I followed the man past the dance floor and through a pair of doors in the far wall. We walked past three red doors on either side, with giant glowing “PRIVATE ROOM - OCCUPIED” signs.
I snapped my eyes forward, ignoring what was probably going on behind those doors. We turned right twice and started climbing the stairs. “This is the way to the VIP balcony?” I asked my escort curiously. He did not reply.
We reached the top of the stairs, and he opened another set of doors. After stepping through, I had to pause to take the sight in. The water's surface lapped against the synthwood floors of the VIP section. The drone lights floating on the surface had giant, softly glowing flowers on them. The light shooting down through the water, to the dancefloor, and back up created a soft, multicolored glow on the VIP section's bright white and gold surfaces.
I whistled at the opulence on display. “I’m at the VIP section,” I sent my team. “Be ready for my signal. We start on go.” From the corner of my vision, I noticed the far edge of the water and the service section cleverly hidden in shadows.
We continued walking as Zuri, Farrah, and Sothog reported they were ready.
I turned right, walking along the water’s edge, and passed by a small group of revelers, dancing, talking loudly, and having shots. I spotted Zuri amidst the throng, urging people on and joining the fun with a bright grin. We turned to the left, and my escort waved me onwards.
I grunted and continued walking until Ignateous Toriklas came in sight. He, his three Bodyguards, four now that my guard had returned to his posse, and on a chair, head lolling, Aren.
“No weapons or armor on him, no bugs or inventory modules either. All his items are under 24 Subroutine Capacity. Clean as a whistle,” the guard reported, stiffly saluting Toriklas.
He gave me a smile so cold and emotionless that I felt a shiver go down my spine. It took all of my willpower to resist pouncing at the bastard right away.
“Mr. Ibicas. So good of you to join us,” he said in a silky, deep voice.
“Go,” I sent my team.
“Mr. Toriklas, it’s a pleasure,” I said out loud, inclining my head a fraction with a polite smile.
“You are far more civilized and agreeable than I expected,” He said and leaned back in his armchair, taking a long, relaxed sip of his drink.
“Two at the bar, both in green shirts,” Zuri said in voice chat.
“Confirmed.” Replied Farrah after a moment. “Sothog, wait for the song to change and do it on the third flash.”
I raised my eyebrow at Toriklas, “Then you underestimated me. Not many people would be civilized or agreeable in the face of your kidnapping and torturing a child, then using it as a hostage. But I’m a professional. I’ve seen worse things than this.”
Toriklas chuckled as the song changed, the beat slowing down but getting louder. The lights faded, and a driving rhythm brought everything back to life, white and purple lights flashing down into the dancefloor and up into the VIP area.
“Well, I’m glad to be dealing with a professional. As I mentioned, we may also come to an understanding if you play your cards right.” His smile remained as cold and predatory as ever.
“I was actually wondering about that,” I grunted, pulling up a nearby chair and sitting opposite Toriklas. His smile got a touch wider.
“Both are down. Zapped the guards right as they finished checking in.” Sothog’s voice sounded in my head, sounding relieved. “Left an inhaler next to them.”
“Good. Move fast,” I sent the team. “Remember, this security company’s policy is to check in verbally every ten minutes. Set a timer.”
I glanced at the unconscious Aren and sighed. “But first, allow me to apologize.”
“Oh?” Toriklas replied, leaning forward.
“You were correct in your guess that I had not appeared due to an injury,” I said, with an apologetic smile. “After I left the child at the Orphanage, I went to the surface, where a Priest ambushed me. We battled, and I,” I raised my right arm and stared at it bitterly, “Was left severely injured. It was a damned miracle that I managed to get away in my state.”
Torklas narrowed his eyes at me. “How did the Priest know where to find you?”
I shook my head. “No idea. Seemed more like a coincidence. After our battle, I fled back into the Otherworld and hid at an augmentation specialist associate of mine. He let me heal for a couple of days. After I woke up, he gave me the arm and access to a terminal. That's when I saw your message. I used all the strength I had to reply. Then, I spent the past three days asleep. If a Cardinal team was hunting for me, I’d have heard about it by now. It's safe to say that they’ve lost my scent.”
Toriklas stared at my arm with great interest, sounding distracted. “Good, good. This arm… It is exceptional work. What’s the name of this specialist?” he said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
“Two more down. They were standing by the stage facing the bar. We’ve hidden them under the stage,” Farrah sent. “Sothog, remember, stick to the rhythm of the lights and only use your abilities when the light flashes purple. The second one was a little sloppy. If that had been the first of the pair, even with me distracting the other guard, you might have gotten caught.”
