Y’know what? I’m going to say it. Samurai vehicles are overrated. Is there charm in seeing something ridiculous in the sky and flying? Absolutely. But you can only see a literal flying circus tent so many times before it loses the appeal. Tricked out muscle cars and bikes are much more my speed, thank you.

  - ‘Nice Wheels’ host Perry Zane on a now deleted podcast

  Taking the rest of the day to laze around and do some light packing, I discreetly snuck myself out of the motel around midnight, and wandered around until I found a sufficiently vacant parking lot to make my purchases. Being inconspicuous was my entire M.O., and I wasn't about to have my cover blown when hooking myself up with a new set of wheels. Technically hoverbikes didn't have wheels, but my point still stands.

  “So,” I asked to the voice in my head, pacing back and forth across the empty square of cracked and fading concrete in the meantime. “What are our options here?”

  Max, I have quite literally tens of thousands of viable options for hovercycles at my fingertips. Metaphorical fingertips, that is, because my current form is that of a hyper-advanced carbon wafer. Instead, let me ask what you specifically want out of your vehicle.

  “Oh, can the almighty AI Calydon not read my mind and deduce exactly what I want?” I heard a tiny huff in the back of my head, and had to hold back a huff of my own. “Just teasing. Let me think for a second.”

  Bringing my hand to my chin, I kind of just rattled off the main things that came to mind. “Subtle is probably the most important thing. I don't want something that looks like a Sam-mobile if you get what I mean. Instead, I'm looking for one you could like…procure with credits and shit, y'know. ‘Human-made’ might be a better word.

  I'm afraid I cannot fulfill that condition, as everything I can send you is made by the Protectors, who are objectively not humans.

  “Pfft, smartass. You know what I mean. Uhh…what else? Would be nice if it was sleek, but not in the garish, luxury car type way. Like, one that’s sharp, with that “vehicle with a purpose” look. Ooh, heavy-duty too. I wanna be able to drive it into a bunch of Antithesis and not have it crumple like the Deathnail did.”

  Quite the interesting set of parameters you've given, and that first request alone eliminated about 97% of the options, but I do believe there is one that fulfills all your criteria.

  “Cool, let's see what you got.”

  A webpage popped into my field of view via my augs, what looked to be some automotive seller. Dead center was a picture of the vehicle that Cal probably had narrowed everything down to: an angular, jet black construct of metal, the front taking up the majority of the body and sporting several hatches on each side. The dummy in the photo straddled on the seat near the back of the bike and leaned forward like a dope over the handles, practically swallowed by the ebony mass that must have stretched at least ten feet. Sucker was long. The back was shrimpy in comparison; only sporting a smaller box and the hover engine beneath it.

  Most striking of all, though, was the fact that I recognized the bike. “Isn't this a…shit, what's the name? Charon? I think it's Charon.”

  Correct. You are looking at the Charon ST 25X, specifically one of a 2049 make year. While Charon Automotive was bought out and dissolved by a rival corporation within the last three years, their vehicles are still common enough to see that this one will not draw suspicion. Furthermore, a 2049 model falls into a comfortable middle ground of being young enough to not fall under the label of ‘vintage’, while also being old enough to not come off as cutting edge or being bought by someone with too much money to spend.

  “Very well thought out, I have to admit. What other bells and whistles does it have?”

  The front block contains extensive storage space, easily enough for your current supplies and backpack, and can be locked to deter thieves. Its armor is also quite impressive, to the point where several higher-end PMCs used the vehicles as personal transport in the battlefield, and is indisputably one of a select few hovercycles with confirmed kills against a Model Five or higher.

  Damn. I let out a whistle, and by that time my mind had been made. “Think the answer here is gonna be a yes, so what's it gonna run me?”

  1200 points.

  I visibly recoiled at the number. “Jeez, what is this, health insurance? I thought this wasn't cutting edge since, you know, Class 0.”

  The version shown may look similar to the man-made Charon ST 25X, but the cost is due to all the tech under the hood and materials being Protector-based. The alloys used to construct the frame and body are several times stronger than usual automotive bodies, making it much more resistant to Antithesis attack. The body is also painted with an IR reflective coating, making it more resilient to heat. The engine and hover thrusters especially are worthy of Class I labeling, being able to safely accelerate the Charon far past its civilian limits to nearly Mach 1, while also being magnitudes more fuel efficient. It would take two months of max exertion 24/7 to run this vehicle empty, and more realistically you won't need to refill until the start of the new year.

  Holy shit, that was literally nine months away. “Alright, count me doubly sold then. Break down the points more specifically for me, if you could.”

  Unlocking the Class I Single-User Cockpitless Hover Vehicles Catalog costs 250 points, while the modified Charon STX-25 costs 950 points. I understand you are frugal by nature Max, but I earnestly believe this is a very solid and important investment for you as a Vanguard.

  “This isn't just you trying to be a snake oil salesman, right?”

  A ridiculous notion. I am composed of neither snake nor its oil. Whether I act as a salesman, however, is up to interpretation.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  A sassy one Cal was being today, wasn't he? Still, some hesitation was expected with a purchase this big, and I bit my lip while fully deliberating. Maybe it was just because I was just over a month old in my career as a Sam’, but that felt like a lot of points. But…well, you have to bite that bullet at some point. “...Buy it.”

