It was even better than Damien had hoped it would be. The thrill of the forceful acceleration, the wind blowing past his face, the impressed onlookers checking out his motorcycle whenever he stopped. Not only did it look amazing, it felt it, too. Every second on the bike was a delight, and Damien enjoyed it deeply it as he tore through Neopolis.

Somewhat to his surprise, Bruce had been completely right about being a natural rider. Driving the Tiger MK-1 felt familiar in a strange kind of way, as if he’d rediscovered an activity that he’d long forgotten. The mechanic’s words had raised his expectations slightly, but it was hard to believe just how effortlessly he could bend the bike to his will. Perhaps part of it had to do with the fact that he’d synced his neural map with the machine, but even then, it felt as if he’d ridden one a million times before.

He’d started out slowly and steadily when he left Bruce’s shop, but that hesitation didn’t last long. Before he knew it, Damien was weaving through traffic, letting himself get carried away in the thrill of the ride. He even tried to push the Tiger’s boundaries a few times, but finding it’s limits proved difficult. It was equal parts scary and enchanting to see just how much power the bike really had, and he grinned ear-to-ear in satisfaction with his new purchase.

Eventually, he snapped away from the intoxication of his new toy and remembered that he’d promised to help Marcus over at the west end of the city. The picturesque beaches and palm trees of the west side sounded like the ideal place to stroll through, but he needed to make one more stop before he’d be ready for whatever Marcus had planned. The meeting would inevitably lead to a dangerous mission of some sort, so he rushed over to the market square to pick up a set of weapons that he’d long had his eyes on.

This time around, Damien knew what to expect when he entered May’s Love Shop. From the average person’s point of view, the quaint shop looked like any other adult toy and entertainment store, but the real goods were the illegal combat gear that was held downstairs. Clyde, the clerk manning the entrance didn’t bother with repeating the rehearsed greeting he’d given last time around, instead opting for a simple nod of the head to let Damien know that the real shop was indeed open.

With a knowing nod of his own, Damien slipped through the door at the back and made his way down to the damp underground room that he’d previously visited with Kat.

“Ah, Damien. Good to see you again,” the woman behind the glass display cases said. Her back was turned away from him, but she’d spotted the pirate’s reflection on the wall-mounted mirror that she’d been eying as she combed her pink mohawk.

“How’s it going, May? The NPD still a pain in your ass?”

May gave a half-hearted grunt as she put the comb down and opted to add the finishing touches with her hands, bringing them together and upward to finalize the sharp edges. “Always have been. Always will be. Let me guess, you’re here for the shuriken you asked me to reserve, right?”

“Yep,” Damien said with a smile. He was firmly in her good books after he’d payed off his debt to her immediately after receiving Zero’s payment. Keeping that promise--along with Kat’s recommendation-- gave him the privilege of having early access to certain gear. Luckily for him, a new set of the ninja stars he’d coveted for so long had just recently arrived.

“Held on to them for you in the back room,” May said, finally turning to face him. “Need anything else while I’m there?”

Damien nodded then pulled out a Basic Upgrade module he’d found a few days prior. With this, he could make upgrades to certain weapons and gear, though he didn’t know what he could get for this specific item. “This any good for the shuriken?”

“Sure is. Those stars have two possible upgrades but the module’s only good for one, so you got a choice to make. There’s the explosion upgrade or the electric upgrade. The first one will make the shuriken explode on contact, though the blast is pretty weak and the radius is laughable at best. Good for adding a little extra damage. The second one makes the stars send a jolt of electricity through any poor sucker that gets nailed by one. The electrical jolt adds even less damage, but it will tense up the target’s muscles and stun them for a short time.” She picked up the module. “Which will it be?”

The extra damage from the exploding shuriken sounded good, but the ability to stun enemies would allow Damien to get into close range where he excelled. Since getting into striking distance of his katana was so crucial, he decided on the second option.

May nodded. “Anything else?”

“Oh, and a new thermal cell for the X-3 katana. Used up all it’s juice the last time around.”

“Gotcha. One set of electric shuriken and one thermal cell. Total comes to 5,800.”

Damien pressed his wrist on the counter where the payment reader was situated, and his total funds dropped to 400. He didn’t have much remaining, but he’d purchased everything he needed for now, so he curiously checked out the other weapons that were on sale.

Even if he had more funds, there wasn’t much on display that tempted him. Due to his abysmal Firearms stat, he was all but useless with a traditional gun, which is why he’d been so excited for the ninja stars. They would finally give him some ranged options in combat, and since shuriken were a bladed weapon, they’d hopefully make use of his Blades stat, which was one of his highest.

A few minutes later, May returned from the back room with the thermal cell and a compact, silver pack. Damien scanned it as she placed it on the glass counter top.

Kimura Basic Shuriken (x50)

Damage: 10 (+1 electric damage)

Upgrades Installed: Electric Jolt

Effect: Sends a jolt of electricity through the target’s body on contact

Condition: Excellent

“The pack should snap to your waist like a firearm holster,” May said. “Go ahead and snap it on, there’s something else I’d like to show you.”

Damien obliged and brought the pack to his waist. Just like his katana, it clipped to his side, freeing his hands. She then gave him a chip which synced the shuriken to his neural map, much like the sync with the Tiger MK-1.

“With that, you won’t have to fiddle around with the pack trying to pull out an appropriate amount of stars. Bring your hand near the pack and you can mentally activate it to release just one star, or multiple at a time.”

“Huh. Interesting.” Damien brought his hand near the pack, and gave the command to release one shuriken. Sure enough, a single start came free, and he slid his finger through the hole in the center.

“You can turn that feature on or off within your GPI. You should also know that the electrical jolt is one-time use. Once a star stuns one target, you can’t pick it up and get more charges out of it. Runs out of juice.”

“Gotcha, thanks for the heads up.” Damien slipped the sliver star back into its pack, appreciating just how useful the feature was.

May turned to mirror once again and let out an annoying sigh. Still unsatisfied with her hair, she picked up her comb and went back to work. “Rolling with Kat and Marcus must get you into all sorts of trouble. I’m sure those will serve you well.”

“Can’t argue with that,” Damien said with a shrug. “At the very least, it’s entertaining being around those two. I’m actually on my way to the west side to meet up with Marcus right now.”

She stopped moving her hands and stared at him through the mirror’s reflection. “Marcus? West side? You know what that means right?”

Damien knew exactly what she was referring to. “Yep. It means trouble.”