“Uhm…C-Chloe?”

  “Hm?”

  “Have…have I ever scared you before?”

  “I mean, a little bit. Remember that time a cockroach got into the bathroom? You screamed so loud I thought the milk was going to curdle.”

  “Oh, sorr- wait, no! I-I mean like…has me being a Samurai ever scared you before?”

  “...Vivi, you’re just so adorable.

  “Hueh?!”

  “Pff…do you really think that someone who gets flustered so easily could ever scare me? You may be a superhero who could throw people through brick walls and throw brick walls at people, but I will always know you as that blubbering wallflower who would rather pass out than actually go to a party.”

  “H-hey! I’ve been getting better about it!”

  “Oh? Would you have been willing to go to the Soiree on your own? Or did you only go because your cutie patootie girlfriend said she’d go with you?”

  “I-I…”

  “Look, despite what body modifications you may get, Vivi is always going to be Vivi, and nothing is going to change that. I’m here for what’s up here…not what’s right here. Although what is right there is a very welcome bonus.”

  “Now I feel self-conscious…”

  “Hey, you’re the one who wanted to flaunt everything, and now it's your brand. Lucky for me, all those news stations will never get to experience those washboard abs for themselves.”

  “I-I’m not sleeping tonight, am I?”

  “Nope.”

  -Conversation between Samurai Miss Vengeance and her girlfriend Chloe Hobbs, 2054

  I remained on edge for the rest of the soiree. All sorts of reassurances about my loss came my way, saying that I did better than anyone ever expected in the fight; Most everyone was assuming that was the reason for my post-battle stiffness. It was a decent thought, but my brain remained fixated on that last little message that Scurvy had sent me in private.

  I goofed off a little bit more with Kevin and Trig for the remaining time, taking part in more games and chatting up a few other Samurai who came our way. Eye Spy proved to be a pretty nice guy, despite his incessant compulsion to critique my performance against Scurvy. BBOB didn’t even approach, and frankly from everything I’ve heard I wasn’t particularly inclined to have a chat with him either. Chloe managed to drag her girlfriend over to my little group, and Miss Vengeance was able to briefly introduce herself to everyone before almost literally fleeing back to the VR stall. I was starting to understand what Chloe meant by Miss Vengeance being awful with people but adorable while doing it.

  Soon the sun began to descend below the horizon, and the sky was slowly tinted that deep, warm orange that marked the end of the day, and subconsciously the end of the soiree with it. I was actually one of the first ones out, taking off a few minutes early before the consensus really started to leave, but I didn’t get far down the boarding ramp before my compatriots came to say their piece.

  “Heading out?” Kevin asked.

  “Yup. This has been great and all and the fight was nice, but…”

  “Still salty about the loss.”

  “A bit.” Not even a lie. “Was more going to say I’ve been peopled out for the day. Scurvy knows how to put on a show, but I can only take so much Samurai nonsense.”

  Trig gave a nod of his head. “I’m with you there. This was kind of a lot for my usual routine. Planning to hang around Phoenix at all?”

  “I might. Haven’t decided yet.”

  “Well, if you do, feel free to swing by my place at some point. Maybe I’ll even get to see the face under that mask of yours.”

  “That street goes both ways.” I turned to Kevin. “How about you? Got any plans in the big city?”

  He scratched his head. “Nothing concrete, but I’ll probably hang around for a few days. It’s been a bit since I’ve travelled to Phoenix, and Targ hopefully shouldn’t burn down while I’m gone.”

  “Kevin, that is a jinx waiting to happen.”

  “Aytos has told me those aren’t real.”

  I gave a huff. “Well, see y’all around. If you need anything, let me know. You know where to find me.”

  “We don’t,” Trig deadpanned, which transitioned quite smoothly into a confident smile. “But I’ll figure it out.”

  “Smartass.” I gave a wave back while walking toward my Charon. They were a fun set of guys.

  I promptly mounted my bike and shot off into the sky, ground falling away and the many wonders of the soiree becoming just another set of colored shapes behind me. Once far enough away I took off the mask. The part covering the forehead was now essentially a hole the size of a baseball, and there were still hairline cracks that spread all the way down to the eyeholes. This mask was finished. On another day, I would have grumbled more about the loss of that one point, but there was currently far more on my mind.

  I wasn’t going to take any risks with the message that Scurvy sent me, so just going out into the desert wasn't gonna cut it. I needed a place that was private. One with walls. A motel turned out to be my answer, a place just outside the megacity that hung on by virtue of having better rates than many of the ones in Phoenix proper. There was a general air of age and destitution about the place--the desert had certainly taken its toll--but the decent amount of traffic through the place proved that wasn't a deterrent for people short on cash.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  I booked a room, settling for a normal one at normal rates instead of doing the whole Samurai song and dance again. Rather not have someone tattle about my presence here if it was important. The room itself was somehow better and worse than my previous one. There were smaller touches of life in the place; the furniture looked less cookie cutter in appearance and there was even a fake plant in the corner. Conversely, though, the signs of wear and tear were more prominent. The air smelled slightly wrong, and the wallpaper was peeling at just the very corners.

  None of that mattered much to me. This would suffice. I just needed to put some extra protection. “Cal, anything in my catalogues that has soundproofing equipment?”

  There is, in your Compact Structures catalog, although at the very edges. As long as you don't raise your voice too much, nobody should be able to hear what you are doing. Ten points each, and for the room you are in you will need six.

  Yet another win for the Compact Structures Catalog. “Sold.”

  Purchased: SHUSH Anti-Eavesdropping Beacon x 6 - 60 Points

  Point Total: 9481, 1 token

  Half a dozen small gray rectangles fell into my hand, each one about the size of a domino.

