Animus Complete Series Omnibus, page 187
His companions regarded it curiously. “What the hell is that?” the Aussie asked.
“I have no clue. One of my rules is not to ask about it.” He tossed it to Flynn, who caught it and scrutinized it. “He didn’t say nothing about you guys, but I assume he thought about that.”
“Where do you even open it?” the marksman asked as he turned the cube over. “I see some notches…maybe it requires a key of sorts or it’s locked with a voice code.” He lobbed it to Jaxon, who simply looked at it.
“I would guess that it either has data that requires a specific device to access or it’s a phantom box,” he stated.
“One of those containers that nukes the thing inside unless you open it the right way?” Flynn frowned. “We’d best not mess with it, then. If it is a phantom box and we fry it, I assume that effectively cancels the deal.”
“Good idea.” Kaiden put his hand out and Jaxon returned the box. “I can’t imagine what would be so small and valuable without it being precious jewels or something. Maybe it’s a hand-off,” he suggested and slipped it carefully into his coat.
“Or something else illicit,” the Aussie added. “Julio’s a nice guy, certainly, but you don’t make it as far as he has without having to deal with unsavory customers on a regular basis.”
“He has his own code of ethics. I don’t think it’s something we have to worry about,” the ace said casually. “It doesn’t mean I won’t potentially be getting wrapped up in something, but I’m only the messenger.”
“One who can kill instead of the opposite,” Jaxon pointed out.
“Sure enough, and I imagine he counted on that too, But like I said, I hope to wrap it up quickly so we can get the real job done and move on to the main objective.”
“Chiyo’s father, right? The head of Mirai,” Flynn looked thoughtful as he considered what he knew about the company. “All the big corps in Australia and New Zealand use their stuff—not only cybersecurity and hardware, but they have an offshoot art house for design work. My Uncle Jensen’s company actually had one of their office’s logo and interior designed by them.”
“She hasn’t spoken much about her family or her past in general,” the Tsuna stated and glanced at Kaiden. “I don’t want to overstep my bounds, but I assume there is a reason.”
“It’s somewhat muddled, that’s all I’ll say. I probably already said too much when I filled you in earlier,” he admitted. “But she’s still concerned enough that she wanted to do something if she could. It all depends on what we find. If the truth be told, this could be something bigger than I would usually guess a mission like this would lead to.”
“Someone with the power and smarts to try to take over a world-renowned Zaibatsu would already be big, don’t you think?” Flynn asked.
“Maybe it’s more power than smarts,” Jaxon countered. “Then again, I’m not sure what we can offer here. I have no doubt in our abilities, but what can we do compared to Mirai’s funds and connections? If Chiyo has already informed them, haven’t they begun looking into it?”
Kaiden leaned over and nodded. “They have. A few of her old mentors still work there and one of them is in charge of the investigation. Apparently, they’ve made more direct moves as well as their roundabout method. They caught a guy trying to sneak into one of their labs.”
“That ain’t smart. They must have him locked up somewhere?” Flynn asked.
“For a while, they did,” he replied.
“He broke out? That’s rather crafty.”
He shook his head. “No, when they went interrogate him, all they found in his cell was his clothes and some goo.”
The Tsuna cocked his head and Flynn winced. “Goo? Did he melt or something? I’m sure they have camera feed.”
“They had video, but it was looped after he was put into holding. They didn’t see what happened. According to the police files Chiyo was able to gather, the same thing happened to the guys she and I intercepted a couple of nights ago.”
The marksman shivered. “That’s unsettling.”
“Was it some kind of suicide device? In case they were captured?” Jaxon inquired.
“Probably, or their insides were set to melt after a certain time,” Kaiden answered with a shrug.
“That’s not helping,” Flynn grumbled.
“I’m not being facetious,” Kaiden retorted. “They are called golems—basically, human skin suits that can be controlled with the right hardware. Laurie told me about them.”
“Paratechs?” The three looked up when Indre and Chiyo returned.
“Close. It’s the same idea,” he confirmed. “I don’t know if we’ll run into more but keep a lookout. I don’t want you losing your lunch when you have a good look.”
“I’d prefer to run into one of them over a neurosik, honestly.” Chiyo shuddered and Indre grimaced with distaste. “Do you think that’s possible?”
“We’re flying by the seat of our pants here, but I’ve heard of merc companies and terrorist cells using them in the past,” he warned.
“Greetings, friends!” Genos called over the comms. “I’m sorry for the earlier delay and rough ride. I had to make the proper readjustments after eld—friend Julio removed the balance drive chip. We’re only six minutes away from our destination and have clearance to land.”
“It looks like we’re about to actually start the mission.” Flynn beamed and hoisted his sniper rifle as he stood. He attached it onto the magnetized strips on his back. “All right, Kaiden, what are we doing?”
The ace stood and stretched. “I have a delivery to make, then I’ll go for the device.”
“Yeah, right, right. We know that, mate.” Flynn rolled his eyes. “But what are we doing?”
He looked at his teammate as he picked a case up with one hand and slid his other into his coat pocket. “You? You’re tourists.”
