[22:45]
All ambient outside lighting had faded, leaving only flickering fluorescents to illuminate the parking decks adjacent to Megabuilding H10. And they didn't even do a good job. Pockets of pitch black were dotted around even smaller pockets of blinding white. In conditions like these, even the settling of concrete or steel was enough to make the hair stand up on the back of your neck. Security cameras were posted on all corners, but they probably hadn't worked in years. Like most places in Night City, not somewhere you want to get caught in the dark.
Billy stood rigid, alert, eyes scanning every corner. His arms were crossed, but his right hand remained open, cupping the grip of his Liberty holstered under his arm. The webbing and holster matched his black t-shirt, so if you weren't looking too closely, you probably wouldn't even notice he was carrying. The shirt was stretched over his arms and torso, accenting his muscles as it tucked neatly into a pair of old Militech cargo pants resting on steel-toed black work boots. He was ready for action, or so he thought.
Miz's voice rang out, echoing, the volume clearly intended to spook Billy, "Nice of you to show up!"
Billy spun around, Liberty unholstered, only to realize Miz already had him dead to rights. She was standing side ways in the shadows, one-handing her Unity with her left hand, eyes trained down the sights. Her face threading was pulsing green. Billy swallowed as she holstered her weapon and stepped silently out of the shadows, flashing a smirk, "Not quite fast enough, Tiger. Maybe you'll get there, or maybe not."
Billy asked, "And if not?"
"Well, then you get to listen to me brag for the rest of your life how some 5'4, 120-pounds soaking wet street punk from Kabuki carried your ass out of the shit", Miz fired back as she pulled a softpack from her black syn-leather and gold-accented cropped bomber jacket, sleeves hemmed at the elbow. She leaned back against the concrete wall and perched a leg against it. Shaking loose a single cigarette, she brought it to her mouth before shaking another loose and offering it to Billy.
Billy put his hand up, "I-I don't smoke."
Miz shrugged and lit up, taking a long drag, exhaling the smoke through her nostrils. Of course the smoke carried right into Billy's face and he coughed lightly, waving it away with his hand. Miz scoffed and stepped around to the other side of Billy, resuming her same cool wall-lean. He looked over at her for moment, looking for words to fill the silence as he noticed inked bamboo shoots traversing the right side of her neck, breaking above the hooded collar of her jacket. Tattoos are always a safe bet, he thought, as he spoke, "So, the bamboo and lotus tatto—"
"No-o-ot my favorite topic", Miz cut him off, taking another long drag.
Fuck, Billy thought.
Throw the kid a bone, Miz thought as she looked down for a moment, exhaling smoke with a deep sigh, and spoke again, "I used to run with the 'Claws. Started at 14 with small-time stuff; pickpocketing, rolling drunks, low level rackets, like that."
Billy took a chance, "And the tattoos?"
Miz continued, "That was me thinking I was going to be a Tyger Claw for the rest of my life, however long that was. Thought I had to look the life to live the life. Got most of these between 15 and 16."
Billy looked down and noticed under the open jacket, all Miz had on was a black aramid-weave sports bra, the definition lines of her toned abs reflecting the fluorescent lights. She was sporting a pair of loose-fit jeans that cut off into elastic cuffs halfway between her knees and ankles, and finishing the entire ensemble was a pair of neokitsch black and gold street-kick sneakers. Stylish, but not over the top. More importantly, silent. As his eyes worked their way back up, he noticed an obviously newer tattoo than the rest sticking out from under her sportsbra, over her heart, and he asked, "What about that one, that's way newer than the rest?"
Another drag, Miz frowned and shook her head before deflecting the question entirely, "So what's with your boss thinking he just owns people?"
Message received, time to shut up, Billy thought. He didn't say another word, but he looked over at Miz again, the heads-up display in his Kiroshi optics flashing Ready, but not Recording.
