I've received a message from the anonymous sender.
Stopping in place and falling behind, the snow steadily falling all around me, I double check that it is indeed addressed to me and I'm not somehow receiving Ace's mail instead. To my alarm and dismay, the message is deliberately defined as being for my eyes specifically.
RESTRICTED> YOU'VE EARNED YOUR INNATE ABILITIES.
Staring at the snow for a few seconds, I switch conversations.
RAZOR> Are you seeing this?
ACE> 1
RAZOR> Should I?
ACE> 1
ACE> They gave us Tune…
ACE> And those IAs are insane.
RAZOR> …
After scanning it for viruses and malware and finding it clean, I decide to open it.
RESTRICTED> SOFTWARE UPGRADES TOO. PICK ONE.
Attached is a long list of rows, a blur of options and text. Overwhelmed, I struggle to make sense of what I'm looking at before realizing it's only a two column data field with close to sixty rows of data. Short phrases, simple words, or adjectives are all that's in the left column, corresponding with a description of what it means.
Or more specifically, what it means to me.
Every single option confers some form of benefit. How, I don't know yet. Why, of course I have no idea. But here they are before me, and here my first message from this benefactor is, and I'm the one on the spot to make a difficult decision.
The first thing I do is hurry to catch up with the other two, waving off my falling behind with some excuse about thinking I saw something. As I walk alongside Henna, I scowl at the snow and try to make sense of this.
ACE> Okay, so, your IAs are tied to both your SubVariant and Specialization. As a Phantom, you got some stealth abilities, including longer duration cloaking. As a Blitz, you got some speed abilities. These IAs have a set number of uses per Regen, but they're really good.
RAZOR> Partial Cloaking… I can turn invisible indefinitely so long as I'm moving slowly. And Pounce gives me a burst of speed to blindside enemies. Wow.
ACE> Right? Also, some of these software upgrades are useless and some are amazing.
RAZOR> No kidding. Some aren't even relevant to me as a Phantom.
ACE> Yeah, like L2 Tech? You don't even have L2 Charges. Maybe this is just generalized for all Frames?
RAZOR> I'm installing the TFC upgrade first.
ACE> Yeah, you just jumped from 18 to 24 TFC.
ACE> I love numbers!!!
ACE> You should pick out your software…
While I'm still following Zen and Henna, I go through the list once and pick ten. I go through those ten and pick five. I review those five and make myself choose three. Unable to narrow it past that any further, I ask for her opinion.
RAZOR> Mobility, Cloaking, or Severing?
ACE> You're asking me?
RAZOR> …
ACE> Cloaking gives you an L2 GrayTech as an IA that turns you invisible for 60s but it breaks if you attack. Redundant and useless. You're already plenty mobile too, so skip that too. I think Severing kicks ass, especially with your sword in hand.
A permanent gain to my melee telemetry and a visual overlay that highlights vulnerable spots on enemies. It's pretty damn enticing. Obviously I'm wary. This isn't something I'm blindly walking into without being aware of the potential for danger.
But… It's a risk that I think is worth it.
RAZOR> Severing.
RESTRICTED> DONE.
Another file is attached. Once I download it I extract a software installer. It's an executable, so again, I scan it for malware but find nothing. When that's installed, I have new software in my onboard system. I select to run it and it minimizes into the background, showing me little to nothing else.
I guess that worked? I'll have to wait and see, maybe.
ACE> Says here it only comes online when your sensors detect hostile forces. Go attack Zenith for me.
RAZOR> 0
ACE> Please?
RAZOR> 0
ACE> Darn.
RAZOR> You're so cute.
Somebody grabs my arm and I snap back to attention, realizing I'm just about to walk over the ventilation shaft's grate and probably snap off a toe or two. Zenith has me by the elbow, giving me a dark look.
"Wake up, soldier."
"I–I'm awake…"
As he drags the grate off and opens the ventilation shaft, I take a moment to gather my courage and bravery to look at the response to my very risky message.
ACE> You're cute too :)
My synthetic heart palpitates. I can't believe she said that. I can't handle it so I pretend I just haven't seen it yet, staying in my body and optics. Damn it, but she probably saw the jump in my vitals…
Henna smiles down at me. "I'm excited to see you in action, Razor."
"L–Likewise. I want to see you hit something with that hammer, please and thank you."
"Give me something worth hitting and I'll show you that Homesteaders are well worth our weight!"
"You're perfect, Henna. In every way."
"Aw! Thank you! So are you! See you down there!"
Henna skips the toprope, jumping right in by herself. She's gone in a blink and the near explosive sound of her landing flies up the chute to us. I shrug at Zenith then fall backwards into the shaft. The air rushes past me, my Righting Reflex kicks in, and my new ability as a Phantom has me land just fine, unharmed.
And now we wait for the sorry Gunner to climb down.
Henna is standing in place, scanning the scene and the carnage. "Oh yeah. That looks about right." Taking a few steps over to the armripper's corpse, she gives it a solid kick and asks, "That was you?"
"It was."
"Nice work! These are some clean cuts. I'm impressed."
