He had only felt like he had turned the corner six months ago, and things were finally coming together. Years of pushing the flywheel, not seeing any movement or rewards. Then this. He looked at the input prong at the base of his missing arm, twisting it and staring at the tiny blue lights pulsing all along the plate at its base, studded with inputs.
He mentally flexed his missing arm into a fist, gritting his teeth. He pulled up the picture from his internal feed and froze it on his display. A tattoo on the inner wrist of one of his attackers. He knew he had seen it before, and could have easily pulled up and compared it to his history if they hadn’t taken his stacks. Without those organic memory storage devices, he had lost an enormous amount of his hard-earned abilities.
You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.
The memory he sought hovered at the back of his mind like an irritating cough. Ever-present but nothing would calm its incessant tickle. He had seen this tattoo somewhere before, but where?
It was the only thread he had for solving Scarlett’s case. That’s not why he wanted to find out though. He would figure out who was behind this and they would have a reckoning. There were some unsaid rules in Hinansho, and poachers and scavengers were among the lowest of the low. This was supposed to be a sanctuary, and those who attacked their own deserved no quarter here.
A tone sounded and Eliza materialized, breaking his reverie.
“You have a delivery.”
“From who? I’m not expecting anything—”
“It is from Serif Industries. I believe you were expecting something…”
Shamus sprang to his feet and scrambled out the door. He slammed the button to open the inner waiting room and there it was. A large box with the black and gold Serif logo. Grasping the handle on the side, he pulled the package inside and closed off the entryway, locking it.
He quickly grabbed a knife from his workbench and sliced the seal with reverence. He pulled apart the flaps, removing contoured foam revealing two large cases that could have held electric guitars. Long and rectangular, the cases gave no hint of what lay inside to an outside observer.
Shamus eyed the cases suspiciously.
Two? What’s going on with this?
He removed the slightly wider case and unbuckled the four catches on the sides.
With a hiss, it opened. The distinct smell of polyfoam and machine oil wafted into the air. Shamus took it in like a bouquet of fine wine. His eyes started when they saw the contents. He initiated a full run-down scan and his processors digitally analyzed the arm that lay inside. It was unlike anything he had ever seen, and his display spooled out the analysis, forming a three-dimensional image floating above the arm, some sections disassembling and reassembling to show internal features and configurations.
Looking at the breakdowns, he had to refocus a couple of times to make certain he was reading the specs correctly. Advanced kinematics, predictive algorithms directly embedded, and dynamic nano interface capability, among other features, each more stunning than the next. He could find no serial number or product name, but it was obviously a Serif design. He had thought he had the top of the line before the incident, but this was a whole new level of sophistication and design.
He lifted the arm reverently from its polyfoam housing, staring at the limb with awe as he admired its heft. It felt solid, but lighter than the 800 models, almost half of the weight. A data window expanded as he focused on it, showing a reinforced nanotride housing protecting the intricate machinery within.
Another window enlarged, illustrating the arm’s own self-repairing mechanism via an internal nanobot reservoir. That was new. It would save him so much time tinkering and working when something was damaged.
With awe, he clicked the arm in place and felt the brief discomfort as the calibration and synchronization process started. Tiny fibers snaked out and connected with the baseplate, directly wired to nerves unused since his arm was taken and his brain perceived a variety of sensations as the arm went through its protocol, most of them intense and unpleasurable.
When the arm had finally synced, he felt a wave of pleasure as the refractory endorphin hit sank in, mollifying the intensity of sensation, allowing him to better tolerate the procedure. His tension eased as the endorphins smoothed out the transition.
He flexed, opening and closing his fist in front of him, admiring the pure artistry that had gone into this magnificent piece of tech.
Those supers have really outdone themselves. I guess I am giving them that little bonus…
As if on cue, the pleasant wind chime tone indicating someone was at the door sounded. Shamus closed the case, slid the package under a nearby table and sat down at his desk, attempting to be busy and preoccupied.
Eliza appeared and confirmed that it was indeed the supers, so he allowed her to open the door, and tried to appear as nonchalant as possible. The three came in, the younger man looking disheveled, his hair whipped at crazy angles, as if he had just come out of a bar fight. Shamus noted that the girl and older man kept their usual poise and calm demeanor.
“I see you received our gifts,” Tempest said cordially, nodding towards the new arm.
“Indeed. And I have found the information you were needing as well. Here are the schedules you wanted. They’re only accurate for the first couple of pages, usually because of changes in the deliveries and arrival times. I’d recommend acting as soon as you can. That’s in restricted hybrid territory, and I’m in no shape to travel there as I am. Your best bet is to go to one of the delivery points and follow the courier to their destination,” Shamus said in a smooth, even tone. This was business, and he didn’t want to show these supers any advantage with the magnitude of their gift. Chances were they didn’t know what they had done.
“That’s it?” Aurora spat. “You’re not even going to take us there?”
Tempest raised his hand to calm her. “It’s okay, Aurora, we can take it from here. The nav-points are all in here, I assume?”
