The only right choice is Bestlé!

  -Bestlé company slogan 2044

  The first thing I notice when we open the van doors is that we are in a pure glass bubble that is air conditioned. The bubble extends from the front door of the hotel to the edge of the landing platform. And because the dome was glass, I could tell that we were very high up, and also see that the front door area was facing the desert, away from the rest of the city.

  Stepping out of the van, the next thing I notice is that the front entrance is covered in marble, vines of cultured kudzu, and two whole water features. Water falls on these bumpy walled things to make more sound while also drawing the eye. And a massive holographic signage indicating the name of the hotel. Niltmore by Bestle

  The third thing I noticed was that Roger was somehow in a full three piece suit. Black jacket, black slacks, and a red bow tie. He was talking with a valet? Yeah, a valet. Red vest and a fez. The valet bows slightly, then hops in the van and drives through the glass bubble!

  “Wow, Roger. When you said fancy, I had no idea what fancy meant.” I say in awe.

  Roger chuckles, then throws an arm over my shoulder, “Hey now, Vic. We are rich rich now, and you're a Samurai. And even if we are only looking for temporary lodgings for now. There is no way I am skimping on luxuries.”

  He laughs, as if he just made the best joke ever, and leads us all inside the lobby. I had a defence swarm create a few hardlight counters to carry our bags and my other condensed swarms.

  If I thought the outside was fancy, the inside was so much more. More marble covered the floor, and there were numerous pillars lining the hall from entrance to the check in counter. Above, I was expecting a chandelier or five. Instead what I got was a holographic view of the Milky Way. The walls were also screens of some sort, expanding the galaxy view from above all the way down. There are a number of people milling about the lobby area, a few corpos in suits, journos in their bullet proof vests, and a few orb drones carrying glasses of water. There is a holo ad on the bots.

  “Complementary water, courtesy of Bestle!”

  Roger leads us past the counter and towards an elevator bank behind it. An elevator opens up without us needing to call it. As we step in, I notice there is a decent amount of room in here. Even with the five and a half of us and the stacked luggage counters, we could easily fit ten more people in here.

  The elevator doors close and the walls shift from glass mirrors to a Vista overlooking a waterfall.

  “Okay, Roger. I'm going to ask. Why did you choose the water company hotel?” Cosy asks.

  “I'll explain once we get to our room.” he says, not explaining anything.

  The doors open, which does surprise me. With my Class I body, I should have been able to notice the elevator move, but I didn't. We step out of the elevator and follow Roger down the hall to one of the many nondescript doors. It opens for us and as we step in, I am once more impressed by the luxury Roger has booked for us.

  The foyer is bigger than our entire old dorm, and it was white and gold with black accents.

  “I booked the Niagara suite. Five individual bedrooms, each with their own bathrooms. Fully stocked and equipped kitchen. And a sixth room that is just a hot tub. We can order food, or Buddy can cook if he wants. But for now, I want a shower. Synaptic informed me earlier that our body modifications will take up to two full days to complete, so we have options.”

  “I don't care what those options are, I am doing my upgrades now. Victor, if you please.” Jill says impatiently as she nearly sprints to the closest room.

  I freeze. Jill called me by my name. Not Ant. My actual name. I nod.

  I will begin the process once she is ready. Simply authorize the purchases.

  “Authorize,” I say, still in shock. I fought through a building of antithesis basically unfazed, yet Jill says my name for the first time in ten years and I freeze.

  That said, I am not the only one frozen. All of us are, just staring at the door Jill disappeared into.

  Unlocked Class I Bioshaping

  Unlocked Class I Combat Cybernetics

  Purchased Class I Body Reshaping

  Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

  Purchased Class I Nanite Modular Combat Arms 2x

  Purchased Class I Nanite Modular Combat Legs 2x

  Points reduced to 29004

  The purchasing ping shakes me from my stupor.

  “Roger, you said we have options?” I say, shaking the others out of theirs.

  “Yeah. Yeah, that's right. Well, the idea was to either undergo outer upgrades now after we eat, and then send Victor to The Family alone, or we get cleaned up, eat, then go see The Family together in a bit. Considering Jill is, uh, indisposed for the next two days, the offer still stands, but I feel a little pressured to just get the upgrade now. Well, eat first, then upgrade.”

  Buddy chuckles, moving over towards the kitchen. There must have been an Aug connection m, cause he moved around the kitchen like he had lived there for years.

  We move to sit at the massive island, watching Buddy cook, then Cody asks, “So, got a reason for this specific Hotel? Bestle doesn't have the most ‘crystal clear’ reputation, despite their main product.”

  “Yeah, okay. We can fill Jill in later. Cody, can you check and make sure we are not being observed?”

