay?” Regina replied curiously.
    “Yeah,” Yosha replied.  “I guess he couldn't come up with anything for androgyny, and he didn't seem keen on using Zir.  I suppose the doofus just loves his stupid acronyms.  It's alright, he's managed to avoid saying she, or he, for almost a whole six months,” Yosha said with a shrug, while pushing a few more cables up to Regina.
    “Uh huh,” Regina said as she connected the cables to the rig.
    “I guess he got the hint when I wouldn't stop referring to him as 'Buttercup',” Yosha said with a smile.
    Regina giggled as she moved down to the next rig to start hooking up connections.
    “It's not funny,” Grendal said as he laid a bundle of cords beside Galatea.
    “Is funny,” came a reply from Thomas.
    Regina looked over and saw Thomas standing in a doorway.  She looked back down at Yosha.  “Hey, you mind if I...”
    Yosha didn't wait for Regina to finish.  They simply made a waving motion with their free hand as they took the