I flinched and pulled away. “Ow.”
My late-night emergency doctor sat back and sighed, one hand holding bloodied tissues and the other rubbing alcohol. Apparently, the guy had hit me harder than I had realized. I had been about halfway home when I noticed my face felt wet and something had been dripping into my eye.
I knew head wounds bleed more than others – I just never understood how much of a difference it was until I saw how small the cut was.
“Sit still.”
Cleaning the injury stung. It felt like getting repeatedly attacked by a wasp each time she dabbed the wound. All of this, naturally, was my fault. I had no real excuse to have an injury like this so I had to twist the truth.
“Sorry.”
Mom shook her head and sighed in exasperation.
“You know better than to stay out past curfew. What were you thinking!?”
She bought the story easily enough.
Jumped in the car park behind my work by a bunch of thugs after I got carried away talking to a girl who had been a customer. Luckily, being a waiter at a local restaurant gave me enough leeway for my ‘extracurricular activities’.
“It’s fine, Mom.”
“It’s not fine!”
She was right. It wasn’t fine.
I had lost almost everything. The only thing that went right was my escape.
The drive home had given me enough time to cool off and remotely trigger a failsafe in my phone to wipe all data and essentially factory reset it. They already had my money, I didn’t want to risk the chance of them finding another Mechakinetic to brute force their way into my stuff. If that happened, they’d be able to find out where I lived and then I’d be in all sorts of shit.
Best not take the chance.
I could get lucky and the psycho could end up throwing my phone in the nearest trash can – but I doubted it. If nothing else, Mechatech was expensive. If he couldn’t use it, he’d sell it. Either way, I was down a phone, a Mechatech taser, and a quarter million dollars. Tonight had been a disaster and what made it even worse was it had all started off so well.
“I can’t believe I agreed to let you work late on school nights. Alex isn’t going to let either of us hear the end of this,” Mom pouted, cupping both my cheeks affectionately.
I aimlessly batted them away as I wasn’t in the mood for being coddled. The last thing I wanted was for Mom to pity me.
“Max, I don’t want you working this late anymore.”
Her concern was touching but it only served to annoy me.
“Not happening. I’m not going to let a bunch of thugs scare me off.”
My reply came out bitter. I hadn’t meant to sound so frustrated but already I was starting to make plans to steal my stuff back. All I needed to do was track my phone’s GPS signal. It would be a relatively easy task. The hard part would be actually getting it back. I’d need protection, which meant creating a weapon or two.
“Are you sure? You don’t have to if you—”
“No,” I cut her off. I took a deep breath and banished any feelings of anger. I forced out a smile. “No, I’ll be fine. Let’s just not mention this to Alex, I’d rather skip the lecture.”
“She deserves to know! She is your sister,” Mom countered, finishing up the dressing on my wound. “Stop trying to downplay this, Maxis. This wasn’t a brawl at school, you were assaulted!”
“It’s not hard, just don’t say anything next time she calls.”
Mom scowled at me.
“How am I supposed to explain this then?” She pointed to the plastered dressing just above my left eye. “She’s not blind you know, she’ll notice.”
“I don’t know. I’ll tell her I walked into the bathroom door at night.”
“She’s not stupid, Maxis.”
“Then why’d she go for an art degree?”
“Stop deflecting, this is serious!”
“Look, I’m alive and that’s all that matters. There are a thousand worse things that could have happened and they didn’t. I just got jumped and they stole some cash. Big deal,” I replied, a bit of my temper leaking out. I was aware it wasn’t her fault for being a concerned mother but it was late and I was still seething about the fact the guy and his super femme fatale associate walked off with all my stuff.
I got up and left the bathroom, hearing the squeaking of a wheelchair behind me. I stepped to the side to allow Mom to wheel herself out before I shut the door.
“Sorry for waking you up,” I mumbled, feeling my anger leave me. “I just don’t want you to worry.”
“I’m always going to worry. That’s my job,” Mom shook her head sadly before heading off down the hallway back to her room. “Try and get some sleep. We’ll see how you’re feeling when you wake up and I’ll decide whether or not you go to school. It’s a miracle you didn’t crash on your way home with a head wound like that.”
With that, she disappeared into her room.
I let out a sigh as I felt the pain in my head begin to dull, the painkillers kicking in. I stood for a moment in the darkness of the narrow hallway, lost in my own thoughts. As I began making my way to the bottom of the stairs to head up to my room, I paused before the first step. An idea popped into my head as I glanced at the basement door.