Chapter Seventeen
“Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to tonight’s ArenaMAX festivities,” a rather exuberant man announced over the arena’s speakers.
“You know, I would normally be more excited about something like this,” Flynn muttered and pulled his helmet on. “Getting to run around and show an adoring crowd my skills? I’m not above a little theatrical fun.”
“And yet I feel as if you are rather saddened, friend Flynn,” Genos commented and examined his personal cannon.
“We came here on a mission, yeah?” the marksman questioned and closed the locker door. “And now, we simply have to goof around?”
“We’re needed for the next part. Chiyo and Kaiden have got this one,” Indre reminded him. “Besides, think about this as a warmup.”
“A smart observation,” Jaxon agreed and holstered his pistol. “This is more than a game. Not only does it give us an opportunity to test this equipment, but we also have an excuse to wear it. If anything does go down, we will be ready to support them.”
“All right, MAX fans. Let’s get ready for the next round. Will team seven please come to the arena entrance.”
“Is that us?” Flynn asked.
Genos shook his head. “We are team eight, the next one up.”
“Each round is only fifteen minutes. We’ll be up soon,” Indre said encouragingly.
“All right.” The Aussie leaned against the locker. “So what’s the objective here? We collect enough tickets to get the fancy hoverboard on the top rack?”
“You’re in a mood right now,” the agent teased as she stood. “There are prizes, but the top four teams out of eight move on to the next round. The top two from that round face off after that, so we’ll be here a couple of hours at least.”
“Unless Kaiden calls us,” Jaxon reminded them. “Although he hoped they would be finished by the time we are done.”
“So we’ll play the full round, then?” Flynn stretched his arms. “Well, I’d better stop moping, I suppose.” He took his rifle out and checked the core. “We don’t get to use kinetic rounds but firing lasers in an enclosed area with civilians seems rather risky.”
“There’s a shield guarding the stands. That would be the main reason we aren’t allowed to use kinetic rounds,” Genos clarified.
“You have to give it to the guys who made this place,” Indre commented. “Vox gets a large amount of traffic from bounty hunters and mercs. Having a place like this where they can make use of their skills and make a real profit was very smart.”
Jaxon nodded. “It also keeps them in check by letting them blow off steam here instead of in some bar.”
“Although, considering the one we passed on the way here, that doesn’t seem to work one hundred percent of the time,” Genos said, rather bemused.
There was a knock on their door. “Pardon me.” A woman walked in wearing a red jumpsuit with the ArenaMAX logo and gestured at the group. “You’ll be up soon. It doesn’t look like team seven will last the whole round.”
“Really? It’s only been a few minutes,” Indre responded with surprise.
Jaxon let a small smile form. “So this might actually be a challenge, then.”
“Oh, we know our clientele,” the woman said with a smirk. “There’s no point in inviting veterans to simply do some glorified target practice.”
“That’s good to know.” Flynn shouldered his rifle. “Where to?”
“I’ll lead you to the entrance when you guys are ready,” she informed them. “Also, I wanted to thank you for showing up. It’s off-season for the pro teams, and it’s the down season for all the merc traffic we usually have. We were worried we wouldn’t have a full roster of teams.”
“I’m glad we could help,” Jaxon replied. “A friend of ours suggested this and it seemed like it would make for a fun evening.”
“I suppose everyone has their own definition of fun.” She shrugged. “The fans are sure to love it. We have over ninety percent capacity filled so put on a good show, all right?”
“No worries there, missy,” Flynn promised with a clenched fist. “We’ll win this and get Kaiden the giant stuffed bear as a memento.”
The woman blinked and glanced at the others. “What’s he talking about?” Indre simply sighed and tapped the side of her helmet in annoyance.
“Have you made the delivery yet, Kaiden?” Chiyo asked over the comm link.
Kaiden finished chewing a bite of the kebab he had bought from a street vendor. “I’m almost there. I needed to make a quick stop.”
“I noticed you went down one of the commercial streets,” she muttered. “Also, I can hear the sizzling over the speakers.”
He took another bite. “Give me a break. I didn’t get to have more than a power bar for breakfast. I gotta keep my strength up.”
“Good point. Fetch me something on your way over,” she ordered.
The ace swallowed and rolled his eyes. “Couldn’t you have used a word other than ‘fetch?’”
“It seems appropriate, actually,” Chief quipped.
“I need to go dark. I’ve approached the agency and I want to lower the chances they can track me as much as possible. I’ll see you soon.” Her line cut with a muted click.
“And she avoids a response,” Kaiden muttered as he turned a corner and headed into an alley.
“According to the directions, this should lead directly to the recipient,” the EI informed him.
The ace retrieved the cube and flipped it a couple of times. “This was rather straight forward. Are you sure no one followed us?”
“Positive. No one tailed us. But there’s always the chance they could be waiting for you up ahead or this is a trap.”
“I don’t see anyone here, although that could be something to worry about as well,” he replied thoughtfully. “I don’t think Julio would knowingly send me into a trap, but there’s a chance this is a test of some kind.”
“What do you think is in the box? Maybe a kidney?”
“That would be a small-ass kidney.” He chuckled and examined it again. “Maybe I’ve simply assumed the worse. But you get a little paranoid when someone specifically tells you not to ask what is in the box.”