Thankfully, it was only a minute of awkward silence before slick tires squealed against finished concrete as the crew's truck pulled around, Ky behind the wheel and Max riding in the front passenger seat. Ignition still running, Ky jumped out of the driver seat, moving quickly around to the rear and opening the split tailgate doors.
Any minute now, Miz thought to herself as Ky shouted, "Your chariot awaits, princess!"
Bingo. Miz dropped the cigarette butt to the ground and stomped it before walking over to Ky, punching his arm playfully. He feigned injury.
Everyone turned at once to the sound of a descending cargo elevator grinding to a halt. As the heavy cage doors slid open, Pops was leaning against the back of the cage, head dipped down, lit cigarette hanging from his mouth. If this were really a Western movie, this exact moment is where the dingy guitars and cheesy strings and horns would play. Thankfully here in reality, we were spared such things.
Easily the most appropriately dressed of the crew, Pops kept it simple. Black t-shirt tucked into plain olive-drab mil-spec trousers emblazoned with NUSA Border Patrol, the trousers bloused into an old pair of combat boots that had likely seen better days two owners prior to Pops. His shoulder-length brown hair was tied off into a short ponytail, mustache prim as ever. Completing his outfit was a tactical vest matching his trousers, in which he had holstered a worn Malorian Overture, likely older than the boots.
Pops looked up as he took a long drag, exhaled through the nose, and exited the elevator. He stepped up next to Billy, who stood in awe of the man's sheer size. Billy himself was six feet tall, but Pops had at least six inches in height, and probably twice the muscle mass. Billy flashed over to Miz before looking back to Pops, remembering 6 hours earlier when Miz seemingly effortlessly landed Pops flat on his back while sparring in the atrium.
Holy shit, he thought. His cheeks flushed a little, but thankfully nobody was paying attention. Or so he thought...
Pops spoke up, "Pup, you keep starin' at me, I might just have to make an honest woman outta you." Another drag, exhale.
Billy chuckled nervously, "Sorry, Phoenix, just... you-you're huge, man! Are you fully 'ganic?"
Pops smirked, "Yeah, 'cept for the neuroport in my head, everythin' else was given to me by sweet old Mama Gray. Just a perk of a life of hard, maybe not-so-honest work."
Jesus, Billy thought. To be fair, except for his neuroport, and the Kiroshis "gifted" to him by Tooley, he was mostly organic as well. But he was also only 19 years old. Pops looked to be at least in his mid-to-late 40s. Cigarette in mouth, Pops stepped forward to join Ky and Miz, the clunk of his combat boots' soles reverberating. Turning his head slightly, he called out to Billy, "You comin' or what, kid?"
Billy almost stumbled at those words as he hurried to step off the curb and rush over to join everyone else. Before reaching the car, he was stopped by a firm hand jutting out from the tailgate in the middle of his chest. It was Ky's. Miz appeared in front of him, firmly grabbing him by the jaw with her right hand. Billy could smell fresh smoke on her hand, but also a faint hint of something else, something sweet. She tilted his head up and to the left, noting a shard already slotted in one of his sockets. She narrowed her eyes, but proceeded to slot another shard in the second socket anyway. After a moment, his HUD showed a software package loading before a flashing green dot appeared in the upper right corner. From the passenger seat, Max called out, "Oye, we got 'im. He na' gonya anywha."
Pops spoke in a firm but reassurring tone, "Nothin' personal, kid. Lex foisted you on us at the last minute, means you're our responsbility now. Can't have ya sneakin' off or gettin' zeroed. What Miz here just chipped you with is a basic tracker, feeds GPS and biomon data back to Max. Soon as we're back here safe and sound, shard is gone. Clear?"
Billy answered firmly, "Clear." Man, these guys are real professionals.
Ky signaled everyone over to the rear of the truck, including Billy. Laying on the floor of the car were two relatively empty large canvas duffel bags. Ky opened one bag and produced 3 identical M221 Saratoga submachine guns, each with red-dot sights and suppressors already attached. He handed one to Miz along with a magazine. He looked to Billy and asked sarcastically, "You ever handle one of these, kid?"
