《Cold Haven, a Two Clusters story》 A Two Clusters story? ¡°Two Clusters¡± is a universe I¡¯ve created decades ago. There are many short stories based on this universe with most of them not being long enough to be created into a novel. It was meant to be that way because each short story would eventually become intertwined with each other. Alas, such a format is not suitable for the general audience. It is a fantasy sci-fi world. It is ¡°fantasy¡± because the starting year of this universe is A.D. 9599, which is about 7,500 years into the future. The laws of this universe are based on realism, but things had to be created. The primary examples are subspace portal, spaceship shielding, advanced ion engine that could speed up to ? of light speed and so forth. How those work cannot scientifically be explained, thus I¡¯ve added ¡°fantasy¡± to its genre. ¡°A Two Clusters story¡± means that this story is bound to the lore of the universe I¡¯ve created. It won¡¯t mean anything to you most likely but, for me, it means I am able to use assets I¡¯ve created under Two Clusters universe, such as spaceships you are going to see. Any spaceships you are going to see are my own creations via Blender 3D application. They are NOT AI generated. This is also true for space stations as well. Company names, spaceships / stations, political situations and whatnot remain the same for all Two Clusters stories. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Now, as for why it is called Two Clusters is that the stories are happening predominantly in two places. One is our own Solar system. The other is the Podlezl system. Two Systems didn¡¯t sound right to me, so I replaced it with clusters. This story ¡°Cold Haven¡± occurs within the Freedom colony which is the largest human settlement in a completely artificial environment that is a gigantic space station. If you have read the Rocksea story, expect things to be quite different in this one. This story is more action-oriented. This story will likely end with just one volume with about 100,000 words. With Cold Haven, two stories are officially published under Two Clusters universe. ¢Ù Rocksea - Vazken¡¯s story set in the year 9631 to about 9640. ¢Ú Cold Haven - Nicholas¡¯ story set in the year 9791. Rocksea does not need to be read in order to understand Cold Haven. However, a side story should be read: Rocksea Side story 3: Mosaic passion. C1. Nicholas ¡°.... Please!¡± In a dark and wet alley, a man was crawling backwards slowly. The alley was a dead end, so whatever he was trying to do, it was ultimately futile. ¡°For fuck¡¯s sake, mister, I did warn you, not once, not twice, but thrice.¡± A tall and toned man who was wearing a black jacket and equally black pants was closing on him. The only light source was a colorful spectrum of light from neon signs from outside of the alley, which drew ominous pitch black shadows that eclipsed the two men. There were occasional people walking past, but no one seemed to care whatever was happening in the alley. ¡°I, I couldn¡¯t help it! Give me another chance!¡± The man continued to crawl backwards, but soon enough his back was against a wet wall. He glanced back fanatically, realizing that he was nowhere to go. ¡°Any last words? Sorry, but I¡¯ve been ordered to bring your head, just your head.¡± ¡°I, I CAN PAY!¡± ¡°Really? Why didn¡¯t you try to pay earlier? Pay up, three million credits in full.¡± ¡°P, perhaps in installments?¡± The tall and toned man sighed with his hands on his waist. ¡°Dude, I¡¯ve given you plenty of chances for a payment plan. All you did was run away. Time¡¯s up. You die here today.¡± ¡°N, No, WAIT!¡± He pulled out a small handheld device which was mostly its screen. It was the size of a credit card. ¡°200k right now!¡± ¡°Two hundred thousand? Hand it over. You do have my account number, don¡¯t you? After all, I sent you the info tens of times.¡± ¡°O, Of course!¡± The tall and toned man could see a tiny screen working its magic in the man¡¯s iris. Everyone had implants in this era, which was A.D. 9791. An eye implant connected to one¡¯s brain for simple computing was extremely common. Soon enough, he heard a ding within his head. He also pulled up his own screen within his left eye and saw the sweet deposit of 200k. A tip of his lips curved into a crooked smile - or he felt so. His face remained stoic, however, in reality. What he did next was - ¡°WHAT -¡± An energy discharge was heard which was nothing more than ¡°pop¡± along with a flash of green light. The man had a burnt hole on his forehead and was sliding down slowly sideways to the wet ground. He had shot him in his head. ¡°Dude, you had chances to live. You blew it.¡± Then he pulled out a small pick hammer and promptly smashed the dead man¡¯s head sideways, cracking his skull. His brain matter spilled which he took a sample with a small vial. Then he turned around and walked out of the alley. ¡°Cass, the job¡¯s done,¡± he said after touching a spot behind his left ear. A female¡¯s voice responded in his head almost instantly. ¡°Good job. Got his brain sample?¡± ¡°I have. Tell the client that I¡¯ve also managed to squeeze out 200k from him.¡± The woman whistled joyfully. ¡°Nicely done, you get 10% of that per the contract. Send a copy of the transaction please. We will need that to avoid any suspicions from the client.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± He needed the brain matter to prove that the target was indeed dead. A brain and its associated memories were the only things that could not be restored in the current medical technology. An intact, but oxygen deprived, brain could still be restored if found within half an hour. Therefore, destroying a brain and taking its sample was the most sure way to prove that the job was complete. Did he feel any sadness or guilt for killing a man? He did not. The man was a trash in his mind. ¡°Sent.¡± ¡°Got it. Looks legit. You really did it, you fucker. Nicely done, Nicholas.¡± ¡°Cass, I expect 20k, plus my pay in 24 hours. Clear?¡± ¡°You need to drop off the brain sample.¡± ¡°I will drop it at the usual spot in 15 minutes.¡± ¡°Roger that. I will pick it up in 16 minutes.¡± Once the communication was over, the tall and toned man massaged his neck with a long sigh. ¡°Job done.¡± His eyes lazily glanced around, looking at a desolate place he called home. Soon, he blended into the crowd on the street. Cold Haven was a name of a small sector within the Freedom colony. This space colony was located one light year away from the Solar system and provided much needed shelter from the atrocities of the United Sol, short for the United Solar System Federation. Therefore, the original inhabitants of the station were mostly criminals escaping from the federation. How this colony was established initially was a question mark due to poor documentation. Either way, United Sol never officially acknowledged the existence of the station, meaning there were no official ferry routes from the Solar system. People arrived here just fine still via other routes, however, although it would take them 9 months to reach. In contrast, the Podlezl republic had every reason to acknowledge the station and even placed a subspace portal near the station, allowing ease of access. Regardless, the colony didn¡¯t need either nations. It was self-sufficient and was doing fine. With a population of approximately five million people, yes, they had no problem being by themselves. They had their own fleets and had their own economy. The colony was also one of few places with 1.0 gravity. The artificial gravity was generated by centripetal force, hence its spherical shape. Centripetal force had its flaws, however. Only those in outer sectors enjoyed full gravity. The closer one approached the center, the weaker gravity it became. Still, even the most inner sectors had at least 0.5 gravity. Powering a colony of this size was not a problem at all with radiation engines as well, which harnessed the most abundant energy interstellar space had: radiation. Politically, there was no election in the Freedom colony. The founder of the colony, who called himself as Aedy_Freedom, had been in power ever since its creation. Whether he was actually alive in this era was questionable. Given the fact that he would be over a thousand years old if he was alive, probably not. Either way, everything about him was shrouded in mystery, but nobody really cared as long as their businesses and daily lives were uninterrupted. The whatever entity that governed the colony was located in a sector called the heart, and it was the only sector they had absolutely full control of. All other sectors were rented out. The famous or infamous class S esper, Sae the little Witch, worked for the colony administration, ensuring a certain level of fear to whoever may have had some ideas of overtaking the sector. