Newlight's Hour.

A peaceful night fell on the crowded streets of Electown. The swirling of the cold breeze shaking up the streets, breathing life in empty and busy walkways alike. Under a milky white full moon, one after the other a sea of neon colors began to fade into existance. He had always liked the nightfall atmosphere. There was something in the rain that simply...intrigued him. Thousands upon thousands of small water droplets always looked like as if in coordinated motions worked to create the perfect conditions for humans and navis to spend somewhere cozy with a warm drink to enjoy.

Newlight's was slightly more crowded than usual. Which would usually be a good thing in that day and age where anyone could order right about everything they wished for and have it delivered right at their door. Well, not exactly everything. The Newlight's many attractions couldn't be found anywhere else. From Adam's spectacular bartender services to Dante's and his crew's soothing Jazz and Blues.

Speaking of Jazz. This night it looked like his favourite saxophone player had brought up his best repertoire. The soothing melodies were so smooth Shane could have sworn he'd be able to slide around the place as if frictionless.

Away from the main area, Shane gave off a soft smile as Adam walked in in his personal private area. He was always able to find a bit of time for him. "So...what you have for me tonight?" Shane mused while presented with a tall glass full of ice, mint and amber liquid.

Adam settled the glass on the table. "I bring you tonight's Special: Newlight's Nightshade." He announced in his clear british accent.

"Newlight's Nightshade uh? Interesting name. Mind taking a moment to explain you newest masterpiece to such uneducated audiences as me?" The man softly asked, picking the glass up and breathing in the drink's aromatic essence.

"Of course, Mr.Kahnnigan. As you see we have a mix of Leolard Mint Rhum, Triple sec and caramelized sugar. A strong fresh touch coupled with a sweet essence. The perfect expression of today's beautiful sunset and its soft orange colors that brought us such a quiet and beautiful night."

Shane chuckled, taking a sip out of the glass. "You're an artist, Adam. It's perfect as always.Thank you."

The bartender gave a quick bow of respect. "I am pleased to please your senses, Mr.Kahnnigan." He said, walking back over the main area. "Enjoy your night, Mr.Kahnnigan. It's on the house."

Shane had another chuckle out of that last words. Adam...man he adored that guy.

---

He was sitting there on his couch, the drink gone in seconds, watching over the slow flow of customers in and out and in again when the buzzing of a delivery drone tickled his interest. The cute Mr.Prog shaped thing buzzed right over to his window.

*BEEP BEEP. EXPEDITE DELIVERY FOR MR. SHANE ELFORD KAHNNIGAN.*

He signed the receipt and took in a small package, settling the bundle of cardboard and plastic tape on his table.

*BEEP BEEP. THANK YOU FOR CHOSING OUR SERVICE MR. SHANE ELFORD KAHNNIGAN.* The small cute thing floated off to his next house. Shane had to admit that having a Mr.Prog as a mascot for a delivery service wasn't that bad of an idea. Those little buggers were cute and cuddly.

He had Adam bring him a knife to open up the packaging. Making sure not to damage the DataDisk within, he slowly pulled it out. Turning the thing over in his hands, he wondered about its contents. By now everyone and their mothers had a Navi, yet he always lacked a Customized Model. Up to that moment, he had always been fine working with commercial models in leasing. Adam always insisted on him getting his own personal navi though...and Shane agreed to it last week. He ravaged in his bag to take out a PC and the brand new PET he had bought for the occasion.

Plugging the PET in and booting up the installation interfaces, he turned his eyes to the DataDisk again. For a Custom Navigator Program, it did not cost him much at all. There was some sort of...mystery around that. Even the guy he bought it from didn't know who made it or what exactly was inside that disk. Shane had been told that people were unable to determine exactly what this navi was. The only true way to find out was installing it. Sliding the disk into his PC, Shane's mind raced with possibilities. Some said it was some older firmware. Other said that there was some legacy data being used in there...nothing concrete. But he liked himself some mystery, unlike many others. He wasn't too big on navi customization anyway, so he pretty much was fine with whatever he was going to end up with.