Quietly opening it, I descended the pitch-black stairs and into the dusty basement. I absently waved away any loose cobwebs caught in my hair and fumbled around for the light switch on the wall at the bottom. My hand caught the plastic and flicked the switch.
A dim yellow light lit up the basement, followed by a dull buzzing of electricity from the old lightbulb.
The basement was grimy, filled with boxes and shelves of old technology from Mom’s teenage years. Tech from the years prior to my birth; old CRT televisions, some early flatscreen models, loose wiring, ethernet cables, and all sorts of bits and bobs. Surely I could find a replacement phone down here. I’d need something to communicate with while I was at school and I had neglected to mention to Mom that the gangsters had stolen my phone.
It was easily replaceable anyway, so I wasn’t overly attached.
I dug through a few boxes until I found what I was looking for, an ancient relic from a bygone era. The legendary Kastera 3310 model. The technological equivalent to dinosaur bones – what a find! Mom liked to hoard this stuff – memories or something, it’s kind of weird, but she can do what she wants. Regardless, what mattered was I had found my replacement.
Removing the cover, I eyed the inner workings, noting down all the necessary parts I’d need to focus on. The battery was dead but it wouldn’t matter.
This’ll do.
[Charges: 24/25]
[Type]
* Kastera 3310
[Durability 6/100 - Repair Available. Cost: 3]
First things first. I needed to repair this thing if I had any hopes for it to function. Just about every part of it was worn down and old. Years of sitting around in the basement at the bottom of some box with other junk had not been kind to it.
Before my eyes, the ancient phone rippled as if it were a liquid before folding. It became almost like origami as different parts of the phone folded in on one another until it was reduced to nothing more than a blob of moving color. It took only a moment before it reformed, brand new.
[Charges: 21/25]
[Model]
* Kastera 3310
* * Kastera 3310 MK II (Cost: 2)
* * * Kastera 3310 MK III (Cost: 3)
* Kastera 3320 (Cost: 1)
* Kastera 3330 (Cost: 1)
* Kastera 3340 (Cost: 1)
* ↓ … ↓
* Nebulous S22+ (Cost: 1)
* * Nebulous S22+ MK II (Cost: 2)
* * * Nebulous S22+ MK III (Cost: 3)
Next up was the look, it had to look like my old phone, black, sleek with a far too large touch screen. There wasn’t much point in me investing in the current model. It would be a gross waste of charges when a simple Nebulous S22+ could outperform a Kastera 3310 MK XV in every conceivable way.
I lingered on my decision momentarily, wondering if I should try something new. I had upgraded my last phone to a Nebulous S22+ so nobody would ask any questions if I did it again. Though, I hadn’t pushed it beyond the MK I stage before.
I selected it and pushed it all the way to MK III.
[Charges: 15/25]
[Materials]
* Casing
* * Durability MK I (Cost: 1)
* * * Durability MK II (Cost: 2)
* Screen
* * Durability MK I (Cost: 1)
* * * Durability MK II (Cost: 2)
* Electronics
* * Durability MK I (Cost: 1)
* * * Durability MK II (Cost: 2)
I’d like to think I was pretty careful with how I handle my technology, but so nobody’s perfect; so just to be safe, I put a charge into the durability of the case, the screen, and the internal electronics. That way, they at least wouldn’t break if dropped.
[Charges: 12/25]
[Battery]
* Nebulous S22+ Capacity MK I (Cost: 1)
* * Nebulous S22+ Capacity MK II (Cost: 2)
* * * Nebulous S22+ Capacity MK III (Cost: 3)
* Nebulous S22+ Recharge Time MK I (Cost: 1)
* * Nebulous S22+ Recharge Time MK II (Cost: 2)
* * * Nebulous S22+ Recharge Time MK III (Cost: 3)
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
* Nebulous S22+ Efficiency MK I (Cost: 1)
* * Nebulous S22+ Efficiency MK II (Cost: 2)
* * * Nebulous S22+ Efficiency MK III (Cost: 3)
The Nebulous S22+ already had a powerful battery by modern standards, clocking in at about forty hours of use time. That being said, I liked my things to be better than the regular standard. So I opted to instead put three charges to get Efficiency MK II, and one to get Capacity MK I. It should be able to run for about 60 hours now.
I’d invest in recharge time later when I could be bothered to remember.
