I spent about a week just lazing around, enjoying my life, and trying to cool down after all that happened with the Nomads. I got back to work on my Doctor Absolom figurines, tweaking and messing around with them to get them to a higher quality. I even managed to find out how to make the 3D printer use a hexagonal print grid to further enhance the durability and strength of the toys. I doubt they would need the enhancements, but it was good practice for the future.

It was a therapeutic and helpful time waster, but it wasn’t the only thing I did during that time. For one, I talked to Mira and hung out with her quite a bit, which was nice. She was always… entertaining at the least.

During that period I thought long and hard about getting an upgrade to my chrome. I just- I didn’t feel ready yet. I still felt the effects of Glitching even after all this time, though they were thankfully starting to fade away. That, and the whole… ordeal with the Nomads had fouled up my mind. I was better off just waiting to be as normal as possible before getting a new piece of metal surgically implanted into my body.

I did, however, still go and see Nael in that time for a checkup and to drop off the toys. Maybe in the future, I could start branching out into some other ‘superheroes’. He knew something was up the moment I stepped in. I didn’t explain anything to him, but he still just sat by my side as we listened to reruns of some ancient music on the radio. It was nice.

In his professional opinion, I need to take it easy for a while longer. Just sit back and relax. Enjoy the time off while I had it and reject any gigs that seemed like they would be taxing. It was obvious advice, ‘course. And I agreed. My next gig, whatever it may be, would have to be slow-played.

Basically, my key takeaway was to stay inside and locked up so nothing stressful would happen. For instance, my God-awful luck biting me in the ass again, and something like Inquisitor Strumgard showing up. It was a completely irrational fear. That was a one-in-a-million fluke last time. Surely nothing similar would happen again, right?

Just as all breaks did though, mine ended with a call from Feras of all people. I really didn’t know what to expect as I picked up the phone. I hadn’t spoken to the guy since the last time we ran together… so much for keeping up a friendship. Mira, you are still my best - and only - friend.

”Hello? Zuku?” He asked, his voice low as if he were trying not to be heard.

“Yeah?” I replied as I set down my latest variant of the Doctor Absolom figurine. This one had a built-in speaker that gave inspiring voice lines. I copied down Nael’s voice, with his permission of course, and ran it through an SAI so I could get it to say whatever I wanted, which was a fun project.

”Hey, you busy?” He asked, and in the distance, I could hear the chattering of voices. Young voices. What was going on?

”Not at the moment. You good, mikato?”

He coughed lightly and his voice filled out a bit more and returned mostly to normal as the sound of a door thumping came across the speaker. “Nova… I’m in the middle of a gig. I could use some help, especially from someone of your shor- supremely beautiful stature given the circumstances.”

Weird. I could’ve sworn I almost heard a death wish. Must’ve been the wind. “What is it?”

”Look, can we meet up and talk about it? This one is… tricky. I can’t crack it by myself. Pay is good though, in terms of gear and Rayn. You’ll get a fifteen hundred split. The client has also offered late-stage experimental gear too, stuff that won’t ever hit the market if you get my meaning. The pay isn’t the best, but the real selling point is that tech. Could probably resell at the least.” He said.

Ah, some good stuff then. The Rayn was meh. The gear was what was really promising though… I was always in need of some more gear.

I stared at the fifty cal in the corner covered up by a small blanket as I thought about his request. “Uh- yeah. We can meet up. Big Mikes?”

”Sure! I’ll meet you there… and I’ll bring along our other partner. He likes to eat, so he’ll love to come.” A third guy, huh? Another grifter perhaps? I can’t imagine another person as annoying and of similar looks to Feras. Still, a gig was a gig.

”And since this is a business meeting, I can expect you to pay?” I asked cheerfully.

”Gah- look- fine. I’ll pay. Business expenses, I guess. In an hour?”

“Sure.”

——

I adjusted my Slashers hat, tucking my long, messy ponytail under the brim. Unfortunately, I could never make a perfect ponytail and there were always loose locks and strands that blew into my face. Maybe it was about time I cut it?

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A small bell rang over the door, causing me to look over. Unfortunately, it wasn’t anyone I knew. A gaggle of corporate drones slouched into Big Mike’s small restaurant, letting in a rogue breeze of pure humidity. Rain splattered to the ground around them as they headed for a booth.

I zoned out as I rested my head on the table, taking the opportunity to just sit back and relax as the coolness of the table radiated up through my skin. The table itself reeked of half-washed burger grease and burnt fries, but that did little to put me off as I enjoyed the couple moments of silence.

Then the bell rang again as a new group entered. Feras stepped into the store, followed closely behind by a massive guy big enough to contest Big Mike. He looked way younger though, probably closer to my age.

I tiredly flopped a hand at the door. Feras immediately nodded to me and walked over, but his companion didn’t follow. Instead, he looked dead on towards Big Mike. Big Mike stared back at the guy as a weird energy filled the space between them. It was a challenge. A provocative dispute none but the two of them could understand.

