Chapter Three – Taxi

Chapter Three – Taxi

“The closer you are to ground level, the poorer you’re likely to be.

It’s the way it is, you know? Shit’s dragged down, and down here is where it stops.”

–Quote from a vagrant, Chicago Megacity Complex Four, 2039

***

“Guns!” I cheered.

“Guns!” Lucy cheered right back.

“The ability for humans to be amused by anything that can make a projectile move fast is fascinating,” Myalis said.

“Oh, come on, don’t tell me you’re not keen on weapons and the like, not with the amount you have available.”

“Oh no, don’t misunderstand. The Protectors are also keenly interested in weaponry in all its forms, but more from the viewpoint of someone who wishes to have the most effective tool at their disposal at any given time.”

“That just sounds like an excuse to compare cannon sizes to me,” I said. “Speaking of; modular guns, what do you have?”

“There are two slots on the back of your armour, over your shoulder blades. They are relatively small.”

I shifted my shoulders around, the armour moving languidly along with the motion.No satisfying servo sounds either, which kinda sucked, but made sense if the suit was supposed to be stealthy. “I need something with a bit more kick than my last shoulder-mounted guns. The railgun was alright, but the plasma casters were too bright, and they didn’t have enough oomph to them.”

“Ah yes, more oomph,” Myalis agreed. “You seemed to enjoy the railgun. Perhaps two smaller rails, designed to fire silent rounds. The overall rate of fire would be lower, but each shot should mean a dead opponent as long as you’re not fighting Antithesis that are too armoured.”

“Railguns use ammo, right?” Lucy asked. “Maybe we can use the fabricator to make you some! Save some points for later.”

I nodded. “Genius. Yeah, two railguns then. I liked the last one, it made things dead in a way that I liked.”

“Might I suggest a railgun catalogue then? Your options are otherwise limited.”

I nodded. “A cheaper catalogue, maybe?”

“I think this should do! “

Class I Subsonic Rail Weaponry
Points reduced to… 11,401!

“And two railguns.”

New Purchase: Class I Stealthed Micro Rail Launcher (two units)
Points Reduced from… 11,401 to… 11,301!

“That wasn’t expensive,” I said as two boxes appeared. I opened them to reveal… a mess of rods and pipes and little servos, all next to a sharp-looking gun painted a deep black.

“Lucy, could you lend Catherine your hands?” Myalis asked.

“Oh, I’d love to insert something into Cat’s back,” Lucy said.

I shook my head and turned while dropping carefully to one knee. My shoulder panel opened, and Lucy fiddled with the railgun for a moment before it slid into place. Like putting a square peg in a square hole.

Once both were in and connected to my augs, I had them deploy.

They weren’t as imposing as my last railgun, but maybe that was for the best. There were certainly a lot sleeker, and sat just over my shoulders when deployed. Also, they glowed pink from within, which was a plus.

“Nice!” I said. “Okay, we just wasted like, ten minutes, easy. I need to get going. Kiss?”

Lucy got onto her tiptoes, and we wasted another half minute before I broke off and rushed to the last of my equipment.

There are holsters in your thighs. They should conceal your holdout weapons and reload them if you place some ammunition within.

That was cool. I slid my trusty old Trench Maker into a slot that opened on my right thigh, then my Claw went into a similar opening on my left. I slung on the strap for my Icarus, then tossed my long coat on top of everything else. “Right, I’m off!”

“Helmet!” Lucy said. “And kiss!”

“Oh!”

I picked up my helmet and slid it on, then waved to Lucy as I squeezed out of the room, careful not to mess up the door.

The Twins were in the corridor, both of them holding onto juice boxes and what looked like bags of chips. They stared at me.

“Uh, gotta run for a bit,” I said.