“Hey, we’re here.”
Kaiden peered down the alley that still stretched far ahead but paused when he saw a glowing arrow pointing toward the left. He grimaced and turned his attention to a surprisingly ornate door above five stone steps.
“I know I said I’d get used to it, but you could have simply told me it was on my left,” he griped as he jogged up the steps and knocked on the door.
At first, he received no response. No one called a reply and he couldn’t hear any movement within. Maybe he arrived when they weren’t home? Was this a home or an office? When the door slid open slowly, it caught him by surprise. A woman with long blonde hair that curled at the ends stood in the entrance. She had kind green eyes and wore a flowing white dress.
“Hello, young man, how can I help you?” she asked, her voice almost sing-song.
“This is the last person I would have imagined we were delivering to,” Chief said, flabbergasted.
“No kiddin’,” Kaiden muttered under his breath. He straightened and adjusted his coat. “Hello, I’m Kaiden. I’m here to deliver something on behalf of Julio Salazar.”
For only a brief moment, he could have sworn he saw the woman twitch, although it might have been the chill in the air. “I see. May I have it?”
“Certainly, it’s why I’m here.” He held the box out and she took it and studied it for a moment before she raised her other hand. She wore a bracelet with six different objects attached to it. Her expression calm and smiling, she removed the jewelry and held one of the objects to the top of the cube. It flashed green when the object made contact and the top folded open in four sections. She looked inside and her smile slid from her face to be replaced by one of contentment. After she’d examined the contents for a moment, she nodded and placed the box on a table near the door.
She looked at Kaiden and her soft smile returned. “Do you mind waiting here? I need to send something in return.”
That wasn’t part of the deal, he thought but he shrugged and nodded. He had to return the ship at the end anyway.
“I’ll only be a moment.” The woman turned and walked away to disappear around the corner.
He leaned against the railing of the stairway and rolled his neck from side to side, more out of boredom than anything else. “Well, that was simple enough.”
“She left the box open. It’s right there,” Chief pointed out. “Do you wanna take a peek?”
“I was raised better than that,” he retorted.
“Bull.”
The ace smiled. “Honestly, I think it’s simply that what I thought it might be is actually cooler than whatever it really is. Considering what she looks like, it’s probably a gift for one of Juli—”
“I’m back.” The woman stepped around the corner.
Kaiden straightened and turned toward her. “All right, what do you need me to—” A loud and ominous crack preceded a violent pain in his chest. The force catapulted him from the door, and he rolled down the stairs and landed hard on the pavement. His instincts kicked in and he shoved onto his knees, drew Debonair, and aimed at the woman. “What the hell, lady?”
“I see that Julio is smart enough to send someone in armor, at least. Even if he’s still a coward,” she sneered and lowered her hand cannon. “Tell him this makes up for his last mistake, but if he’s late again, I’ll come personally,”
The ace lowered his pistol, confusion written on his face. She reached for the door handle. “And as for what I need to be delivered, that shot was meant for him. Where you put it is up to you.” She slammed the door closed. Kaiden stood and his hand actually shook a little as he holstered his pistol.
“Hey, Chief…” he began, then grimaced and clenched his teeth for a moment. “Get Julio on the comms.”
Chapter Eighteen
“And that was team seven, eliminated in only seven minutes. Kind of fitting, huh?” the announcer declared and tried to make a joke of the situation, but it didn’t really settle the booing.
“All right, let’s forget about them and move on.”
“That crowd out there are rather bloodthirsty, aren’t they?” Indre scowled.
“Well, if you’re a regular spectator here, I’d imagine you’ve seen some good matches up to this point,” Flynn pointed out. “That team didn’t even last half the match time, and I think they only scored a couple of thousand points.”
“Eighteen hundred,” their attendant informed them. “I think that’s technically the third lowest score ever at ArenaMAX. Although we’ve had over twenty teams get zero, so that’s a multiple tie.”
“I guess they can hold onto that for a silver lining.” The marksman snickered.
“How much time will they need to ready the field?” Jaxon asked.
She looked wryly at him and brushed at a streak of dust on her staff uniform. “Not long at all, I’d imagine. You might as well step closer to the gate and take a look at the field.”
Genos was already in place and stared at the clean-up below. “It’s a fairly level field with a few pillars and large obstacles for cover, three watchtowers, and two large platforms on either side.” He looked at the group. “The robots seem to be typical battle models—Guardians, Soldiers, and the like. I assume each type is worth their own set of points?”
“Spot on.” The attendant nodded. “I guess I should have given you guys the full overview. I got a little caught up in the preparations.”
“It’s cool. We had a rundown of the rules before we went into the locker room,” Indre replied. “Our friend is merely cautious.”
Flynn approached the gate and studied one of the towers. “Will we stick together or do our own thing?”
“I suppose I’m open to either,” Jaxon responded with a shrug.
“You guys seem confident,” the attendant stated and clasped her hands behind her head. “But like I said, we make sure these are tough. Our visitors want a challenge and we wouldn’t have the ravenous fans we do if we pulled punches.”