[Charges: 8/25]
[Processor]
* Xav 2400k (4.9GHz, 5.5GHz Overclock)
* * Xav 2400k MK II (5.2GHz, 5.8GHz Overclock) (Cost: 2)
* * * Xav 2400k MK III (5.5GHz, 6.1GHz Overclock) (Cost: 3)
* Gen-Core (5.5GHz, 6.2GHz Overclock) (Cost: 1)
* * Gen-Core MK II (5.8GHz, 6.5GHz Overclock) (Cost: 2)
* * * Gen-Core MK III (6.2GHz, 6.8GHz Overclock) (Cost: 3)
Realistically, the processor was probably the most important piece of hardware for what I had planned. What it already provided already served its purpose but I knew that some of the software I wanted to develop and upgrade would get more demanding the further I took it. I’d need something stronger and from the looks of it, the latest Gen-Core seemed to be the way to go.
I already had some programs that could get through most mundane security. Enhanced security like the stuff the ECU was sporting would take far greater gear; not that I was planning to do anything against them in the first place. It was just good to have in a pinch. They had the best of the best and made for a good measuring stick.
In the end, I decided to switch to Gen-Core and push to MK II.
[Charges: 5/25]
[Graphics]
* Myriad 8050XT
* * Myriad 8050XT MK II (Cost: 2)
* * * Myriad 8050XT MK III (Cost: 3)
* Myriad 9900XT (Cost: 1)
* * Myriad 9900XT MK II (Cost: 1)
* * * Myriad 9900XT MK III (Cost: 2)
* Kronos 7th Edition (Cost: 1)
* * Kronos 7th Edition MK II (Cost: 2)
* * * Kronos 7th Edition MK III (Cost: 3)
Graphics cards… I wasn’t fussy, especially when it came to phones. The processor was the important bit but it always helped to have a super-powered graphics card. It just made everything smoother and rendering things would be much faster. Though, I probably wouldn’t do any of that stuff on a phone. Again, it would be nice to have in a pinch and there was no telling if I was going to need something more powerful later on.
Wait a second…
My focus drifted to the Myriad 9900XT. The progression was cheaper than the others.
Is it because I pushed to MK III on my last phone? Does my power remember what upgrades I select? If so, that would mean that remaking things would be cheaper and faster. Is the cost halved or does it decrease by one with each use?
It was still too early to tell. A lot of the beginning upgrades were cheap and allowed me to make massive changes to a lot of different areas at once. I’d figure that out later, but this time I wanted to try something different. I had heard good things about the Kronos brand, so I switched to that and pushed to a MK II.
[Charges: 2/25]
[Camera]
* 4k Resolution, 1-8x Zoom, 60 FPS
* 8k Resolution, 1-12x Zoom, 60 FPS (Cost: 2)
* 16k Resolution, 1-18x Zoom, 60 FPS (Cost: 2)
I didn’t much care for the camera but like the graphics card, it was nice to have something modern and functional. I didn’t even know if phones had the capability to capture things in 8k resolution, especially with that zoom and frame rate. This Nebulous S22+ was already equipped with the best camera around so the price for the upgrade made sense in my head. The function probably existed but hadn’t been released to the public.
Regardless, I wasn’t really going to use the camera, so I backpedaled a bit back to [Battery] and invested my last two charges into Capacity MK II to bump my battery time up to around 100 hours.
[Integration Status: Unavailable]
Once I had finished making the changes and the phone had reformed, I switched it on and smiled as the home screen lit up. Time to retrieve and redownload all my data. I kept copies of all the software and apps on my laptop so all I needed to do now was transfer all of that over manually.
Switching off the light and locking up the basement, I bounded up the stairs toward my room. It was messy I will admit, but it wasn’t toxic like my mom liked to pretend. Clothes were still lying around in my washing basket waiting to be put away, an unmade bed, a desk packed with books, and scraps of computer parts I had been messing with for the last couple of weeks.
In the middle of it all, was my laptop.
I swiftly pulled up my seat and sat down, releasing a sigh of relief as I lifted the top and powered it on. Almost instantly, I was at the home screen. With a Mechatech solid-state drive, I was able to boot immediately to my desktop.
I had once spent a full day's worth of charges upgrading it. Was it unnecessary? Absolutely.
Reinstalling all my software and downloading my data was simple; just a few basic authentication prompts. Before long, I had several installers adding all the enhanced programs onto my new phone.
Now I just needed a new means of defense. Another taser would do but I was feeling particularly spiteful, enough so to consider breaking my ‘no weapons’ policy.
A ping caught my attention. An Entropy notification at this hour could be only one person.