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/44/gOo9Gj.png A man was standing by a window overlooking a night city scenery. His black short hair was gelled backwards, and his face was cleanly shaven. He wore a black utility jacket with black pants. With a height of 187 cm and being a very fit guy, his overall figure was impressive. His name was Nicholas, a 72 years old male. He was also a class B esper. There were two types of espers. The first type was an esper capable of harassing magic-like powers, like fire and electricity. The second type of esper was physically enhanced people who lacked the ability to create fireworks but had seemingly impossible physical speed and power. There was a third type, but it was exceedingly rare. They were referred to as passive espers who were not special in any notable way, but their powers were like passive aura. Nicholas was a physical esper with enough raw strength to rip a person apart with bare hands. His reflex was surreally fast as well, surpassing an ordinary human being by at least five fold. In spite of his physical strength, he preferred guns however. Still, he was more than a formidable opponent in melee. He was in his quarters which was just a one room apartment. It was small but tidy. There was a bed, a desk, cabinet, and that was it. The room was dim-lit, thus the outside view was in its full strength. It wasn¡¯t a busy street outside but there were people. Women were looking for customers, and most men were either shooing them away or ignoring them completely. At one point, one of the women noticed him behind the window and waved briefly with a wide grin. He did not respond to the woman¡¯s wave and continued to gaze into the scenery. At one point, he noticed that he was being contacted. His communication implant in his ear was subtly beeping. ¡°Nicholas here,¡± he responded quietly by tapping the back of his ear gently twice. A female voice responded. ¡°Nick, you free?¡± He sighed weakly. ¡°Cass, you did see the away sign, no?¡± ¡°Yeah, but you always put away the sign on.¡± Shrugging, he replied, ¡°Point taken.¡± ¡°So, are you free?¡± ¡°Depends.¡± ¡°Look, you are the only one right now. You have to take it.¡± ¡°Oh, you are ordering me around?¡± There was a short pause after he said so. ¡°Look, I am sorry if I sounded bossy. Please take it.¡± He sighed with exasperation. He belonged to an agency called ¡°The faceless¡±. It was basically a mercenary organization. Their primary income was from taking odd jobs from civilians. He had been a part of the agency for 19 years. Things ¡­ had not exactly been good for the agency for the past few years. Their boss, Miguel, had some issues in his personal life that he hadn¡¯t been tending to his company as frequently as he should have. And, because the Faceless was a private company, he was the sole decision maker which meant that the company as whole had been neglected for some time. Thankfully, the company did not require its CEO explicitly. Operators, like Cass, could process payments without him. But accepting new members required the company owner. Having a company owner going AWOL wasn¡¯t good for the company image also. As a direct result, almost all members resigned from the agency, leaving them shorthanded. In fact, only four members remained with two of them being Nicholas and Cass. The company was as good as dead. The only reason he remained was due to the fact that he was still getting jobs and payments were going through. There was no need for him to apply for a new agency and start over from the bottom. This also meant that he had far more seniority than Cass who joined only five years ago. ¡°Fine, fine, I will take it. Don¡¯t you fret, Cass. Send the info and I will look into it.¡± Sounding very much relieved, she responded, ¡°Thanks. Sending it over.¡± Job detail was being sent directly into his eye nerves from his communication implant. A man reported his daughter lost. She was last seen approximately 72 hours ago. ¡°This task belongs to the police,¡± He muttered. His statement was correct. However, the sector they were in was called ¡°Cold Haven¡± and was a designated lawless zone. There was no police. The place Nicholas and the agency were on was Freedom colony deck 126 sector 1200 section 452. It was one of the poorest places within the colony. With a population of about 1,500 inhabitants, everyone struggled to make a decent living in this small sector with limited economy. Strangely though, everyone was free to leave the zone if they wanted. All they had to do was take a sector elevator and just go to another sector. But those who chose this sector as home chose not to leave because the place had its own charms. It was also their home. It was also why he was still in the sector. He had certificates to do far better in another sector, but why leave when you feel home? Just as he stepped out of his apartment which was a colony-owned unit, which meant the rent was cheap and had bare minimum living standards, a woman with a brown pony tail in shorts and a dark red sleeveless shirt approached him. It was the same woman who waved at him earlier. ¡°Hey, Nick,¡± She softly called him out as she approached. ¡°Hey, Muffin,¡± he responded just as softly with a broad smile on his face. The woman was a street prostitute, Marie. Many women in Cold Haven were prostitutes in fact. He had previously purchased her services and always paid her well which wasn¡¯t a common practice in the sector. Therefore, she was extra kind to him. She seized up her boobs while winking at him. ¡°Interested?¡± ¡°Nah, on a job.¡± ¡°Later then?¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± ¡°You are such a tease.¡± Beaming a big grin at him, she slowly and charmingly walked away to confront another man nearby who happened to be in mood and placed his arm around her shoulder. They merrily walked away into the distance. She was an accountant if what she told him was true. She claimed that the pay was acceptable, but she was constantly sexually harassed by bosses even when she changed jobs. She told him that she eventually found her true calling in prostitution. An awkward turn certainly, but it was her choice. At least it was better than being forced to sell sexual services. ¡°Good for her,¡± He said to himself as he took a deep breath and looked at his surroundings. Cold Haven was basically a giant metal box with some buildings scattered across the sector floor, and the floor was like stairs except that there were only three levels. Such buildings were owned by either individuals or companies. Rest of space was used by the colony to provide the basic needs, such as housing, hospitals, sewage system, and such. It was easy to distinguish what was owned by third parties because such were buildings. Colony owned facilities were built into the sector walls and those had no design inspirations. They were dull-looking in other words. The whole colony was home to more than five million people. This sector, home to mere 1,500 people, was a very small part of it. ¡°Always dark and gloomy¡­,¡± He said to himself weakly as he looked around. There was no day-night system in this sector. The only light sources were either neon ads or from lit windows. It was always dark and always gloomy. There weren''t even street lamps due to the lack of any central authorities. Despite the sector being completely lawless, there were still laws upheld by few agencies that called Cold haven home. The colony authorities had absolutely no role and involvement. In other words, if something needed to be done in the sector, it was down to its inhabitants, not the colony. This was one of the charms that drew people into the sector. Stolen novel; please report. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­.¡± He was looking at the details of his mission. The sector was fairly small but it didn¡¯t mean it was easy to find a lost person. Because the sector had floors as well as complex interior structures, the actual real world footprint was much larger. Where he stood was the top floor of what was essentially a giant stair. There were two other floors below, accessible by an elevator, or some could simply jump down. An esper like him could easily do so. The top floor was essentially downtown with nicer and cleaner buildings and such. ¡°A lost girl¡­, where would you be ¡­,¡± He whispered to himself. ¡°What a place to get lost, though. She must have had a death wish.¡± He knew from experience that it was not a simple ¡°find a lost girl¡± job. In fact, he never trusted descriptions of any odd jobs he received. There was always, without an exception, something more. This was Cold Haven after all. Murder and rape were rampant although the top floor was pretty secure. Otherwise, someone like Marie wouldn¡¯t be able to work. Either way, he still had to pursue the job as if he was trying to find a lost girl, and the first place he visited was Pink Spades, a brothel located right in front of his apartment. A runaway girl whoring herself for some credits wasn¡¯t an uncommon event. As he casually walked toward a three story square building where it was boldly advertising sex for money, a bald man was standing by its entrance. The man was more than bald. He didn¡¯t even feature eyebrows. He looked very ragged but rather slender. He did look menacing with numerous scars on his face. If you didn¡¯t know him, you¡¯d be scared to even approach him because he looked like he was about to snap at any moment and kill you. He noticed Nicholas approaching and casually told him. ¡°Yo, Nick.¡± ¡°Sup, Toby.¡± Toby pointed his thumb backwards, pointing at the entrance. ¡°You are always welcome in Pink Spades.¡± ¡°I am looking for a girl, a newcomer.¡± ¡°Oh? On a job then.¡± ¡°Aye.¡± ¡°Sounds like a lost girl.¡± To which Nick gave him a nod. ¡°No new girl as of late.¡± ¡°No need to go in then. See you later, Toby.¡± ¡°Good luck in your search. You are always welcome to Pink Spades.