Shamus nodded to Tempest. “Of course, I’m a professional. I usually would take you there, but certain circumstances have occurred recently that, well, let’s just say I’m not at my best.”
Tempest nodded knowingly and scooped up the folder, gesturing to his companions that it was time to go.
“Oh, one more thing. You’ll want to use this.” Shamus tossed a small USB device to Gus before he could turn and leave.
“What is it?”
“It lets you hide your position and access to the local network using a spoofing protocol. We don’t use the satellite network you outsiders are so fond of, on account of all the storms.” He twirled a finger overhead as he leaned back in his chair, feet up on the desk. “Our system is cobbled together, but it gives us a similar level of connectivity, although to communicate with the outside world, you need to visit a kiosk.”
The group looked confused, so Shamus elaborated.
“When you piggyback unprotected on a local network, they can see and hear everything you’re doing. You need to scramble that kak, especially if you want to keep your conversations private. You’ve been jumping from network to network to communicate—not the best idea in Hinansho.”
The wind-blown super thanked him and Shamus just tipped his hat.
After they were gone, Shamus had Eliza lock the doors again and once again began to stare lovingly at the new arm.
I’m back.
A glint formed in his eye as he mapped out his plan to get back what had been taken from him.
Chapter Thirty-Four
In My Foreign
As the three supers entered the dilapidated transport ship, Yuki bounced up with a big grin on her face.
“Good news. To better blend in, I GTA’d you a vehicle, and one advantage is that it is shielded so no one can peek inside. That means I can be your wheel-man!”
“When you say you—” Tempest asked archly, before he was cut off.
“Don’t worry, boss, I guess I exaggerated
a bit. It was all aboveboard. We’re renting it, but under an alias, and we’re using one of the Faction’s scrubbed accounts. No worries.”
Tempest just raised a skeptical eyebrow and she stared right back, mouth screwed up in a mix of a pout and a snarl. When she didn’t back down, Tempest dropped his stern expression.
“Okay, I believe you. Given your talents, I’m impressed you had the restraint to do things by the book this time. The last thing we need to do is call any undue attention upon us. So what did you get?”
Yuki checked her display and smiled a Cheshire grin.
“Should be delivered by autopilot any second now,” she said, strutting to the window and grinning.
“Whatcha think?” She bumped one hip out and presented the window like she was a game-show hostess.
Gus peered through a window and saw a sleek ebony vehicle that was all sharp lines and angles. It looked as if it had been carved out of an immense shard of obsidian. It bobbed in the air, having reached its delivery coordinates, menacing like a feral animal as it awaited activation.
“So where are we going next?” Yuki asked.
“We need to track someone to the Aslan clan’s current headquarters, and we do that by following a courier,” Gus said distractedly as he gazed out the window.
“This is perfect, then. It also has external stealth features, as well as internal. It’s diplomatic grade, so it can take some damage and become practically invisible if needed. Primarily, it’s for escape when attacked, but it could easily follow someone undetected, especially if they aren’t wise to us. What are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Yuki cheered and slid open the gangway.
“Can we all fit in that?” Gus asked skeptically as they approached.
“Just watch…” Yuki said over her shoulder and her right hand danced over her holo-keypad on her left forearm.
The vehicle began to move, sections sliding across each other, rasping like sharpening knives.
Somehow it managed to maintain a menacing appearance, but now it was more the size of a minivan instead of a sports car.
“After you.” Yuki gestured in a mock bow as Tempest, Gus, Aurora, Prime, and Grimdark piled inside. Closing the door behind them, she slid into the pointed cone that formed the front of the vehicle.
“If you wouldn’t mind sliding me those coordinates, gov’nuh,” Yuki asked in a cheesy British accent. Tempest made a sliding motion, and a series of nav-points showed up on the console in front of Yuki. She selected one and the vehicle sprang to life, silent as a jungle cat.
Gus was sitting next to Prime, and they were becoming more agitated as they approached the nav-point.
“Everything okay?” At first, he thought Prime must have not heard him.
Well, I do have a bad habit of mumbling.
He tried again, “Prime, are you okay?”
Gus saw his reflection in the mirrored helmet as the super looked his way.
“Hinansho is full of bad memories for me…” Prime said in a flat electronic tone. They turned to look out the window. “…but you don’t need to worry about me.”
Despite the filtered and modified voice, he could sense the melancholy behind the words. He knew the Oracle said that Prime had a key for him, but how would he ever be able to learn what it was if Prime remained so aloof? And finding out exactly what it was would just add to the challenge. Perhaps this mission would give him some hints.
“Let’s rock!” Yuki exulted and hit the accelerator without warning. Gus’ head slammed into his seat and he pressed into Prime and Grimdark as they took turns at breakneck speed. Yuki was obviously familiar with navigating sky-ways and weaved effortlessly through the burgeoning traffic. More quickly than expected, they arrived near the pickup location. Yuki found a nearby vantage point and backed their vehicle to be less conspicuous. There was a shudder as it anchored itself to the brick building behind them and the engine powered down. The lights dimmed and Yuki activated the stealth feature. There was a shimmer as the outer hull mimicked the wall upon which it rested, aided by the shadows and wisps of mist.
