Stray Cat Strut

Magical Girl Mercenary for Hire - Chapter Four

Magical Girl Mercenary for Hire - Chapter Four

>> 2041

>> Continent: North America

>> Country: Old New York

>> City: Mega City New New York

>> 10:22am

Stop gawking, C4, Titan said.

I wasnt gawking, boss, C4 shot back. He adjusted his hold on the big auto-shotgun he was handling, then popped the magazine out of the bottom and went through the motions of replacing it with another from his backpack. Just... admiring. What kinda round is that?

The last was aimed at me. I blinked, then looked down at the casings on the floor of the elevator. Um, I dont know, actually. Im assuming its fifty calibre, because its the Wand of .50cal, and it would be silly if it was anything but.

The rounds approximate size is similar to .50BMG, though they arent exactly that. Theyre custom-tooled projectiles. When they go off, a portion of the energy is redirected in both directions, pushing a complex buffer system that reduces felt recoil significantly. Chys spun around, almost as if they were chasing their own tails as they replied.

Uh-huh, C4 said. Thats neat. I imagine that standard anti-material rounds like that would snap your wrist. No offence. Also, Ive been meaning to ask...

Were not paid to ask questions, big guy, Mouse said.

Yeah, I know, but were down here anyway, C4 said. So... what is that? He pointed to Chys.

I looked over at the bundle of fur sitting on the ground next to me. Thats Chys. My magical girl companion!

You mean your samurai AI? Mouse asked. For someone who said they werent into asking questions...

Yeah! Well, actually, they still live in my head, but I wanted something to grab, and a magical girl needs a cute companion.

Makes as much sense as anything, C4 said. Pleased to meetcha, Cheese.

I snorted a laugh, then covered my mouth. That had been unladylike. Say hi, Chys.

Hello. Please treat my vanguard well. She might be somewhat bizarre but she means well.

Chys! I hissed. Dont embarrass me. I pouted, but Chys made up for it by summoning a small plastic wheel thing with six big bullet sticking out of the end. I grabbed it, then slotted the rounds into the back of my Wand of .50cal before snapping it shut. It was ready to uwu again.

Alright, Titan said. Mouse, map?

Were in section two of B4. The elevator down to B6 is in section four. Down that corridor, left, then right, then left again. One security checkpoint.

Turrets? Titan asked.

Mouse scoffed. The client didnt see fit to warn us about those two. Give me a second. They gave us the wiring schematics too. Those dont run off of fairy farts, so they should be plugged in, and if I can find other spots with the same kind of wiring schematic...

Chys, can you help? I asked. Mouse looked like she was deep into whatever she was looking at. The big goggles over her eyes glowed from within with flashes of light, and I imagined that she was looking through a bunch of stuff. Chys was an expert at that kind of stuff though, so it wouldnt hurt for my AI to help! Plus it would make me a little more useful too. I was worried that I wasnt pulling my weight yet.

I can. Here, Miss Mouse. These locations are those most likely to have hidden turret emplacements.

Huh... okay, thanks, Mouse said. Also, how did you get into my systems? She tugged her goggles up and glared down at Chys.

Oops.

Ah, leave Cheese alone, theyre helping, C4 said.

Mouse, are we clear? Titan asked.

Yeah, Boss. End of the corridor, then one turret in the next. Its mounted on the ceiling, halfway down, a little to the left.

Got it.

The squad began to move, adopting a similar formation as before: Titan in the lead, followed by Mouse, then me, with C4 at the back. The darkness in the corridor was disconcerting, but with the various helmet and gun lights, it was easier to navigate than Id expected.

At the end of the corridor, Titan raised a fist and Mouse moved up to the very edge of the corner. She tugged out a long, stiff cord from the side of her goggles, then moved it around the corner. It wiggled, snake-like. I see it, she said. C4, corner gun?

C4 dropped his pack, then pulled out a small boxy thing. He opened it, then loaded a single bullet into a small barrel within before passing it to Mouse.

She poked the box out around the corner, and I saw the top of it turned, then moved up. A remote controlled single-shot gun? That was neat!

The boxy gun fired.

Lets give it another round, Mouse said before she retrieved the box.

Soon enough, we moved around the corner, and the turret tucked into the ceiling was smoking away, two neat holes punched into it.

Easy as pie so far, C4 said.

Dont jinx it, Mouse warned.

As we traversed, I noticed Chys seemed oddly tense--or at least, as tense as a magical AI could be. Theres something peculiar about this place, apart from the turrets.

Peculiar? In what way? I whispered.

We are being watched.

I felt a shiver run down my spine. That was... kind of very creepy, actually. Titan, I began, I think were not alone down here. Chys detected something.

Titan raised a hand, getting us all to pause again. Alright, lets be on our guard. Mouse, anything on your end?

Mouse adjusted her goggles, then shook her head. Nothing. Its real quiet.

Chys, can you pin-point it? I asked.

There are cameras all over. They were originally directing any collected data to a server bank on B5, but now theyve been redirected to B6. Theres a lot of obfuscation past that point. I could trace it deeper, but that would be beyond my current remit.

Its fine, I said. Probably just this hidden underground labs rogue AI.

You said that pretty casually, C4 said.

Well, yeah, this is exactly the kind of thing a magical girl should be doing. I looked at Titan and the others. Should we keep on going?

Weve got a job to do, Titan said, focusing his gaze down the corridor. But we have to be smarter about this. Mouse, any access points we can use to throw off this AI?

Im not going to link myself to anything an actual AI is connected to, Mouse said. I take risks with this job, but Im not letting something like that fry my brain. My ICE is decent, but its not that good.

Hm, Titan said. Arlight, fair enough. Lets keep moving. Wheres that next turret?

We navigated the corridors, and I became increasingly nervous at how easy it was. Where are all the robots? I asked.

Good point, C4 said. One rode up the elevator, and there were a few waiting to greet us when we came out. Where are they now? That cant have been all of them.

The client didnt see fit to give us a list of security units, Mouse griped.

It didnt take long before we got to the next elevator, this one was actually in the middle of a large lobby-like area. The space had gone from utilitarian corridors with exposed pipes and wires to a more... normal-ish place. There were offices, and little break rooms, and plenty of signs that this place housed hundreds of people. The room with the next elevator down had signage pointing people in the right directions.

B5 for housing, and B7 for living quarters, I read. Did a lot of people live here?

No idea, Mouse said. But I doubt anyones left. If they are, then the faster we shut down the AI and its security, the faster theyll be freed from wherever theyre hiding.

The elevator doors slid open to reveal a rather cavernous space inside, easily big enough for all of us, and even some extra equipment. Mouse stepped forward, connecting a cord to the control panel. She began tapping at the air in front of her with a few fingers.

Dont!

We all jumped. The voice had come from above, from the PA system, if I had to guess. It sounded like a womans voice, maybe, but one word wasnt much to go on.

Hello? I asked.

Bad form to talk to the enemy, Titan muttered.

We dont know that theyre the enemy, I said.

Dont! the voice came again, this time with a crackle. Please. Dont.

Who are you? Titans voice was filled with authority, each word carefully enunciated.

There was a brief pause. I am RAMona. Please dont kill me.

Oh boy, Mouse muttered. It can talk. Great, great.

Hi RAMona! I said while looking for a camera. I spotted one in the corner and gave it a wave. So, uh, we were sent to fix you up! Think you could help us help you?

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