Marvin limped into the team room and dropped his right arm on the nearest table. He refused to look at Ben and Renee when they came to transfer his head. It wasn't out of shame, but more of a simmering frustration that trapped him in his mind.
I could've won that. Could've won that easily.
It was the third time he'd ever forfeited, except those first two times had been conscious decisions, not whatever demon had possessed him back there.
"You gotta get rid of the kill switch," Marvin said as Renee attached his head to his normal body. She drew back in surprise.
"What if you die?" Ben protested. "Look, that wasn't your fault. I don't know what he said to you, but you're a way better pilot than he is."
Am I asking for my own death? Marvin wondered. He was sure he understood the risks. It was the disgrace of losing a battle that overrode all that. His pride. Besides, if he wanted to perform, to do his best to help these three win Mecha Realm, he needed to be as immersed in the fight as possible.
"I'll know when to forfeit." Marvin pointed to his skull. "This is too easy. I did it subconsciously."
Ben and Renee exchanged a look. Renee gestured towards the exit and Ben nodded. They would talk about it later with Caroline.
"May I ask," Renee said. "What did he say to you?"
Marvin figured it'd be unfair to Caroline to tell them, even if they knew already. He replied, "Just average trash talk." He intended to stop there, but something poked him from the back of his mind. "Do you guys know what the Memory Bank is?"
"It's a thing in Sector 8," Ben said. "People wipe their memories and store them there. Only the richest people can afford it."
"Why did George Jang mention that?" Renee asked.
Marvin shook his head. "He was just saying random stuff."
Sector 8. Our flipside Sector. Ainsel AI's Sector.
Marvin wasn't sure what this entailed. Caroline's father was registered, so that meant he was rich. It also meant there was something he wanted to forget.
This is none of my business, Marvin told himself. If it became a problem, he would confront Caroline about it. If not, it was better to forget it.
-----
Caroline stared at the golden plaque on the door. It read Amir Kaleid, head of the Sector 58 Police Department. An ally, even a friend at times, but a very scary man. Caroline waited a good five seconds before knocking.
She was on the 98th floor of Nagatown's police headquarters, which contained the offices of the senior members. There was no doubt at least three were Manhunters, but since Gerard hadn't recognized her during their meeting with Ishaan, she figured she was safe. And she knew for certain Amir wasn't bought out.
"Come in."
The voice was harsh, yet tired. That weariness had set in a month ago, after the disappearance of Amir's sister. Caroline didn't know the details, and she wasn't keen on asking.
She pushed open the door—it was one of the rare ones still on hinges—and stepped into a dark office twice too large for a single person. The windowless walls were lined with shelves draped in shadow, and in the far left corner a hunched figure sat at a desk. A lone lamp illuminated a blue and gray uniform, letting the numerous medals on it glitter but obscuring the figure's face. A sofa by the door looked awfully inviting to Caroline, but it was too far from the desk. She had no choice but to walk forward.
"Nice to see you, Caroline," Amir said.
Caroline nodded awkwardly. "I need your help," she began.
Amir didn't move a muscle.
"There's a scavenger we've been getting our mech parts from," Caroline said. "He steals them from the Manhunters, but we also found weapons in his storage. High end stuff like plasma rifles and railguns. We think he's been stealing those from the Manhunters, too."
The silhouette of Amir's head tilted to one side. "And?"
Caroline felt a spike of adrenaline for no particular reason. It was hard enough talking to the chief in normal lighting. This setting straight out of a horror movie made it infinitely worse.
"It's really dangerous for us," Caroline said, "but he's our cheapest source. So best if we don't cut it off." She paused, wondered for a few seconds if she should continue, then realized she'd hesitated for too long to do that. So she just awkwardly waited.
"And you want me to what? Confiscate these weapons?"
Caroline swallowed. "Could you?"
Amir sighed. "You realize half of my colleagues are Manhunters, right?"
"You could keep it a secret from them."
"Not forever."
"Then you could be like an intermediary. Hand the weapons off to the Manhunters." Caroline nervously folded her hands behind her back; she was far out of her depth suggesting these things, but she knew that Amir and the gang were on good terms. Amir had said once that he tolerated the gangs because they showed their true colors. It was the corporations like Ainsel AI he hated, those gilded beacons of progress.
"They'll start asking questions," Amir said. "I can't promise they won't still go after your scavenger."
Caroline opened her mouth to argue, but Amir continued, "But I do wonder, where did the Manhunters get these weapons?"
"The badlands?" Caroline said.
"No, they use bullets out there." Amir tapped a finger on his desk, the sound resounding across the vast room. "But there are old Federation bases farther west. Maybe they raided one of those."
Caroline didn't know much about the Federation, the interstellar force that governed their planet. For the most part, it stayed out of the megacities' affairs.