Billy scoffed and reached past him, grabbing the weapon and a magazine. With precision, he slammed the magazine into the well before confidently slapping the bolt forward and slinging the gun over his body, keeping it firmly against his chest. Thank Christ for a lifetime of watching old action movies on BDs
Ky chuckled, "Yeah okay, just don't shoot yourself in the foot", as he turned to Pops and signaled to the last M221. Pops waved dismissively with his left hand and confidently petted his holstered six-shooter with his right. Ky rolled his eyes, "Whatever dude. Anyhow, suppressors for your side-arms are in the bag, as are spare mags for all. Have a fucking party, just don't blow yourselves up before we get there."
With these words, Ky left the rear of the vehicle and made his way back to the driver-side door. Billy took a moment to look inside the heavily modified Emperor. In place of a second row and traditional trunk space, the entire interior behind the front row had been gutted and replaced with two benches facing each other, running the long axis of the truck with ample legroom between them. How in the hell do they afford something like this on the gigs Tooley's giving them
Billy asked, "So those duffel bags aren't just for carrying spare mags and such. What's the play here?"
Miz looked at Pops for a moment, receiving a nod of approval as she spoke, "Pops has a deal with Wilson up on level 7, the '2nd Amendment' owner? He forks out good eddies for every piece of salvaged iron we bring back. He says the best way to stick it to the Corpos is to keep their own inventory in circulation instead of always buying bulk new. If there's no demand for new hardware, prices will go down and the Corpos will have to eat the losses."
Billy's eyes opened wide in disbelief, "He doesn't actually think that'll work, right?!"
Pops interjected, "I've seen Militech sellin' direct in bulk to 6th Street with my own eyes, so it's not likely sustainable in the long run. But he's a crazy bastard with a belief, and enough people believe him to keep his doors open and us a little flush. Tooley's aware, doesn't seem to care."
That probably explains the truck, Billy thought. He just shook his head as Ky shouted back, "Hey! Mount up, we're oscar mike!"
Pops answered, "Right, let's roll!", as he ushered Miz and Billy into the truck before climbing up himself, tossing his butt and pulling the doors shut.
Billy took his seat on the bench opposite of Miz, trying not to stare directly at her as she leaned back and stretched out, arms behind her head. He looked for anywhere else he could set his eyes before taking notice of the trucks HUD on the windshield. As Ky shifted into gear and the truck began moving, the clock read 22:59:59 before turning the hour to 23:00:00. No way anybody is that precise.
The tires squealed over the concrete as the truck navigated the narrow corridors of the parking garage, finally breaking free of the decrepit dungeon and onto the neon-lit streets beneath Megabuilding H10. They were on their way.
--
A few miles down the road, Billy looked up and noticed they appeared to be heading south when the job was north of where they had left. Confused, he asked, "Hey, aren't we going in the wrong direction? The Waterfront's north of Little China..."
Ky spoke from the driver's seat, "It's basic evasion maneuvering tactics, kid. You never drive a straight line to or from your target."
Makes sense, Billy thought, Also makes sense why they believed it'd take 30 minutes to get from H10 to the Waterfront.
They were pulling onto the freeway surrounding the southwest side of Watson and had made their turn north. Billy continued, "So, uh, I don't know that we've all been introduced."
Max spoke up, "Prob'wy fo' best dat we no' get too choom'y, eh?"
Billy didn't even need to see everyone's faces to sense the mutual agreement between them all, but Pops interjected with a smile, "Now now, where I come from, a man extends a handshake, you don't leave 'im hangin' unless he's offended you."
A holocall rang between the four, excluding Billy. Of course, Ky was the first to speak, "I for one, am very offended that he wants to know all our names. I take my privacy very seriously, y'know?"
Miz quipped, "Weren't you on camera last month flashing your ass at the NCPD while running from a routine speedtrap?"
Ky again, "Hey, hey, let's not split hairs, here. I was exercising my God-given right to freedom of expression, okay?"