  Place them at the top of the wall, wherever there's a corner, and press the button on the last one you put up.

  I obliged, sticking them to the crevices with an adhesive on the back. One of them even had a hinge on the outside to help wrap around one of the outward corners. Once the final one was in place, a light tap of the button on the side sifted something in the air.

  Whatever was happening, my ears didn't entirely enjoy it. “That's…weird.”

  It's letting a sub-audible frequency to disrupt any sounds coming in and out of this room, at its most simple. Completely undetectable by human ears, but be glad you don't own any pets.

  “So…now what?” I checked the time in my augs. “It's just shy of seven, so that's three hours to kill.”

  We wait.

  So I did. It sucked.

  The TV in the room was a complete dud in terms of passing the time. Bland, AI-generated slop was all that played on its channels. Great mindless content for falling asleep to, not so great for actually trying to pass the time. The only channel that wasn’t made from an algorithm was a local news station, and that may as well have been made from one as well; a perfectly split between otherism propaganda detracting a group criticizing the station’s “humble sponsor” followed by blatant product placement from said sponsor. The only actual story they had of substance was of a pastor from one of the undercity churches criticizing Scurvy’s Soiree, saying that the Samurai currently rubbing shoulders should rather be in the city helping them. I understood the message, but the speech Scurvy gave earlier about being more than just Samurai still rang loud back in my mind.

  After giving up on television I made an attempt at reading, splurging on one of the stories Cal had mentioned and buying a massive hardback version of it. Maybe it was because the book itself was dense or because of the impending appointment, but it all just felt wrong. Every time I’d get a page in I gained a paranoid urge, causing me to repeatedly check the time and shift in the bed for comfort. Small things, but it ruined the entire mood, especially when other times I could just lose myself in the words.

  Eventually I completely admitted defeat and just flopped backwards and perused my augs for anything interesting, which inevitably spiralled into losing myself into the endless stream of social media. Usually I couldn’t tolerate it, but I was desperate.

  Three hours slipped by before I realized, and I glanced at the clock just a few minutes before the meeting was due, just getting off a Samurai fails compilation. Road Rash was a riot. I casually shifted my hair out of my face to make myself look vaguely presentable, then promptly dropped bricks when I realized there was a ‘video’ in the ‘video call’.

  “Wait, shit, do I need a camera for this?”

  Truly, where would you be without me?

  Purchased: Simple Action Camera - 3 Points

  Point Total: 9478, 1 token

  A small camera dropped into my hand, the kind one found in those dynamic sports videos of people doing cool bike tricks. I wasted no time placing it atop the TV stand, and let Cal handle the setup process. Mostly because I was too stupid to get it done in time.

  It was all completed with just a few minutes to spare, which I spent giving my face a quick wash and the hair a brief brush. I plopped myself on the side of the hotel bed, staring directly at the camera, then connected to the call.

  The view immediately shifted to that of Scurvy lounging on a maroon loveseat. I assumed this was her private quarters on the ship considering the less cohesive furniture to go with the all wooden floor and walls of the garrison, and her choice of loose tee and pajama pants being how she presented herself.

  In fact, I had caught her directly in the act of chugging a bottle of gin, which she nearly spat out in the shock of a viewing audience. “Ah… glad you could make it.”

  I gave a snort. “Didn’t take you as the drinking type.”

  “Not usually, but sometimes it's worth downin’ a few bottles to help. Both to remember…” She gazed at the bottle, but something told me her eyes never made contact. “And to forget.”

  She turned back to me. “Are you sure you’re alone and no one’s peepin’?”

  “As sure as I can try to be. I don’t have a home base, so I just soundproofed the hell out of a random motel room outside of the city.”

  “That…should be good then. Between that and the necklace no one should be able to eavesdrop.”

  I thumbed for the skull ornament I had inadvertently put around my neck. “I take it this isn’t just some accessory, then.”

  “Adaptive signal jammer, only lets in what you want it to communication-wise. Among other things.”

  Scurvy gave a deep breath. “Maria.”

  I blinked. “Huh?”

  “Maria. That’s my actual name.”

  Ah. It was going to be one of those video calls. “...Max.”

  She gave a smile. “It fits. Nautylus, send it.”

  A ping in my augs. A picture of a woman, dark skin and round face, with two braids and a pair of square glasses in front of hazel eyes. A smile on her face, and hugging Maria, albeit a less muscular one.

  “Who is…”

  “Penelope Tucker. A friend.”

  I raised my eyebrow, as her specific emphasis implied more than just being an acquaintance. “A friend or a friend, if you know what I mean.”

  She laughed. “The latter. We’d been friends in high school, the normal kind of friend to clarify. We only got that close after ending up as roommates in college. Who would have thought, being stuck in a room with a girl you found attractive would make certain other feelings manifest more than just friendship. By the end of the year, we were inseparable and head over heels for each other, and probably would have gotten hitched sooner or later.”

  This was building up to a big fat ‘but’, so I tore off the bandage now. “What happened?”

  “I initialized. The state back then was a hectic time and there were a lot less Samurai to go around, so I was away for long periods of time. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, but that wasn’t the case for us.

  “Penny also grew…scared of me, I guess. Scared that I was becoming past human and the power balance between us became more and more unstable. I tried to make it work as best I could, but after enough time it turned into this big old fight with screaming and tears and…we split. She completely cut ties, and I never saw her again.”

  She leaned forward, a very serious look in her eyes. “But I didn't call you here just to spout out my relationship woes. Max, I'd like to ask for your help finding out what happened to Penny, and to track down the Samurai bastard who took her.”