Preparation 2: — "Repairing the Vehicle"

The smell of oil and burnt circuits hit me as soon as Kaito rolled up the metal door to the garage.
What used to be a high-end Syntrix Umbra pursuit vehicle now looked like something dragged out of a junkyard. Smoke still puffed weakly from the vents, and one of the panels was melted so bad it looked like plastic instead of armor plating.

The car’s dark chassis, once sleek and sharp, was now dented in at least six places. Bullet holes peppered the side like freckles. One of the headlights was hanging by a wire.

Kaito stood in front of it, hands on his hips, jaw tight. “It’s fucked,” he said flatly.

Rin leaned against the wall, arms crossed, and tilted her head. “Fucked? That’s generous. I’d say it’s dead, cremated, and already buried.”

Kaito shot her a glare. “Not helping.”

She just smirked. “Just saying. If you’re planning on driving that thing into a war zone, maybe we should just bring flowers instead.”

I stayed a little behind them, running my fingers along one of the exposed panels. The hidden defense modules, what made this car special, were still humming faintly. “The weapons still work,” I murmured. “And the ramp system’s intact.”

Kaito nodded, crouching to inspect a burnt section near the front wheel. “Yeah. That’s the only reason I haven’t scrapped it yet. These weapons are Umbra-grade. Armor-piercing, drone-resistant, and automated. If we can get this thing running again, we might stand a chance.”

He hit the hood lightly, and a piece of metal clanked off, hitting the floor. Rin snorted. “Yeah. Totally looks ready for a fight.”

“Rin,” Kaito said through gritted teeth, “I swear to god—”

“I’m kidding,” she cut in with a grin. “Mostly.”

I watched him stand up, frustration in his movements. “We don’t have time to find a replacement,” he muttered. “And we can’t exactly walk into Umbra territory carrying everything by hand. This car’s our best shot.”

“But it’s not even starting,” I said quietly. “You’ve tried three times now.”

He sighed, brushing his hair back. “Yeah. Starter’s fried. Engine’s cracked. Front stabilizer’s bent. If we drive it like this, it’ll blow up before we even leave the city.”

There was a long silence before Jiro finally spoke up from the corner. He’d been unusually quiet, probably trying to avoid stepping on Kaito’s nerves.

“I… might know someone,” he said.

Kaito turned toward him, one eyebrow raised. “Someone who what?”

“Who can fix it,” Jiro said, pushing up his glasses. “My dad’s friend, Riku. He runs a repair shop down near Sector Twelve. He’s, uh… kind of a genius with vehicles.”

Rin blinked. “Sector Twelve? That’s like… the sketchy end of town.”

Jiro shrugged. “You want it fixed fast or not?”

Kaito hesitated, arms crossed. “I don’t know. The stuff on this car isn’t normal. If he looks too close, he’ll start asking questions.”

Jiro shook his head. “He won’t. He works on illegal stuff all the time. My dad’s brought him some crazy things before, custom engines, drone shells, even black market hover tech. He doesn’t care where it came from as long as you pay.”

“Sounds trustworthy,” Rin muttered.

“Better than your idea of duct-taping it together,” Jiro shot back.

Rin opened her mouth, but Kaito raised a hand. “Enough.”

He looked between them, then at the car again. The faint hum from the defense modules buzzed in the silence.

Finally, he sighed. “Fine. We’ll take it to your guy.”

Jiro brightened a little. “Really?”

Kaito nodded. “We don’t have other options. You’re sure he can handle it?”

“If he can’t,” Jiro said, “no one can.”

Rin raised an eyebrow. “You sound like you’re advertising him.”

“Hey,” Jiro said defensively, “I’m just saying the guy’s legit.”

Kaito turned toward the car again, patting the dented hood with a heavy hand. “Alright. We’ll tow it tomorrow morning. The sooner this gets fixed, the sooner we move on the raid.”

He started walking toward the stairs, then stopped. “And if this Riku guy asks how the hell this car got trashed—”

Rin interrupted, smirking. “We tell him it was a really bad joyride.”

“Sure,” Kaito muttered. “Let’s go with that.”