Miz returned fire, "No hairs to split, far as I could see. Smo-o-o-oth, babe."
Pops spoke out loud, trying to break the pissing match going on inside his head, "Right, no harm in it, I s'pose...", he signaled to Miz, "This is Miz, she's my shinobi, adopted daughter, and second-in-command. As you saw earlier, she's a more-than-capable solo, too."
Miz blushed a bit, avoiding eye contact with Billy as Pops continued, pointing to Ky, "This here's Ky, wheelman, wiseass, engineer, good-natured pain in my ass."
A nod in the rearview and a two-fingered wave from Ky, "Yo."
Pointing to Max, Pops spoke again, "Max, wizard netrunner, background support. She... doesn't talk much, but we'd be dead without her."
Max turned and looked Billy up and down, saying nothing.
Finally Pops pointed to himself, "I'm Phoenix, but you can call me Pops. Career solo, gunslinger, bona fide gentleman."
Billy smiled confidently, remembering Pops' earlier words, and stretched out his hand, "Billy. Billy Barrett."
Pops returned the smile, grabbing Billy's hand firmly. Kid has a good grip.
Ky spoke in a feigned gruff and breathy voice as he bounced his head, "Billy-y-y. Billy Barrett."
Pops spoke again, "Where are you from, Billy?"
Ky quipped in the holocall, "Billy Barrett."
Billy answered, "Santo; Rancho Coronado to be exact."
Ky again in the holocall, "Billy Bad-ass."
Pops was surprised at this, "Santo?! I'm surprised you're not runnin' with 6th Street or El Capitan."
Ky, "Billy Bones."
"6th Street doesn't look kindly on civilians, and I'm not the gung-ho hoo-rah type", Billy explained, "And El Capitan is good people. He just didn't think I was ready, yet. Told me to look him up when I was."
Ky, "Billy Brain-dead."
Miz bit the inside of her lip. Pops continued, unfazed, "Muamar's a good man, that's for damn sure. Can't speak for that haircut, but he looks after his folk good and proper."
Ky, "Billy Blue-balls."
Pops continued, "He helped an old friend of mine disappear after some unpleasant business back in '76 with another crew. Damn shame, fella was a hell of a wheelman."
Ky, "Shutting up, boss."
Miz almost lost her composure, dropping her head and scratching her shaved undercut.
Back on topic, Ky spoke out loud, "Yeah, El Capitan's a good guy. I've done a few boosting gigs for him. Always a thrill, and the pay's good too. He looks after his friends."
Almost everyone took notice as a seemingly dead Konpeki Plaza passed by. The lights had been off for several months. This once crown jewel of the Arasaka Waterfront was now no more than a monolithic headstone for a giant tomb.
After a moment, Pops asked, "So what brought you to Watson?"
Billy looked down before answering, almost in disbelief he was sharing this information with people who were strangers a mere 12 hours ago, "I didn't have a lot of options after high school. I did well enough, but not good enough for any colleges to pick up the tab. I wasn't going to break my back working on the bottom rung for a Corp. So I decided on protection gigs until I can figure something else out."
"All things considered, protection's relatively clean work", Pops reassured him, "I had my fair share of enforcer jobs back in the day, before Night City."
Billy leaned forward to ask another question, but was interrupted by the truck decelerating, turning into an alley, and coming to a halt.
Ky turned his head, "Well, it might not be Delamain, but it'll do ya!"
Miz chimed in, "Delamain knows when to shut up."
A chuckle was shared by all. As Pops opened the tailgate, there was a faint sound of music; thumping bass, heavy synth, raw and dark, occasionally overlaid with screaming vocals.
"We came down Pershing Street?", Miz asked, clenching her jaw as Ky nodded in affirmation. Miz continued, "So you're dropping us off a block from Totentanz?!"
Ky defended his choice, "Look, Totentanz is behind us. You move forward, opposite direction, you break left at the block before H12. Two blocks and you hit your objective. Unless some major shit goes down, nobody's going to hear suppressed gunshots, least of all those morons blasting their brains with 120 decibels or more."
