“I think we all feel that way. Let’s work quickly and be on our way.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Private Eyes
“How are we going to find our contact?” Harmony asked.
“Why don’t we do as one of the locals?” Yuki suggested as she did a quick search and held up her laptop so the Crew could see. A spartan web-page showed the contact information for the nearest private investigator, who went simply by ‘Shamus.’
“Not very impressive, is it?” Anastasia asked, scrunching her nose.
“I kind of like it. Not too flashy, maybe he’s no-nonsense, get to the point. Usually if you have to brag, you’re compensating for something.” Darik leaned in close to read the text. “Says he specializes in surveillance, background, and missing persons. Over twenty-five years’ experience. Could be just what we are looking for.”
“I agree. If he’s good at finding people who don’t necessarily want to be found, that will save us a lot of time and legwork. Can you set up the appointment, Yuki?” Tempest asked then gathered Aurora, Grimdark, Prime, and Gus over to him. She threw him a big thumbs up and got typing.
“We probably don’t need all of us to go in here, but I would like someone to keep watch outside while I meet with him. We need to be discreet.”
Grimdark raised a hand solemnly and folded his arms in front of him.
“Thank you. Prime, how are you feeling? We won’t absolutely need you; did you want to stay onboard?” A quiet nod in response and preparations were done.
Aurora showed them the supply closet she had used earlier and they all put on coveralls that hid their conspicuous suits. While the shrouds would hide their Nth signature, they were unreliable as far as visually changing one’s appearance. Best to have the greatest margin of protection.
“Let’s double check everyone’s shrouds and get ready to go,” Yuki said while still typing, eyes never leaving her screen.
Yuki scanned and analyzed everything, and determined that it was all functioning as it should, calibrating the shroud to their new outfits. Seneschal notified them that they were at Shamus Investigations as they set down on a landing plate that served this district.
They walked down to the cargo bay, and Gus noticed the jet-sky vehicles stored in recesses. Closed chutes yawned underneath them, hinting they could be used for rapid deployment. His hand traced one as they waited for the gangway to drop.
They exited onto a paved lot wet with condensation. Contrails of fog spun in little vortexes as different vehicles zipped by in this more remote area. The area was fairly foggy, and Gus inhaled the moist air. A stairwell led down off the lot and snaked around the sides of buildings.
After a couple turns, they arrived at a humble office, with a simple LED sign proclaiming Shamus Investigations. Nodding to Grimdark, the team entered the small office while Grimdark stood watch on the landing.
Tempest brushed some water off of his shoulder as he stepped inside the tiny waiting room. A hologram of an attractive woman with coiffed hair meticulously stacked atop her head materialized in front of them.
“Good evening, I am Eliza. Mr. Shamus will be with you shortly, please wait here.”
After a brief pause, the metal door separating the small entryway from the rest of the office slid into the ceiling and the group entered. Gus slid a bit, barely catching himself from falling on the smooth floor. Something dark stained the tiles, streaking away from where he stood.
Was that blood? Or motor oil? Maybe even something I stepped in on the way over here?
“You okay?” Aurora asked as Gus recovered from his awkward ‘Twister’ pose. Gus nodded as Eliza reappeared and gestured to a door on the far side of the room. As they walked in, a chime rang and Shamus turned around in a large chair. Gus started as he saw the heavily augmented man who at the moment was missing his left arm down from the elbow. The investigator’s expression darkened when he saw the group.
“You gotta be kidding me. No way. I should report you right now,” Shamus growled, his dark expression replaced with one of outright hostility.
“What are you talking about—” Tempest began to protest.
“You three are supers—clear as day. If you didn’t get the memo, you are not welcome here in Hinansho. I’ve already had enough trouble today, and I don’t need any more drama. This,” he waved a dismissive hand at them, “looks like a whole ball of drama I don’t want any part of.” The augment twisted, ready to spin his chair around and terminate the conversation.
“We can make it worth your while,” Tempest countered.
“How does he know?” Gus whispered to Aurora.
“We can make it worth your while,” the older super said again, stepping forward boldly, encouraged that his offer had obviously caught the man’s attention.
“Unless you can get me a new arm, I’m afraid I’m not interested.” A smug smile settled over the man’s face as he leaned forward, challenging Tempest to meet his offer.
“Done. Now if we can discuss the details—”
“Hold on. I’m not talking about just any arm. I’m talking about a Serif 800-XT with full sync and specs.” With this revelation, he leaned back his chair. He tried to fold his arms in defiance but missing one made the gesture look odd as he fumbled a bit until he finally settled his lone arm on the chair’s armrest.
“Like I said, done.”
“And I want it integrated before I start.” His voice adopted an even colder tone as he dropped the ultimatum.
“Now I believe we are being more than reasonable, Mr. Shamus. We will get you fitted, but I will keep the spec key until the job is done. Contrary to what you think, I know the value of that hardware, and how likely you are to have anyone as willing to provide it to you for such a simple request as we have.”
“I’ll be the judge of just how simple your task is,” the investigator spat. Gus could tell his father had overcome the man’s main objections and it was now a matter of ironing out the details.