¡± Toby was the bouncer of the brothel. Rumored to have been a former assassin, the guy looked after every girl in the brothel. If anyone treated a girl badly, he¡¯d go after him, beating the crap out of him. He even looked after those who weren¡¯t employed by Pink Spades. Therefore, he was treated extremely well by prostitutes in the sector. If he wanted a blowjob, he¡¯d get it, for free even. And he did not shy away from receiving free gifts from time to time. In his own words, he was a man with desires. Nicholas liked that about him. He wasn¡¯t playing hypocrisy. Anyway, with the brothel out of the pot, he had to think of other possibilities. Just to be sure, he decided to take a walk around just in case the lady luck would smile at him and find the girl but to no avail. ¡°Never easy, this,¡± He said to himself as he looked up to see the pitch black ceiling. It wasn¡¯t his first time looking for a lost person. So far, at least in his experience, all ended badly. He had yet to find any lost person alive in the end. Finding an intact body was generally considered a good ending in these cases. Cold Haven was a lawless zone, meaning murder within the sector could not be prosecuted legally even if he was caught outside of the sector. Essentially, that fact made the sector a dark ritual ground for potential psychopaths and whatnot. Therefore, agencies worked hard to keep public order but only the top floor, section C, was only really secure. Below decks, like section A and B were far worse with section A being the worst. He had a hunch that he¡¯d find this ¡°lost girl¡± on section A, probably raped and mutilated. He had seen aplenty. ¡°Hey, Nick.¡± ¡°Hey, Nicholas.¡± People of Cold Haven greeted him casually as he made his way to the elevator. A lot of people on the top floor knew him because he helped him out from time to time. He found it interesting that females preferred calling him ¡°Nick¡± while males called him by his full name. Either way, he nodded along with their greetings and made his way to the elevator. ¡°Have you seen the news? It looks like Podlezl republic might invade United Sol,¡± a man said to his friend while waiting for the elevator to arrive. ¡°How the tables have turned,¡± the friend snickered. ¡°They deserve it.¡± The United Solar System Federation was on its last legs. Everyone in this colony knew this, including Nicholas. But he couldn¡¯t care less since it was really none of his business. But he did find it indeed ironic. The United Sol was the one who funded the colonization. How could they lose to colonists unless they were so badly managed? Well, the truth of the matter was that Venus and Mars declared unilateral independence. Those two planets were the powerhouses of the Solar system. Venus was led by the Asperger, and Mars was led by Prime minister Masui. Anyway, with both planets out of the Federation, it no longer had the budget to do anything other than fanatically trying to keep the status quo. That wasn¡¯t going to work of course since over 50% of their total income vanished. The most ironic part was that their savor ¡°The Asperger¡± revolted. Yes, the Asperger, the most powerful esper known in the clusters. He was in line to become the next president of the United Sol. What made him revolt when he was about to be given the world? He really had no idea. In his own thoughts, he got onto the elevator to reach section A, skipping section B because he was fairly confident that exploring section B was going to be a total waste of time. ¡°The very definition of shithole¡­,¡± he mumbled as he stepped out of the elevator onto section A. He was alone in that elevator because everyone got off at section B. The street was almost devoid of any light. Even light from windows from buildings were almost non-existent. He stood there for a moment for his eyes to adjust for the lack of light while checking his pistol to make sure that it was functional. At the same time, he turned his combat drone on and ordered it to come near him. It was stationed on the roof of his apartment building and it didn¡¯t take long for it to arrive, taking aerial pictures of his immediate vicinity with night vision, sending it directly into his brain. ¡°... Looks clear for now at least.¡± The last time he explored section A, he was ambushed by a group of thugs. If it wasn¡¯t for his drone warning their approach, he might have not made it. Since then, he made a mental note of bringing his drone whenever he chose to explore section A. The drone was basically a floating bean that was the size of a toddler, with a gun on its tip and armor plates strapped on it. It had a dumb A.I., meaning it had no voice feature. Instead, it communicated directly with him via a secure communication link to his brain. It had only one signal which was ¡°Watch out¡± if it detected anything approaching from behind. If he wouldn¡¯t respond within a few seconds, the drone would act on its own and engage in combat. It didn¡¯t take long for the ¡°Watch out¡± warning to sound in his head. It was right after he explored several dark and creepy alleys. ¡®I am aware. Keep your eyes on,¡¯ he thought, which the drone received. It descended down and floated in rear, keeping its gun pointing toward the blind spot as he continued to investigate alleys. He knew it was only a matter of time before they attacked. The presence of the drone was perhaps delaying the inevitable by several minutes. ¡°Fucking hell, this is too dark,¡± he grumbled. But using a flashlight source was out of the question. It would reveal his precise position. He wasn¡¯t about to blow one of the few advantages he had. Even if his enemies had night vision goggles, darkness still helped. ¡°Fucking hell, what a shithole,¡± he grumbled once again as he continued to investigate. It was full of what appeared to be garbage bags. Unfortunately, he had to investigate the bags since it was quite possible that the woman was chopped up and shoved into a bag. He could barely make out what was in bags with his eyes. In fact, it was his drone that was doing the job by scanning. ¡°... Found something. Scan it.¡± It was a bag full of decomposing flesh. It was simply too dark to tell what they were exactly. ¡®Artificial meat pieces,¡¯ the drone answered within several seconds. ¡°Bummer.¡± Hours later, he was still searching during which the drone shot out numerous warnings. He knew that he was on section A long enough to draw considerable attention. It was probably time to get the hell out. He felt like he was pushing his luck too far already. He did search nearly half of the section, however. ¡°Just one more alley ¡­ One more exploration will do it in the worst case,¡± he whispered. However, he would need to wait a considerable amount of time before venturing onto section A once more. Therefore, it was rather crucial that he finished his investigation in one attempt. ¡®WARNING. WARNING. TARGETS EXCEEDED.¡¯ It was a warning that a large group was gathering. It was time to go. Regardless, he proceeded into yet another dark alley and indeed he could actually sense eyes on him. At this point, he knew that he was in for a firework. It was already too late to get out. Therefore, he took his time investigating the alley. fully aware of the fact that he¡¯d be ambushed at the exit. His safety was very much guaranteed as long as he was within the alley. At the end of an alley, he felt he saw something, a boot perhaps among a small mountain of garbage bags. That itself wasn¡¯t a big deal. However, the boot looked to be a woman¡¯s which piqued his curiosity. When he attempted to pull it out, he felt a heavy weight. He was positive that it was a body at this point. He surveyed the area just to make sure that there were no signs of an ambush or anything. Only when he felt was safe enough, he devoted his energy to pull out whatever was attached to the boot. ¡°Fucking hell,¡± He muttered as he saw a body being pulled out of bags of garbage. It was the wet body of a young female. He had to turn on a flashlight to fully inspect the body in spite of danger. ¡°Red hair ¡­, a tank top, shorts, boots, it matches, this is the girl,¡± He whispered as he inspected the body of the female. The next step was to check whether she was alive. He very much doubted that she was alive, but this still needed to be checked and confirmed. He placed his index and middle fingers under her chin. He sensed no pulse. He then placed his palm on her slightly open mouth. Again, there didn¡¯t seem to be any movement of air. Additionally, the body was cold, reinforcing that she was dead. However, in spite of all evidence stacking against, he still wasn¡¯t 100% sure because espers could survive this. Therefore, there was one more testing to do, it was to check the eyes for iris reactions. When he pointed his flashlight light into one of her eyes, he saw something. Not a movement but he noticed that her iris wasn¡¯t normal. It was really well crafted to a point that he wouldn¡¯t have noticed it unless he was looking for it. It was an android iris which was a solid color. It did have a color pattern to conceal it but, since he was inspecting the eye with a flashlight, he was able to distinguish. ¡°The fuck¡­. Can''t it be true? The job was to find an android?