I lingered a little, looking at the broken vehicle. It still carried the faint glow of its Umbra systems, the ones Kaito had risked his life stealing weeks ago during the last Syntrix Umbra territory raid. He’d done it for us, so we'd have a fighting chance, and so we could escape without problems...

The same car that almost got him killed was the one we needed now.

He caught me staring and gave a small grin. “Don’t worry. We’ll make it work.”

I nodded, though I didn’t feel convinced. The way he said it, like he was trying to reassure himself, made my stomach twist.

We’d been lucky before. But this time, luck wasn’t going to be enough.

—

The next morning started with the low rumble of a tow truck outside Kaito’s safehouse.
It was strange seeing our totalled Umbra car hauled onto the back of someone else’s vehicle, like watching a wounded animal being dragged away.

Kaito stood with his hands shoved deep into his pockets, eyes on the car as the driver finished strapping it down. The man looked older, a grizzled mechanic type with grease-stained hands and a half-smoked cigarette behind his ear.

“That should hold it,” the driver said, patting the chain. “Where we takin’ her?”

“Sector Twelve,” Kaito said. “Riku’s Auto Repairs.”

The man gave him a short nod. “You got it.”

The trip there was quiet. The truck rattled over cracked asphalt while we sat at the backseat of the truck, trying not to think too hard about what would happen if this Riku guy couldn’t fix the car.

When we arrived, the truck slowed in front of a large, rusted warehouse tucked between stacks of scrap metal and half-built vehicles. A faded sign above the door read Riku’s Repairs, letters peeling off.

The tow truck driver hopped out, stretching his arms. “End of the line.”

Kaito handed him a few credit chips. “Thanks for the ride.”

The man glanced down, eyes widening. “That’s a thousand Syns, kid. You serious?”

Kaito nodded once. “Worth it.”

The man grinned. “Guess so.” He pocketed the chips, gave Kaito a two-finger salute, and drove off.

Jiro led the way toward the open garage, pushing his glasses up as he walked. “Just… uh, try not to act too weird. Riku’s nice, but he doesn’t like people snooping.”

“Relax,” Rin said. “We’ll be angels.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Jiro muttered.

Inside, the smell of oil, smoke, and metal hit harder than Kaito’s garage ever did. Machinery hummed everywhere, half-finished cars, old drones, engine parts scattered across tables. A man stood near the back, welding something to the frame of a hoverbike. Sparks flew in bursts of orange light before he finally lifted his helmet.

He looked older, maybe in his late thirties, with dark hair streaked gray and an easy grin that screamed troublemaker. His eyes lit up when he saw Jiro.

“Well, if it isn’t the Nakamura kid,” he said, setting the helmet down. “Didn’t think I’d see you in this part of town again.”

Jiro grinned nervously. “Hey, Riku. Been a while.”

Riku looked past him at the three of us. “You brought friends, huh?”

“Yeah,” Jiro said quickly. “Uh, this is Kaito, Rin, and Yuzuki.”

Riku nodded to each of us in turn, then squinted through the open garage door at the smoke-stained car sitting outside. His grin widened. “Please tell me that’s not yours.”

Kaito sighed. “That’s the one.”

Riku burst out laughing. “You drove that thing here?”

“More like dragged it,” Rin said, smirking.

Kaito rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s been through… a few accidents.”

Riku stepped outside, circling the car like a vulture inspecting roadkill. “A few? Kid, this thing’s been to hell and back. What’d you hit, a building?”

Kaito looked away. “Something like that.”

Riku bent down, tapping one of the cracked panels. “Huh. Looks like you’ve got some Umbra-grade tech under here.”

My heart jumped. Kaito’s expression didn’t change. “Old prototype,” he said quickly. “Got it from a scrapyard.”

Riku gave him a look, the kind that said 'you’re full of shit but I’m too polite to say it.'
“Well,” he said, straightening. “I can fix it. Maybe. Depends on how deep the damage goes.”

Kaito stepped closer. “How long would it take?”

Riku hummed, rubbing his chin. “If I work overtime, three to seven days. Any less, and I’d be lying.”

Rin whistled. “That fast?”

