Master Telos ended up coming and going at least half a dozen times before he finally settled on a design. A design I still had yet to see. That lunatic left with a ‘Come see me Friday’ and nothing else.
By the time he left, Sean had passed out on the couch and I wasn’t much behind him. Unfortunately, I still had far too much to do to go to sleep now. I discreetly summoned Crow’s Canteen of Chaos under my jacket and set it to produce XtraEnergy Quantum™. I still had a long night, and I needed a boost in energy.
Torren walked with me out of that hellhole, only splitting up once we were out of view of the building. Then, I headed for the nearest robotics store.
——
The gala was in three days, and I had plenty of stuff I needed to prepare before then. Night had long fallen by the time I entered my apartment with bags full of supplies and five hundred Rayn lighter. I was now stuck barely below what I would need for rent, but hopefully, I’d be able to make it back soon. If not? There were plenty of pockets in need of liberation.
I tossed everything near my work table and popped my back. Taking a long swig of XtraEnergy, I looked through my apartment and allowed myself a moment to relax. Then the caffeine hit and I got to work.
First things first, I pulled Principal Bously’s email off the school website and sent a message. It might not have the effect I wanted, but if it did, then I would soon have a perfect opportunity to gain some essential knowledge for a later plan that was still in its early stages.
Quite simply, I need gear. Gear that wouldn’t be traced back to me through purchases or have pre-installed malware, hence needing to make it myself. This time though, I had a better plan than when I made my cute little Scouters.
First things first, I got the 3-D printer up and into action. I wanted to make mics, one small enough to be easily hidden and yet powerful enough to pick up a conversation. Instead of trying - and probably failing - to make one myself from scratch, I bought a bunch of different types and different headphones and audio modules from the store. Between them and the micro batteries, that was where the bulk of my Rayn went.
While the printer booted up, I checked my materials. I was on my last roll of wire, but I should be able to get most of the stuff I needed to get done finished. I hope. After that, I pulled out my sketchbook and started to draw out what I wanted. It was an extremely rough blueprint pooled together through ancient prints on the net and my own Tech knowledge, but it would do.
I went around, disassembling all of the headphones and mics, skillfully taking apart the pieces until I had an assortment of components out in front of me.
I wanted a few things in particular. Basically, microphones worked by transmitting sound waves into electrical pulses, which then were picked up and recorded by a machine. The reason I bought so many different kinds was to get the smallest possible components for my newest creation.
I got to work, mixing and matching components until I got the smallest magnet I could find. Once I had it, I set up a basic model on my deck and sent it to the printer. As the printer whirled into action, I started to put together the components. I started with the diaphragm, the part that fluctuates as sound hits it, and cut it down to size with my multitool-
And it broke. Great. I tried again with a different one, taking more time to ensure I wasn't putting to much pressure on it. Eventually, I got it down to the right size. Then, it was as simple as hooking it to the magnet, coiling a wire around the magnet, and connecting that to the smallest amplifier I could find.
While I waited for the printer, I also started to set up the receiver and transmitter on the mic. I wired in a transmitter, allowing the electrical pulse amplified by the amplifier to feed into it. Then I hooked the transmitter to my deck's receiver, the same one I used in my Tapper and Scouter. Hopefully, it would allow the mic to wirelessly transmit recordings to my deck. Add on the battery to that, and I ended up with a microphone a tad bit smaller than my fingernail.
The printer finally finished my parts, and I pulled out the casing for my newest toy. It was nothing complicated, just a black hexagonal box with a small see-through layer around it. I made it a bit too small, but with some grease and lots of pushing, I managed to get the parts all into it and set it up.
I tested it it a couple dozen times, running it and adjusting the diaphragm till I got it just right. The noise sounded a bit warped thanks to the relatively cheap diaphragm, but other than that it ran just fine.
“Hello," I whispered, the mic sitting on the table.
“Hello,” My voice, sounding a bit warbled, echoed through my deck.
A grin split my face as I ran a finger over my newest toy. What to name it… how about… Listener? It fit. It was a bit on the nose, but oh well.
I tested my new Listener several times, finding it to be rather… impotent. It worked wonderfully for what I needed, but only in the range of my deck. At least, I assume based on interactions with Tapper. Unfortunately, I wasn’t near good enough at Net to try and figure out how to ping-pong the signal to extend the range. Theoretically, I knew it was possible, but actually executing it? Yeah, way out of my skill range.
I made one more Listener, tossing the two of them into my bag for later use. I checked the time: midnight… I could go to sleep… or I could stay up a couple hours later and work on other projects I need to get done. Yeah, I liked that idea.
This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
I slid over to my sketchbook and popped it open, glancing through the myriad of terribly drawn blueprints. Eventually, I hit an empty page and got to work- err, at least tried to get to work. My mind froze as I rested my pen on the page, going completely blank.
I tried for several minutes to no avail. Okay, okay… I just need to take a step back. What did I want? I wanted a calling card. Every good thief had a calling card to claim the crime. I’ve never had one, but now was the chance! It would be the chef’s kiss to my next set of heists.
I stared down at the paper, trying to brainstorm ideas. Eventually, I just drew, hoping I would like something. A couple hours passed with me mindlessly drawing, my brain unable to settle on anything
I dropped the pen, feeling drained. It had been hours and yet I hadn’t accomplished a thing. I still needed to do a ton of stuff too! Like rework my Scouters now that I have better materials. Or work on some gadgets I had been thinking of. Or even run some tests on my Perks, which I had been pushing off for far too long… But it was so late… I sighed, finally shutting everything off and headed for bed.
