The suits were mechanical transports, attached to the limbs of the wearer, providing added strength and support to their brittle-boned bodies. They also carried their own power supply, to which Bundnet had obviously linked a diffusion screen. Diffusion screens were very basic shields against smaller bolt launchers, yet because they required an external power source, they were impractical for personal protection — unless you were wearing an exosuit.

“So you must be the assassin Amick sent to kill me,” Bundnet stated in a rough, gravelly voice. Adam couldn’t help but notice how the movements of his mouth were not in sync with the words he heard, a common occurrence with the implanted translation bug behind his ear. This oddity was something Adam had never gotten used to.

Adam did not answer. Instead he glanced around as he heard metal shutters quickly lower over the windows to the bedroom, effectively trapping him in the room with the mechanically-enhanced Hildorian crime boss.

“Yes, I’ve been expecting you,” Bundnet said. “You see, I have my sources as well. And I can assure you that plans are in the works that will have Amick paying a steep price of his own for sending you against me.”

Adam heard the servos whine as Bundnet stepped further into the room until he was only a few meters from Adam. With the alien naturally standing over two meters tall, in the exosuit he was now a truly intimidating figure, towering over Adam by a good meter or more.

“I’ve heard of you,” the alien continued, confident in his control of the situation. “At times, I have even considered enlisting your services for my own ends.”

“You should have,” Adam finally said. “You probably would have lived longer.”

Adam saw a look of confusion cross the alien’s face. “You don’t seem to realize the position you are in, assassin. You’re as good as dead. And I have options as to how I will do it. I can either shoot you, or I can rip you apart limb by limb and revel in the agony you will be experiencing. I think I prefer the second option.”