“That’s rather nice of you.”
“You’re good for business. I’ve been given more gigs to deal because of your track record. A better list of accomplishments means people look to deal through me, which means I get a better cut,” he explained as they entered the craft. “Keep it up and I’ll invite you to a barbecue some time for gold-star clients.”
“I’m sure I’ll get there in no time,” Kaiden promised and took his leave. “I’ll get suited up. Make sure we get up in the air ASAP, Genos!”
“Certainly. Let’s go and take a look, elder Julio,” Genos stated and headed into the cockpit.
Julio sighed and waved at Kaiden. “I’m trusting you, both with this ship and to come back in one piece, got it?”
“Of course!” the ace said and gave him a thumbs-up.
The man returned the favor and moved to catch up to the mechanist. “Hey, I know it’s a nice thing and all, but you can drop the whole ‘elder’ thing, kid.”
“Of course, elder Julio.”
He shook his head with a lazy grin. “I… Come on, man, let’s go over the board.”
Chapter Sixteen
“Do you like the rifle, Flynn?” Indre smiled. It really was a rhetorical question as the marksman had examined the weapon for the last half-hour.
“Hmm? Oh, hell yes. Take a look.” He set the safety switch and handed it across the bench to the agent, who immediately cracked it open to check the energy unit.
“So this isn’t a kinetic model like the one we used at the Ramses gig?”
He smiled, opened a compartment on his leg, and slid a cartridge out. “It’s actually the best of both worlds. If I press that switch, it shuts the core off and engages the kinetic version. In fact, the lining can activate the—”
She snapped the gun shut and tossed it back. “It’s really cool, but I don’t need to know the details.” She drew her pistol, a rather small model. “As an agent, I have so many gadgets that I have to use in a variety of situations, I prefer my weapon to do only one job—shoot.”
Flynn folded the rifle and placed it beside him on the bench. “Fair enough, but it doesn’t look like that little cricket can do much damage.”
“That’s why I have to get in close,” she clarified and aimed it briefly at him. He immediately held his hands up. “But there’s a mod here that increases the punching power. It still won’t let me do as much damage, but if we do have to have a full-on firefight, I can still support the others without putting myself in a vulnerable position.”
“You do not have a primary weapon?” Jaxon asked as he completed the inspection of his own machine gun and pistol.
“I prefer to use the extra room for gadgets,” she stated and gestured to a cylindrical pack on the back of her suit.
“I can agree with you on that.” Chiyo entered the bay. “Speaking of which, can I get your help with one of mine, Indre?”
“Sure, what do you have?”
The infiltrator retrieved the box Laurie had given her and handed it to her teammate. Indre opened it and beamed. “Man, I haven’t seen a Genesis system like this.”
“Genesis system?” Flynn inquired and frowned at the silver crescent-shaped device.
Chiyo nodded. “It’s a condensed operations system with a cyber suite that allows for similar technological integration as our technician’s suite, but it’s run by either an installed EI or our personal one if it’s up to the task.”
“I am on standby, madame,” Kaitō offered.
“Thank you, Kaitō, but I need to understand exactly what we’re dealing with. This is actually a model designed by Professor Laurie himself.”
“Really? That’s awesome. How did you get it from him?” the other girl asked and tried to turn the device on.
“He wanted to…help out,” she said. “Also for field testing. I worked through everything, but if I can find the right mode and get the connection system working correctly, I can give a drive to Kaiden. He can simply use that to get the information we need instead of him sneaking back. I thought having two technicians looking into it would be more productive than one.”
“I certainly agree.” Indre stood quickly, her expression eager. “There’s a little table in the back—it’s darker over there too and better for the holoscreen.”
“Much obliged.” Chiyo thanked her as the two walked off. Kaiden entered as they left.
“What’d I miss?” he asked and zipped his coat.
“Girl talk...I think?” Flynn responded.
“That looks like the outfit you wear in the Animus,” Jaxon noted.