¡± He was livid. He was risking his life here. He was told to find a lost girl. But here he was in front of a seemingly deactivated android. He wanted to call Cass right away but the place was just too dangerous for an idle chat. Besides, the moment he attempted to call someone, whoever was waiting for him would ambush probably. Pulling an arm of the android, he placed her on his back and dashed out of the alley as fast as he could. When he was about to be out of the alley, he suddenly found himself under a spotlight. There are numerous drones aimed right at him and there were figures with seemingly guns pointed at him. ¡°Fuck!¡± Uttering, he took a sudden break in his run and dashed back into the alley. Just as he was out of their sight, bullets began to pour. His drone fired back in response. Dropping the android, he leaned his back against a wall and swiftly touched a spot below his left ear. ¡°CASS!¡± Unaware of the situation, she casually inquired, ¡°Nick? Any update on the case?¡± ¡°I AM UNDER HEAVY FIRE!¡± ¡°Oh, my fucking God!¡± She uttered. ¡°I need a backup!¡± ¡°There is no one online from the agency!¡± ¡°Then hire someone! Hire a merc! Come on!¡± She was unresponsive. ¡°Listen, Cass, I won¡¯t be able to make it out of here alive if you don¡¯t send a backup. Hire the best! I will split the cost!¡± ¡°I have someone on the way.¡± ¡°Good!¡± ¡°I think I can hear the gun fight from my location also. Must be pretty intense.¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for my drone, I wouldn¡¯t be calling you right now.¡± His drone was the only thing that was holding them from rushing into the alley and overwhelming him. ¡°Gotta go, Cass. Need to assist my drone.¡± ¡°I want you back alive, Nick. You are the only active one left for the agency.¡± He laughed weakly and ended the communication. Pulling out his pistol right afterwards, he slowly walked toward the alley exit while leaning closely to a wall. When he saw a figure dashing in, he made an accurate shot in his chest. The figure went down at once. He looked like a regular thug. His act of defiance halted anyone else from rushing in for the time being because nobody wanted to die like a dog. He patiently waited, gluing his back onto a wall of the alley while gunshots rained down upon the exit. At one point, his drone was shot and it exploded in a frantic manner. With the drone gone, it was only a matter of time he¡¯d be overwhelmed. The situation looked bleak overall but he wasn¡¯t overly concerned. If he died here, so be it was his line of thoughts. He also wondered who might mourn for him. Cass would be in a tough spot and she¡¯d need to leave the company. She wouldn¡¯t be practically sad, though. They barely knew each other. In fact, they met each other only once because she was an extreme introvert who rarely left her apartment. Marie might be the only one who actually mourned for him. His parents? He hadn¡¯t contacted them for over 40 years. They might be notified but he wasn¡¯t sure. ¡°Is this merc coming or not?¡± he wondered aloud while tightening his grip on his pistol, getting ready for his last stand. His gun was a plasma pistol which was powered by a battery. It shot out a high temperature plasma toward a target. The plasma shot was the size of a bullet and its temperature generally exceeded 5,000 Celsius. With its kinetic speed and such high temperature, it would penetrate most materials with ease. The gun was displaying that 92 shots were remaining which was more than enough. In fact, if they overwhelmed him, he wouldn¡¯t even use 10 shots before going down anyway. Taking a deep breath, he slowly took steps toward the corner where the exit was. He was going to make several shots to take down as many as possible in order to increase his odds of survival. It was at this point that there was a disturbance. There was shouting and fanatic gunshots. It sounded like there was a melee fight going on. In fact, within seconds, the gun fight died off. Eerie silence dominated the scene as Nicholas was confused. Since it could be a trick to lure him out, he stayed still, holding tightly to his pistol. He was ready to shoot whoever was going to walk into the alley. And, when a figure did enter the alley, he fired a shot which was swiftly deflected by a blade. He had to raise his eyebrows after seeing his bullet deflected. It was such a skillful move. Additionally, being able to deflect a plasma shot at such a short distance meant that he or she was at least class A esper. ¡°Nicolas?¡± Well, it was a woman, a strikingly charming woman at that. It was hard to tell with the lack of light, but she was definitely a charming woman. ¡°Are you the assistant?¡± ¡°Yes, come with me.¡± She had a brown bob haircut with brown eyes. She was wearing an interesting outfit, a short jacket that barely covered anything with a hoodie underneath a low rise shirt with vivid red linings. She was also wearing tight latex shorts with thigh boots. Finally, with pale skin and a red scarf around her neck, she was interestingly sexy. In fact, he thought she was an android at first because no sane woman would dress up like that unless she was trying to attract men. If anyone walked around like that in Cold Haven section A and B, she would have been assaulted and subsequently raped. That¡¯s why the brothel and someone like Toby existed, to provide protection for women. ¡°Who are you?¡± he demanded. ¡°Tell me who hired you.¡± He wanted to make sure that he wasn¡¯t falling into a trap. ¡°A woman named Cass hired me in a rush,¡± She replied stoically. ¡°What happened to the assailants?¡± ¡°All dead obviously.¡± ¡®You¡¯ve got to be kidding me,¡¯ He thought. There were a lot of drones and a bunch of thugs. Noticing his skepticism, she turned around and casually walked out. ¡°See for yourself if you doubt,¡± she added. He carefully followed her and made sure that he was behind her so that, in the worst case, he could use her body as a meat shield. To his mild surprise though, she was speaking the truth. All drones were cut in half, and the thugs were either dead or bleeding to death from sliced limbs. He recalled how many seconds it took for the gunshots to die down. It was less than twenty seconds, probably. It took this woman less than half a minute to neutralize over ten thugs and drones. This was a work of a hardened professional in spite of her slutty appearance. ¡°Who are you? Using a sword? You don¡¯t see that around here.¡± Upon hearing him, she turned her blade off and stuck it into the back of her jacket. A plasma sword was basically a blunt stick when turned off. Therefore, it was completely safe for her to have done so. Then she casually started to walk away. ¡°My job is done, so bye,¡± She said stoically as she vanished into darkness. Her high heels were making sounds as she walked away. ¡°Her name is Ariel_Spear and she isn¡¯t exactly a mercenary,¡± Cass explained when Nicholas brought the android as well as his destroyed drone to her apartment. Using an underscore between two words was a creative way to add a fake last name. Nobody had a last name since it was demolished in 3022 via the True Equality Act of 3022. ¡°She works for an agency called ¡®Space Gentlemen,¡± She added. ¡°She was just exploring the sector when I contacted her.¡± She brought a cold can of beer and handed it over to him who popped it and drank it down in one go. ¡°Phew, fucking hell. I thought I was a goner,¡± He muttered and added, ¡°She must have made herself available as a merc. Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t have been listed, yeah?¡± She nodded, and he pointed at her sofa. ¡°Could I sit? Mind you that I am covered with shit.¡± ¡°Go ahead. I never use it anyway.¡± Then she went ahead and inspected the android on the floor. ¡°A really well crafted android, this is,¡± She said. Cass was a gothic girl. She was wearing a knee-length black dress with black lipstick. She also had short hair which made her look tomboyish. He never saw her with anyone, ever. He grunted hard as he sat down on the sofa then let out a long relieved sigh. He rested his head and shut his eyes. ¡°I risked my life for that android. Have you contacted the client?¡± ¡°I have not. I want to investigate first.¡± ¡°A good call. Have you contacted Miguel though.¡± Miguel was the boss. ¡°I left a message.¡± ¡°That dude¡­, he needs to get his shit together ¡­.¡± He fell asleep shortly afterwards, snoring. C2. A ghost in a machine When Nicholas opened his eyes from his nap, what welcomed him was very round eyes of an android looking right at him. He startled visibly as a response but his voice was calm. "What are you staring at me like that for?" "Looking at my savior," She said with a rather charmingly high pitched voice. She beamed a bright grin at him right afterwards with her teeth visible. She did look like an ordinary woman. "I thought you were a broken android." "I am not. I was just turned off. I was also running out of battery.