It was a breezy spring night as the crowd packed in close together heading toward the private condo where the big gala was to take place. A light rain had followed and left a fresh scent to the air and glow on the streets and buildings. Advertising for Zades cigarettes and Burner Detapads flashed on nearby buildings. It was fine night in the purple district of Newark City State. There were five private security druids patrolling the perimeter of the building owned by the millionaire executive Roberto Glassgo. His corporation’s two fully armored druid helicopters were flying overhead around the block taking video footage of the crowd and ready for a sure scene of trouble. This was little bit more security then I had on seeing. However, the extra guards in plain clothes that were staged on the block weren’t mentioned at all in the report for the job.

My new eye took in all these details including the ID numbers on the druids. The plan, Valkrie and I had carefully constructed and had gone to hell the second I had stepped out of the cabbie and started to analyze the situation with cybernetic hyper vision eye. It was time to shift things into a different direction. A wealthy couple pushed me aside to get up to the front of the line heading into the gala.

I was tripped up a bit but I righted myself against a city trash bin. I got out my cigarette and lighter. I put the cherry scented Zades cigarette to my lips and I took a long drag. I exhaled smoke and then I dropped my cigarette to the ground and put it out with my boot heel before pocketing my lighter and pack and then I took out a black box the same size as my cigarette pack and threw it into the trash bin.

The plan had been to use a cover story as a bodyguard for one of the client’s friends. That was a no go. I couldn’t trust any information or help the client had given me and my partner now. We should have done more research luckily I was never hopeful anything would go according to plan. I spotted someone up ahead and focused my cybernetic eye on a possible cover I could use to get inside was up ahead in the crowd.

He was a Pugy face dark plain haircut corporate class man in a black tuxedo. He had an openly friendly wholesome smile with a young average looking young lady in black dress close at his side. New corporate types. The legacy executive classes ignored the couple and the middle class trash corpos made snide looks at them. He was my cover.

Hmm. Okay. Now I needed a ticket inside. I looked around until my eyes spotted a high profile executive having a heated business conversation on his Detapad with a employee. He was fully engrossed in his conversation perfectly ignoring the street traffic around him while his 5’10 security forces plain clothes bodyguard waited close at his side.

I smiled. Easy mark. I started for him taking out my Detapad and I started having a text message with Valkrie updating her on the situation as I headed to the mark and asking for information.

I was close to the mark and the bodyguard had spotted me but he was prepared to ignore me at first sense I hadn’t looked up once and I knew I didn’t look like much of a threat. His training kicked in though as he still positioned himself to protect his client from me running into the mark. He needn’t have bothered. Hell, he really should have stayed home tonight. It was going to be short night for him.

I bomped into the guard hard sending him into his client and I dropped my Detapad kicking it into the direction of my mark. “Sorry about that.” I said but I still had my eyes on Detapad and was moving toward it.

The Mark snatched up the Detapad shoving his bodyguard aside as he marched over toward me. He got close up in my face pushing the Detapad into my hand. I looked up at him in surprise making my eyes go wide for effect. “Hey. I-“

“-Watch were your going Basic. You shouldn’t even be in this district. Get the hell out of here before I have you reported to private security forces.” He said dominantly.

I held up my hands and headed off walked away and mixed into the rhythm of the crowd walking toward the party with my Detapad and the mark’s invitation in my pocket. I had to hurry though because my cover was getting close to the doors heading into the private condo building. I checked my Detapad though before I neared my next target and saw Valkrie give me detailed report on the target. I scanned the information with my eye commiting it to memory before putting away my Detapad and switched into my new persona for the night. I wasn’t Xander Onyx tonight. I was Charlie. Yeah. Charlie Kent. Fun loving new corporate money. Here to have a fun time and be everybody’s best friend.