Chapter Seventeen – Grasping at Paper Straws

Chapter Seventeen – Grasping at Paper Straws

“No luxury has survived recessions and economic downturns better than the humble drive-through coffee, because when you only have five dollars to your name, you can still afford a four dollar cuppa.”

–Except from The Second Big Depression, by Economist Wayne Wright, 2026

***

“So… yeah, bye man,” I said.

Radikal smiled right back. “Yes. It was genuinely nice to speak with you, even if we strayed from our initial topic. Have a good… ah, afternoon, Stray Cat.”

“See ya, Doc,” I said before terminating the call.

Leaning back after the image of the old guy blinked away, I reached up and brushed a hand through my hair. That was my early afternoon chore done. We’d ended up talking for an hour where I was initially expecting the call to last like, ten minutes at most, but Radikal was surprisingly fun to talk to.

We have jack shit in common other than being Samurai, and yet I could see myself being his friend. In a ‘grab a beer after work’ kind of way.

I was just standing up when my projector blinked to life right in front of me. On instinct, I reached for my Trenchmaker, but it was just Radikal again. “Stray Cat? Forgive me, please, but I realized as I terminated our call that there was something I forgot to communicate with you.”

“Oh, uh, shit, go ahead,” I said.

“Yes, yes, again I’m sorry. I was speaking with Susano this morning, when he happened to be awake as I was, and he mentioned to me that a samurai from the Keiretsu is heading to New Montreal, and it’s possible that she would be showing up at your place to meet you.”

I shrugged. “Alright? Anyone I should worry about?”

Radikal seemed to consider that. “I don’t believe so? It might be best to consider them as a friendly ally coming for a visit.”

“I can handle that,” I said. The house was clean enough, and I didn’t mind making more samurai friends.

“Good, good,” he said with a nod. “In that case, goodbye for real. Have a nice afternoon.”

“Ciao,” I said as his image winked out. “So… who’s coming to visit?”

From what I can glean from public records, she’s a long-term member of the Keiretsu. An experienced vanguard who elected not to participate in the Martian crusade.

A ‘she’ huh? Well, whatever. I’d see them when they showed up. Placing my hands on my hips, I stretched my lower back out, then twisted left and right. “Okay, it’s… almost one. I should grab something on the way over to the Family, yeah?”

Heading over in the Bastion would make the most sense, but if things went long and Lucy needed a ride back, I could just send the ship over to pick her up. Which left my bike.

The bike was also conveniently able to fly into aerial drive-throughs, so I could grab something unhealthy on the way over. I deserved it after that physical torture I’d been through in yesterday’s class.

Before I left, I ran upstairs and got changed. I’d worn old jeans and a loose t-shirt for the meeting with Radikal because it was all over screens and he was probably not a stickler for looks.

When meeting the Family? Well, if Emoscythe was here, she’d probably have something to say about projecting power with my appearance or something.

Basically, if I showed up looking like some nobody girl that was clueless, they’d treat me exactly like that.

I slid into a suit of exo-armour and then shrugged on a long coat with my Stray Cat logo on the back before tucking a Laser Pointer SMG in the small of my back and replacing my Trench Maker where it would be within easy reach in a thigh holster.

It wasn’t exactly like showing up in a war mech, but the armour gave me a couple of inches of height, and it was sleek as shit.

I looked myself over before leaving. Emoscythe had helped with the image for this one a while back, and I was rocking the dangerous bounty-hunter look.