A date. Rather, the promise of a date. That’s what it took to convince Lana to help them with this next job. On top of her non-negotiable fee of one hundred thousand funds, that is. A heavy price to pay, sure, but her services were sorely needed, and their crew was short on options.

After coming to an agreement with the talented but eccentric hacker during their meeting, the three pirates retired for the night. Kat had complimented Damien on his ability to get Lana out of her love daze and on board with the mission, but Marcus had expressed nothing but pity. Apparently, the girl was guaranteed to become an insufferable mess, but that was a problem for future Damien, so he pushed those worries to the back of his mind. While Lana gathered intel and formulated a plan, the three of them would have to make their own preparations for the job. The one-on-one date would happen some time after they secured the Archangel files.

Despite being only eighteen years old, Lana was a natural genius and one of the best hackers in the city. But her gifts came with downsides, and she was still immature when it came to certain real world situations. Her deep infatuation with Grand Wiz was childish and heavily idealized; a dramatic stereotype of a young woman deeply in love. Even so, Kat and Marcus had both assured Damien that she was a model professional and that she took her job seriously. Once a mission starts, she’d “flip her switch” and become obsessed over their goal, not letting anything get in the way of achieving it. After business was taken care of, she’d relax once again and let herself indulge in her oddities.

Her name was well known throughout the city, even though she was a devout hermit. Not as Lana, though, but as XO, the mysterious hacker. There was an amusing story about how that moniker came to her by accident. She’d become obsessed with Grand Wiz after he made a public showing of his ability to hack official government systems. After his third spectacular hack in which he taunted the NPD, Lana set out to get in touch with her new idol. She replicated one of his hacks, and added a message that was directed to Grand Wiz himself. Naturally, she didn’t leave her own calling card on the message, instead choosing to sign it with an affectionate XO. After that, the nickname stuck, but her hero never returned the sentiment or acknowledged her message, instead choosing to continue with his anti-authoritarian ways in a solo fashion. She’d been chasing him ever since.

Having proved herself capable of matching Grand Wiz’s skill, her reputation within the city skyrocketed. And so did the cost of her services. Combined with her natural fickleness and preference for working on her own personal projects, she was a resource that Kat and Marcus had only used a handful of times. Provided that he could get her on his side, Damien had found a powerful ally that could help him in all sorts of ways.

Now, in dire need of new gear and standing inside May’s shop, Damien scanned the weapon behind the display case.

Kranton G1 Katana

Damage: 38

Rarity: Common

Condition: Excellent

“I don’t think this is gonna cut it,” he said as he turned to Kat. “Literally…”

He received a disappointed head shake in return, but the tightening of Kat’s lips betrayed her, revealing that she got some enjoyment out of the lame joke. Teasing and getting reluctant reactions out of her normally stone-cold face was starting to become one of Damien’s favorite activities.

“I saw how you looked after your fight with that mercenary,” Kat said. “You really think it was the weapons fault you lost that badly?”

She knew that the defeat still stung, emotionally much more than physically. That remark was her way of getting revenge for subjecting her to his hilarious remarks. Damien had no excuses for the defeat, but he wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction of admitting it.

“Absolutely. It was the sword’s fault. I could match him with speed, but my blade couldn’t pierce his armor; just kept bouncing right off. This sword’s stronger than my last one, but I doubt it’ll fare much better.”

They both knew there was a mixture of fact in fiction in what he was saying. The truth is that he’d entered the battle unprepared and slightly overconfident from his earlier victories. Now he understood that there were enemies out there stronger than simple gang members, and he was determined to never let something like that happen again. He promised himself: whatever challenge awaited them on this job, he’d be ready.

That’s why he needed a new sword. He’d been over-reliant on a weapon that worked on weaker enemies, but failed him against truly powerful opposition. He could also use more variety in his arsenal of weapons but there weren’t many options available to him at this time. His Firearms and Technical stats were abysmal, meaning that he could only use bladed weapons with any degree of effectiveness. Unfortunately, the shurikens from before were sold out, and they were out of stock for a few more days, limiting him even further.

One day, I’ll get my hands on those ninja stars.