Miz looked at Pops, who shrugged his shoulders, "We've dealt with worse, Em."
Miz scoffed, "Yeah, we're just three special operator contractors going for a stroll in wide open spaces after dark while open-carrying serious hate strapped to our chests."
As Pops and Miz climbed out of the truck, Billy took a chance, "Ky, I think you pissed her off..."
Ky narrowed his eyes before cracking a smile and looking to Max, "Hey, I like this kid!"
Billy smiled, locking eyes with Max for a moment. His HUD still showed Ready, but not Recording.
Pops closed the tailgate doors, pinging everyone on the holocall, "Comms check."
All gave clear, Pops continued, "Alright, bringin' in Billy."
Billy's ears rang with a holocall followed by Pops' voice, "Billy, comms check?"
Billy replied, "Loud and clear."
Billy, Miz, and Pops all nodded to each other before turning to walk down the alley. Just three blocks.
--
[23:45]
All three arrived at an eight-foot black wall painted with the Arasaka logo every 20-30 feet.
"Time to climb?", Miz asked, almost excited.
Pops answered, "Looks like. Alright Em, ready?"
Miz nodded as Pops readied his hands for a spring jump. Miz placed one foot on his hands, and a hand on his shoulder.
One, two, up! Pops raised Miz up and she grabbed the top of the wall, pulling up and straddling it in one fluid motion.
Pops signaled to Billy, who asked him, "Are you sure?!"
"I'm old, not dead", Pops rebuked him, "Now shut up and jump."
Billy copied Miz's actions, and after a count of three, Pops launched him up. He grabbed on and pulled himself up to straddle the wall facing Miz, but with none of the grace she had. They both leaned down, extending their arms out. Pops jumped up, grabbing both arms. Miz and Billy pulled him up with little effort, and he was able to grab onto the wall and flip himself over, the other two following close behind.
As they all landed, they were met with their next obstacle. Gravel
Billy spoke, "There's no way we move quietly on this."
Miz was already a step ahead of Billy, unslinging her M221 and handing it to him. She removed her jacket and handed it to Pops with a look of concern. Pops winked at her and placed it down gently. He pulled a shard out of one of his vest pockets and held it up in front of Miz, "Max says this needs to be uploaded through an access point on the hard line in order to gain control of the network."
Miz smirked. She knew Pops was doing this for Billy's benefit. It was beyond her, but he'd taken a cautiously optimistic liking to the new guy. She wasn't going to sweat it; Pops was an unusually good judge of character.
Miz unholstered her Unity, now with a suppressor attached, and performed a one-handed press check while grabbing the shard and slotting it behind her ear with her free hand. Returning her sidearm to its holster, she nodded at Pops, who prepared for another boost. After a count of three, he launched her back up onto the wall, at which point she spun around and leapt over to the roof of a building not much higher, quietly pulling herself up.
Pops picked up Miz's jacket off the ground and carefully folded it, tucking it inside his vest. He noticed Billy watching him. He leaned in and whispered, "She likes this jacket. A lot."
Billy whispered back, "Yeah, no kidding."
Miz pinged in the holocall, "I'm situated, coast is clear. Follow my lead?"
Pops answered, "Lead the way, Em."
Miz made her way across the roof, footsteps nearly silent. Reaching the edge, she checked over in both directions.
"Clear, take the path on your left and come to a T."
Pops and Billy made their way up, stepping as gingerly as possible to avoid drawing attention. Miz kept them on the right paths as she cleared the roofs working in; weaving left or right, stopping or speeding up.
As they approached another intersection Miz almost shouted in the holocall, "Incoming from your left! Two bodies, move back now!"
It was too late. Two scavs rounded the corner and were met with Billy aiming his Saratoga, eyes wide like a deer in headlights. From the right, Pops moved behind and grabbed both the scavs' attention before CQB'ing them unconscious into the ground. A second later, Miz landed like a cat next to Billy and Pops. She unholstered her Unity and unloaded a single round into each scav's head. She clenched her jaw, looking at Billy as she readied her Unity and began moving forward.