——
I was drained throughout my first several hours, barely capable of keeping myself awake. Unfortunately, I couldn’t drink more XtraEnergy Quantum since I set the canteen to produce that hazy substance from that thief’s secret stash this morning. Doubly unfortunate, Christine and crew weren’t here today either, so I had no help staying awake.
Eventually, during my Social Studies hour, a shaking student walked into the room. “E-excuse me. I-I-I’m here f-for Lady Maeni. The p-p-principal wants to talk to h-her.”
Poor girl. I thought my stutter was too much with my whole shy act, but hers was downright torture to listen to. Maybe I should tone up my own stutter? Would that make it more believable?
And It’s about damn time he called for me. I gathered my stuff, pulling my two little Listeners from my bag and swiftly hiding them in the hidden pockets of my skirt. I tossed the rest of my stuff to Torren who took it with a begrudging nod.
I stepped up to the kid who came to get me. She stepped back nervously, ducking her head slightly. “D-d-d-do you k-know the way?”
”Yes.” I had only been to the office once, but the school had maps posted everywhere. Maps that counted as prints for all intents and purposes to Eidetic Schematic. I knew my way around probably better than students who had been coming to SPS for years. At least, by the book.
The principal’s office sat in the entry hall centered around the elevators and stairs coming up to the school’s section of the office. His office sat on the third, and final, floor of the school, looking down onto the open-concept entryway.
I stepped into the office area, and a secretary immediately snapped to look at me. She paused for a second, a corpo smile forming mere nanoseconds later. “Lady Maeni! The principal is waiting for you.”
”Thanks.” I headed to an imposing door. Insets of lights all around the perimeter and inside of the door cast an imposing red light over me as I lightly rapped my knuckles across it. Before doing anything further, I used my jacket as cover to pour some of the haze liquid out into the outer casing of the mic before banishing the canteen back to wherever it came from.
The door slid open, revealing the room beyond. It was quite elaborate. Little red lights everywhere evoked a certain foreboding. The lights centered around a large desk, sharp lines of metal imposed upon itself like a tamed beast to form the desk. Behind it stood a massive leather chair. Probably real leather too, if I had to guess.
Principal Bously half stood from his large leather chair as I entered. “Ah, Lady Meno! Please, please, come on in… take a seat.”
I moved over to one of the chairs sitting in front of his desk. “I-is this about my email?”
”Of course… you said your grandfather was worried for your safety?” The guy asked, a concerned frown on his face. Based off of his cues, it was a real concern.
I nodded, casting my eyes down and dropping my eyes. “He- he heard of the d-disappearances of those other kids… after m-my mom- well, he just wants me to be safe.”
The smarmy guy nodded understandingly. “I can get that… I assure you, our security is top of the line. Nothing will happen here.”
”H-how sure are you?” I asked, looking around his office with concern.
”Most of our stuff is directly from Sentinel Security, so its- well, it’ll be faster if I show you. You mind walking?” He stood from his desk, fixing his jacket.
”Not at all.” I smiled innocently. Using the moment he was distracted by my smile, which only seemed to get easier and easier to do as the days passed, I activated Hidden Hands and leaned forward. Resting my hands on his desk to ‘assist’ myself in standing up, I swiftly slid one of my Listeners into his pen cup before standing up. It looked like a mirage, bits and pieces blending in with the surroundings, and my brain almost trying to insist it wasn’t there.
“Preem.” He smiled, attempting to be charming? And the slang... sure it was common, but it almost seemed as if he was trying to set me at ease. It was hard to tell since the comb-over, slicked-back mullet ruined any chance of that happening. And yet I couldn't help feel a bit more relaxed... must be the plants. They make everything feel more homely.
He guided me out into the hallway, pointing towards one of the security gates on the ceiling. “As you can see, we have ways of stopping intruders once they’re detected. As soon as a gate drops, security is notified and will be on the scene within a minute. There’s nothing to fear in that regard.”
He motioned towards the ball cameras all over the hall. “Cameras were strategically set up to get full coverage with a dedicated guard watching them twenty-four-seven. Heat sensors sit on every corner, and we even have laser grids that come on after the day ends, so you don’t have to worry about someone sneaking in and setting up a bomb or anything of the sort.”
He led me around the halls, pointing out security systems seemingly without a care. He even showed me the turret systems they had in the main entry hall to ‘discourage’ invaders. “The school is perfectly safe. If anything, your grandfather should be more worried about you getting home safely. Trovare seems a bit… young. I could set up an escort-“
”T-thank you, but Trovare has been trained since a baby to protect me. I t-trust him with my life.” The words felt bitter as they left my tongue. Trusting someone with my life. Bleh. Maybe only Mira and Uncle Ezra could be in that tight-knit group. Definitely not an almost complete stranger I’ve barely worked with. Heck, I still kept my gun loaded and ready around the guy. When I had it, of course. Hard to carry a gun around a school, which was reassuring.
Feras too for that matter. I still don’t know why I let the guy stay in my apartment so long ago… Maybe because I trusted Fox, yet another entity I hadn’t actually met to form a proper opinion on? Stupid, Shiro.
The principal looked slightly disappointed. “Well, if you ever need something from me, just ask. Even if it’s something as minor as personally reassuring your grandfather of the security here.” Yeah, something ‘minor’ like that. If I really was this granddaughter of the archduke, there’s no way in hell I’d let him do something like that based purely around the greed in his eyes as he spoke. “It would be my greatest pleasure to help you, Lady Maeni.”
Lady Maeni, ay? “That would be my grandmother… please, just Meno.”
”R-right. Class should be ending soon. Go on ahead. I’ll be in my office if you need me.” The principal walked off with a bow, leaving me in the hall.