“The armor is more normal gig armor, but the coat is based on it, though,” he confirmed as he took a seat. “I need to be more stylish. Vox has its share of bounty hunters, mercs, and all that, along with security, so guys walking around in armor isn’t abnormal. But still, they are watched fairly closely so I’ll need to be sure I attract as little attention as possible.”
“You said that part of your agreement with Julio for the ship was to make a delivery. How long do you think that will take?” the Tsuna ace asked.
“Hopefully, no more than an hour. The bay we’ll land at isn’t too far from my rendezvous point. After that, I’ll hunt for the agency that has the neurotech device we’re looking for.”
“Is it something big?” Flynn asked and leaned back. “Do you need help carrying it there?”
“I thought it might be, but not so much, as it turns out.” Kaiden slid a hand into his coat pocket and withdrew a small black cube that wasn’t much bigger than his hand.
His companions regarded it curiously. “What the hell is that?” the Aussie asked.
“I have no clue. One of my rules is not to ask about it.” He tossed it to Flynn, who caught it and scrutinized it. “He didn’t say nothing about you guys, but I assume he thought about that.”
“Where do you even open it?” the marksman asked as he turned the cube over. “I see some notches…maybe it requires a key of sorts or it’s locked with a voice code.” He lobbed it to Jaxon, who simply looked at it.
“I would guess that it either has data that requires a specific device to access or it’s a phantom box,” he stated.
“One of those containers that nukes the thing inside unless you open it the right way?” Flynn frowned. “We’d best not mess with it, then. If it is a phantom box and we fry it, I assume that effectively cancels the deal.”
“Good idea.” Kaiden put his hand out and Jaxon returned the box. “I can’t imagine what would be so small and valuable without it being precious jewels or something. Maybe it’s a hand-off,” he suggested and slipped it carefully into his coat.
“Or something else illicit,” the Aussie added. “Julio’s a nice guy, certainly, but you don’t make it as far as he has without having to deal with unsavory customers on a regular basis.”
“He has his own code of ethics. I don’t think it’s something we have to worry about,” the ace said casually. “It doesn’t mean I won’t potentially be getting wrapped up in something, but I’m only the messenger.”
“One who can kill instead of the opposite,” Jaxon pointed out.
“Sure enough, and I imagine he counted on that too, But like I said, I hope to wrap it up quickly so we can get the real job done and move on to the main objective.”
“Chiyo’s father, right? The head of Mirai,” Flynn looked thoughtful as he considered what he knew about the company. “All the big corps in Australia and New Zealand use their stuff—not only cybersecurity and hardware, but they have an offshoot art house for design work. My Uncle Jensen’s company actually had one of their office’s logo and interior designed by them.”
“She hasn’t spoken much about her family or her past in general,” the Tsuna stated and glanced at Kaiden. “I don’t want to overstep my bounds, but I assume there is a reason.”
“It’s somewhat muddled, that’s all I’ll say. I probably already said too much when I filled you in earlier,” he admitted. “But
she’s still concerned enough that she wanted to do something if she could. It all depends on what we find. If the truth be told, this could be something bigger than I would usually guess a mission like this would lead to.”
“Someone with the power and smarts to try to take over a world-renowned Zaibatsu would already be big, don’t you think?” Flynn asked.
“Maybe it’s more power than smarts,” Jaxon countered. “Then again, I’m not sure what we can offer here. I have no doubt in our abilities, but what can we do compared to Mirai’s funds and connections? If Chiyo has already informed them, haven’t they begun looking into it?”
Kaiden leaned over and nodded. “They have. A few of her old mentors still work there and one of them is in charge of the investigation. Apparently, they’ve made more direct moves as well as their roundabout method. They caught a guy trying to sneak into one of their labs.”
“That ain’t smart. They must have him locked up somewhere?” Flynn asked.
“For a while, they did,” he replied.
