# INTERLUDE — Calibration The safehouse hadn’t changed. --- That mattered. --- Same walls. Same angles. Same imperfect alignment that didn’t try to correct itself. --- Normal. --- --- Ace stood by the window. --- Watching movement below. --- Not tracking targets— --- tracking flow. --- --- Mai sat at the table. --- The object— --- resting in front of her— --- not moving. --- --- But not still. --- --- Shammy leaned against the wall. --- --- The air— --- steady. --- --- For now. --- --- V moved around the room. --- Not restless. --- Checking. --- Adjusting. --- --- “You’re going to need gear,” they said. --- --- Ace didn’t turn. --- --- “We have gear.” --- --- V snorted quietly. --- --- “Not for here.” --- --- That landed. --- --- Mai didn’t look up. --- --- “Define.” --- --- V gestured loosely. --- --- “Local weapons. Interfaces. Stuff that actually connects to the system.” A beat. --- “And stuff that doesn’t scream ‘you’re not from here’ the second someone scans you.” --- --- Ace didn’t respond. --- --- Because that was valid. --- --- Shammy tilted her head slightly. --- --- The air around V— --- consistent. --- --- “You’re stable,” she said. --- --- V blinked. --- --- “…I’m starting to think that’s a compliment.” --- --- Mai finally looked up. --- --- “It is.” --- --- A short pause. --- --- Then: --- “We go.” --- --- No delay. --- --- No debate. --- --- The object remained on the table. --- --- For a moment— --- none of them touched it. --- --- Then— --- Mai picked it up. --- --- Carefully. --- --- Not to hold it— --- to keep it from settling. --- --- --- The market wasn’t organized. --- --- It didn’t need to be. --- --- Neon bled across metal. --- Voices overlapped without structure. --- Everything moved— --- but nothing aligned. --- --- Perfect. --- --- Ace stepped into it without hesitation. --- --- The crowd adjusted. --- --- Not consciously— --- but instinctively. --- --- Space opened. --- --- That told V everything they needed to know. --- --- “…Yeah,” they muttered. --- “…you’re going to be a problem here.” --- --- Mai ignored the noise. --- --- Her eyes moved— --- tracking density. --- --- Nothing locked. --- Nothing resolved. --- --- Good. --- --- Shammy exhaled slowly. --- --- The air— --- chaotic. --- --- Alive. --- --- “This place breathes,” she said. --- --- V smirked slightly. --- --- “Yeah.” --- A beat. --- “On a good day.” --- --- They stopped at a vendor. --- --- No sign. --- No branding. --- --- Just equipment. --- --- Weapons. Interfaces. --- Modded hardware that had been rebuilt too many times to count. --- --- The vendor looked up. --- --- Didn’t greet them. --- --- Didn’t need to. --- --- “You buying or staring,” he said. --- --- Ace didn’t answer. --- --- Mai stepped forward. --- --- “Functionality,” she said. --- --- The vendor paused. --- --- Looked at her— --- longer than necessary. --- --- “…You’re not local.” --- --- Mai didn’t deny it. --- --- “No.” --- --- The vendor shrugged. --- --- “Doesn’t matter if you pay.” --- --- That tracked. --- --- V leaned slightly toward the counter. --- --- “They’ll pay.” --- --- The vendor nodded. --- --- “Then what do you need.” --- --- Mai didn’t look at the items. --- --- She looked at the system. --- --- “Compatibility,” she said. --- --- A beat. --- --- “Stability.” --- --- The vendor snorted. --- --- “Pick one.” --- --- Ace stepped forward. --- --- “Both.” --- --- The vendor met her gaze. --- --- For a moment— --- something in his posture shifted. --- --- Then— --- he reached under the counter. --- --- Pulled out a case. --- --- Set it down. --- --- “This is as close as you get,” he said. --- --- No explanation. --- --- No pitch. --- --- Mai opened it. --- --- Inside— --- cleaner. --- --- More deliberate. --- --- Interfaces that didn’t try to overcompensate. --- --- Weapons that balanced function— --- and presence. --- --- “This will work,” she said. --- --- Ace nodded once. --- --- “Take it.” --- --- The vendor named a price. --- --- High. --- --- Mai didn’t react. --- --- She activated the interface. --- --- Transfer. --- --- Confirmed. --- --- The vendor blinked. --- --- “…Fast.” --- --- Mai closed the case. --- --- “Efficiency.” --- --- That was enough. --- --- As they turned to leave— --- Shammy paused. --- --- The air— --- shifted. --- --- Subtle. --- --- But wrong. --- --- “Wait,” she said. --- --- Ace stopped immediately. --- --- “Where.” --- --- Shammy didn’t point. --- --- She didn’t need to. --- --- The object— --- in Mai’s hand— --- tightened. --- --- Not aligning— --- reacting. --- --- Mai’s gaze sharpened. --- --- “…That shouldn’t happen here.” --- --- V frowned. --- --- “…What shouldn’t.” --- --- Mai didn’t answer. --- --- Because the answer was already forming. --- --- Somewhere in the noise— --- in the chaos— --- in the unaligned mess of the market— --- something had just— --- for a fraction— --- almost— --- agreed. --- --- Ace’s expression didn’t change. --- --- “Good,” she said. --- --- V groaned quietly. --- --- “…You really need a new word.” --- --- But no one corrected her. --- --- Because they all knew what it meant. --- --- Not relief. --- --- Not success. --- --- Just— --- the next point where something was about to go wrong. --- --- And this time— --- it wasn’t isolated. --- --- It was already inside the noise.