  He nods, then his eyes unfocused as he uses his new augs. “Yo, these are so good.” He mumbles to himself. “We're clear. No cameras, mics, or even external surveillance."

  “Alright. So, with the information Miss Synaptic pulled from the server, I was able to discover a number of our old bosses, what they hired us for, and for how much. The guys who hired us for our last jobs in the tower did so via proxy, and with Miss Synaptics help, I found out that that proxy is scheduled to stay in this hotel, on this floor, for the next week before he fucks off to who knows where.”

  “So you want us to test our new upgrades on a B an’ E in a very well build corpo hotel in order to get more information on who fucked us over?” Buddy says not looking away from his work, which is starting to smell divine.

  “Exactly! He's going to be here for the week, and our upgrades will only take two days. So, once we're done, the four of us, minus Vic, see what we could gain.”

  “Why minus me?”

  “Cause if you did it, there would be no experimenting for us! You already know what you are capable of, courtesy of the tower, but we don't know what we will be capable of.” He explains, “Sure, Miss Synaptic gave us a handy overview and explanation, but that's one thing, and experience is another.”

  Buddy interrupts our discussion by placing four plates down. On them are thick steaks and sautéed cabbage with a deep red sauce spread atop them. The smell stimulates our stomachs and, practically synchronized, our stomachs growled. Loudly.

  Buddy laughs heartily, “We can plot later. Eat first. This is my first time working with actual meat! Crazy that a hotel has this stuff on tap.”

  The hotel has a bio lab in its lower levels dedicated to the production of Stem-meat in order to serve their clients the best available meals.

  None of us respond. This steak is the best thing Buddy had ever made. There is no sound other than the clinking of metal on ceramic plates for the next few minutes. Roger attempted to act like a higher class rich guy at first, but he devolves into a frenzy with us soon enough.

  We all sit back in our chairs, feeling extremely satisfied. “Vic. Whenever we end up, we need a bio lab,” Cody says sleepily.

  “And a hydroponics facility,” Buddy chimes in, “Can't live only on meat.”

  “He's right. Cody. That cabbage was just as good,” I say.

  Wordless agreements arise from the island.

  Well, now that everyone is fed, how would you all like to go into your rooms to begin your new upgrades? And Victor can take a quick nap before he makes his way to his meeting with The Family.

  Another wordless agreement from us as we all shuffle to different rooms.

  Purchased Variable Full Body Upgrades 3x

  Points reduced to 28004

  The room I enter is a simple affair, for luxury, that is. The bed is a king size monster that takes up the center for the room, a mix of purples and blues and blacks for the blankets and pillows. The walls are a panoramic video of some arctic area with a massive Aurora on the ceiling.

  Instinct kicks in and I make my way to the bathroom to shower before bed, and then I pause as the bathroom is as big as the dorm living area.

  A huge double sink to the side, a massive clawfoot bath tub that could easily fit three of me in it across from it, and the entire back area dedicated to a huge shower with nozzles coming out of every wall. I almost will my armor to sit on the counter, then I look down and see that I am covered in dried green antithesis goo, so I instead have it stand in the shower with me.

  I nearly pass out from the pure comfort of the pressure and heat enveloping me. The shampoo smells like something calming. Synaptic informs me that it is a scent called jasmine. My armor vibrates in place, repelling the blood and having it wash into the drain. Synaptic informs me that I do not have to worry about it, as it has become inert from the heat of the hell that was the basement.

  Ending my shower, my armor reattached itself to me, but in a different style. Simple, billowy sweat pants and a plain white t-shirt. Synaptic informs me that this would be more comfortable to sleep in than my armor. I don't argue. I shuffle to the bed large enough to eat me, and become prey for the extremely soft bedding and pillows. I am asleep in moments.

  When I awake, I feel refreshed. For the first time in recorded memory, I had a useful nap that actually accomplished what a nap was supposed to do.

  I check the time. Five pm. A solid four hours of uninterrupted REM sleep. While I have opinions about the hotel's sponsor, I can say nothing bad about the room. Or this bed.

  “Synaptic, were you able to narrow down a few places where we could move into and renovate?” I ask laying on my back getting lost in the Aurora above.

  in the latest Incursion zone, there are numerous buildings that are on the market now. I have inquired with some Family AI, and while they do have access to more specific real-estate, they did let me know of something that may interest you. The mega-building you awakened in has been placed under Family Purview, and since you are planning on joining them, they are willing to offer a floor to you once they clean it out.

  “You've got to be fucking with me. I know your not, cause you haven't lied to me yet, but fuck.”

  I think about it. Those floors are huge, enough space to build a wonderful home for us. And then acres of space that I could turn into whatever I wanted. Logistics, hydroponics, power generation, vehicle bays. A proper home base.

  I take a deep breath, hold it, then release it. “How much are they asking for it?”