  Unlocked: Class I Single-User Cockpitless Hover Vehicles - 250 Points

  Purchased: Charon ST 25X (Modified) - 950 Points

  Point Total: 1489

  Several tons of metal dropped to the ground in front of me with a heavy, reverberant. Cal could have absolutely sent it to be flush with the floor, so it must have been a choice for the dramatic. Either way, I couldn't comment on that choice, as I was currently in awe of my new ride.

  Seeing the Charon in a picture versus in person is a completely different experience; she was a beauty. I couldn’t restrain myself from immediately hopping onto the seat, and nearly sighed when I sunk into the plush material. The dash had all sorts of gauges and dials on it of varying sizes and importance, and each side of the handle had its own slew of buttons.

  An unfortunate realization came to mind. “Wait, I don’t know how to drive this.”

  What could best be described as a snort uttered from within my own head.

  Of course you don’t. Why would I expect anything else? Well, while investing in a method of learning how to drive it is certainly recommended, for the moment I can pilot it for you.

  “Thanks, you’re the best as always.”

  Shifting in my seat, I realized I still had my backpack on with how it uncomfortably brushed against the backrest. Putting it away was a good idea, so I left the seat and moved to the front of the Charon, deducing that the latch was somewhere near the middle. My deduction proved correct, and I pulled the latch and…couldn’t get it to move. “Uhh…Cal? How do I pop this thing open?”

  You don’t. I do.

  The top sprang up, and with a light push of the lid I revealed the pristine interior within, so much space it could fit all of my stuff several times over. “You could have opened that at any point couldn’t you?”

  Of course, but you’re just so fun to tease, Max.

  My face must have drooped to match the unamused tone of the sigh that followed.

  I took off my backpack and put it in the storage. It was frankly pitiful how little space it took up. ‘Having stuff’ wasn’t exactly something I took much pride in, but maybe I could be a bit more liberal in my spending.

  That…was about everything wasn’t it? Never had too many steps in my travel prep, and that didn’t seem to change much now.

  I swung back around then threw myself back in the seat of the Charon, putting my hands on the handle and feeling it in my grip. It still felt odd that such a vehicle was mine, and procured so easily too. Buying weapons and the like was one thing, as those tended to be do or die situations, but something like this felt more like a luxury more than anything.

  …Damn, maybe I am too frugal.

  Hesitantly I pressed the button for the ignition, and listened to the hover cycle softly purr to life. A white glow emanated from underneath as the entire bike lifted a few inches of the ground. I worried for a second that being airborne would make it wobble, but the bike remained perfectly level.

  My grip on the handle turned into a death grip, and I sat paralyzed by what to do next. “How do I send her off on her…maiden voyage, I guess?”

  Throttle is on your right side. Press it down to go forward, but you’ll also want to pull the handle towards you to ascend at the same time.

  I complied with a nod of my head, and gently–oh so gently–pressed down and witnessed the entire vehicle crawl forward. The motion actually spooked me to the point where I let go, lurching me nearly into the handle at the sudden stop that followed.

  Do you need help getting it up?

  “In a minute.” Obviously driving it completely solo was still outside of my wheelhouse, but I did really want to try to do this first part myself, if at all possible. A nervous breath blew out from my lips, and took a minute to actually fasten the seatbelt that came with it, but I think it was about time I committed.

  Once more I pressed the throttle, but I also brought the handle toward me and watched the hovercycle tilt upward into the sky. Carefully I circled out of the parking lot and soared up until the town loomed below me. It was a bit difficult to see with it being nighttime, but the Charon came equipped with impressively bright headlights, and the amount of actual traffic was minimal with how otherwise quiet Orson was at this time.

  Me and Charon glided through the black sky at a cautious pace, slowly becoming more accustomed to the motion as the bike flew further along. It was peaceful actually; just the wind in your ears and the hum of the engine. Actually congested areas were probably much more raucous, but I could understand why people could fall for the call of the road.

  If it makes you feel better, you are doing quite well for your first time.

  I was still tense, but that did help to hear, albeit still skeptical. “How much am I actually controlling this thing right now?”

  At least thirty percent.

  That wasn’t exactly the words I expected, and made me a bit more nervous about my performance.

  Where to, then?

  I rolled that question on my tongue. “Can’t say for certain. I was thinking we could just dawdle around a bit in the desert, chill by myself, maybe take on a few hives. Though I guess I’d need a way to actually find the hives.”

  There are several Samurai in Arizona who specialize in tracking down forming hives through a wide surveillance network, although the most prolific of these is currently aligned with the Family. If that isn’t an issue with you, getting in contact with Trigonometry shouldn’t be that much of an issue.

  “Put a pin in that for now. How about we actually get out of town first?”

  Then the question I ask you is thus: do you want to leave the normal way, or the Death Punch way?

  If I still had proper fleshy knuckles I imagine they would have been white at that time, but that did little to deter the smile that had involuntarily crept up on my face. “Do you even need to ask?”

  Hold tight.

  The Charon rocketed forward with a loud rev that could have been heard across town, pushing every bit of breath out of my lungs and screaming off into the moonlit night at breakneck speeds. If I was able to let out a scream of my own, it for sure would have been equal parts fear for my life and excitement from the adrenaline coursing through my veins.

  Nothing like living a little, right?