“Now we wait. I’ve always wanted to do a stakeout,” Yuki said excitedly.
“You won’t after this one,” Aurora countered, knowing full well how boring they could be. Especially without snacks or a reasonable diversion that didn’t distract too much.
“According to the schedule, we shouldn’t have to wait long,” Tempest reminded them. “Less than half an hour if they’re on time.”
“Perhaps we should remain quiet, to be less detectable when they arrive,” Grimdark added ominously.
“Don’t worry about that. This baby is sonically shielded too, so no one can listen in on us. Nothing but the best for my Crew!”
“What kind of vehicle is this, Yuki? I’ve never seen anything like it,” Gus asked.
“They’re not common in the United Commonwealth, and they’re super expensive to own. This is a Seek 2000 in Ebony. I fell in love with it as soon as I found it was available. Apparently, no one wants to rent them because the price is too prohibitive. Purple Faction has deep pockets, and I know how to invoice so we won’t get any flak from the higher ups. We need an edge. But it would be best if the leadership did not know we were ever here in Hinansho.” She looked over her shoulder at Tempest for confirmation and he nodded.
“It’s worth it,” Tempest said simply. Then a prolonged period of silence followed as everyone stared at the loading dock across the sky-way, lost in their thoughts.
A soft buzz came from Prime after a couple of minutes. Turning to look, Gus saw Prime’s helmet leaning against the window—was that a snore? Waving a hand in front of their helmet and gently asking if they were awake, he got no response.
If there was one thing that made Gus antsy, it was waiting around for an indeterminate time for something to happen. Especially when it was someone coming to pick him up ‘around’ a certain time, and he didn’t have any time to get started on something only to have to leave at the drop of a hat. Gus appeared to be the only one disturbed by the quiet, and his mind looked for any distraction.
Maybe if I use Telepathy on Prime, I can find at least some common ground, Gus thought. A few more minutes of silence convinced him to try to level the skill a tiny bit more.
He activated Telepathy and stared at Prime, wondering if their helmet and suit would shield them from his attempts. It was slightly more difficult, and he had to concentrate more, but he found his sight resolving into new surroundings. His sight was blurry and sounds were muffled for a brief time until everything came into focus.
Prime was talking with someone on holo-chat, a young girl, around ten years of age.
“Daddy says we have to keep it short,” the girl said sheepishly.
“You forget what he says. I barely get to see you as it is!” Gus felt himself saying. He felt his fists tighten and his heart rate spike; it was an odd feeling experiencing the anger but being detached at the same time.
“Okay, Mommy.”
“So how is school? Anyone giving you a hard time?”
“No. I don’t think they know I’m a hybrid. Daddy tells me to keep that a secret and it will be easier for me.”
“Honey, you have nothing to be ashamed of, but I understand. Kids can be cruel, especially with things they don’t understand. I got bullied a bit when I was in a mixed school. There are a lot of people with some pretty stubborn prejudices because of things their parents taught them. I don’t like it, but I don’t disagree with your father on this. But you will have to be prepared for what happens if or when people find out. You will have to be strong, got it? You have it in you, I know it.”
The girl nodded demurely, still unsure of herself.
“Promise me,” Gus insisted.
“Okay, I will,” she finally agreed. “It’s just hard sometimes.”
“I know it is, baby. But you have to be strong. I don’t want you to ever forget how wonderful you are. You don’t need to be afraid of anyone, or let them push
you around. Got it?”
“Yes.” The reply was a little less timid. She looked away as there was muffled talking.
“Daddy says I have to get off now.”
“It hasn’t even been five minutes!” Gus felt his throat tighten and his eyes water. “Harlan, Harlan! Come on, why do you have to be this way? You’ve won. Why can’t you let me have this one thing?”
A handsome face appeared in the vid-feed, eyes cold and hard. “I’m sorry, but we have to go, she has an event—”
“Maddy, do you? When does it start?” Gus felt himself turning and addressing the girl who looked sheepishly up at her father, afraid to answer.
“It doesn’t matter, Sanura. And how dare you try to go around me and interrogate our daughter?! You should be grateful I’m gracious enough to allow you any contact. You always have to test me.” His voice raised sharply in retaliation.
“I’m sorry, Harlan, but there has to be more time. I get so little with her already…”
His stern features were mollified somewhat. He liked her to be submissive. He liked getting his way. She would do whatever it took, Maddy was her only lifeline.
“It can’t be helped. Perhaps we’ll have some time later, but this is a very busy week, and month. I’ll have Eldon contact you when there’s another time.”
The holo-vid shut off abruptly, disconnected without even a goodbye. Hot tears finally began to fall as sobs racked Gus’ throat.
“Baby, I’m so sorry,” Gus muttered amidst gasps of breath.
“What is this? Sleeping with your eyes open?” Grimdark grunted, elbowing him in the side once again. “Snap out of it,” he brusquely said to Gus and Prime, who silently turned and nodded.
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