The man looked up at moon once before slapping the Enter key on his PC to begin the Installation and updating process.

---

It was taking...longer than he expected. He had time to close up the bar in the meantime. Locking the door and pulling down the portcullis, he jerked his head behind him as he heard something...rather...someone call out.

"...HOIII?...Is...is anyone here?"

Walking over his Pc and picking up his PET, he looked at the small figure inside. A lean body, black undersuit, grey armor and...a very exotic design. A tail was waving about, a pair of claws poking out of some open toed boots...green markings in various geometric patterns all over. Shane at to admit, the little guy was...kinda cute.

"Hello." The man simply replied. "Oh, hi! Are you Shane?" The small thing chimed, hopping up on his feet. Speedy little bundle of energy he was. Perhaps all new navis are that energetic. "Yep. That would be me. Nice to finally meet you."

"Nice to meet you too! I'm...uuh...uhh..." The little thing tried to introduce himself. Shane had forgot to add in something.

"Ah, sorry, sorry. I left you hanging there while I was busy with the Cafè. I'll fix that. First though...what's your designation?"

"My designation? You mean my Core File extension?" The little navi asked, puzzled. "Yes. That."

"Core file extension is a .Rx type." The navi promtly replied. Shane mulled over the info. Rx. He heard about that before. It was used some time ago for Driver type programs that speed up processing in big quantum mainframes.

"Something wrong?" The navi's voice snapped the man back to the land of the living. His eyes fell on his empty glass...

"Say, would you like to be called...Nightshade?". The little navigator tilted his head to the side, studying his new Operator. "Nightshade?" He repeated, curiously. "Yeah. Nightshade." Shane confirmed. "You came to be during a such beautiful spring night. I think it's...fitting."

Damn he really did not know how to go about this stuff eh?

"I like it." Nightshade said. "Nightshade.Rx. I like it."

Shane gave a happy smile at the guy. "Well then, Nightshade, welcome to 20XX. I hope we'll get along just fine together. How about we go get something for you on the net to celebrate? I know just the place."

Sure enough, the advantage of having a Cyber Cafe would be the ability of connecting to any part of the net through Newlight's homepage. He waited for the little cat looking navi to nod in agreement before picking his stuff up and hop up the stairs to his actual living space. Once the door was closed behind him, he settled his bag on a chair and grabbed his PET again. Now this was a thing he knew how to do.

"Alright, here goes! JACK IN, NIGHTSHADE, EXECUTE"

The bell for Shane's cafe rang as the door opened, and in walked a rather short college student, un-ruffling his wind-ruffled hair. "I think this is the place..." Thomas muttered to himself. "Hello? Shane?" The young man called out, walking in the door of the cyber cafe.

"Ah! You must be Brighton." A middle aged bartender chimed in a thick british accent, approaching the newcomer. "Mr. Kahnnigan was expecting you. Welcome to Newlight's Hour." Adam greeted with a deep bow. "Please, come this way. Mr. Kahnnigan has arranged a special table for you in the VIP lounge."

Walking off the main area, Adam showed the guest downstairs after closing the bar to the public. Once the door had been opened, a far more lussurious place showed itself. Blue velvet that accompained only ten small sofas in pairs over five different marble tables arranged in a circle. To the far left, Adam took his place in an impressive black marble counter that spanned across the room.

Then, right in the opposite wall of the entrance, Shane stood up behind another yet slightly bigger round marble table coupled with his own circular sofa. To his right, there was a stage where a jass band was currently diffusing a calm smooth jazz symphony in the room.

"Ah Thomas. Welcome to my humble place. Please, take a seat"

"Wow. This is quite a setup, Shane." Thomas walked into the room, feeling a little out of place in his simple shirt and shorts; it was sort of hot outside, and he hadn't thought to dress up. He took a seat near Shane, and then he held up his PET and his jack-in cable. "Ah, forgive me for asking so bluntly, where are the ports at in this place? Regalia's still waiting for me to hook back up."

