"Hahaha," the woman laughed, then continued, "No, sorry. This ti, I didn’t hack anything in your bar. I’m just thinking about sothing. You don’t need to get so worked up, baldy."
The bartender, familiar with the woman’s personality, looked at her with scrutiny.
"You’re zoning out like that... is it about a man?" he tested the waters.
"Wha... What?" Switch startled, her brow shooting up as if to say, ’Why are you asking this?’
The bartender continued, "You’ll be turning 22 in about two months. Getting interested in a man is only a matter of ti."
"Wait! Don’t go jumping to conclusions! It’s not about a man!" Switch quickly retorted, trying to clear up the misunderstanding.
"So what does he look like? Is he a rc? Or maybe a UEC soldier...? Nah, knowing you, you wouldn’t settle for a soldier. And rcs around here? They’re all afraid of you. I doubt they’d dare," the bartender said, placing a glass down as he thought out loud.
"Spill it. Who is he? A rc, a soldier, or a field researcher?" he asked. These three professions were the mainstays in The Fringe that are respectable and with decent inco. As for shopkeepers or civil servants? Not even worth ntioning here.
"I don’t know... maybe he’s so kind of lab researcher? I guess? I don’t think he could handle going into the field though," said Switch.
Hearing this, the bald bartender showed a rare smile.
"So... it is a man, after all."
Switch’s face twisted in panic.
"You! You baited ? Didn’t you already know?" she shouted, pointing at him.
"I was half-guessing, girl. But now I’m pretty sure it isn’t just about a man," the bartender said with a grin.
Switch gritted her teeth. Being baited like that didn’t sit well with her.
"C’mon, don’t be so grumpy, girl. Here," the bartender placed a fresh glass of whiskey before her.
"Don’t think you can wiggle out of this just because you gave a free drink! Hmph!" Switch huffed in defiance before downing the entire glass of whiskey, earning a smirk from the bartender.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
A ssage rang from her phone. Switch placed the glass down on the counter and took out her phone to check it.
"What!?" she blurted out in horror and disbelief.
Her face paled as she read the ssage. She quickly swiped to see more information.
"What happened?" the bartender asked.
Startled by his voice, Switch snapped out of her stupor, looked at him, then quickly composed herself.
"No... it’s nothing," she replied, slipping her phone back into her pocket and walking out of the bar.
She returned to her residence in The Fringe, rechecked her phone, and headed straight to her personal console. She inputs her rcenary ID.
After a few seconds, the information loaded on the screen.
From: UEC Expedition Center - Arkadia Branch
Subject: Mission that may concern your expertise
Mission Type: Escort
Difficulty Rank: B
Escort Target: Max Sterling Graham
Target Area: Sector A7 - Old Manhattan
Mission Objective: Escort the target to the designated area and search for a specific target under the Employer’s supervision. Limit of three days in the designated area.
Paynt: 5,000,000 Dollars
Advance Paynt: 1,000,000 Dollars
Upon seeing the contract’s contents and the Employer’s photo—Maximilian wearing glasses—Switch made a complicated face.
She looked at the contract once more before deciding to accept it.
"Let’s see what you’re up to, four-eyes," Switch muttered before heading to the UEC Expedition Center.
— anwhile —
Maximilian, who had just returned from the Fringe, whipped up a simple al: canned beef and beans. He ate straight from the can, too lazy to even heat them.
[Max... I know you live alone, but... could you please take better care of yourself? Eating canned beef and beans straight from the can is just... (￣▽￣) ]
Aetherna paused, unsure how to phrase her thoughts.
"Why? This is good enough—easy and filling," Maximilian replied with a smile.
[I know... it’s just... um... I don’t think your parents would approve of your lifestyle. (＾﹏＾;) ]
Aetherna finally voiced her concern.
"I don’t think I’ll return to my old world anyti soon. Besides, I doubt you’ll rember any of this and rat out to my parents if we ever go back," Maximilian teased, scooping up beans from the can.
[Are you challenging ? Fine! I’ll rember everything you’ve done and tell your parents how ssy you are, living alone like this! (╬ᇂ_ᇂ) ] Aetherna huffed with mock irritation.