May popped up from behind the curtain on the other side of the display case, sporting her usual pink mohawk. “You find what you need?”

Damien shook his head. “I need something much stronger. Something that can really cut through armor.”

“Oh, you want the really good stuff? Since you’re rolling with Kat, I guess I can show you the premium collection. I might have the thing you’re looking for.” May signaled for them to join her past the curtain towards the back room.

Damien and Kat followed her through a narrow passage into the other side where they were greeted by a dark storage room with blue walls. Boxes and opened briefcases were scattered all around, and there was even a UTS terminal stashed away in one of the corners.

“I’m telling you, XO really did a number with that Freedom Channel,” May said as she guided them around the room in search of a particular item. “If it works like she claims, business could boom. But I’m gonna wait it out a bit to see if it’s truly secure.”

A set of glistening armor caught Damien’s eye and he immediately performed a quick scan on it.

NightGuard - Combat Series [Samurai Armor]

Base Stats: 45 Armor

Bonuses: +2 Strength, +15% Thermal Resistance, +15% Electrical Resistance, +10% Blunt Resistance

Rarity: Uncommon

Condition: Excellent

The menacing armor appeared to be a full-body set, with a half-helmet attachment that went around the lower part of the face. The base of the armor was black but dark-purple plates protruded outward at key locations on the body, giving it a good amount of coverage without sacrificing mobility. He pointed to the armor and asked May about it.

“Oh, that? It’s one of the items we got by mistake due to the mishaps at the bay. Thanks to the hard work of Marcus and Big G, we got some extra stuff that we weren’t supposed to get. Not that I’m complaining. Royals can go to hell for all I care.”

Damien’s interest only grew as he examined the armor further. Since his Way of the Samurai talent was at an Adept level, he could wear this gear without any penalties. “Is it for sale?” he asked.

May shrugged. “I guess. Haven’t put a price tag on it yet. Ah, here it is.” She dug up a long, rectangular case and opened it to reveal a gorgeous katana inside. The silver front edge of the blade looked incredibly sharp, while the rear edge was pure black and faded directly into the intricately patterned hilt. In between the silver and black, a glowing red strip ran along the length of the blade, giving it an exotic and futuristic look compared to the typical mono-colored blade. Damien scanned the weapon.

Kimura X-3 Katana [AR-V]

Damage: 50

Bonuses: 25% Armor Penetration, +10 Thermal Damage

Rarity: Common

Condition: Good

“This is the armor pen variant, which is your best bet against anything bulky,” May said. “It comes with the Thermal Cell attachment, but it’s a small cell so it won’t last long. It’ll stay active for about a minute after activation, so I’d recommend saving it for when you really need it. With all this, you should be able to break through most enemies. How much damage you’ll do or how many whacks it’ll take, I dunno. But if you can’t get through with something like this, you probably wouldn’t survive regardless of the weapon you’re holding.”

“How much for the sword and the armor?” Damien asked.

May rubbed her chin thoughtfully for a moment. “Store policy is 15% off your first purchase. I’ll round it down for you since you’re a verified customer, so let’s go with a flat 20 grand.”

A wave of disappointment washed over Damien. That number was almost double the amount he could afford.

“All things considered, that’s a great deal,” Kat said.

“Yeah, but it’s far past my budget.” Damien wondered if he could haggle the price with another promise of a date.

“We’re in a tight spot right now,” Kat said. “Any chance you can let him finance the gear, just this once?”

“You know we’re already struggling out here, Kat. I can’t keep doing people favors like this.”

“I know, but he’s good for it. I promise. If he fucks up this mission or doesn’t pay up, I’ll hunt him down myself.”

May let out a reluctant groan, but her face softened. “Fine. Fine. First and only time. You can do fifty percent up front and fifty after your job. That’s as low as I can go. Deal?”

Damien bit his lip. The up-front cost wasn’t as low as he’d hoped, but he could make it work, though it’d be tough. He’d be left with enough funds for a few more meals and nothing more. If he accepted the offer, he’d also have Kat on his ass if something went even slightly wrong, adding more pressure to finish this job without a hiccup. Would it be worth it?

There really wasn’t much doubt, and he didn’t have to ponder it for more than a second.

“Deal.”