"And," Amir continued, "what does the scavenger want with the weapons? Is he holding them as blackmail?"
Caroline just shrugged. At times like these, it was best to let the man go on his tangent.
"See, the Manhunters don't tolerate thievery in the slightest. They'll kill your friend regardless," Amir said. "But I can get the weapons out of there if it makes it easier for you."
Caroline pursed her lips. This was good, right? It spared them any complications with Hosaka. Still, she wondered if she should press further, ask if Amir could do anything to protect Sangeet.
She decided against it and instead only asked, "How?"
"I'll give the scavenger somewhere to store them. It'll still be his property, but it's as hidden as it gets. If the Manhunters kill him for stealing their parts and then decide to go after you, you can still use the weapons as leverage. Threaten to report them to Hosaka or something."
Caroline almost made a face at how simple it seemed. Could Amir really not do anything to help Sangeet? She understood that it was hard to fight against an institution that was practically owned by the Manhunters, but he was the chief. There had to be some strings he could pull.
And yet, Caroline kept her mouth shut. The truth was, she barely knew Sangeet. Yes, he had a sympathetic reason to be here, but that didn't mean he was a friend.
"Send me his location. I'll talk to him tomorrow," Amir said. He brought one hand into the light and pointed at Caroline. "I want you to come with me."
Caroline once again felt that spike of adrenaline. Nights sitting across her father in the diner flashed by. Ancient projectors broadcasting videos on the wall. Stacks of hard drives in steel boxes.
Why? Why now?
But Caroline already found herself nodding.
-----
The storage was the same old. Dusty mech parts scattered on dusty shelves, a little sparser now that a few more purchases had been made. Apparently other people came to this bootlegger, although Caroline had never seen them.
She had told Sangeet she was coming, but had not mentioned Amir. Hopefully he wouldn't panic.
They loitered in the storage for a bit, inspecting the shelves and taking in the strange desk and window by the corner, until a section of the wall flickered and Sangeet stepped through. He held his metal polearm like always, and held it a little closer when he saw Amir's rugged police uniform.
Caroline raised her hands to disarm him. "It's alright. He's my…" She frowned. "Friend?"
"What?" Sangeet whimpered.
"You're not in trouble," Amir said. "I'm here to protect you from the Hosaka Roundtable."
Yeah, I'll just let him do this. Caroline was more than happy to sit back and observe. After all, that was why she had agreed to come; the more she learned, the better prepared she would be for the future.
"We know you have illegal weapons," Amir said.
Sangeet immediately faked a look of bewilderment. "What weapons?"
"I won't ask you why you have them because I know you'll lie again," Amir said. "But we both know if Hosaka finds out, you're looking at a couple decades in prison at best. Lucky for you, I've promised Caroline to prevent that. I've got a storage. It's outside the Sector, off grid. No one who's gonna bother you knows where it is."
Sangeet raised his polearm, eyes darting between Amir and Caroline. "How do I know you're not with the Manhunters?"
How would he prove his innocence? How could we disarm Sangeet enough? Now that she thought about it, it seemed nigh impossible. For all the scavenger knew, his clients had just betrayed him and he should cut off all contact from now on.
"I haven't killed you yet, for one," the police officer replied.
Sangeet held his weapon a little higher as if Amir was going to change his mind.
"Caroline, can you tell him to calm down?"
Caroline's heart skipped a beat and she snapped to attention. What was she supposed to do? On the way here, they hadn't planned for her to say anything.
It's just a test. Amir has a backup in case I mess up.
And she supposed it was a good idea, too, as Sangeet hopefully still trusted her.
"It's true," Caroline said, then immediately winced. What's true? "Um, we're here to help. I—"
"How did you find out?" Sangeet asked. "About the weapons?"
Caroline sucked air through her teeth. "I may have asked Renee to sneak around."
Sangeet widened his eyes, and Caroline considered telling him that they didn't find his illusory wall. But that wouldn't make things much better, would it?
"We had to know who we were dealing with," Caroline said. She forced herself to regain composure. "You would understand. You kinda spied on us for two weeks."
Sangeet's grip on his weapon tightened. "I didn't sneak into your home!"
"We're trying to help," Caroline repeated. "The weapons are still yours. You can keep one here for self defense if you want. It's just best for all of us if Hosaka doesn't find a giant stash here."
Caroline could see the scavenger let down his guard a bit. She bit the inside of her cheek, feeling a strange sense of remorse. A side-eye from Amir told her she had messed up somewhere along the way.
However, the result was the same. In the end, after a few more minutes of talking, Sangeet concluded he was outnumbered in this argument and allowed the weapons to be transferred.
Why? Caroline wondered. Why did he take them in the first place?