Shane motioned right in front of him. A small Pyramid with a black metallic finish was hiding all the possible wiring inside the table. It functioned both as a stand for PeTs while also sporting two jack in ports. One of which was currently occupied by Shane's own PeT.

"There it is. However I thought I had..." he trailed off.

At that moment the the smoking wearing bartender delicately placed a curved screen onto the table and connected it to the Pyramid through wireless. "You left it in the other room, Mr.Kahnnigan."

"Ah thank you Adam." Shane replied, turning it on. "I guess it would be better for us to observe our navis from a wider screen. Would you like something to drink too? On the house, of course."

Adam bowed again. "It would be my pleasure to serve you, Mr.Brighton."

"Non-alcoholic." Thomas said. "Some tea, probably, would be great." The young man placed his PET in the holder and connected it, looking a little relieved when a birds-eye 3/4 view of Regalia appeared on the screen, standing next to Nightshade. "Ah, there they were." Thomas smirked.

"So did you say you owned this place, Shane? It's really nice." He sat back, looking around the cyber cafe's VIP section. "Most places like this don't have a VIP section, anyway."

"Yup. I sunk alot of money in this place. When I bought the whole building it came with a basement and an attic, I sold my old house and transferred upstairs, while making some changes to the old basement to turn it into what you see today. By now Newlight's pretty famous around these parts. We're doing great so far. All thanks to Dante and his boy's glamorous music...as well as Adam's magnificent bartendering."

The man playing the Bass bowed when he was called out. Meanwhile, Adam returned to the counter to prepare drinks for both gues and owner. "Oh, right." Shane snapped his fingers. "Nightshade has been whining all day asking you do design him a Graphic Model Override. I said you were probably too busy but he just never shuts up. In case you're up to the task just tell me and I'll cover all the development costs."

"GMOs, eh?" Thomas grunted as only a man who plies a trade can, smirking to himself as he pulled a laptop out of his bag. "Most people these days code with their PETs or with full-size, bulky terminals, but I prefer something a little more tote-bag." He set the device on the nearby table, then pulled up a few programs, customized a few variables... "Hey, Regalia. Gimme a quick scan of Nightshade, could you?" On-screen, the knightly navi offhandedly waved a hand at Nightshade, and all sorts of data about the catboy appeared on the screen, including his appearance.

"A lot of what GMOs are is just... 3D sculpting, really. Back in the old days you had to do most of it by mouse, but I have some programs that let me really get a grip on things." Reaching into his bag, Thomas pulled out a pair of plastic-tipped gloves, then slid them on; lights in the front of the laptop began to cast a 3D display of Nightshade in the air, and Thomas brought his hands near it, digital tools appearing over each fingertip. "So what're we going for, looks-wise?"

Shane was very intrigued by the explanation. Considering he was a complete illiterate when it came to coding all this info was a godsend. "Hm..." he folded his arms in thought. "I would say...he likes to cuddle and hug. That sounds somewhat difficult with metallic claws poking out of your feet or hands. I'd say...give him something friendly looking. Something he can wear that accentuates his feline nature without all the battle stuff."

In the meantime Adam served them both their drinks.

"Hm...give him an half suit. Tailor it to look like a black and white cat. Keep the tail and the feet paws. Maybe add boots that work as feet paws withouth the clawed part...and keep the long sleeved gloves too..." the man trailed off, visualizing something in his head. "Perhaps...give paw pads to his gloves like they simulate paws, so that it's comfier to hold hands with. It's hard to explain..."

Shane took a sip of his drink before remebering something. "Make something Regalia would like while keeping the cat theme." He concluded.