¡± Pushing her face away, which was warm to touch just like a real human being, he got up from the sofa and looked for Cass. "Cass? You there?" A distant voice responded. "In a shower. BRB." The android took a few steps back and sat down on the floor with her legs crossed. It did have a fairly innocent appearance. It had short red hair with a very round face as if it was made to look younger and innocent. In spite of that, its attire was quite provocative with a deep tank top with camo shorts. She also had heavy makeup with deep red eyeshadows and reddish cheek. "Your name?" He asked while checking his pockets to see whether anything was amiss. "Viviant, nice to meet ya," She responded gleefully, rocking back and forth subtly. It was as if she couldn¡¯t wait to move around like an impatient child. "An android, yeah?" He just wanted to make sure. "Well...., not exactly." He narrowed his eyes. "What?" She pointed at herself and said, "This body is that of an android." Then he pointed at her head, just above her ear. "But what is inside is not an A.I." He had to pause for a moment to really understand what she meant. Even then - "What? What does that even mean? Are you saying you have a human brain in your head?" That''d make her a cyborg instead, and it had human rights as long as they were legally recognized as cyborgs. "Nope, I''ve got a chip instead." "Then you are an android." "Even if what is inside of the chip contains a human consciousness?" There was a moment of silence between them. He wasn''t sure how to respond. He didn''t even know that it was even possible. Artificial intelligence was just that, artificial. No matter how advanced artificial intelligence was, by the end of the day, it was just a complex set of algorithms. It had limitations. The silence was broken up by Cass who was coming out of a shower. She was wearing nothing but a beige bathrobe wrapped around her bare body. There was no water dripping from her skin though since she was using a steam shower. "So, you met Viviant," She said casually after seeing them staring at each other awkwardly. He glanced at her and responded, "Yeah, and I am confused." "I did check her skull. There was indeed a chip there but she is not an A.I. Well, it could be A.I. but way too advanced." Viviant glared at Cass and spoke boldly, "I am not an A.I." Nicholas and Cass exchanged a glance with the latter giving a shrug. Meanwhile, he noticed something. Cass had her black lipstick on still even after a shower. "Cass, your lips are still black. Is that permanent? I thought you were using lipstick." "Yeah, they are permanent. I injected some black dye into my lips some years ago." "Forever the goth gal, eh," He joked and changed the subject. "You are an esper. Can you tell whether she is lying?" Nicholas was a physical esper whereas Cass was a mental esper. In other words, he was a warrior and she was a mage. "ESP lie detecting appears to work only on organic beings. I couldn''t tell," She replied. "I. AM. NOT. AN. ANDROID!" Viviant exclaimed angrily. ¡°Pipe down. We have every right to be suspicious of you,¡± he pressed. She pouted but said no more, and Cass went into her room to change. Sighing, he looked around to find his battered drone lying on the floor. It had tens of bullet holes and its burnt wires were sticking out. He wasn''t sure it would be repairable. He sat down on the sofa once again and looked at Viviant who looked right back. "So, what should I do with you?" "Could I hire you?" "Huh?" "I''d like to hire you." He snickered. "That''s new. An android wants to hire me." Instead of strongly rejecting that she was an android, she simply pouted this time. "Do you even have credits?" It was a genuine question. As far as he was aware, an android could not be registered as a human being, meaning an android could not open a bank account in its name which also meant it could not use credit. It could carry prepaid cash cards but carrying those was extremely dangerous in a zone like Cold Haven. "I ... do not but hear me out." She pointed out that she was a result of a secret project called "Moonlight". The goal of the project was to transfer a human consciousness into a chip. It would not copy a consciousness. It would transfer, meaning the host human would end up being brain dead as a result. "Wait a fucking sec," he put a stop at once. "Are you saying that your original body is now brain dead?" She nodded, to which he blurted, "Fucking shit." He still did not believe her. If such a project indeed existed, it would have been huge. He would have heard about it in one way or another. In spite of humans being able to live hundreds of years with ease, in spite of nobody really dying physically but mentally, it did not stop some from trying to achieve true immortality as in never worrying about death of any sort. A common way to achieve immortality was becoming a machine. The biggest obstacle to that goal was the brain or consciousness. There was no simple way to transfer consciousness. However, it was possible to copy through numerous tests and let an AI chip interact with its host. It still did not achieve an identical copy. Anyway, according to her, she was the project leader. Since no one was willing to volunteer to be a guinea pig, she volunteered. "So, the project is successful?" "Not... exactly." After her case was a success, other members in the project volunteered but none of them made it, becoming brain dead as a result. Shortly after, someone leaked the project to a high bidder, and the project was hijacked. "I was turned off after a group of men in black stormed into our lab. I don''t know what happened after that. I suppose I was to be sold to someone and be examined." She stopped, and there was silence in the apartment. Cass, too, was listening from a distance. As for him, he wasn''t sure what to say. The story she came up with, it clicked. It didn''t sound like she was making up everything. He wasn''t ready to trust her but he did feel that she wasn''t completely lying. It was either she was being truthful or she prepared the lie very meticulously. He pressed, "So, if you haven''t got any credit on you, how would I get paid? You haven''t explained that part, yet. And what do you need help with? If I were you, I''d just run away from the colony and live on. You are literally an immortal at this point." She stuck out her index finger immediately. "One, I want to find out who sold out the project and kill him or her." He nodded along with folded arms on the sofa, "Alright, reasonable I suppose." Then she stuck out her middle finger, making it a two. "Two, if you can acquire the data from the project, it will be worth millions if not hundreds of millions. And that is not even counting whatever loot you might come across." "The data is likely gone," Cass chipped in. "Probably, but the lab has backup storage. Even if that backup is also gone, then there is an emergency backup storage which only I, as the project head, knew about." Sighing, he looked at Cass who was leaning against a door frame to her room. She was in her usual attire at this point, a thigh length black dress. He was silently asking for a second opinion. "It''s your call, Nick. You could be in for riches or could end up just dying," She responded sincerely. "Since Miguel hasn''t even responded, I don''t suggest listening to him even. Our agency is as good as done." He gave it a thought for a moment. What seemed clear was that he would need a team. There was no way that he could do this alone. "What are you going to do, Cass? You are a class B ESP. I could use you." She folded her arms. "I don''t want to risk my life, Nick. I have savings that should last me for years. Things could change by then. Miguel could come back even." "I still want someone to coordinate things behind the scenes though. You are quite used to that." "That, yes. I could do that since it''s a safe job." He turned his attention to Viviant. "You are an android. Can you fight?" "I can handle guns. I have experience with it. If it''s melee, nope. The ability of this body is not great. It''s on par with an average female." Cass spoke up. "I could contact the mercenary that helped you out earlier." Which made him suddenly remember. "What did it cost to hire her? I did say I''d split the cost." "Nah," She waved her hand away. "Don''t worry about it. I will charge Miguel for it." "You sure?" "Yeah." "How much did it cost to hire her anyway?" There was a short pause before she replied reluctantly, "250k." He stood up at once and uttered, "Fuck." She added, "It was an emergency contract, and she was listed as an experienced class A esper. I am assuming she was good." He did recall her deflecting his bullet at a nearly point blank range, not to mention the fact that she took down over ten thugs and equally many combat drones single handedly. There was no doubt that she was good. "Yeah, she was good." "It shouldn''t be as expensive if you offer a normal contract." "Do you have her contact number?" She shut her eyes for a moment. "Sending it to your brain," She stated. "Got it. I am going to call her later." He then directed his attention at Viviant who was still sitting down with her legs crossed. "Now, where do you want to stay?" "Huh?" She sounded confused. "Whether I take on the job, I am unsure. So, meanwhile, you need a place to stay." "Oh." She looked disappointed with a pout. She was hoping for him to accept the job on the spot. "You can stay here if Cass lets you for the time being." "I don''t mind," Cass said. "Or you can stay at my place. The choice is up to you." "I will stay here." An easy decision, he thought. If Viviant''s claims were true, she was a woman. A woman generally preferred staying at another woman''s place rather than a man''s. ¡°But there is one thing you should know,¡± she added quickly. ¡°I am probably wanted. How did you find me anyway in the first place?¡± Cass answered, ¡°An anonymous client posted a job, and we took it. We were to find a lost girl.¡± ¡°And you found me just like that?¡± ¡°It wasn''t easy,¡± Nicholas said. ¡°I risked my life to get you out of section C.