“Right! Sorry!” Sothog said, sounding cheerful. “Just got distracted.”
I snorted in amusement. Sothog sounded like he was having fun. “Trade secret, I’m afraid.”
Torklas raised an eyebrow, “Half a million.”
I shook my head. “Sorry, can’t do.” I hurried to change the subject. “Why is the kid unconscious anyway?”
“Is the elevator area clear?” Zuri sent.
“Checking now,” Farrah replied.
Toriklas gave Aren a dismissive, contemptuous glance. “The child? Because it is easier to enjoy a civil conversation without its constant, loud, grating babbling. So, I had one of my guards knock it out.”
I let out a guffaw and nodded happily. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”
That brought him up short. “What?”
“His constant talking and bravado was infuriating. For most of the mission, I wanted to put a bullet in the little fucker’s head myself.” I said with a low chuckle, resting my right foot on my left knee.
“I…” Torklas looked off balance. “Did not expect that. I’ve briefly looked into your history. The predicted response to seeing a child, especially a boy, in their early teens in peril was far more severe. You don’t even seem to care.” he sounded almost admiring.
I gave him a smile and shook my head. “I appreciate you thinking I warranted such effort, although I regret you had to go through all that trouble. If I had more strength to type out a longer message, I would have reassured you that the objective was secure and that I would deliver it as soon as possible.”
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Toriklas looked at me suspiciously. “I see. You are not what I expected, Razel the Reaver. Not at all.”
I shrugged helplessly. “The past few years helped me realize that morals and attachments are nothing but weaknesses. My brother had morals and attachments; all he got for them was a trip to the recycler. I chose to stop wallowing and to survive, no matter the cost.”
Toriklas’ eyes got narrower. “So you won’t care that the child had orders from Kornok to kill you?” There it was.
I didn’t miss a beat. I snorted derisively. “Figures. I could tell there was something off about him. I even let myself open several times, and the fool didn’t take any of the opportunities I gave him.”
Toriklas examined my face intensely, giggled, and leaned back into his seat. “It seems you and I might come to a better understanding than I initially suspected,” he said, steepling his fingers.
“Oh?” I asked.
“There was one guard. I took him past the corner so that few people could see us. I suggested getting an elevator with him for some momentary fun, shoved him into it, sent it to a random location, turned off the lights, and rolled in a long-fuse grenade before the doors closed.” Farrah said, sounding proud. “He didn’t even have time to realize what happened or make a sound before the elevator was off.”
“Very impressive, but please stick with the short version of events, Farrah.” I sent back. “Sothog, what’s your status?”
Toriklas looked at me long and hard, deep in thought.
“Sothog, come in. What’s your status?” I repeated.
“Let’s just say that what is happening here is far bigger than you and I,” Torklas said in a somber voice. “Far, far bigger than either of us.”
“Great! Fantastic!” Sothog said hurriedly, “Took down one more guard near the sofas.”
“And then you proceeded to make out with that blonde who has been making eyes at you this whole time,” Farrah said derisively. “Focus on the mission, brother.”
“R-right.” He said, sounding chastened. “Sorry.”
I rolled my eyes and smirked. “Again, you underestimate me. I’ve been to Middle Ring cities a couple of times. I know the type of money and power that megacorps wield. If you got one to sponsor you, a lot of things start to make sense.”
“So, what do we do now?” Farrah asked, “Keep looking?”
He had the expression of someone who had just won an argument as he bared his teeth at me. “And you underestimate us.” He gave me a cruel smile. “All you need to know is that my employers are getting support from the Inner Ring.”
I froze in place. My blood ran cold. The Inner Ring? “Bullshit,” I said reflexively. "Nobody has been able to contact the Inner Ring in centuries."
He chuckled with satisfaction at my reaction. “Ah, but it's true,” He said with a smirk. “How do you think I could afford to throw a Protection Order on an Outer Ringer like you? I told you, this is far bigger than either of us.”
“Razel?” Zuri asked, concerned. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” I said, feeling numb. “But we need to get the fuck out of here as soon as possible. Get ready for phase 2.”
Zuri let out a happy shriek and jumped into the water, the sycophants around her cheering loudly.
“So you see, I am a beneficial friend to have and a dangerous enemy to make,” Toriklas said, not even bothering to hide the pompousness in his voice.
“In position,” sent Zuri.