“I don’t like slow work,” Riku said, grinning. “And I hate leaving things broken. Especially something this interesting.”

Kaito’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Interesting how?”

Riku shrugged. “Let’s just say this car wasn’t built for grocery runs. It’s got hidden weapon systems, reinforced armor… someone wanted it ready for war.”

Rin smirked. “You could say that.”

I stayed quiet, watching the exchange. Riku didn’t seem suspicious, more impressed than anything.

Kaito nodded after a moment. “Fine. Do it.”

“Sure thing,” Riku said, already pulling up a holo-screen from his wristband. “What’s your budget?”

Kaito hesitated. “Uh…”

Before he could finish, Jiro stepped forward. “I’ll cover it.”

Kaito turned to him immediately. “Wait, what?”

“I said I’ll pay,” Jiro repeated, voice steady. “You need this for the mission, right? Consider it my share of the prep.”

“That’s not a small amount of money,” Kaito said, frowning. “Repairs like this could cost thousands.”

“I know,” Jiro said. “Doesn’t matter. I’ve got it.”

Riku chuckled. “You sure about that, kid?”

Jiro nodded. “Yeah.”

Kaito still looked skeptical. “You don’t have to—”

“I want to,” Jiro interrupted. “Besides, it’s not like you’ve got a backup plan.”

Rin snickered. “He’s got you there.”

Kaito sighed and finally gave in. “Fine. But you’re not paying the whole thing. We’ll split it later.”

Jiro smiled faintly. “Deal.”

Riku clapped his hands together. “Good! I’ll start tomorrow. Payment when you pick it up, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Jiro said.

“Perfect.” Riku turned back toward the garage, already muttering to himself about replacement parts. “You kids stay out of trouble, yeah? I’ll call when it’s done.”

“Thanks, Riku,” Jiro said.

Riku waved a hand without turning around. “Yeah, yeah. Don’t blow anything up before then.”

We walked out of the shop into the bright afternoon light. The air smelled faintly of smoke and ozone from all the machinery nearby. Rin stretched, groaning. “Well… that was easier than expected.”

Kaito nodded. “For once, yeah.”

Rin smirked. “See? Not everything has to end in gunfire.”

Kaito gave her a look. “Don’t jinx it.”

I couldn’t help but smile quietly. It had been the first peaceful moment we’d had in days.

As we started walking back down the street, Kaito suddenly turned to Jiro. “Hey.”

Jiro blinked. “Yeah?”

Kaito hesitated, then nodded once. “Nice work. Riku seems solid. You did good bringing him up.”

Rin gasped dramatically. “Did Kaito just praise someone?!”

Kaito shot her a glare. “Don’t make me take it back.”

I laughed under my breath. 

Even Jiro looked surprised, smiling awkwardly. “Thanks… I guess.”

“Don’t get used to it,” Kaito muttered.

Rin elbowed me lightly. “I think that’s the nicest thing he’s said all week.”

I smiled faintly. “Probably.”

When we reached the end of the street, Kaito slowed down. “All right. You two,” he said, looking at me and Rin, “head home for now. We’ve got the car handled. I’ll call when there’s an update.”

Rin stretched again. “Finally. I could use a shower.”

I nodded. “Same.”

We both waved as we turned off toward our side of the district, leaving just Kaito and Jiro standing there. The sun cast long shadows across the cracked road, the air humming with the faint buzz of hovercars overhead.

Kaito shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. “Meet me at my place later tonight,” he said quietly.

Jiro looked up. “For what?”

“I want to plan the next move,” Kaito said. “You said you’ve got hacking gear at home, right?”

“Yeah. A lot of it.”

“Good. Bring it all. I want the setup running in my basement before midnight. We’ll need it to track our route when we go after Kouji.”

Jiro nodded. “Got it.”

Kaito glanced off toward the skyline, the glowing towers of Lysethia faintly flickering in the smog. “We’re getting close,” he murmured. “This time, we can’t screw up.”

Jiro looked at him for a moment, then nodded again. “We won’t.”

They both turned away, heading in opposite directions, one toward home, the other toward the storm that was waiting to begin.