Hollow

After a smooth 23-minute ride, the train arrived at Saitama Train Station. The capsule slowly decelerated as it came to a stop, coming to a standstill by a underground platform of the station.

Once the train halted, the sound of an automated announcement echoed through the train cabin, signaling their arrival. This was followed by a soft 'ding' noise, signalling that the train doors had automatically opened.

With the hiss of air escaping, the doors slid open.

Hiroshi stood up with a sigh. "Finally! We're here." He stretched his legs, standing up straight. The train cabin wasn't cramped, but being cramped in a vehicle for that long made him feel stuffy.

"Yeah, about time." Kazu got up as well and followed Hiroshi out of the train cabin. The rest of the team also rose from their seats, exiting the train one by one.

Upon stepping out of the train, they were met with a different atmosphere from the one back in Kobe.

The Saitama Train Station was dimly lit, lit by fluorescent lights that cast eerie shadows. It was quite an empty station — no people, but the place was clean. It was quiet. This place was entirely booked for them too. Their footsteps echoed off the walls as they walked through the station. The only sound other than their footsteps was the hum of machinery in the station. The occasional sounds of metallic footsteps echoed from the other side of the station, probably a maintenance bot.

There was an elevator not far from them, that would take them to the surface.

Kazu led them towards it, heading straight for the elevator.

The elevator ride up was smooth, but not very fast. It wasn't long before the 'ding' of the bell echoed through the elevator cabin, indicating that they had reached the ground floor.

Once the elevator stopped, the doors slid open.

As Kazu was the first person to step out of the lift, they were met with the upper train station — this time, there was someone waiting for them — a security guard.

The guard standing there was middle-aged, wearing a clean black suit, complete with a black cap. He had a pair of dark, tired eyes, and a stern expression on his face. When Kazu and the team stepped out, he bowed slightly.

"Kusonoki conglomerate, I assume?" he said bluntly, looking over at the team.

"Yes, I'm the assistance manager in one of the branches and the one supervising them."

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Akira Kato, I'll guide you to your vehicle."

"We appreciate your hospitality," Hiroshi said, nodding.

The group followed Akira as he led the way through the main platform of the train station.

Walking to the left-most side of the station — they went through a doorway and entered an adjoined parking lot. The parking lot was empty save for them.

There was only one vehicle visible – an black armoured truck. It was the only vehicle present in the whole area. It looked like a military vehicle.

The windows were all black and tinted, preventing anyone from the inside. The doors also looked thick and sturdy. Two large headlights was located side-by-side on the front of the truck. It had a slightly boxy shape, and its wheels looked like they had spikes on them. It was larger than the trucks you usually saw on the road and the truck's front had a formidable bullbar attached.

Hiroshi nodded approvingly, looking at the vehicle. "Nice," he said quietly, impressed.

Akira stopped, turning to the group with a serious expression.

"Before you get in the vehicle, I need to make sure that you are in fact, from the Kusonoki Conglomerate. May I check the identity cards of the members of your group?"

"Of course," Hiroshi said, nodding as he pulled out his ID card, handing it over to Akira.

The rest of the group did the same. They had been briefed beforehand about this, so it was expected — Hiroshi's id proof showed his position within the company while the golden circle's id proof showed they were mercenaries officially contracted by the conglomerate and thus a part of it.

Akira took each of the ID cards, examining them with a stern eye. After a short moment, he handed the cards back, satisfied.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"Everything checks out," he said.

With the check-up process complete, Akira led the group to the vehicle.

Hiroshi studied the armoured truck, his expression showing a hint of disdain. From his perspective, it appeared slow and excessive for the situation at hand. After all, except for passing through the slums of tokyo, there was little cause for concern. He sighed silently, recognizing that he had no say in the matter as the security officer had already arranged this transportation. Hiroshi gave a subtle look at Kazu, who showed no signs of objection.

The rest of the group, including Kazu, appeared indifferent about the vehicle, not raising any objections. Perhaps they realized the lack of alternatives and saw it as a necessary measure to ensure their safety in the slums. After all, it wasn't their job to argue the choices made by the Kusonoki Conglomerate.

Hiroshi knew better than to voice his opinions out loud. It was a waste of his breath, considering that his opinions would be dismissed in an instant. Akira noticed Hiroshi's expression, but he didn't pay much attention to him. "Get in," he said, "the interior is spacious enough to accommodate all of you comfortably."

The black armoured truck had a large cargo area at the back, which allowed for plenty of space inside.