"Haha," Maximilian chuckled. "If you really want to live better, why don’t you materialize your body and live with ? That way I could make proper als for both of us."
Hearing this, Aetherna went silent for a mont before speaking again.
[I would love to, Max... but the energy you have can only support my manifestation for a short ti. One energy block supports my ethereal form for just one hour. A physical, flesh-and-blood body costs three energy blocks per hour...] Aetherna explained.
"What? Three energy blocks per hour? Isn’t one energy block equivalent to the monthly output of an average nuclear power plant!?" Maximilian exclaid in disbelief.
[Alternatively, you could prepare a vacant body strong enough to serve as my vessel... or accumulate 100 energy blocks, allowing to manifest and use that body to stay with you.] Aetherna added.
"You only need 100 energy blocks to manifest? Is that a permanent manifestation or...?" Maximilian asked.
[No, it would only sustain for a year.]
Maximilian pondered. One hundred energy blocks for just one year?
In perspective, each energy block equals about one month of energy from an average nuclear plant. If such a plant has four reactors generating roughly 6,400 MW per hour, that’s 4,608,000 MW per month. And she needs three blocks per hour to maintain a physical body?
Still, he couldn’t question it too much. Resurrecting the dead was sothing he’d never considered possible in his previous world. He should be grateful that there was even a way in this world. Defying nature ca at a price, and this was one he was willing to pay.
He recalled Aetherna ntioning energy quality earlier. That 4,608,000 MW figure was based on ordinary electricity. If the energy source was sothing exotic, like plasma, photon energy, or alien tech energy the cost might not be so insane after all.
"100 energy blocks? That’s fine. I’ll keep that in mind," Maximilian nodded.
He needed to find an alternative energy source. If he drained power from the city grid, the entire city might be thrown back to the Stone Age. And since he lived in the city, that would be shooting himself in the foot.
After chatting with Aetherna over dinner, he resud his routine: reading up on this world, studying the data he had gathered, and watching the news while trading jokes with Aetherna, who often chid in with snarky comntary.
Then, a notification popped up on his desktop, an incoming email from the Expedition Center in the Fringe.
"What?" Maximilian blinked. That was fast. He had expected to wait a few days before hearing back.
From what he’d learned, the Expedition Center usually contacted clients within a few days for standard jobs with average pay. But for rare or difficult missions like the one he posted, it could take weeks, even months, sotis years, depending on the challenge.
"Hm? Switch?" Maximilian muttered as he noticed the na of the rcenary who had accepted the request.
He then checked the rcenary database registered with the UEC Expedition Center but couldn’t find her. Curious, he searched her na in the Expedition Center’s forum and discovered that she was an unregistered rcenary, working freelance for several expeditions.
Rumors on the forum described her as fierce, hot-headed, and soone who preferred to speak with her gun. There were plenty of negative comnts about her temper, but there were two things that both her supporters and critics agreed on:
She was an exceptional hacker, and her mood swings were as unpredictable as her na—Switch. One minute she could be calmly hacking on your behalf, and the next, going in guns blazing when things got heated.
Furthermore, when Maximilian searched the wider net, he couldn’t find any photo of her—only rumors and hearsay. Yet despite being unregistered, the UEC Expedition Center still accepted her as a legitimate rcenary. That alone spoke volus about her capability and integrity.
"Interesting..." Maximilian smiled.
[Hmmmm... sohow... I have a strange feeling about this one... ] Aetherna spoke.
"What’s wrong?" he asked.
[Nothing. ]
She dismissed the question, making Maximilian frown before he shrugged it off.
Well... Aetherna is a woman after all. Even though they shared the sa hobbies and often spoke openly, he still couldn’t always tell what she was thinking.
— Morning —
Under the guise of the Glasses of Ordinarity, Maximilian headed to the Fringe once again, this ti, to et with Switch. She had requested a face-to-face eting at the Rust Gate bar, the sa place he had visited previously to find Red-Vulture.
But this ti, he ca as Max.
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