I nodded, not having to pretend the shock that was written on my face. “That you are, Mr. Toriklas. But, I think I am in a little over my head here.” I stood up from my seat and stretched, the guards following every movement with their eyes.
“In position,” sent Farrah.
“Maybe,” Toriklas said and stood up as well, “But this may also be the beginning of a beautiful partnership. We have a use for people of your caliber and predisposition, Mr. Ibicas. You pulled off a job that most would say is impossible. We have positions in our organization that you would thrive in. If you prove yourself to us, you could be living in luxury on the Middle Ring before you know it. And, if it helps, you’d be fighting for a good cause.” He almost sounded like he meant the last part.
“In position,” sent Sothog.
I shook my head. “I will think about it. You have my contact details, but for now, I just want to get this job over with and get my money.”
“Very well,” Toriklas said with satisfaction, “Now. For the main event. You give me the gem first, and then you get the child and the money, yes?”
“The kid?” I said and glanced at Aren as if I had forgotten about him. “Oh, right, the kid. Sure, okay,” I said, shrugging.
“No complaints?” He said, narrowing his eyes.
“Would there be a point in complaining?” I asked him sardonically.
“No,” He said, his smile widening. “You know, I think I like you.”
“Understandable,” I said and shook my head. “Good help is hard to find nowadays.” I gave a guard a cocky grin and took a measured step to the left as if to examine his clothes. He silently glowered back.
Everything was ready. I stepped towards Toriklas, holding my left hand up and reaching slowly into my pocket with the right. His guards leveled their guns at me, but when I slowly pulled out a tiny glass container with a gem seemingly identical to the one lodged in my chest suspended in the middle, Toriklas’ eyes lit up, and he took an unconscious step forward, waving all his guards down.
“One of the few bits of info I got out of the child was that it dissolved the box. How did you manage to put the gem back into a container?”
“Metal gloves and metal tongs,” I answered easily.
“Really? How delightfully... Primitive.” He said, licking his lips. “Come on then, hand it over.”
I rolled my eyes, getting a glimpse of Zuri nodding at me, and proffered the glass box to Toriklas. He took another step forward, and right as he was about to touch the glass box, the box slipped from my fingers.
“You moron!” he screamed as he bent down to grab the box before it hit the ground.
Perfect. “Begin phase two.” I sent my team. Then, I stepped forward and swung my right arm in an uppercut, aiming to hit Toriklas right in his smug mouth with all the fury that had been building up from the moment I had seen Aren’s tortured body in his first video message.
At the same time, I grabbed my armor from my inventory, the protective equipment covering me in an eye-blink, while at the same time, I threw a [Securi-foam] ball at Aren.
The plan was to hit him so his system shielding retaliated with an instant wave of force. My system shielding would then react to his shielding, creating a feedback loop that would blast all the guards off their feet and Toriklas into the water where Zuri was waiting with a tampered [Thesi] injector. Farrah’s research indicated that the system would read injecting Toriklas with [Thesi] as a helpful action, not a harmful one, and let us knock him out and carry him off. Meanwhile, Aren, surrounded by a thick layer of shock-absorbing foam, would be tossed to the other side of the VIP lounge, where Farrah was hiding, to grab him and carry him to safety.
Instead, several things happened all at once.
My fist swung at him.
A notification opened up.
----------------------------------------
[INTEGRATION COMPLETE]
----------------------------------------
My mind sped up, and I watched in horror as, in an instant, my solid metal hand warped, merged, and grew into a black and gold straight blade with two curved indentations at the base. Blades of blood-red holohaptic light sprouted from the tips of the indentations, following the curvature until they formed two sharp barbs and ran down the blade, meeting at a gleaming point.
----------------------------------------
[OVERRIDE PERMISSIONS DETECTED]
----------------------------------------
“Oh,” Toriklas said.
The blade slid past his shield and into his mouth, emerging from the back of his skull and splitting his head at the jaw.
----------------------------------------
[NEW ACTIVE SKIL ACQUIRED]
[Apostate’s Blade]
Rank: Divine (Unique) | Level: 1/???
Cost: N/A
Effect: Transforms the hand of the [Apostate’s Arm] into a blade with holohaptic edges. Size and sharpness scale with skill level.
“Stab the snake in the eye. Let it consume no more.”
----------------------------------------
Ignateous Toriklas’ body collapsed on the floor with a wet squelch, leaving the top half of his severed head balanced on my blade. I stared into his unseeing eyes.
“Oh. Fuck.”
Someone screamed.
Then, all hell broke loose.