"Thank you, Henna. I appreciate the praise." Taser meets us down here to circle my head and rest above my shoulder. "Hello, you."
"Tweet-twoo!"
ACE> Did you see what I said? >w<;;
Finally, Zen catches up. "Left me up there. Could've gotten ambushed."
"Wah-wah," Henna sneers, rolling her mighty shoulders. "Did they teach you to complain the way you do in the army?"
"No, that was the marines."
Henna's laugh is full bodied and jovial. I love it.
ACE> Razor? o.o
I follow Zenith into the tunnels with Henna right behind me, telling Tune, "Add Henna to your protections, please, fourth priority. Bump Zenith to fifth priority."
"Affirmative."
"It's funny," Henna snickers, "but really, my CyanTech and self repair modules are leagues ahead of both of yours. You really should have me as fifth."
"Do that then, Tune, please."
"Affirmative. Henna is now fifth priority. Attention: sensors indicate robotics ahead. Diagnostics show signatures of SRC-AB98S in the double digits."
"Only biters?" Henna sighs.
"I can make a very loud noise to draw more hostiles if you wish."
"Let's not," Zen grunts, readying his pistol. "They're in the way, so we'll make it quick. I'd rather not test our luck on any reinforcements."
"Tune," I whisper, "can you add Zenith's naming conventions after those IN reports of yours? So, SRC-AB98 anklebiter."
"Affirmative, Nep. I will make the change immediately."
ACE> Razor? Hello? >w<;;
ACE> I said you're cute!
ACE> you're cute and I like that!!!
RAZOR> 1
ACE> Not the binary response TwT;;
RAZOR> LATER PLS I NEED TO FOCUS
ACE> OKAY <333
Damn it, now she's getting too bold.
As we continue onward I check my handgun. I should get a suppressor for it. "Henna, do you have any light arms?"
"No, I'll leave the bugs to you. Instead of fighting, I'll draw their attention."
"Doesn't that put you in harm's way?"
"What harm? Anklebiters? They can't hurt me. I'm too durable."
"You're amazing. Why haven't we explored more together? Let's have a girl's adventure soon."
"Absolutely. I don't get out nearly enough. Zen is the one who gets to go on all the fun adventures."
"Please. By all means. I'll stay home where it's warm and safe and I can do nothing all day."
"You have no idea the amount of work I do, you old grump!"
"Leave Henna alone," I demand. "Stay over there, in your lane. The women are talking."
"Yeah! Mute your output, Zenith!"
"Okay, okay, take it easy. No need for the female hysterics. We're nearly there. It's just up ahead."
"Female hysterics," I scoff, then snicker with Henna.
The hallway ends at a set of doors that have been bashed clean through, the ruptured metal split open and curled inward like it's been hit by a cannonball the size of Henna. It seems the Frames Division has been broken into by… something.
Inside, I pick up the now familiar chatter of anklebiters. I'm our ambusher so I go in first, my new Cloaking IA kicking into gear and making me vanish, with no time limit on its duration. Turing, that feels good. I still see myself as a pale blue outline as I maintain my silence and observe the biters swarm and chew on a rusted out headsmasher.
It can't be possible, but it is. I'm receiving a thirteen gigahertz signal. This one, however, sounds terrible. The signal is corrupted, like a glitched out mess of distorted noise and static.
"Re–ckkkrr–aim ktkkrrr–"
I turn the volume down. I don't need to hear that.
ACE> Creepy…
Vowing to find the dead Nep, I cast my Suppression Field GrayTech to silence my movement, draw my modded pistol, and take the shot. Three bullets. Three dead machines. Taser zips past and fires her triple pins, zapping the other three closest to us. When Zenith walks in, he fires six times in semi-auto, killing the final six biters before they can react in any way.
The room falls silent. Battle won.
This one, at least.
ACE> You make it look easy…
RAZOR> I've stepped off your progress, handsome.
As Henna comes in after us, Tune trailing last, I check out the bulky rusted headsmasher corpse on the ground and tell them, "There's another Failsafe signal. Another Nep. It seems I've been here before too."
She hums. "This has to be so weird for you to be going through."
"Weird describes the experience well, I think."
"Which way?" Zenith asks. "You lead."
Three doors wait before us, one far to the left going west, and two in front of us going north. "That way," I say, pointing North. "Which door, I don't know."
"Attention," Tune says, "sensors indicate signal profiles matching a pair of MCDU-ED4938 armrippers in the room to our left. They seem to be set to a wandering state, but may be programmed to defend the area if we proceed farther. Caution is recommended."
"Pair of them, eh?" Henna responds, glancing down at me. "Your call, Nep."
Zen offers his counsel. "Rather deal with them ourselves than let them decide to come after us. Tune has the right idea being wary here. There's nothing good that can come of having two armrippers get the drop on us from behind."
I tilt my head toward the door. "Check the lock. Let's get rid of them."
"Copy." He gets his tools out and fiddles around, clicking it open within a few seconds.