“What time frame are we talking about here for this ‘simple’ little task of yours, super?”
“As soon as humanly possible,” Tempest stated and Gus winced. Inhuman was the equivalent of a racial slur to those with augments, and his turn of phrase could easily be interpreted as offensive.
“That is to say, speed is of the essence. We are on a contract and competing against others to deliver something as soon as possible. Your discretion and promptness will be appreciated. Let me contact my people, and find out how soon we can get what you need.” Tempest gathered Gus and Aurora close as he opened a comm to the ship as Shamus turned to a console on his desk.
“Yuki, tell me you can get a Serif 800-XT,” Tempest whispered urgently.
“Here? I’m sure they have them. These guys know their encryption though, so it’s not like security in the Factions. These guys have taken cybersecurity to a whole new level.”
“Work your magic, I trust you.”
Gus peeked back at the mechanical man who waved with his remaining hand, a broad smile on his face that was disconcerting. After Tempest had finished speaking with Yuki, they all turned to face Shamus again.
“So why don’t you tell me what you have in mind? I still haven’t totally committed to whatever fiasco you guys have cooked up. First of all, how did you even find me?”
“To be brutally honest, you were the closest private investigator when we did the search.”
At first, he seemed pleased, then suddenly angry. Was this guy the best for the job? Seems a touch unstable… Gus thought.
“We need to find someone, specifically the headquarters for the Aslan clan. We need to find them quickly and without them knowing we’re looking. Can you handle that?”
“And I suspect you want me to break in and retrieve something, I’m assuming?”
“No, just the location. We can handle the rest,” Tempest urged, trying to make the job seem as simple as possible.
Shamus leaned forward and stared, squinti
ng his eyes as if probing their souls.
“You know what could happen to me if the clans got wind that I was spilling their secrets, don’t you?”
Aurora’s jaw muscles twitched as she tried to restrain herself.
“We are counting on your discretion. Both for us and for yourself. If this is out of your skill set, let us know and we will be on our way,” Aurora spat, turning to go.
“I didn’t say that.” He held up his remaining hand as Aurora sighed and turned back to look at him. “I just want you to know what it is you’re really asking me to do.”
“We do. And compared to what you’re asking, I believe it’s a more than equitable exchange, wouldn’t you agree?” Aurora pressed.
He laughed and nodded. “Okay, you got a deal. I’ll need some time though. Meet me in two hours and give me your contact,” he conceded. Tempest slid his info to the investigator.
“We’ll be in touch,” he said, and lost interest in them, turning to the console on his desk and typing.
The group looked at each other and took this to mean that the interview was over. They filed out and Tempest jumped on the comm again and began working some of the details out with Yuki.
“That went better than expected?” Aurora asked, her voice tentative.
“It could have been worse. He didn’t balk at the ask though, which was good. I think he can deliver, which will save us time. Like us, the others will have to find the clan headquarters before they can deal, so this should maintain our lead,” Tempest said, pushing outside of the office and into the rain.
A siren barked to life, accompanied with flashing blue and red lights. The group froze in panic as bright headlights targeted them. The vehicle approached, siren getting louder as they braced for the worst. Frozen in place, the enforcer or whatever the equivalent was in Hinansho turned and sped off down another alley. The siren wail waned as it drifted in the distance.
“Hells to the bells, that sucked!” Gus gasped.
They had an uneasy laugh as they made their way back to the ship.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Ghetto Blastah
“Are you sure you can hack in? These are big players and you don’t know this system,” Tempest asked Yuki.
Yuki inwardly groaned.
Why is everyone always underestimating me? Have I ever failed to deliver when it comes to this? He said he trusted me, was that just lip service? She shook off the irritation and replied simply, “I’ll be fine, trust me.”
Tempest looked skeptical, but nodded anyways.
“I’ve calculated the ideal time for the mission and based on traffic patterns and shift cycling, there will be the least activity in the area around Serif in one hour and seven minutes. That’s when we should make our attempt,” Yuki advised, touching her forehead then her wrist so everyone would sync their displays.
“I’ll form the distraction and we will get Yuki, Gus, and Aurora inside,” Tempest said. “You two will need to steal something of value and then flee with me, drawing the sentries away. Yuki, how are you going to get past internal security?”
“Serif is fully automated at the location we will be hitting. The entire operation is automated. Only robots making augment parts; there are no human workers or even supervisors there. Access ports exist in case systems need to be updated, however. At the very least, there will be pressure plates, thermal detection, cameras, and motion detectors. Sentries all can fly and will have multiple armaments. You will need to take them seriously—they’re deadly.” Yuki eyed Gus and Aurora.
“As for me, I’ll need to find some way of overcoming those security challenges in a little over an hour, so no pressure, right?”
Prime stepped forward, approaching the small group.
“Sorry to insert myself in the conversation, but I think I can help with Yuki’s part of the plan.”
Yuki’s face visibly calmed as her eyes widened with hope.
“She could borrow one of my stealth suits. It might be a little big on you, but it should work out perfectly. Active camouflage technology and wall-walking. Completely thermally shielded with wave-dampening technology.”
