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Max approached the Casino Security desk again as the last sergeant clocked out and a new one took his place. The waiting area was filled with NPC androids scuffling and arguing over scraps. Their desperation was palpable with some in security cuffs and others looking for justice.
Max was mostly ignored. Players were treated much differently. Most of the androids risked glances which were rife with envy and hunger but also fear. The line for attention moved slowly but Max finally made it to the head of the queue again. The Sergeant looked up with annoyance.
“Name?” Max groaned. He’d done this dance three times now.
“Max Mitchell. I'm here to bail out Charlie Hawkins, being held for disturbing the peace and assault. I've paid the fees already for his release. 40,000 credits. The last sergeant said that Charlie still needed to be processed. Then I was told, first timers took longer to recover. Can I at least see him? Is he awake yet?”
Max rushed through his practiced speech. He’d been delayed and rebuffed too many times. He had learned the process of the place over the past hour and swore he’d make progress this time. The android’s plastic features smiled in a poor imitation of friendly helpfulness.
“Hmmm. He wasn't awake at shift change. I could go check…it should only take a few minutes. Why don’t you get back in line while I do that?” The guard said without enthusiasm.
Max growled and slapped his hand on the counter. The android guard jumped, looking scared and then angry as he remembered his role. He glared at Max, who retreated quickly.
“Sorry! Ah. What about a visit? Can I see him?” Max said, contritely.
He took a breath and held it. Charlie was running out of time. His next match was getting closer, and he had already paid the entry fee. If he missed it, he would forfeit the match. The whole team would lose their bets.
The sergeant looked behind him. The other guards were occupied with paperwork and processing. He leaned forward and spoke lower.
“I don’t know. Normally, a detainee needs to give permission for visitors, you see? If he’s unconscious, that’s not possible now, is it? This presents a bit of a problem. Yeah?” the android, tapped the counter. Max looked down as saw the android discreetly rub his plastic thumb over the top of his fingers.
“[The scoundrel. I would guess this imitation of law and order is looking for a bribe, Max. As vulgar as it is, if you want to get your friend then you should pay the man. This whole level is a sham, rife with corruption. Be discreet though, or others may want a piece of the action and increase the price.]” Sherlock sniffed in distain.
Max rubbed his snout with one hand while his other searched his smart suit’s pocket. His Geiger sense identified the chip he wanted, the 10,000 credit Topaz casino chip the high roller Tyche had given him with the embedded and slightly radioactive tritium chip.
It might be too much, but Max didn't have time to play. He put his hand on the counter, sliding the hidden chip up against the android's left hand that was still on the counter. A slight smile tugged the corners of the guard’s mouth and the chip disappeared.
“Ah. I'm sure it'll be fine. First offense and all that. Let's go check on your friend together and get him out of here. Hey! You over there in the back. Rookie! Take the desk while I escort this upstanding player back to the cells.” The sergeant cheerfully led the way, opening the complex security doors with a combination of passcodes, keys, and security cards.
“Right this way, Mister Mitchell. It's a real pleasure to help a new player. I seen you fighting. I made some good creds on your last team match, ya know. You ever find yourself with some issues with NPCs or other players, just let me know, okay? I'm Sergeant O’Coin. I'm your man if you need help from the law. Now, let’s see if we can wake up your sleeping beauty, huh?”
Sergeant O'Coin led Max through the winding corridors of the prison, finally arriving at Charlie's cell. The unconscious man lay on a cot, his face bruised and swollen. O'Coin tapped on the bars, calling out Charlie's name, but there was no response. Max's heart sank, worried that his friend might not wake up in time for the match. The sergeant turned to Max, a sympathetic look on his face.
“[Max, it looks like his augments are locked up. Whatever security used to subdue him must still be in his system. If we can get in there, maybe I can help him out.]” House sent in Max’s inner comm band.
“Ah, Sergeant. Could I…you know, go in there and try to wake him up? Maybe a glass of water?” Max asked, wondering exactly how much his bribe was worth.
“Of course, sir. I should have suggested it. Here, you can go in. There. I'll go get some water. I'll be right back.”
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Max shook his head, thinking that he must have spent far too much with the bribe, as the sergeant opened the cell and walked away whistling to himself. Max stepped in and bent over letting House guide his hands and use his collection of advanced sensors.
“[Yep, his augs are completely locked. I can't even get full diagnostics through his access contact pads. His temperature is elevated, and his heart rate is quite high. I suspect the guards injected him with something. I need to get a blood sample, Max.]”
Max looked around. The guard was still down the hall. He extended his index finger claw dubiously. A quick fast time consultation with Tesla and Mal and he quickly designed another configuration for his claw to reconfigure it to a proper syringe needle.