Again, I'm the initiator. This time I have to take a moment. It's a good thing I do, because the other two choose then to use a few Technomancies. Zenith gives all of us overshields and Henna places her hand on my back to do something to me. A rushing feeling floods my receptors, a confidence taking flame that I could do anything at all and succeed with ease.
"Wow," I exhale, looking up at her. "What is this?"
"Inspire," she smiles, free hand now on her hip. "Feeling inspired?"
"I feel pretty amazing, yeah. Step aside, Zen. Let me at them."
He nods and I slip inside.
Their white indicator lights are dilated, unfocused, cones of view wide and unseeing. The two of them are indeed wandering aimlessly, rusted to the point of having holes in their chassis. I keep out of sight, still cloaked and silenced as I circle wide to the right. Then, drawing my sword, I burst from the shadows to slash at the one farthest from the door.
My new software upgrade directs my hand to the perfect spot. I deliver justice with clear poeticism to it, cutting north to slash an arm off at the shoulder. The machine lurches and shrieks, vocal modules horribly corrupted, and the piercing volume of it makes me wince.
Justice for me.
Taser flies in from nowhere and goes straight for the eye. All three of her pins punch through the glass and her battery fries the armripper's circuitry from within. The impulse makes it stiffen and fall flat on its back, shorted out.
ACE> LET'S GO TASER!!!!!
I whoop, "That's our Taser!"
She blares a triumphant horn audio file.
A huge mass rushes forth from my left. Henna's hammer splits the air as she swings. The hit connects and its piston driven punch booms so loud it drowns out the rippers' vocalizations for a split second.
The other armripper is blasted back by the force, smashing into the wall and splintering the concrete. As if that wasn't enough, Zenith steps into the room and raises his .308 rifle, taking the head clean off the one Taser and I tore into, and then leaving the other on the verge of collapse with a shot through the chest.
Tune's voice rings out as she streaks past. "I hardly find this fair," she says, then delivers her implosion punch to the near dead armripper, finishing the fight.
The sudden silence falls like a blanket.
The first sound that breaks it is from me.
"Pfft." I bite my tongue.
"Don't get cocky," Zenith shuts me down.
"I didn't say anything."
"What's that?"
"I didn't say anything! Leave me alone!"
ACE> You can get as cocky as you want! >:(
RAZOR> I really am the best, aren't I?
ACE> I'll say! Damn, girl! Beautiful and lethal ;)
Oh no. She really has figured it out. Oh no.
Making sure they're really dead with a crushing hammer blow each, Henna straightens up and asks me, "What would you have said, Razor? If you were to have said something right there?"
"I'd be torn between saying that was easy and mocking Zen's inability to shoot consistent shots."
"I hit what I was aiming for."
"Did you though? That second one looked a little iffy from where I was standing."
Henna starts to laugh and he growls, "I said don't get cocky. Keep your wits sharp."
"My wits are currently much sharper than your aim." I catch sight of something in the corner. "Oh, look, treasure. I think. Get that box open, soldier, let's take a look."
He preps his tools in his fingertips, commenting over his shoulder as he starts, "You've had ample opportunities to gather your own tools."
"Why would I bother to do that when I can make you do everything for me?"
"Razor," Henna says, "your sass is inspiring."
"Thank you, Henna. At least someone appreciates my wiles."
ACE> I really like your wiles hehe
RAZOR> Hush.
Something snaps, drawing my attention. Zenith is frozen in place, staring at the broken lockpick in his index finger. "Son of a bitch. That was my good wave rake."
I don't rag on him for that one–there's real grief involved to losing a solid tool. As he gives it another go, I help Henna pick the armrippers for parts. She shows me an easy way to get their rusty plating off and points out which parts of their vitals contain the most rare metals and materials.
It's like I'm being shown a butchering lesson but instead of an animal it's this. She's discordantly cheerful while teaching me how to rip the machine apart in the most brutally efficient way possible.
ACE> Hennaaa <3
RAZOR> Henna <3
When Zen gets the case open he calls us over to take a look. "Rotational dibs. This time it's me, Henna, Razor. Next time it's Henna, Razor, me. We each pick one then decide if we go again or just bag the rest and share. Make sense?"
"Yup!"
"Mhm."
He reaches in and takes the assault rifle magazine. That works. Henna takes the butane canisters. That leaves me with the only thing left, a handful of vials. There's an L1 Salts, a Dash Booster, and two L1 TFIs. I use the Booster right away, dispensing it into the port on my left forearm.
"Damn," I say, looking at my onboard. "Now I'll be running even faster."
"Can she go any faster?" Henna snickers.
"If only Ace's thruster mods survived. Pfft. Thruster thighs," Zen chuckles, then takes my right arm to check. "May as well refill that L1 Charge too. What Cylinders do you have again?"
I dispense the L1 Salts into the same port. "Suppression Field, which is active, then Energize Blade and L1 Repair."
"You have a plasma sword."
"Shit, you're right. I don't need this anymore." I eject and cube the Energize Blade Cylinder, replacing it with Air Burst. "Set."
"Copy."
"On we go!"
I'm enjoying this seamless little adventure of ours.
I sure hope it doesn't end catastrophically.