Spaciseebs (Today at 2:06A.M) (Alex): ur up late ;)
Pathfinder (Today at 2:06A.M): stop being so nosey
Spaciseebs (Today at 2:06A.M) (Alex): u know u can just say if u have a gf right? I won’t tell Mom. Cross my heart
Pathfinder (Today at 2:07A.M): don’t have time for that sorta stuff. Comon, u know that
Spaciseebs (Today at 2:07A.M) (Alex): Aww. What about Lucy?
Pathfinder (Today at 2:09A.M): dunno. She’s just a friend
Spaciseebs (Today at 2:09A.M) (Alex): still using that excuse eh?
Pathfinder (Today at 2:10A.M): ?? it’s not an excuse
Spaciseebs (Today at 2:10A.M) (Alex): ahuh, suuuure. I’ve seen the way you two look at each other
Pathfinder (Today at 2:10A.M): …
Pathfinder (Today at 2:10A.M): This is y ur single
Spaciseebs (Today at 2:10A.M) (Alex): by choice!
Pathfinder (Today at 2:11A.M): w/e it’s late. Need sleep. Ttyl
I closed the chat window and sat back, turning on some music.
It allowed me to relax and let me think more clearly. I have always hated silence and if I didn’t have background noise I never got anything done. It made study periods during school an absolute chore. Mandatory silence – we weren’t even allowed to listen to music on our phones.
I mindlessly tapped through the setup processes on my phone, making sure everything was installed correctly. Passwords didn’t really do much nowadays when you had Mechatech programs capable of brute forcing their way through, so I opted to trade mundane passwords out for retinal scanners or fingerprint locks.
My eye caught another Entropy notification and I sat up in my chair.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:32A.M): Hey.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:32A.M): We can help each other.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:33A.M): Should meet up somewhere.
I pulled up their profile because the name wasn’t familiar. They weren’t on my friend’s list but we did share one server together. Bayside’s Super and Metas Online server. Over 80,000 people on the server and they manage to pick me out? How?
Another Mechakinetic?
Out of reflex, I put tape over my webcam.
I stared at the messages uncertain about what to do. Replying to this person felt like a bad idea – whoever they were had the upper hand. They knew who I was – or at least enough to know I had been jumped by the Cains. Either this person had been monitoring the area and happened to see what had transpired, or I had drawn more eyes than I realized.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:39A.M): You probably think this is sketchy and insane to consider. I don’t blame you but please look at the bigger picture. You’re on their radar now, you can’t hide anymore.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:39A.M): Trust me I know.
I understood the warning loud and clear. Those two Cain members made it very clear how dangerous this game was, especially for someone like me.
Mechakinetics were incredibly valuable and everyone wanted a piece of them. Mechatech could be developed and even in some cases taught to more than one person. If the Cains had managed to kidnap me, I’d be forced to work for them until I figured out a way to escape.
Pathfinder (Today at 2:45A.M): Really? Good to know.
Pathfinder (Today at 2:45A.M): I’ll make sure to be more careful. Thanks for the warning.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:45A.M): They won’t leave you alone now. They’re bloodhounds, all of them. They’ve got your scent. You need someone to watch your back. We all do.
Pathfinder (Today at 2:46A.M): And who are u supposed to be? ECU? QC?
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:46A.M): None of the above. I’m not Pandora or Cain either.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:46A.M): I don’t want to speak about it here. Too traceable, You never know who’s got the Entropy servers bugged. Meet in person?
Pathfinder (Today at 2:46A.M): Yeah, because I’m a total masochist that gets off to getting the shit kicked out of him.
Pathfinder (Today at 2:46A.M): I’ll pass, thx.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:47A.M): do you have any other alternative that could be safe? Secure channels are hard to come by
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:47A.M): I’m not your enemy here
Pathfinder (Today at 2:47A.M): I don’t know you
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:47A.M): It doesn’t have to stay that way. I know trust is hard to come by but this is a real offer
Pathfinder (Today at 2:48A.M): ffs I’ll think about it, okay? As you probably know, I’m not feeling great right now to be making any decisions like this.
Eyes_of_Samsara (Today at 2:48A.M): That’s the best I can hope for. But don’t think for too long.
Grumbling, I closed the window, switched off my laptop, and disconnected my new phone.
No matter which way I sliced it, I couldn’t see anything good coming from this. Staying independent was preferable but unless I wanted to get jumped again, I’d need some backup. This person had the right idea – as suspicious as they were.
The only question was who I could trust to watch my back.