Big Mike didn’t even hesitate as he moved faster than I’d ever seen him, firing up the grill in mere moments as he started not one, not two, but five of his supermassive burgers. Only then did Feras’s friend seem to relax as he walked over to us with a cheerful smile on his face.

Feras smirked as he slid into the booth, the scared little boy act he used to pull nowhere in sight. Only calm confidence with a hint of excitement shown as he sat down opposite me. “Hey, Zuku-”

His friend slammed down onto the booth’s seat, launching Feras against the window with a light thunk. “Oops… you alright there-”

I lifted my head off the table and leaned back into a more comfortable talking posture, the big guy going quiet as he looked at me. Was there something on my face? I ran a hand behind my ear and tried to smile innocently at him, Honest Face kicking in as I adjusted my expressions to the perfect one.

Just as Feras peeled himself off the window, the big guy punched him hard in the arm. He fell back, splattering against it with a thunk twice as hard. His nose in particular hit the window hard.

“What the hell, Torren?” Feras cried as he recoiled from the window holding his nose.

”You didn’t tell me-“ He glanced at me then looked away. Then, he seemed to compose himself and held out a meaty paw towards me. “Nice to meet you, I’m Torren. Torren Schel.”

I hesitated for a moment before grabbing his hand. Rather, before his hand completely smothered mine as we shook. “N-nice to meet you too… I’m Zuku.”

Feras leaned back towards the table, still rubbing at his face. “Torren here is our bruiser. If there’s a violent problem, he’ll fix it. A self-proclaimed min-maxer.”

Min-maxer? What does he do? Min on exercise and max on food? “I feel safer already?”

“I get that a lot.” The big guy smiled broadly.

Feras snorted and shook his head as he motioned to me. “Zuku is an… investigator, of sorts. And a thief, I think.”

I nodded my head. “So what’s this about?”

The table went silent for several moments as Big Mike walked over with several platters of burgers, a smirk on his face. Once more, Torren and Big Mike locked eyes, a conflict passing between them in a moment. This time, Torren receded and accepted the burgers as Big Mike triumphantly smiled, showcasing a rather large gap between his two front teeth. Then, he strode away full of confidence as his blubber swayed.

Feras gave me a critical look before shrugging. “Have you heard of SPS? Sentinel Private Schooling?”

“Um-“ I paused as I searched through my memory. “Not exactly. I’ve heard of corporate schools though. Why?”

“Recently, SPS has had a few… disappearances. Officially, they’ve been marked up as Savants and Scavs doing their filthy work. Unofficially, there wasn’t a proper investigation in the first place.” Feras sent a message which my PA promptly pulled into my HUD. There were twelve names on a list.

Torren gulped down a burger easily. “The corpos are too busy sticking their heads up their asses- err, rears to give it a proper investigation.” He spoke, his voice surprisingly clean. I was half expecting him to be more… thuggy. “Which is where we come in.”

Feras frowned at the other guy. “I was getting to that… our client is concerned about their daughter, Quora Kalis. Hence they hired me. I managed to track down their daughter’s disappearance to be potentially related to the other eleven disappearances at SPS.”

”And then you got stuck?” It made sense. Instead of continuing to ram his head into a wall, he headed to me, an actual person somewhat skilled in investigation. Grifting can only go so far.

”Chek chek… Listen the pay isn’t all that great for something as dangerous as infiltrating a corporate school. That being said, the client has offered all new corporate identities to use.” Feras glanced around. “As well as some cool tech.”

I get why he wanted to bring me into the fold, but what about this Torren guy? Why did he need a bruiser? It was just a school- oh. Right, a school. It suddenly made plenty of sense. I was only in the school system for a couple years back before my parents died, but I remember it being dreadful…

”What’s this tech?” Torren asked as he shoved another slice of burger into his maw. He didn't know? Was Feras bringing him in at the same time as me?

Feras glanced around at the people in Big Mike’s and lowered his voice. “They call it shock troop padding. Basically, it's a set of pads that can bleed off momentum, allowing for a slower fall.”

Damn, that was impressive. Already, scenarios ran through my head of all the ways I could use something like that. Falling from a high building after a heist, or anything similar for that matter, would actually become a viable escape route. It would be invaluable in the cityscape where elevation could play a key factor.

“And the ID’s?” I asked. I wouldn’t mind adding another identity to my growing roster.

“Solid through and through. I’ve been told that they will hold up under any level of scrutiny, and so far mine held up.” Ah, so Feras has already been established in the school long enough to test the ID… has it really been that long since I talked to him?

“Sounds fun. I’m in.” Torren said as he finished the last slice of burger, neither Feras nor I getting a bite to eat from the lot. He lifted his head triumphantly, what looked to be a gloating look on his face.

Off behind the counter, Big Mike watched us with a fire in his eyes. He didn’t say anything, just grabbed his spatula and headed for the stove.

“I’m in too, I guess…”

Feras smiled brightly. “Perfect! Your first day of school is in three days. The client will get the IDs in one.”

I sighed as I rested my head back on the table. I guess summer was over then. It was time to head back to school.