Because of the ostensibly high stakes, Vantz knew very little about his mother’s job as she was sworn to secrecy. The only thing he knew was that his mother’s position afforded them a lavish lifestyle. Vantz opted to live in one of the better apartment complexes in the dangerous BlackLight District. He claimed that he to wanted to be close to the ‘action’. Despite his family’s vast wealth, Vantz epitomized altruism, regularly lending a helping hand to others, devoid of any self-interests or motives of his own. He was overly outgoing to a fault, which Caiden constantly scolded him for. He had insisted that Caiden live with him, seeing as the two of them were virtually inseparable. Caiden, without any known relatives, reluctantly agreed. He had no clear memory of his mother or father, and Vantz had been his only family for as long as he could remember.
“Hey, Vantz? You mind if I borrow one of your cars tonight?” Caiden called out.
“Fine by me. You headin’ to a party or something? I wanna roll with you!” Vantz replied, childishly rushing to Caiden’s door.
“It’s not like that. Got some important stuff to handle. I’ll be out of town for a couple of days.”
“Ah, bummer. Okay, just be careful with it,” Vantz said as he tossed a key to Caiden.
In preparation for the night’s danger, he made sure he had a backup license plate to put on Vantz’s car. He dug through his closet and looked for clothes that were inconspicuous and unlike his every day attire. He decided to wear his dark blue medium-length pea coat with his least favorite slim fitting jeans, a short sleeve denim button up, and dark shades. He wore his most expensive loafers, all for the sake of giving off an affluent impression, juxtaposing the image of his strange ‘Mr. Knowone’ identity. He tucked the loaded Cred codec into his pocket and headed toward the apartment’s garage. As he began to replace the license plate on Vantz’s car with his fake one, he began having reservations about his actions.
Should I really be doing this? Is the payback really worth it? But this isn’t all about me. Those girls lives are at stake. If I sit back and do nothing, I’m just as worse as that piece of shit Slavo. Caiden got into the car.
Vantz’s car was state of the art. It featured a full-on AI-assisted, automated, hands-free driving function. It was also extremely expensive, with an astounding dynamic design, and was rather durable. This vehicle was one of the fastest cars on the road, packed with twelve hundred horsepower and maximum speeds of two hundred and fifty-six miles per hour. The base color of the car was a steel-grey and midnight blue mix. The exterior had a paramagnetic color-changing function, allowing the car to change color on command. It was the perfect getaway car for the occasion.
Caiden pressed the button on the car key and the butterfly door on the driver side opened. The interior was beautiful. The seats were a light cream colored, plush soft leather with wood grain finish on the central panels and parts of the driving wheel. The odometer and radio displays were neon blue, accompanied by a soft blue car light on the ceiling. The car had suicide doors in the back. The engine purred as he turned the key in the ignition, and he powered up halogen headlights.
“Please assign a destination,” the onboard AI requested.
“The LoveMaars Brothel, West BlackLight District,” Caiden commanded.
“Most certainly. Please fasten your seatbelt and enjoy the drive. Destination approximately fifteen minutes away,” The AI stated.
He soon neared the area where the brothel was located. “AI, please disengage automated driving. I’ll take the wheel.”
“Yes, sir. Disengaging in three, two, one.”
The steering wheel emitted a soft neon blue light, indicating manual driving was in effect. Caiden took the wheel and pulled up in front of The LoveMaars building. He circled the busy block several times, surveying the nearby streets for accessibility. He was formulating a few different escape plans, just in case things went south. After he felt comfortable enough, he parked the car in a dark, unoccupied public garage near the building. Surprisingly, there were no HSDs around. He adjusted his attire, got out of the car, and walked toward the front of the building.
The pavement was damp from a light rainstorm prior to his arrival. The scent of the concrete invaded his olfactory senses due to the lingering moisture the rain left behind. The streets were packed, filled with street vendors, neon signs, hole-in-the-wall bars and coffee shops, as well as a plethora of cybernetic repair shops. BlackLight had the largest population of Hybrids in the entire city. It was something of a safe haven, particularly from the Purebred purist groups like the Zealots of the Blue Earth, aka ZOBE, who had a serious vendetta against anything cybernetic-human related.
The LoveMaars had a glowing neon reddish-pink sign. It was fairly large and well designed to say the least. Caiden approached the front doors and was halted by two massive men, presumably guards. They were decked out in all-black suits, tailor made to accommodate their individual cybernetic implants. Each man stood well above average height and had a bulky, muscular build.
“State your name and business, sir,” one of them demanded.
“Here ta see the one they call ‘KingSleaze’,” Caiden said, disguising his voice. “I go by the name’o Mr. Knowone. Got an appointment with some exotics tonight,” he said confidently while adjusting his dark shades.
“Ah, It’s you! He’s expecting you. Pass through these doors; you’ll know him when you see him,” the other guard said. Caiden ambled forward, codec in hand, ready to
