“Thanks, Wizard. I owe you, yet again,” he replied graciously.
“Add it to my tab, sweetheart,” she replied with a smile, and cut transmission.
“Another wild night for you, huh?” Hitomi asked.
“Can’t be helped,” Caiden replied. He began searching one of his utility closets for extra ammo. “Armor piercing, hollow tips, ah, here they are,” he said.
“What are you looking for?” Hitomi asked.
“Shock rounds,” he replied.
“Are you sure those shock bullets will be enough, Caide?” Nami asked skeptically.
“A fair question. These rounds have over twenty-five thousand volts per shot. While it’s a lot, it isn’t sustained voltage. It only releases that much in a quick burst, allowing the charge to severely but temporarily incapacitate a target, but not kill them. A sustained voltage of something over one hundred and ten volts can be fatal because it can pump voltage into one person’s body indefinitely,” he replied.
They both eased up a little after that. “Are we sure Wizard is giving out the right information? What if she’s wrong? What if you get caught in a situation that you can’t escape from?” Nami asked, worry overcoming her.
Caiden squeezed her shoulder comfortingly. “I’ll be okay. If I see or feel that something isn’t right, I’ll be sure to pull back. But, Vantz, he’s the only family I’ve got. I gotta do something. I was there when it happened, and I couldn’t do anything to stop it. Psi-Corp isn’t gonna do shit about it. I gotta do this. As his family, it’s my responsibility to get him back,” Caiden said.
Nami and Hitomi deflated. They knew he wasn’t one to easily deter. “Hey, try not to worry. I have you guys in my corner helping me out, right? Even if it’s from here. I’ll keep in contact with you throughout the night. I may need you guys at the hub to do some system infiltrating.”
They both smiled and he went upstairs to get ready. He wore all black jogger pants, black sneakers, a black shirt, and a long thin black jacket with a hood. Underneath his attire was a holster for his gun, and magazines of shock rounds; he was ready. He made his way to the garage and geared up his hypercycle. Caiden synced his holo-watch to the display inside his helmet.
“Wow, dude, you look like an action figure straight out of a movie,” Hitomi joked as she watched Caiden slip on his helmet.
Caiden only shook his head, which caused the twins to erupt into more laughter. “I’ll be back. I promise it’s not gonna be like this for much longer. Once this craziness is all over I’m definitely getting you guys back home to Rune Village,” he promised. The twins gave him a happy nod of approval and he was off. Destination; The Chrome Pit Hangout, East Andromeda District.
The underground garage door opened and Caiden fired out like a missile. The bike left behind dazzling streak light as he sped off. The hypercycle’s engine was quiet and smooth. He turned on the headlights after he reached a safe distance from Home-base, always remembering to take care of its secret location. He switched gears once he hit the main road and took off toward East Andromeda at full speed.
***
It was a fifteen-minute ride from BlackLight to East Andromeda when Caiden used the shortcuts. The navigation in his helmet display informed him that the Chrome Pit would be coming up on the right-hand side. The hangout was on the corner of a fairly busy street. All around were buildings that glowed from the neon signs and holo-displays. To his left, across the street, was a performance hall with a projection ad that read, ‘Rising star Yvora Blue live! Here in two weeks! Tickets on sale now! Hmm, who’d have thought she was who she claimed to be? Caiden began to think about his encounter with Yvora before turning his attention to the task at hand.
There was a large crew of bikers hanging out in the front of the entrance to The Chrome Pit; forty of them in total. Upon closer inspection, this large crew of bikers turned out to be an all-female gang. All their bikes had a pink flame decal, with an image of a pink biker helmet with cat ears. The helmet was encompassed by a streak of bright orange fire.
All the women stopped what they were doing to watch this bold rider pull up unannounced on their turf. Many of them readied their weapons as Caiden dismounted, his biker helmet still on. He was being cautious as well, knowing damn well the precarious situation he had put himself in. He slowly advanced until he was several feet away from the bikers. He paused and took a quick look at what he presumed to be the leader of the gang.
One side of her head was shaven and she sported a unique tattoo there. It was an artistic iteration of a pink lion. Her hair was bright pink with light blue highlights. She sported red lipstick and a pair of white biker goggles with orange lenses that rested around her neck. She was average height, well built, and sported a short orange varsity jacket. She had a white tank top underneath with a slogan written in red that said ‘Men are only good for their d*cks’. She wore a white utility belt loosely around her waist, and she wore a pair of white booty shorts with pink trim. To say she was colorful would be an injustice.
Her motorcycle was pearly white with a chameleon like color flare that would show depending on the angle. It was truly a work of art. The rims were chrome with a pink finish and the headlight was a bright blue.
“You just gonna stand there and get shot? Or you gonna tell me who you are and what you want?” the leader called out. Caiden slowly brought his hands to his helmet and took it off. His golden eyes were