The rear portion of the truck had a single row of seats built against the walls of the truck, each seat equipped with a sturdy seatbelt. The rear door was made of a thick material, likely bulletproof.

Everyone sat in the back while Kazu and Hirsohi sat in the front with the former being on the driver seat and the latter being on the passenger.

Once everyone was inside, Akira closed the back door with a loud thud, effectively sealing them inside.

The inside was quiet, the thick walls of the vehicle cutting off most outside noise. Akira, who was outside the truck shouted from the outside.

"Before you all leave, I need to ask all of you to shut off your personal devices. It is for your own security as part of the company's protocol."

He looked at everyone, his eyes pausing for a moment on Hiroshi. "No exceptions, even for a employee. Those were the order's I got, sir."

Hiroshi sighed, he reached his hand back to his nape area and pressed on a button — after it was confirmed this was Hiroshi — a chip came out from a machine in his nape area.

This was his Neurochip.

It contained all of his personal information, biometric data, and was also used to communicate and access company resources. It was standard issue for all members of the Kusonoki conglomerate. Hiroshi's Neurochip glowed softly for a moment, making a beeping sound that indicated the chip was disconnected and was no longer operational.

Everyone else also disabled their chips. The rest of them didn't have neurochips, just typical neuro-tech implants, so disconnecting them was as simple as tapping a few buttons. As the devices shut off, the space in the truck suddenly became oddly quiet. With no means of communication, they were effectively cut off from the outside world.

They weren't children so they didn't need to hand it over and they could keep it with them. There was also a radio in the truck which was connected to satellite so they could request back-up in the case of an emergency.

Once the procedure was completed, Akira gave a nod of approval. "Alright, you're all clear to go." He gave a signal for the truck to start moving. Once the procedure was completed, Akira gave a nod of approval. "Alright, you're all clear to go." He gave a signal for the truck to start moving.

Hiroshi looked around the truck, it was really old fashioned. There were no screens, although there was a music player but it ran on cd's. CD'S. That's ancient technology.

Who uses cd's in 2109?

That was a question that was floating through all of their minds. The vehicle might as well have come straight out of a museum. The music player, however, was not the only antiquated device present. There was a GPS system built into the dashboard. It was a rudimentary device by modern standards, lacking a holographic display or even a touch screen. Hiroshi felt a pang of annoyance looking at it.

"You've got to be kidding me," he muttered under his breath.

Kazu, who was in the seat beside him, heard his grumble. He glanced at Hiroshi, a hint of amusement in his eyes. "Don't be such a prima donna," he replied. "Just because it's not state-of-the-art doesn't mean it's useless."

Hiroshi shot him a scowl. "It's practically a relic," he retorted.

He then looked down at something even worse, it was a manual.

Kazu followed his gaze, even his smirk disappeared. He was the one who was supposed to drive but he had never driven a manual before. "Oh, perfect…" Kazu muttered. He had always assumed that the vehicle would be an automatic, which was pretty much the norm these days. But here it was, an old school vehicle that required him to manually change gears with an ancient device called a 'clutch pedal'.

He turned to look at Hiroshi, his confidence visibly shaken. "You know how to drive a manual?" he asked, hoping against hope that the other man had at least some knowledge of this antiquated tech.

"I'm in the same boat as you."

Kazu let out an exasperated sigh. "Great. We're both in over our heads."

He looked at the gear stick in the middle of the vehicle. "Do you even know what all those gears are for?" he asked Hiroshi.

Hiroshi gave him a withering look. "Yes, I know the basics," he said, his irritation showing.

"Then explain." Kazu shot back. "Because I'm clueless about half of these gears."

Hiroshi let out another exasperated sigh. "Very well," he said, pointing at the gear stick. "See these first three gears? They're essentially the lower gears. You change into these when the car is moving slowly. They provide more torque and help the vehicle accele....."

It took them the next five minutes to figure everything out.

Once the basics were out of the way, Kazu was at least confident enough to start the vehicle. He cranked the engine, which roared to life with a loud rumble.

"Well, here goes nothing," Kazu muttered, gripping the steering wheel.

He gingerly lifted his foot from the clutch, and the vehicle began to slowly move forward.

"what's the top speed of this junk?"

"140/km.."

"Wait what? That's..you know what, complaining is useless."

140 km/h should be enough, considering from Saitama to Yokohama through Tokyo was only 75km so they should be there in 23-24 minutes.

The truck began to pick up page and with a rumble and set off, accelerating out of the parking lot and onto the road, heading towards Tokyo.