¡± ¡°Section C?¡± Viviant tilted her head. ¡°The lowest floor of Cold Haven, a literal hellhole,¡± Cass said. ¡°I heard the gun fight from section B, so it must have been a pretty big fight.¡± Nicholas pointed at his drone or whatever was left of it. ¡°That is or was my drone.¡± ¡°So, you have nothing to do with my kidnapping?¡± Nicholas and Cass looked at each other with the former answering. ¡°The client may have to do something with it. We have yet to contact him or her.¡± ¡°Are you going to contact that client of yours and hand me over?¡± ¡°If what you offer is far greater than what the client offers, we are going to stick with you. We are mercenaries after all.¡± Cass added, ¡°Interestingly, the client did not disclose the reward for the job.¡± He folded his arms. Everything smelled. It was hard to trust anyone at this point. Neither the mysterious client nor Viviant was quite believable. She could lead him into a trap after all. Backing away from this was certainly a possibility. But given the fact that he risked his life and lost his drone meant that he was inclined to get something out of this at the least. ¡°I have a lot of suspicions about everything. But precisely because everything smells so much, I am inclined to work with you. Why did you tell us seemingly everything? We didn¡¯t even ask.¡± Viviant shrugged with a crooked grin. ¡°If I didn¡¯t, you¡¯d have handed me over to the highest bidder anyway.¡± ¡°That much is true. We are mercenaries, and this is Cold Haven. Moral standards do not exist.¡± ¡°.... Cold Haven? Where are we? We are in the Freedom colony, right?¡± ¡°We indeed are,¡± Cass replied. ¡°It¡¯s called Cold Haven here.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of it ¡­ Well, at least I am glad that I wasn¡¯t shipped off the colony.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a small sector. Makes sense that you didn¡¯t know. Hell, there are thousands of sectors within the colony.¡± Taking a deep breath, Nicholas felt that it was time for some refresher. ¡°Look, I am going to take the drone pieces off at Dakarai¡¯s place. We will talk later. Let¡¯s take a break from this for a bit.¡± ¡°Yeah, too much human contact for me in such a short while. I need a break, too,¡± Cass replied with a sigh as well. ¡°I will be living with you for a while, though?¡± Viviant pointed at herself. ¡°You ain¡¯t a human.¡± ¡°I AM. NOT. AN. ANDROID!¡± Shaking his head, Nicholas left them behind after picking up his charred and battered drone mainframe. The reason he took the drone with him was not because he felt that he could restore it. It was because of the link chip inside of it. He didn¡¯t want anyone to savage the chip out of the destroyed drone and potentially find a way to contact him via a brain link. He would need to swap out his brain chip to change its unique frequency and it was an expensive, not to mention somewhat risky, procedure. ¡°Nicholas, welcome to the Little Army!¡± A cleanly shaven black man welcomed him with a professional smile behind a metal counter. The Little army was the name of the store he ran. It was predominantly a drone store although it did sell other electronics. His attention moved immediately to Nicholas¡¯ battered drone. Many different kinds of drones were hanging off walls. His drone model wasn¡¯t one of them, however. ¡°What the hell happened?¡± ¡°Did you hear a gun fight within the past twenty four hours?¡± His eyes narrowed at once. ¡°That was you?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t start it in my defense.¡± ¡°Dang, man. You survived that? She did her job then.¡± ¡°Yeah, probably prolonged the battle long enough for reinforcements to arrive. In that sense, she did save my hide.¡± He placed the battered and charred mainframe on the counter, and Dakarai took quick glances before giving his verdict. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Just so we''re clear. There is no way to repair this drone. Well, I could restore it, but it will be the same as building a new drone. I suppose the comm. chip can be saved, though.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all I want.¡± ¡°You shopping for a new drone then?¡± ¡°Can I purchase the same model?¡± ¡°It is possible but it will take some time. She has been out of production for decades. You purchased her when she was about to enter the end of production. You got her on a clearance sale if you still remember.¡± He vaguely remembered that. It was 50% off. ¡°It¡¯s been that long and I can still buy it?¡± ¡°Well, to tell you the truth. You can¡¯t. But I can source parts and build a new one. I am a drone mechanic after all.¡± ¡°And the price for that?¡± Dakarai pulled up three fingers. ¡°3k? ¡°30k¡± ¡°Fucking hell,¡± Nicholas blurted. ¡°For the record, you purchased her for 20k if my memories are correct. That was with a big discount. Her full price was around 50k.¡± He hesitated. ¡°It¡¯s your choice. It is still cheaper than purchasing a brand new drone, I must say.¡± Folding arms, he gave it a thought. He could afford it easily. He had 120k credits in his account. But the amount was substantial. ¡°I will knock 10k off the price if you do me a little favor.¡± That piqued his interest. ¡°Oh? Do go on.¡± Clearing his throat, Dakarai made sure that no one was around. Because there were a few browsing customers, he beckoned him inside. It was safe for him to leave his post since there were security drones, keeping eyes on people. It was his workshop where drone parts were all over the place. ¡°I have a client who is refusing to say. I think you know what I am about to ask.¡± It was indeed a common job. However, something was amiss. ¡°If he refuses to pay, why not just send the drone back? It was the standard payment scheme, right?¡± He nodded and said, ¡°Yeah, but the issue is that it wasn¡¯t a drone purchase. It was drone customizations, a whole new paint job, baking CPU overclock in, adding sensors, thrusters, and whatnot. A lot of the cost was labor.¡± In other words, he wouldn¡¯t recoup all of his money back even if he sold off the customer¡¯s drone. ¡°How much are we talking about here?¡± ¡°I quoted 40k, and he paid 20k up front.¡± That was the standard payment scheme for drones. Pay half upfront and pay the rest at the end. He quickly added, ¡°I know what you are thinking. I do know that I am fussing over such a small amount but it would make me feel better.¡± Under normal circumstances, Nicholas might have tried to negotiate for better terms. However, he knew for certain that Dakarai was giving him a deal. It would be flatout rude to ask for more. ¡°Fine, I will take it.¡± He beamed a relieved smile. ¡°Thank God. By the way, Fol doesn¡¯t know this. Don¡¯t tell her, yeah?¡± Fol, her full name was Foluke. She was his legal wife, which was a rare thing in Cold Haven. Marriage itself was quite rare. She was also a drone mechanic and was usually present in the backroom where they were talking. ¡°I have to ask. How much do you want me to push this client?¡± It was a roundabout way to ask whether murder was an option. ¡°Just don¡¯t kill him. No need to waste a life for 20k.¡± That was true although it was never easy to make people pay. Physical violence was pretty much guaranteed. ¡°Alright, give me the info.¡± ¡°Sending it to you now. He lives in Cold Haven.¡± ¡°Should be easy then. Is he an esper?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t believe so.¡± ¡°Got it. I will send 30k once I complete the job. I will try to get it done within twenty four hours.¡± That¡¯d be his full payment. He would pay nothing more. Dakarai beamed a smile at him. ¡°Thanks, dude. The faster it is done, the better. I will be able to sleep a bit better. It¡¯s not even about money to be honest. I just want this off my back.¡± ¡°You should be able to sell the drone off to recoup some costs, no?¡± Dakarai was about to say something but looked away while keeping his mouth shut. It was as if he was afraid to say it out loud. ¡°It¡¯s probably best to show you the drone¡­ Follow me.¡± He led Nicholas to a small room where it was meant for a personal workshop for projects. And there the customized drone was on a work stable. ¡°The¡­ fuck?¡± Nicholas had to utter. There was a giant glossy pink dildo with testicles. They were the size of a toddler. He realized that it was the drone. ¡°Dakarai, you cannot be serious?¡± He face-palmed and shook his head. ¡°It is what it is.¡± The skin of the dildo drone was animated as if it was alive with the twin balls slowly moving about. It must have taken a considerable amount of time to customize the drone to this extent. ¡°I am sure that you can still sell it¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, I guess¡­¡± Patting his shoulder, he left the Little army onto section C which was somewhat crowded with people. ¡°Alright¡­, time to head to section B¡­¡± Taking a deep breath, he thought about Viviant. Was she telling the truth? Probably, not, he thought. This wasn¡¯t the first time mankind attempted ¡°consciousness transfer¡±. Such projects were always backed up by CEOs from big corporations and whatnot. In other words, it was a rich people¡¯s hobby or perhaps dreams. When you are set for life financially, you¡¯d want to live for as long as possible. ¡°Hell, as if living up to 400 years isn¡¯t enough¡­¡± Average people had an average lifespan of 400 years, give or take 10%. Espers tended to live longer. However, there was a catch. Physically, it was scientifically determined that people could live longer. Mental integrity was another issue entirely however. In other words, after a certain age, people went insane either by stress or boredom or whatever. There was also a condition called mental blackout where a person over a certain age threshold would just black out and never wake up. "23:21.... What now?" he wondered aloud after he dropped by at his place. The time was awkward. Since there was no concept of day and night, everyone was active at different hours. And, for espers, they could go on without any kind of sleep for days. He had two choices. He had the contact information for Ariel_Spear from Cass. He didn¡¯t really need to contact her at this point but talking to her was an option. Another was carrying out Dakarai¡¯s request. ¡°Well, the dude¡¯s in a bind. Let¡¯s help him out first.