“He broke out? That’s rather crafty.”
He shook his head. “No, when they went interrogate him, all they found in his cell was his clothes and some goo.”
The Tsuna cocked his head and Flynn winced. “Goo? Did he melt or something? I’m sure they have camera feed.”
“They had video, but it was looped after he was put into holding. They didn’t see what happened. According to the police files Chiyo was able to gather, the same thing happened to the guys she and I intercepted a couple of nights ago.”
The marksman shivered. “That’s unsettling.”
“Was it some kind of suicide device? In case they were captured?” Jaxon inquired.
“Probably, or their insides were set to melt after a certain time,” Kaiden answered with a shrug.
“That’s not helping,” Flynn grumbled.
“I’m not being facetious,” Kaiden retorted. “They are called golems—basically, human skin suits that can be controlled with the right hardware. Laurie told me about them.”
“Paratechs?” The three looked up when Indre and Chiyo returned.
“Close. It’s the same idea,” he confirmed. “I don’t know if we’ll run into more but keep a lookout. I don’t want you losing your lunch when you have a good look.”
“I’d prefer to run into one of them over a neurosik, honestly.” Chiyo shuddered and Indre grimaced with distaste. “Do you think that’s possible?”
“We’re flying by the seat of our pants here, but I’ve heard of merc companies and terrorist cells using them in the past,” he warned.
“Greetings, friends!” Genos called over the comms. “I’m sorry for the earlier delay and rough ride. I had to make the proper readjustments after eld—friend Julio removed the balance drive chip. We’re only six minutes away from our destination and have clearance to land.”
“It looks like we’re about to actually start the mission.” Flynn beamed and hoisted his sniper rifle as he stood. He attached it onto the magnetized strips on his back. “All right, Kaiden, what are we doing?”
The ace stood and stretched. “I have a delivery to make, then I’ll go for the device.”
“Yeah, right, right. We know that, mate.” Flynn rolled his eyes. “But what are we doing?”
He looked at his teammate as he picked a case up with one hand and slid his other into his coat pocket. “You? You’re tourists.”
Chapter Seventeen
“Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to tonight’s ArenaMAX festivities,” a rather exuberant man announced over the arena’s speakers.
“You know, I would normally be more excited about something like this,” Flynn muttered and pulled his helmet on. “Getting to run around and show an adoring crowd my skills? I’m not above a little theatrical fun.”
“And yet I feel as if you are rather saddened, friend Flynn,” Genos commented and examined his personal cannon.
“We came here on a mission, yeah?” the marksman questioned and closed the locker door. “And now, we simply have to goof around?”
“We’re needed for the next part. Chiyo and Kaiden have got this one,” Indre reminded him. “Besides, think about this as a warmup.”
“A smart observation,” Jaxon agreed and holstered his pistol. “This is more than a game. Not only does it give us an opportunity to test this equipment, but we also have an excuse to wear it. If anything does go down, we will be ready to support them.”
“All right, MAX fans. Let’s get ready for the next round. Will team seven please come to the arena entrance.”
“Is that us?” Flynn asked.
Genos shook his head. “We are team eight, the next one up.”
“Each round is only fifteen minutes. We’ll be up soon,” Indre said encouragingly.
“All right.” The Aussie leaned against the locker. “So what’s the objective here? We collect enough tickets to get the fancy hoverboard on the top rack?”
“You’re in a mood right now,” the agent teased as she stood. “There are prizes, but the top four teams out of eight move on to the next round. The top two from that round face off after that, so we’ll be here a couple of hours at least.”
“Unless Kaiden calls us,” Jaxon reminded them. “Although he hoped they would be finished by the time we are done.”
“So we’ll play the full round, then?” Flynn stretched his arms. “Well, I’d better stop moping, I suppose.” He took his rifle out and checked the core. “We don’t get to use kinetic rounds but firing lasers in an enclosed area with civilians seems rather risky.”
