“Punch what?”

Minutia, who’s slowly getting used to tracking some of the gunfire that is coming from the black void behind them, immediately swerves the car from an incoming bullet that would’ve surely ended young Calvin’s life. The momentum of the swerve forces Calvin back inside the car.

“Hey, keep this thing straight. I can’t hit anything out there if you keep swerving like that,” he tells her, slightly agitated.

“You’re going to die out there.”

“I’ll be fine. Stay close to you and you’ll protect me. That’s what you said, right?” he reminds her. Minutia thinks about this for a second.

“Come here,” she instructs.

“Come where?” he asks, suspiciously.

“Here.” She motions her head to her lap. “Get on top of me.”

“Ewww, no! I’m not getting on top of you, you freak. What do you think this is?” he exclaims.

“Calvin, I can’t protect you from all the way over there! Get on my lap and shoot from here so I can dodge these bullets more easily!”

Calvin isn’t a fan of the plan, but he eventually goes along with it. The pair now sit facing each other, with Minutia’s hands and eyes on the steering wheel and road in front of them, and Calvin hands and eyes on his mother’s gun and the road behind them.

“This is uncomfortable,” he complains.

“I’m sorry but it’s the best we can do.”

“I knew I should've first read the details of this side mission. Even if I did, I still bet it would’ve not said anything about mounting no alien. Ugh. I swear I better get a ton of XP for this,” he murmurs entirely to himself as he tries to get comfortable while on top of her.

“What?”

“Nothing. Hang on.” Calvin turns around and hits a switch on the dashboard. When he does so, the entire roof to the car begins to recede backwards. The cool breeze is welcoming for him as he embraces his newfound freedom of movement.

For the first time since she’s gotten behind the wheel, Minutia decides to see what this car can really do. The SHED frames do a great job at listing all of the functionalities the vehicle can perform by just engaging the paddles on the side. She puts her foot down and the car begins taking off like a rocket. The digital speedometer’s numbers on the dashboard and in the HUD of her frames, tick upward at a speed that no one would rightfully be able to track. When she stops accelerating, the display reads 169, which is no speed for any car to be moving at on these roads.

“That’s what I’m talking about Mom … uh, Minutia!” he exclaims, growing more excited as this side mission goes on.