¡± He had known Dakarai for as long as he was in Cold Haven. The guy always tried to make an honest living. It made him wonder why he was bothering to live in such a place like Cold Haven in the first place. ¡°Section B, it is then.¡± Section B was mostly made up with residential units. It did have a lottery place which also acted as a place to gather. While it was not as safe as section C, it was still relatively safe simply because it was where the majority of residents were living. Even the scumbags knew that unsettling where people lived was a bad idea. It was not to say that agencies didn¡¯t send out espers to keep peace. But section C was the top priority where credits flew. Section B was also where Cass lived in a modest apartment. She was born and raised in Cold Haven, meaning she knew the place better than him. That was not probably true, though, since she barely left her own apartment. She was an extreme introvert. He could count with his one hand how many times he saw her outside. ¡°So, according to the info¡­¡± The client¡¯s unit was an apartment, which was no surprise. The majority of residents in this sector lived in apartments. In fact, Cold Haven had just one building that was used as a private residence, and he had no idea who was living inside if at all. As he casually walked toward his destination, he noticed that there was a pair of women standing right outside of the apartment unit he needed to enter. Their outfits were quite peculiar, and he recognized them almost instantly. Both women had purple hair tied to the back. Both were swearing short jackets but varied in color. One was wearing yellow. The other was wearing dark red. Both were wearing a leotard with what appeared to be tights. Both had a device on their chests that displayed the logo of their agency. Both had only one thigh sock, leaving the other leg exposed. Wearing a leotard in public was a daring move on its own especially in Cold Haven. Finally, they had what looked like gas masks on for some reason, mostly hiding their facial features. What would be even the point, he wondered, since their style stood out. ¡°The Kitty Cats,¡± he whispered. The Kitty Cats was another agency like the Faceless he belonged to. He never had conflicts with them, thus he didn¡¯t know their members. Their eyes soon met, and one of the women asked him. ¡°You going in here?¡± The one with the yellow jacket asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t live here,¡± the one with the dark red jacket asked. ¡°No, I do not.¡± The women looked at each other before turning back to him. ¡°What is the purpose of your visit to this unit?¡± He had a hunch that the target he was after hired these two women as bodyguards. What didn¡¯t make sense was why go so far for just 20k? If it was him, he would have paid the due and not start this in the first place. Granted, it might have been cheaper to hire these two women, but the risk wasn¡¯t worth it in his mind. There was a chance that there was more to this although he felt that it was unlikely. ¡°I am after a man who has a debt to pay,¡± he replied earnestly. Lying wouldn¡¯t work anyway when they were already suspecting him. ¡°I know your face,¡± the woman with the yellow jacket replied. ¡°Nick the Gentleman, yeah?¡± He wasn¡¯t quite aware that he had a nickname. Given the fact that his shortened name was being used, he assumed that prostitutes gave him the nickname. ¡°That¡¯s right, I guess. Will you step aside and let me pass?¡± ¡°Afraid not. We have a job to do, you see.¡± ¡°Nothing personal,¡± the woman with the dark red jacket added quickly. As soon as she finished, the two women pulled up their pistols. It looked like both of them were using dual pistols. He backed off swiftly on the cue and pulled out his own pistol. Without further ado, a gun fight commenced. While bystanders took shelter quickly, neither Nicholas nor the two women were seeking cover. That was because they were able to dodge shots physically. It wasn¡¯t that they were able to see the shots themselves but, being espers, they were able to calculate trajectories of shots. This worked only in small scale gun fights however. When he was surrounded by thugs a day earlier, he had no choice but to keep himself covered. Evading shots left and right by just hair, he focused his shots on the one with the yellow jacket because he felt that she was the leader. As expected, they also evaded bullets by making subtle movements, an indication that they were espers like him. Either way, he didn¡¯t believe this fight would end by just simply shooting at each other. He had to make some moves either by words or actions. Turning his pistol into a rapid fire mode, he barraged them with inaccurate shots which gave him slight momentum as the two women kneeled down for whatever cover they could get. He dashed as fast as he could toward them and was right in front of them in a blink of an eye. With a powerful punch right into her gut, she was lifted up and was thrown away at least 10 meters (30ft). ¡°Sis!¡± The other woman with the dark red jacket exclaimed. ¡°You fucker -¡± However, before she could finish, he performed a sideway kick. This time, however, she blocked the kick with both of her forearms. Still, she went flying back although she landed properly. She checked on her sister since both of them were close by, allowing him to enter the apartment unit. ¡°HEY!¡± However, he wasn¡¯t going after the target. Instead, he was waiting by the door after swapping out its battery because the rapid shot drained most of it. If his mission was to kill, he would have gone straight to the target. ¡°Damn it! After hi-¡± When one of them, the one with the yellow jacket, rushed in, he swiftly placed his gun on the side of her head. ¡°Stop,¡± he warned. ¡°Dang it¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s not make this any uglier. My client does not wish him dead. I just need to rough him up to make him cough 20k.¡± ¡°Dude, our job is to protect him from harm. What you are asking is out of the question.¡± ¡°Your life is at risk, though.¡± She growled with a sigh. She was silent for a brief moment before making a suggestion. ¡°Fine, you win this round. But do us a favor.¡± ¡°Go on. I am listening.¡± ¡°Finish the guy.¡± He narrowed his eyes. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The guy is a whackjob. He wouldn¡¯t stop sexually harassing us. That was why we were outside to begin with, to get away from him.¡± Her sister barked from behind, outside. ¡°He threatened us with a bad review!¡± ¡°Can¡¯t leave a bad review if he hits the ground dead,¡± she said with a scoff. ¡°Promise us to kill him, and we will just go. We are already paid anyway.¡± ¡°Not fully, but we got half at least,¡± her sister added. ¡°That fucker can die for all I care.¡± Dakarai didn¡¯t want him dead. But then he didn¡¯t need to know. Being able to kill him would make the job much easier since he could push the guy far. ¡°You got a deal.¡± ¡°Good, now get that gun off my head.¡± ¡°Sure, sure.¡± He lowered his pistol. ¡°What is your name by the way?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Lexa and Lexi,¡± she said. Then she turned around and left. ¡°Wait, which one is which¡­¡± But they were already gone at this point. Scratching the back of his head, he mumbled, ¡°Well, he must be a piece of work. Mercs don¡¯t abandon their clients like this.¡± Regardless, it was time to get the job done. ¡°It is 7-14. Let¡¯s see who this guy is.¡± Interestingly, the door was open, so he let himself into a dimly lit and extremely messy apartment with items scattered all over the floor. ¡°Change your mind? Come on, give me a blow job!¡± A man¡¯s frustrated voice sounded in the apartment which helped Nicholas locate his location. It didn¡¯t take long for the man to realize something was amiss. ¡°What the hell are you?¡± he demanded, lying fully naked on a queen size bed. There were various sex toys scattered around. ¡°Dakarai sends his regards,¡± he said ominously. ¡°Who?¡± Rolling his eyes, he blinked a few times. ¡°Ah, the nigga. I don¡¯t owe him anything.¡± ¡°You do, 20k. The dildo drone, ring any bell?¡± Frowning, he slowly got off from the bed and reached out for his underwear on the ground. ¡°What if I don¡¯t want to pay?¡± Nicholas aimed his gun at him, to which he snickered. ¡°What, killing a person for just 20k?¡± ¡°Do you think I am joking?¡± ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s bullshit.