“There’s a shield guarding the stands. That would be the main reason we aren’t allowed to use kinetic rounds,” Genos clarified.
“You have to give it to the guys who made this place,” Indre commented. “Vox gets a large amount of traffic from bounty hunters and mercs. Having a place like this where they can make use of their skills and make a real profit was very smart.”
Jaxon nodded. “It also keeps them in check by letting them blow off steam here instead of in some bar.”
“Although, considering the one we passed on the way here, that doesn’t seem to work one hundred percent of the time,” Genos said, rather bemused.
There was a knock on their door. “Pardon me.” A woman walked in wearing a red jumpsuit with the ArenaMAX logo and gestured at the group. “You’ll be up soon. It doesn’t look like team seven will last the whole round.”
“Really? It’s only been a few minutes,” Indre responded with surprise.
Jaxon let a small smile form. “So this might actually be a challenge, then.”
“Oh, we know our clientele,” the woman said with a smirk. “There’s no point in inviting veterans to simply do some glorified target practice.”
“That’s good to know.” Flynn shouldered his rifle. “Where to?”
“I’ll lead you to the entrance when you guys are ready,” she informed them. “Also, I wanted to thank you for showing up. It’s off-season for the pro teams, and it’s the down season for all the merc traffic we usually have. We were worried we wouldn’t have a full roster of teams.”
“I’m glad we could help,” Jaxon replied. “A friend of ours suggested this and it seemed like it would make for a fun evening.”
“I suppose everyone has their own definition of fun.” She shrugged. “The fans are sure to love it. We have over ninety percent capacity filled so put on a good show, all right?”
“No worries there, missy,” Flynn promised with a clenched fist. “We’ll win this and get Kaiden the giant stuffed bear as a memento.”
The woman blinked and glanced at the others. “What’s he talking about?” Indre simply sighed and tapped the side of her helmet in annoyance.
“Have you made the delivery yet, Kaiden?” Chiyo asked over the comm link.
Kaiden finished chewing a bite of the kebab he had bought from a street vendor. “I’m almost there. I needed to make a quick stop.”
“I
noticed you went down one of the commercial streets,” she muttered. “Also, I can hear the sizzling over the speakers.”
He took another bite. “Give me a break. I didn’t get to have more than a power bar for breakfast. I gotta keep my strength up.”
“Good point. Fetch me something on your way over,” she ordered.
The ace swallowed and rolled his eyes. “Couldn’t you have used a word other than ‘fetch?’”
“It seems appropriate, actually,” Chief quipped.
“I need to go dark. I’ve approached the agency and I want to lower the chances they can track me as much as possible. I’ll see you soon.” Her line cut with a muted click.
“And she avoids a response,” Kaiden muttered as he turned a corner and headed into an alley.
“According to the directions, this should lead directly to the recipient,” the EI informed him.
The ace retrieved the cube and flipped it a couple of times. “This was rather straight forward. Are you sure no one followed us?”
“Positive. No one tailed us. But there’s always the chance they could be waiting for you up ahead or this is a trap.”
“I don’t see anyone here, although that could be something to worry about as well,” he replied thoughtfully. “I don’t think Julio would knowingly send me into a trap, but there’s a chance this is a test of some kind.”
“What do you think is in the box? Maybe a kidney?”
“That would be a small-ass kidney.” He chuckled and examined it again. “Maybe I’ve simply assumed the worse. But you get a little paranoid when someone specifically tells you not to ask what is in the box.”
“Hey, we’re here.”
Kaiden peered down the alley that still stretched far ahead but paused when he saw a glowing arrow pointing toward the left. He grimaced and turned his attention to a surprisingly ornate door above five stone steps.
“I know I said I’d get used to it, but you could have simply told me it was on my left,” he griped as he jogged up the steps and knocked on the door.
Animus Boxed Set 2 (Books 5-8): Revenant, Glitch, Master, Infiltration Page 74