[Transform +1, Transform reaches level 10, Skill cap award +100XP]
[Recycle +1, Recycle reaches level 10, Skill cap award +100XP]
[New Skill Unlocked – Body Isolation 1: Train your augmentation to support your biological functions without need for environmental support. Active resist harsh environments.]
His fingertips burned as he abused his transform skill, altering his body design far quicker than it was intended to be able to do. He used his other hand and his Chill skill to cool down the transformation of his claw before it hurt too much. He confirmed the guard was still taking his time and quickly stabbed Charlie in the arm and collected a sample for House.
“[Come on! We’re running out of time. The guard isn't going to take forever. Maybe if I EMP him, it'll re-boot his augs.]” Max urged. He ramped up his and House’s thinking speed, trying to buy time.
“[I’m using your augmentations like a scanner. It's a small molecule, not nanotech. Hmm, it looks strange. Not simple by any stretch. I need more time. Can I mix in some of your blood and med bots into the chamber? It will help if I can see this thing in action.]”
Max kept House running in FastCog while he pushed Charlie into a sitting position, shaking him to try and wake him up. Charlie shifted a bit, then stiffened, finally falling backward. Max caught him as Sergeant O’Coin returned with a large plastic pitcher of water and some paper cups.
“Ah. That's a damn shame. Some people react poorly to the Old Chimera.” the android guard said. Max held his pose as House exclaimed in his head.
[Poker Face +1, Poker Face reaches level 8]
“Chimera? What’s that? Some type of drug? Do you have an antidote we can give him?” Max asked, House was grumbling in the back of his head.
“Sorry, sir. The chimera’s been out of vogue for a long time. When Nano-d hit the market, stuff like this was far inferior. No one ever made an antidote for it. It usually wears off in an hour, but it’s happened before. It could take as long as twelve hours to recover.” O’Coin said contritely.
"Twelve hours?!" Max exclaimed, his heart racing. "Damn it, that's too long. My friend has an important match to play. Isn't there anything you can do?" He looked pleadingly at the sergeant, hoping to find a solution before time ran out.
The android guard shook his head regretfully. "I'm afraid there's nothing I can do, sir. The Chimera is a tricky substance, and without a proper antidote, we'll just have to wait it out." He paused, then added, "Perhaps, you could place some different bets.” Max's ears drooped, not liking the news, when House interrupted.
“[I got this, Max. I just need to train your augmentations med bots. Ah. There. Ok, now, a little resistance and the Chimera will flip. Smart poison was an interesting side road before nanotech hit its stride. Two or three poisons nested together. It made it almost impossible to diagnose and hard to counter, but I can. If it wasn't so archaic, I would have locked it down sooner.]”
[New Skill Unlocked: Smart Poison Resistance 1 - training your augmentation to recognize and counter biomorphic poison]
“[There we go. Don’t try this at home, kid. I’m shunting some of your trained med bots into the syringe. Charlie’s system needs something extra to break the deadlock, and it should latch on quickly and copy it. You just need to inject him.] House explained.
“If it's okay, can we try some of that water? I hate to give up on his match, Sergeant.” Max asked.
“You're the boss, Max.” O’Coin held out the pitcher. Max made to grab it and knocked it to the ground. The android cursed and sputtered with water, distracted as he wiped the excess fluids off his pant legs before it soaked in. Max grabbed Charlie’s arm to prevent him from falling over. The needle claw slid into his arm and delivered its payload.
Charlie's body jerked about briefly as the med bots went to work, quickly neutralizing the Chimera compound. His eyes fluttered open, and he looked around in confusion.
"Damn, what? I just got a new skill. Shit man, Casino security plays rough. What happened?" he asked weakly. Max let out a relieved sigh, grateful that House's solution had worked.
"I'll explain on the way. We need to get moving to get you to your match on time," he assured, helping Charlie to his feet. The sergeant watched, impressed by Charlie’s unexpected recovery.
[Gestalt +1, Gestalt reaches level 7, Continue training this skill to prioritize and shuffle senses when your system detects changing signals and environmental factors.]
[Geiger sense +1, Geiger sense reaches level 6, Continue training this skill to improve sensitivity and range.]
“[Hey, Mal? Gestalt just prioritized my Geiger sense. There’s a huge signal of radiation coming from behind the wall for this bank of holding cells. Do you have any idea what's over there?]” Max asked.
“[Our maps aren’t complete, but judging from the security traffic and layout, I'd tentatively tagged it as the Casino’s main vault. Your reading seems to confirm that guess. There must be a massive amount of those chips behind that wall.]” Mal said.
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