She spoke up in the holocall, "Utilities outbuilding is up ahead, 30 feet on the left."
"You know those bodies you shot were unconscious, right?", Billy asked, voice shaky.
Miz rebuked him, "You know they're scavs, right? You know what 'scav' means? What they do to people?"
Billy knew, but he didn't answer. She'd made her point.
As they approached the outbuilding, Miz placed a finger over her lips, pointing to a lone scav sitting at a computer terminal, back to the door. Pops stood on one side, signaling to Miz, who readied her Unity. A nonverbal three-count, and Pops hit the button to open the automated door, Miz moving in at the same time. The scav turned and stood up, followed by a double-tap in the chest, single-tap in the head. The body fell, head cracking against the desk and leaving a spatter of blood before crumpling onto the ground.
Miz nonchalantly shoved the body to the side before going to work on the terminal. After a series of keystrokes, she pulled her personal link and plugged it in through the comm port underneath, raising Max on the holocall, "I'm connected, Max. Do your thing."
" Wi, yon moman." (Yes, one moment.), Max answered.
Miz's eyes were flashing blue for a moment before Max came back, "Mèd, yon ti pwoblèm." (Shit, a small problem)
Ky chimed in, "That's a little more than a small problem, Max."
Eyes still flashing, Miz spoke up, "Talk to me, Max. What's up?"
Ky again, "Yeah, she's doing the blue-eyes thing right now; what I'm seeing on her laptop screen is some SERIOUS experimental-grade Arasaka ICE. Encryption like I've never seen, and remember, I used to fly Militech aircraft."
Miz answered, "Alright, what do we do?"
A few moments passed before Max spoke, "Pwoblèm nan se... de problem is, de access pwogram works fine on dis terminal, but de ICE has it isolated fwom de rest of de network."
Fuck. Miz asked, "Is there any way around it?"
"First glance, non", Max answered, pausing before continuing, "Mebbe... can'ye gimme one hour?"
Pops spoke up, "I'll give you all the time you need, Max, but we can't stay here. It's an Alamo."
Miz again, "I can take overwatch from the roofs, make sure nobody's coming this way."
Pops pursed his lips and furrowed his brow, his mustache flaring as he thought for a moment before answering, "I don't doubt you can stay hidden that long, Em, but are you sure?"
Miz smiled, "If it gives Max time to work her magic, it's worth the risk."
Pops looked over to Billy, who shrugged, "Can't hurt."
Who asked you?, Miz thought, imagining what Ky might say.
Like clockwork, Ky chimed in, "Since when are we asking your opinions, new guy?"
Miz smiled, Billy fired back, "Eat a dick, Ky. You come here and tell me face-to-face what to do."
Miz's eyes went wide, Pops as well. Silence for a moment, then Ky spoke, "You keep this up, we'll go walking hand-in-hand in the moonlight, baby."
Pops smirked at Ky's piss-poor attempt at southern charm. Miz covered her mouth to keep from laughing. Regaining his composure, Pops made the call, "Alright, Miz, you get up top, but stay out of sight. Give us cover as long as you can. Max, you take as much time as we can give you. See if we can pull this off without goin' loud."
Everyone voiced their agreement.
Miz turned to Billy and handed him Max's shard before running out the door and said out loud, but quietly, "Hey, Tiger. Watch Pops for me, 'kay?"
Billy slotted the shard and nodded. Like a shadow, Miz was gone.
--
[00:45]
A private holocall rang in Pops' head, Miz speaking, "Hey Pops, question for ya."
Pops replied, "Shoot."
"Earlier in Tooley's penthouse", Miz started, "You picked up on something in his eyes. What was that about?"
Pops sighed before answering, "You don't miss a thing, do you Em? Remind me to never play cards with you."
Miz smiled, "I learned from the best."