¡± Then he pulled the trigger, and the guy¡¯s neck exploded, severing one of his jugular veins. Blood poured out of his neck literally, and he collapsed holding whatever was left on his neck. ¡°wh¡­at t¡­h..e¡­fu¡­.ck.¡± He barely managed to say. ¡°Pay up or you will die within a few minutes.¡± ¡°Fu¡­cking¡­ can¡¯t bel¡­ieve¡­¡± He shrugged. ¡°Fine, you die then.¡± He aimed his gun right on his head this time. ¡°W-w-ait!¡± The guy begged with his shaking arm reaching out. ¡°I¡­ pay, I pay!¡± ¡°I am sending you a one-time code to transfer the fund. Make it quick. You don¡¯t really have much time.¡± He was having a progressively harder time to breath and maintain a clear consciousness but he eventually made the payment in a minute. He was on the verge of passing out at this point. ¡°Good, verified. I will call someone. Don¡¯t worry. You can pass out.¡± And right on the cue, the guy passed out. Unfortunately for him, he wasn¡¯t going to call anyone but let him die like that. ¡°Sorry, pal. It¡¯s a bit personal,¡± he said as he turned around from him, who was still bleeding badly from his neck wound. When he was out of the apartment, the two women were waiting. ¡°Is he dead?¡± ¡°Yep,¡± ¡°You don¡¯t mind if we check, do you?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Be my guest.¡± They glanced at each other. ¡°No need, he¡¯s dead then.¡± ¡°By the way, which one is which? You told me your names but failed to disclose that.¡± ¡°I am Lexa,¡± said the one with the yellow jacket. ¡°We are twins.¡± ¡°The Kitty Cats, yes?¡± ¡°Yep, see you around Nick,¡± Lexa said as they turned around and left. The fact that they remained to make sure that the guy was dead made him a bit flabbergasted. They really did mean his demise. ¡°Well, time to give him good news,¡± he said while arranging to transfer 30k to Dakarai. Again, he wasn¡¯t going to tell him that the client died. He would lie even if asked. Not even after a minute passed, he was contacted by Dakarai. Touching a spot below his left ear, he responded casually. ¡°Sup.¡± ¡°Nicholas, I received the payment. Can¡¯t believe that it¡¯s done in less than twelve hours.¡± At the moment, he was casually walking toward the elevator to reach section C. He wanted to take a shower and shave his face before taking a nap. ¡°We are professionals for a reason,¡± he replied. ¡°I guess¡­, but he was really stubborn. How did you make him pay so easily?¡± ¡°Beat the guy until he¡¯s almost dead. Making them believe that we are ready to kill him is usually the sauce.¡± ¡°You¡­ didn¡¯t kill him, did you?¡± ¡°Dude, I am a professional. You told me not to kill him. Therefore, I didn¡¯t kill him. Of course, that doesn¡¯t mean I should have been kind to him.¡± His lie was as smooth as it could ever be. ¡°I see. Thanks, dude. You took a load off my shoulders.¡± ¡°Cheers, big guy. Let me know when the drone is ready.¡± ¡°Yeah, I am already on it. Parts are on the way. Give me ten days or so.¡± ¡°By the way, I have a question. It¡¯s totally unrelated, though.¡± ¡°Oh? What is it?¡± ¡°How would you verify an android that claims that it¡¯s not an AI?¡± The change of the topic was also very smooth. This effectively put Dakarai¡¯s mind off the case. ¡°Well, check whether it¡¯s a chip or a brain in its head?¡± ¡°It¡¯s got a chip.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s most likely an AI.¡± ¡°It vehemently insists that it¡¯s not an AI.¡± ¡°All AI are programmed to deny that they are AI. You can never trust their words.¡± Nicholas chuckled. He felt that Dakarai hit the jackspot. Indeed, no AI designed to live among people would admit that they are in fact AI. ¡°Still, is there a way to prove that they are AI?¡± There was a moment of silence from the other side. ¡°As far as I know, almost everyone uses an AI template from two major software companies. The most popular one is the one developed by Core tech. The lesser popular one is by SSS, Super Star Shipyards. I am sure that there are more.¡± ¡°Triple S makes an AI software template?¡± ¡°They are a major ship manufacturer after all. All spaceships use AI to an extent, you know. Even drones I sell use AI although they are very basic.¡± ¡°Makes sense.¡± ¡°Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that all templates carry their own set of codes unique to them. For example, the one developed by Core tech is called ¡®WASP¡¯. If the android you are talking about used WASP, then saying ¡®Execute code 001 prime¡¯ will prompt the android to ask for a password. That would be the cue.¡± Nicholas narrowed his eyes and said, ¡°Interesting¡­¡± ¡°But it is very easy to obscure the command. In fact, the manual says they recommend altering the basic command set although I am unsure how many would actually bother.¡± ¡°Excute code 001 prime, huh. Do you know the code for the one by triple S?¡± ¡°It¡¯s admin console request.¡± ¡°I see. Thanks.¡± ¡°Yeah, well, time to get back to work. Thanks, again.¡± Once he was back to his own apartment, he had a shower and then a shave. Then he took a short nap for mandatory rest. As an esper, resting wasn¡¯t exactly required, but regular physical rest was recommended overall. Thankfully, falling asleep was never his problem. After three hours of napping, he woke up, feeling somewhat refreshed. It was time to check on Cass and the android. When he entered her apartment, he found her and Viviant seemed to be at odds. Both had their arms folded, facing away from each other. It was quite a typical female cat fight to his eyes. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Cass looked pissed. ¡°Nick, I got a strike.¡± ¡°What? What are you talking about?¡± ¡°When she was recharging, she was drawing 100 amps. This is a residential unit. The colony administration sent me a warning, telling me not to use the unit for commercial and industrial purposes.¡± Viviant replied with a pout, ¡°Look, this unit is programmed to charge as fast as possible. If you told me beforehand, I would have set the limit to less, like 50a.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that still too high?¡± he said, to which Cass nodded in agreement. ¡°Get it down to 10a,¡± she demanded. ¡°Look, at 10a, it will take too long for me to recharge. At 100a, an hour is required. At just 10a, it will take ten hours!¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter! Nobody uses 50 amps!¡± Cass barked back. ¡°I will get a second strike! Do you want me to get booted out of here?!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you have a security deposit for this unit?¡± He asked. ¡°Yeah, I will lose the deposit as well if I get three strikes.¡± ¡°Viviant, 15 amps. No more than that,¡± he told her. ¡°That¡¯s about 6 and half hours of recharging. Consider it as a regular sleep. You remember that, right? You were a human after all.¡± Her face darkened. ¡°I really don¡¯t want to sleep,¡± she said weakly. ¡°And why is that?¡± ¡°I had ESS.¡± ¡°ESS? What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Eternal sleep syndrome,¡± Cass answered instead. ¡°A rare condition where one sleeps more and more until he sleeps eternally.¡± ¡°At the time of the consciousness transfer, I was sleeping almost 20 hours a day. When you have ESS, sleep is a torture. I always had nightmares during my sleep and I couldn¡¯t wake up.¡± Nicholas and Cass looked at each other, unsure of what to say. ¡°I don¡¯t want your pity,¡± Viviant said, reading the mood. ¡°But it was my primary reason for volunteering. It was now or never.¡± ¡°So, you¡¯ve been cured of ESS?¡± ¡°Probably since I no longer sleep. Besides, I am no longer bound by the limitations of flesh.¡± ¡°And are you satisfied with that?¡± he asked rather ominously. He still wasn¡¯t sure whether she was just a sophisticated android or a human. ¡°Don¡¯t know,¡± she replied with her eyes staring into the air vacantly. ¡°I no longer need to eat. I no longer have desires, even sexual desires seem to be gone because I no longer feel attracted to anyone. Is this what feels to be like a machine?¡± He had no answer to that obviously, nor did he feel sorry for her. He wasn¡¯t sure of anything about her yet. ¡°It really does feel like some parts of me died with my body,¡± she said vacantly. Then she looked down with both of her hands opening up and closing. ¡°This body obeys my commands just like a real body. But something feels amiss¡­¡± Nicholas and Cass looked at each other once more, again unsure of what to tell her. Whether she was being truthful or not, perhaps it was a good idea to look into this project Moonlight she mentioned. ¡°Cass, any words from the client?¡± ¡°Nope. Well, it¡¯s been only, what, one and half days? Do you want me to contact him?¡± ¡°No, ask her where the lab is. Perhaps, a little investigation is in order before contacting the client.¡± ¡°Do you plan to go alone? It sounds a bit dangerous.¡± He folded his arms. She wasn¡¯t wrong. ¡°Maybe I will contact the merc you hired.¡± ¡°She will be expensive.¡± ¡°Has any of the two logged in?¡± He was talking about the two members who were still registered with the Faceless. ¡°Nope, I think it¡¯s safe to say that they are intentionally logged off.¡± ¡°Well, it sucks but I can''t really blame them. I will contact this Ariel first and then see how it goes.¡± ¡°Okie dokie.¡± ¡°Meanwhile, try to get along with the android, yeah?¡± She shrugged. ¡°I will try. At least, she doesn¡¯t eat. I wouldn¡¯t know what to give her. I can¡¯t cook for shit anyway.¡± Beaming a grin, he tapped on her shoulder before taking a leave.