[i]The outskirts of the Triangle close to Canton Canal[/i]

Twenty-seven degrees wasn't as hot as it could get here in New Malacca, but it was still unbearable when one was in a house with no air conditioning packed with AR and VR addicts that haven't moved in days, the walls had mold and it smelled of mildew, oil, and B.O. The perfect hiding place from an organization that was built on the foundation of paper records and wouldn't think to find their target among a group of a Deep abusers that lived in squalor. 

Xia laid on a futon next to a girl they didn't know the name of. That's not completely true. She told her name the first time they connected to the Deep together nine months ago. She said it was 01101011 01100101 01100101 01110000, but they don't know what that means. Binary code isn't something they've picked up on even with all the time they've spent in Precipice houses. Like the one they're in now. They meant to leave hours ago, but 01101011 01100101 01100101 01110000 grabbed their hand and wouldn't let go, until she showed them something they didn't understand in the Deep. Although, they're fortunate she pulled them along into her Deep interface or Xia would miss their appointment later on today. One they should be leaving for now that the sun was west instead of high in the sky. 

Xia pulled their hand away, but 01101011 01100101 01100101 01110000 kept them connected and they weren't skilled enough to detach their mind from someone else's interface. They didn't want to do this, but they really couldn't miss this appointment. Xia slammed their fist into 01101011 01100101 01100101 01110000's chest. She gasped and popped up, while Xia rolled onto the floor out of reach. They were still connected, but she didn't have the hold on them like she had before. It was a shallow connection for them to communicate through their interfaces without either having too much influence over the other.

[b]That hurt. Why'd you do that?[/b]

[b]I have an appointment. I gotta go.[/b]

[b]When will you be back?[/b]

Xia shrugged. This was their third time here. It depends on how long they get to stay in any one place before the Green River Snake assassins catch up to them. If this job goes well, then they'll be back afterwards. If it doesn't, then they won't. Simple as that. They pushed 01101011 01100101 01100101 01110000 forehead, she fell back onto the futon, and just like that they disconnected and she was in the Deep forgetting the last twenty-fours they spent together. Xia changed into their full spectrum body suit. It activated the moment they zipped it up. The color changed to beige, unassuming, and unnoticeable to the average person. They put on the head mask to check if the settings were functioning today. Their vision was clear, their optic scope could see a house bobbing in the water miles away clearly. It was a great day for their tech. Xia pulled it off, hid their bag in a cabinet next to the room's door, then left the house. 

It was a short boat ride into the heart of Canton Canal. They paid the water taxi, then continued their trek on foot. If the Snakes tracked down anyone that's had contact with Xia, which they do sometimes, they don't want the cabby to give any information about what they could've possibly been doing based on the location they were dropped off at. There was too much riding on this latest assignment. The ad for the 500,000 asyuan was not only the biggest possibly payday they've ever had, even when they worked for the Snakes, but it was more than enough to get all their bootleg body mods removed and replaced with legitimate technology from reputable a company. By the time Xia arrived at the 
Suraiboshen their suit turned navy blue when the sun on the horizon. Two bodyguards stood outside the omakase doors. They weren't anything they haven't seen before. Large, looked like they could throw them around, the usual intimidating type that hasn't scared them in years.

"Weapons on hand?"

Xia's right arm deconstructed and turned into a sniper rifle. They left their nail gun in their bag. Chances are if they needed to use it, then they could just snap the target's neck. The guard on the right looked mildly impressed, but did a once over on the rest of them, and they could tell that first impression was short lived.

"Keep it normal. Please wait in the hall way with the rest of the group. Our employer will be with you shortly." The guard on the left opened the door to let them in. Just like he said there were four other people waiting. The ad hadn't said anything about this being a group assignment, but unexpected things happened in their line of work all the time. Xia didn't sweat it. It'd either turn out good or it'd turn out to be shit. The money was the main goal and if they had to team up to get it, then so be it. They only hoped 500,000 asyuan wouldn't be split between all these people. They took a seat next to the woman with the hijab and pull up a AR tetris game in the meantime.