"That green tint in his eyes,", Pops continued, "I saw the same in the joytoy that was leaving. His comment to Ky too, as we were leaving. You familiar with 'Slo-Mo'?"
As if "Glitter" and designer 'Dorphs weren't bad enough, Night City had recently found a third epidemic to face; "Slo-Mo". Hardly a "designer" drug, this new substance had taken the undercity by storm. Under the drug's influence, time slowed to 1% of its normal speed, producing a long-lasting euphoric trance. It was a poor man's Sandevistan, highly addictive, and relatively cheap to produce and acquire.
Miz furrowed her brow before asking, "You think he's using?"
"Hard to say if he's a chronic user", Pops answered, "But a man of his proclivities and influence? Likely also producin' in some capacity. If there's one thing Lex is addicted to, it's seein' a return on his investments. If he's hirin' joytoys to get his rocks off, 't stands to reason he'd make that last as long as possible."
Positively perverse, Miz thought to herself as she chuckled.
Pops chimed in again, surprising Miz, "You picked up on somethin' too, y'know. The look you gave his joytoy..."
Miz answered, "I know his face, but I can't place it."
"Well, don't noodle on that one for too long", Pops gently chided, "Especially here and now of all places. How are we lookin'?"
Miz appreciated the not-so-subtle change in subject, "All quiet on the western front."
Pops smirked, "You let me know if that changes. Over and out."
--
[01:45]
Billy sat against the wall opposite Pops, unable to remain still. He had resorted to fidgeting, checking his Saratoga and Liberty, dumping the magazines, clearing the chambers, and re-checking.
Pops chuckled, eyes closed but alert, "Kid, you are damagin' my calm."
Billy sighed, cracking a slight smile, "I just hate the downtime, ya know?"
"Mhm", Pops answered, tumbling a lit cigarette between his fingers before taking a drag, "That's the adrenaline wearin' down. Got to find a way to manage that."
Billy laughed, "Should I do push-ups or something."
Pops opened his eyes and focused on Billy, pulling a softpack from his vest, "Well, you know that old sayin', smoke if you got 'em?"
Billy waved his hand, "I don't smoke."
The air hung heavy with the lingering smell and smog, almost nauseating to the uninitiated.
After a moment, Billy spoke again, "Hey, ask you a question?"
"Hm?"
"Miz's tattoos, I know the Tyger Claw style, but what about the one over her heart?", Billy asked.
Pops gently rebutted, "That's not my story to tell, and now's hardly the time, kid."
"Sorry", Billy answered, defeated.
"Nothin' to be sorry for", Pops answered, "Just keep your focus in the here and now."
Another minute of silence passed before Billy spoke, "So how long do we think this will take?"
Pops replied, "Hard to say, but Max does good work. As much time as we can give her, I s'pose."
Billy's eyes moved to Pops' revolver in his holster. The metal around the barrel was maintained, but weathered, sporting nicks and scratches all over. From its appearance, it looked to be as old as Pops. Billy chuckled before asking, "How long have you had that Overture?"
Pops smiled, patting the holster, "Long before you were ever a twinkle in your daddy's eye."
Billy asked, feeling confident, "She got a name?"
Pops raised an eyebrow as Billy followed up, "I don't know, you strike me as the type to name a trusty six-shooter."
Pops gave a deep laugh, coughing slightly, "Kid, you've watched too many movies."
Billy shared the laugh. He looked out the window before cutting back to Pops, his HUD still showing Ready, but not Recording.
--
[02:45]
Pops pinged the holocall, exasperated, "Comin' up on 3 hours now, Max. Good thing this outbuildin' has its own plumbin'."
Max broke her silence for the first time in 3 hours, "Mèd. Dis ICE canna' be bwoken. It needs un access token. Need to get inside and find someone wit' access to de system."
Ky chimed in, "Hey boss, can we go loud now?"
As soon as Ky finished his sentence, a loud boom sounded from the front of the facility.
Before anyone could ask, Miz spoke up, "Uh, guys...? We got a big problem up here."