“Um, yes please!” Yuki exulted. “Do you guys need me for anything else?” When no one had anything else to offer, Yuki followed the demure Prime. The spartan quarters showed no real decorations or pictures, just a closet full of four suits.
“Try this one,” Prime pulled out a suit at the far end of the closet. “It’s the smallest one I have.”
Yuki grabbed it and, uncertain about undressing in front of Prime, slipped into the small bathroom by the cabin.
No one knows if Prime’s a dude or not, so better to not make it weird. The pants were extremely stretchy but felt like they were made of a breathable vinyl or leather. As she put on the upper portion of the suit, there was a jacket-like portion embedded with all sorts of electronics on the internal surface, totally hidden by the hard armor on the exterior.
She was only able to get it partially on, so had to have Prime help her attach and adjust everything. Once it was all in place, Yuki did some deep stretches and practiced some kicks. The material was extremely supple, and remained silent as it stretched with her various movements.
“This is how you turn on the stealth functions.” Prime showed her a set of ridges along the right side of the chest-plate. As Yuki depressed them, a quick-button populated her display with each of the features. Active camouflage, wave dampener, gravimetrics.
“Aw, yeah! How does this work?” Yuki asked, activating gravimetrics. Her feet felt suddenly heavier, as if mired in mud, and she had to exert herself to lift her legs.
“You can refine that to a degree. You still need to have a base support to manage your body weight. Try it out here.” Prime grabbed the mattress of her small bed and slid it onto the ground.
Tentatively, Yuki gingerly stepped onto the wall; the mired suction feeling grabbed the wall. She had a couple of false starts, as her brain refused to lift her supporting leg off of the floor.
“You’ve just got to commit. Trust me, you won’t need the mattress, but it helps your brain let go for the first couple of times,” Prime encouraged.
Yuki stepped and flung her arms out to catch herself if she fell, but there she was, hanging on the wall. The suit was stiff from a tiny bit above her knee, reminding her of snowboarding.
“Now straighten up,” Prime directed, and as Yuki stood horizontally on the wall, the suit somehow compensated, supporting her and reducing how gravity pulled her upper torso to the ground. Blood didn’t appear to be affected, so hanging upside down would be trickier.
“I wish I had more time to get used to this. It definitely has a learning curve.”
“You also have to be careful what you step on. Most walls are sheet-rock, which will not support you; you’ll rip a chunk out and still be attached to that piece as you fall to the ground. For the same reason, avoid ceilings. Here, let me toggle this…” Prime reached to the helmet and tapped the side, moving fingers as if sliding bars up and down on the cheek of the mirrored helmet.
“That should do it. Okay, I’m going to let you borrow the helmet too, but it’s the only one I have. Since I like my anonymity, I’m going to hand it to you outside the door and stay in my cabin until you get back. I’m trusting you, Yuki. If you lose this helmet, I do not have another. Got it?”
Yuki nodded gravely, vowing to herself to be careful.
“Practice a little bit. The suit learns your mannerisms and movements the longer you use it. I’d practice until you have to go.”
Yuki walked around, noticing how she had to swing her weight side to side as she took a step. The suit almost felt like it was pulling up on her “ceiling side” and solidifying on the “floor side” as one leg disengaged from the wall. She felt like Frankenstein as she clumsily tried to move around, but Prime was right, she never fell. As Yuki stepped to the floor again, there was a brief moment of vertigo as her world reset to normal and she deactivated the
gravimetrics.
“That is trippy!” Yuki said, eyes wide as she laughed.
“You kind of get to love it,” Prime admitted, laughing a bit as well. “Don’t go messing with any settings—I calibrated it so it’s as close to autopilot as I can make it. Let me know when you’re ready and I’ll hand the helmet out to you.”
Checking her internal display, they only had thirty-eight minutes left.
“Now or never, I guess. Thanks again.”
Prime nodded as Yuki slipped out the door, holding it almost closed. A hiss sounded and then there was a slight tap on her fingers. Prime passed the helmet out, and Yuki heard Prime’s actual voice for the first time, instead of the digital filter everyone associated with the super.
“Sorry, it’s probably a mess. I never take it off unless I’m alone. You may want to clean it before putting it on,” a soft voice replied. Prime was female. Unequivocally. Yuki stood there processing the revelation as the door clicked closed.
The group of supers slid down the chutes, bouncing as their transports engaged and began hovering. The jet-skies were really called “Psiycles,” since they hovered utilizing some technology that used psi-waves to somehow interact with gravity and weak attraction and repulsion forces to stay aloft. Gus preferred the term “jet-sky” more.
Yuki held onto Tempest, riding double as the three psiycles bobbed as they slid out of the transport, which sped off to await them at the rendezvous point.
Tempest raised one fist upward as they all slowed their bikes, a deep fog forming and becoming ever denser. Pulling in moisture, Tempest thickened the cloud that masked their approach as Yuki readied herself.
They pulled up to the landing and she activated Hack as Tempest maintained the psiycle hovering by the login panel. Since the process was totally automated, she spoofed a delivery request and probed for the appropriate protocol markers while searching for upcoming manifests and deliveries that the facility was expecting.
Unity Page 17