Jack stood high in the sky, his form faintly visible as a black speck against the gray clouded skies from the ground.
"Hmm, this place is quite safe. We only have a railway line on the west and the highway on the east of the hill, don't think anyone will come here unless our locations are leaked," he said as he surveyed the area around the place after he was done setting up barriers around.
"Indeed, but we can never be too sure," Enak pointed out.
"That's why I set up that barrier. Moreover, Stephen will be here, so if something happens, the people will most likely be safe."
"Right, so we going in solo or teamed up?" Enak asked.
"Pretty sure we won't get into a major confrontation during the day so we will go as a party. I need Ethan's help in bypassing security anyway."
"Fair enough. Let's not make them wait anymore, or are you just scared to lock eyes with her?" Enak teased again.
"I didn't do anything for her to be ashamed of me, so why should I be?"
"That is true."
"Hello? Jack, are you not done yet? A thunderstorm is coming, get down," Diana's voice came over the Kana network.
"Fine fine, I will be there in a bit," Jack said, reabsorbing the barrier beneath him as he began to glide to his companions.
"Tsk~ scared of thunder, how unfitting of a Kratian. For us of the royal family, thunderstorms are like progenitors," Enak commented, his voice laved with disappointment.
"Not quite sure what you mean by that, they are just looking out for me," Jack said, shaking his head as he began to glide back down.
"It's a long tale, one which I will tell you once we are in a... more peaceful setting," Enak said with a sigh.
"Looking forward to it," Jack said as he gazed at the clouds above. The dark clouds were gathering up north and speeding towards them like an abyss that was about to devour light itself.
"Hey you two, sorry for the wait. Let's go. Viora, call Stephen for me," Jack said once he joined Diana and Ethan back on the ground.
"We are leaving in the rain huh? Sounds exciting," Diana said. "I call dibs on the front seat."
"Sure. Ethan, I still need you to breach into the security network of any factory we set our sights on, so I will drive," Jack said with a nod to Ethan.
"Alright, I will go get my devices," Ethan said before walking away into the pocket tent.
A moment later, Stephen came out of the lifecamp tent, looking around, taking in the view of the surroundings.
"Hey everyone, this place sure looks... isolated. Perfect!" he said as he joined them.
"Yeah, it is. I surrounded the area around with Kana barriers so you can have everyone come out, but still, ask them to be vigilant. If something happens that requires you to take everyone and run away, call me over the Kana network. I will disable the slabs so you can run."
"Call you? You aren't gonna stay here?" Stephen asked.
"We are going to do some uh... factory lifting. So we are leaving you to take care of everything here," Diana explained.
"I see. Good luck Miss Diana and Jack," he replied with a nod.
"If anything happens that requires you to fight, first you inform me, then you place the pocket tents inside your pouch and then fight. Of course, if it gets overwhelming, run. I will have Viora accommodate everyone into the outpost through the warp doors in case that happens," Jack explained, giving Stephen a trusting pat on the shoulder.
"Be careful out there," he finally said with a nod and walked away.
As he turned, Stephen saw Ethan climb out of the pocket tent holding his laptop.
"Hey Stephen, got your orders? Me too, sigh~ this guy sure is a rough employer," Ethan said with a laugh as he closed the hatch behind him.
"That's fair to say," Stephen said with a thoughtful nod.
"Employer am I now? Well then, no paychecks this month for you two," Jack said with a laugh.
"That's unfair," Stephen protested before he disappeared into the lifecamp.
"Got everything?" Jack asked his two companions.
"Sure did," Ethan replied, while Diana nodded.
"Let's go then," Jack announced and the three of them took their seats in the car.
"Hmm Jack, I need a bigger space. Can we get a bigger vehicle or something? Like a SUV?"
"Sure," Jack said as he hit the morph button. The car reshaped itself into a wider model.
"Nice," Ethan said before putting on his headphones. He opened the lid of the laptop and powered it on.
He grabbed the lid on either side and pulled, and two new screens came out from the side.
"I will be working now, so if you want to talk to me, notify me physically," Ethan said.
"Good luck."
And with that there was a surge of Kana energy inside Ethan. Jack could feel it circulating between the device and Ethan's brain. A special characteristic of the advanced chipset logged into his brain, it could communicate with the device's binary code and translate it for the user, allowing him to find faults to creep inside the program easily.
A few more holographic screens popped up on top of each of the hardware screens, displaying a complex binary code of zero and one. Ethan's eyes glowed blue as he began his assault on the program.
"He will be like that for a while until he finishes. We should get going," Jack said to Diana, who was observing him being so focused on his work.
"Mhm, let's get going."
And with that they set off, towards the heart of the city that was known for its robotics industry.
They drove on the highway for a while, talking and discussing away.
"But seriously, what made you want a robot suddenly? Doesn't Viora have plenty?"
Shit, did I forget to tell her? Jack scolded himself.
"Oh, uh that's because..." and with that Jack began explaining the book part to Viora, careful to keep out any mentions of his dream.
Diana's eyes widened with amusement and excitement. The prospect of them being able to see Rick again was thrilling in its own way. However, the fact that they can seek guidance from a wise person like him comforted her anxiety.
"What made you suddenly refer to the books your grandfather gave you?" Diana asked curiously.
"Uh well, I completely forgot about them. Enak reminded me about it when he linked with me. I got the time yesterday so I went looking," Jack lied.
"Oh my, I don't remember that at all though? Should I tell her, young master?" Enak teased.
"No you won't," Jack replied back in his head.
"Alright, alright."