Thomas was already working as Shane began to describe; black gloves down to the elbows, long black boots with big fuzzy 'paw' patterns at the front... the tail stayed, just above the boots he left a bit of skin to show... most of Nightshade's body was covered in a form-fitting bodysuit, cut like a T-shirt and shorts joined together. A big white patch adorned the front of it, like a belly pattern, and little yellow-gold flares were on the sleeves of the shorts and shirt portions alike. He sculpted out a little greenish-yellow scarf around the cat's neck, as well as a much softer, more friendly-looking feline helmet without the extra set of eyes his usual look sported. Just for bonus points, Thomas made it so a holo-visor could pop out from the earpieces on the helmet, the same way Regalia's helmet could provide one.

"How's this?" Thomas asked, giving the 3D model a little spin.

Shane leaned in looking at fhe rotating 3d model. "It's...stunning. I am seriously impressed. You managed to create such an awesome design on such short notice."

Adam nodded. "Indeed. You are a man of skill, Mr.Brighton."

"It's perfect." Shane commented, satisfied with the outcome. "I am sure Nightshade will never want to take it off. So, how much would I owe you for this. This kind of professional level work needs adequate compensation."

"Hmm..." Thomas thought about it. "How about your share of the Bugfrags from last battle? I need some junk data for a project I'm working on. We'll call any expenses past that a favor, since you're letting me have this nice tea." Thomas reached for the glass that Adam had brought him, taking a long sip.

"Sure thing. For the favor part I'll make sure you'll always be able to enjoy Adam's drinks free of charge." Shane agreed, handing over the requested payment. "Would you mind if Nightshade tries it on right now? In case there's the need to adjust things?"

Shane Lose: 38BF
Thomas Get: 38BF

Thomas glanced at his PET, checking to see that things had indeed been transferred over, then set his tea down. "Mm, best to do it now, before more viruses show up. I'll fix up any problems he has with it." He manipulated the model a bit more with his hands, then saved the whole thing as (presumably) a GMO file and dragged it-- physically, through the air-- over to Shane's PET. A flick of the wrist and Shane's PET displayed a file transfer notice, asking for confirmation.

Confirming the transfer, Shane once again thanked Thomas. He then turned over to the huge curved screen. "Hoi, Nighty. I got you something you might like."

The little navi's ears twitched. "Hm? What is it? More upgrades?"

Shane chuckled as he sent the GMO file in. "Better. Look what Thomas made you."

Nightshade's eyes widened as the new outfit materialized in front of him. His tail twitched in excitement. "OMG OMG OMG OMG!" He squeaked, running in circles around the thing. "It looks amazing! Thomas did it? Wow! Wow!"

The little feline placed a hand on the suit's chest. "How do I wear it?" He asked Thomas, looking up at the big screen in the sky.

"It's a GMO file. You just have to run it like any other program, it equips itself. Bit like putting on a shirt, really." Thomas chuckled, watching the navi's antics.

With a nod, Nightshade placed a hand on the suit's chest and concentrated. Suddenly, he felt a weird tingly feelingas the new program binded itself to his code. The gmo shined brightly, dissolving in a sea of pixels that would attach themselves onto Nightshade's body one by one. Nightshade relaxed his muscles as his old outfit disintegrated to make way for the new one. Now a little ball of light, he waited for a few more seconds before the glow died out leaving hims inside the jet black half-suit.

The little navi raised his hands, observing the white paw pads onto the sleek black gloves. He squeezed both his hands a couple times, then wiggled his feet-paws and spun around himself once, to give both humans a good look of his fuzzy new self.

"It feels...pretty good. Amazing actually."' He mumbled, his tail wagging somewhat excitedly at Thomas only to pick up its pace when the little fuzzbal took hold of one of Regalia's hands to test around how gripping something felt like with the added padding. Looking up, the small feline bowed his head. "T-thank you,Thomas. It's incredible."

He little guy fiddled a little with the small scarf he was wearing and slightly adjusted his boots before turning over to look at his guiding figure. Pulling up the face mask over to the bridge of his nose (mostly to hid his slightly embarassed blush) he looked up at the knight. "How...how do I look?" He quietly asked the elder navi while kicking the dirt with his right foot.