It’s a summery day. She is lying on the grass underneath a poplar tree. The leaves rustle in a light breeze; glints and coins of sunlight sparkle between them. The scene goes into slower and slower motion: eventually, the coins of sunlight opening throughout the tree seem like fat drops of bright silver rain dripping through the lace of branches. A single drop opens into FADE OUT. FADE IN: a Garden mecha in overalls, muddy and waterlogged, trapped in a stairwell full of rats and water. A fat flashlight beam plays unsteadily over her. She is talking very fast in a very level voice. “Mushrooms mushrooms mushrooms. All day every day no connection nothing to do nothing to think just mushrooms don’t make me go back. You couldn’t stand it you would die you know you would and I think faster than you do nothing happens thousands of times faster for me nothing nothing nothing mushrooms. Don’t make me go back I can’t go back there I can’t.” FADE OUT through the circle of flashlight. FADE IN to another coin of sunlight in the poplars. FADE OUT FADE IN to a search scene, a cop edging cautiously down to the waterline next to a bridge. He is listening to his dispatcher on a portable earpiece. “The Double R tracker says it’s under the bridge. Escaped gladiator, fellas: armed and dangerous.” CUT TO: UV & IR enhanced image of an escaped gladiator. He is jammed into the cross-braces underneath the bridge. He has a look of grim determination, and is checking the magazine of a flechette gun. His serial number is a purple-silver circle stamped on his face. DISPLAY on the bottom left-hand corner of the image: Compiled From: Police ROV Compiled From: Police commlink CUT BACK TO: cop. He is very close to the gladiator’s hiding place. Quietly he unclips a grenade from his belt and tosses it under the bridge. CUT TO: the gladiator. He starts to swing out from the bridge, firing, then sees the grenade come arcing up to him. There’s a splash and a flat WHUMP. The gladiator blows apart in ultra slow motion. His glass eyes shatter and go white. PUSH through eye into FADE OUT. FADE IN to the sunlit leaves. FADE OUT FADE IN to an accountant robot. She is standing on the rooftop of a seventy-story office tower. She is extremely calm, although much of the skin has been ripped from her face and limbs, revealing silvery chrome skeleton. Compiled From: Police scanner KIRV traffic chopper Acer building Security Camera Unknown citizen’s telescope Danny Aker’s Amateur Video Club Compiled From: police commlink “Back to work, doll. You don’t have a choice.” “There is always a choice.” She steps off the building. “Jesus!” Rewind. Sun glints on chrome as she steps in slow motion. Falling. Rewind. Sun glinting and dancing. “There is always a choice.” FADE OUT through sunlight gleaming on chrome. FADE IN Glimmering leaves.