"What you got, Em?", Pops asked.
Miz answered, "Somebody just blew up the front door to our scav den."
Max shouted, "Ya need'a move NOW! De ICE jus' wen' cwazy from de blast. Tied to de physical security system?"
Miz answered, "Fuck! So what's our move?!"
Max again, "Dis ICE likely isolated de critical endpoints from de rest. Dat mean you need to link directly to the server. Access token likely gon'ya be a shard slotted in someone's 'ead."
Ky intjerected, "Hey, if they blew up a fucking door in a place that's supposed to be empty and unguarded, not likely that server's of much use to them. Same goes for the head holding that shard. Y'all gotta fucking move, right now!"
Pops agreed, "Silver linin', our little domestic terrorists just cleared the path for us. Not likely there's anyone going to be hanging out here."
Ky pulled up a blue print in his HUD and said, "Alright, you guys are in the utilities outbuilding, main warehouse should be 50 meters dead ahead. It's the biggest building in that part of the complex, you can't miss it."
Miz asked, "Rendezvous out back, find a way in?"
Pops shook his head, "No, meet back here. We move together. Triangle formation."
"Copy."
Within 60 seconds, a knock at the door. Pops opened, finding Miz standing outside, eyes wide and out of breath as she spoke, "It's Maelstrom."
"W-what, from Totentanz?!", Billy asked.
"No", Miz answered, stepping inside, "Looks like a war party, or an execution squad more like. There's at least 15 of them."
Pops pulled Miz's jacket out from his vest and handed it over, "Looks like it's time to go loud."
Miz smiled, putting on her jacket as Pops unholstered his Overture, cocking the hammer.
Billy unscrewed the suppressors from the Saratogas, handing one to Miz as she spoke with a smirk, "Glad to see you guys didn't kill each other. Let's move."
Pops answered, "Yes ma'am, lead the way."
Miz looked at Billy, "You know a triangle formation?"
Billy answered, "Backs to each other, moving forward in a circle to alternate positions and provide ample cover?"
Miz was surprised, "Ahead of the class."
With tactical precision, all three crew moved, backs to each other, alternating positions as they proceeded forward through the complex. Pops was right, there wasn't a soul in sight on their trek since the explosion, but distant gunfire was ringing out. Finally, they reached the last building before the main warehouse, stopping for cover.
Miz was preparing for another parkour stunt before Pops caught her with a warning, "If there's a shard, we can't risk damaging it with headshots. Double taps and knee caps only, Em."
Miz chuckled before answering, "Then you might want to consider a smaller caliber, Pops."
Miz got a running start, leaping against a smaller building before kicking off towards the roof of the adjacent building, effortlessly catching and pulling herself up. Within seconds, she was out of sight. Pops settled in against the wall of the smaller building as he and Billy waited for the all-clear.
Several minutes passed before a ping on the crew-wide holocall from Miz, "Back of the warehouse, your right side. There's an exterior stairway leading to the second floor. Entrance is clear. Go, now!"
Pops reached behind and tapped Billy's shoulder before moving out, Billy following while covering the rear. As they moved across an open area, Billy caught sight of Miz dropping off an adjacent roof and sprinting across to a ground-floor entrance. Damn, she's fast.
Miz slid into a crouch, catching herself from slamming into the warehouse's exterior wall. Unity at the ready, she cracked the door open, checking inside before signaling to the others. Pops and Billy reached the bottom of the stairway, looking to Miz before proceeding as the upstairs door flew open, a scav frantically exiting.
Billy readied his Saratoga, aiming down sights before two suppressed shots rang out in rapid succession. Miz had beat him to the punch. The scav's body slumped and slid down the steps. Billy looked back to Miz, who gave a smirk and a wink before swinging open the door and disappearing into the warehouse.
Billy tapped Pops on the shoulder, signaling to move up. Pops switched positions, taking the lead and signaling to Billy to check the scav body. Making their way up the stairs, Pops carefully stepped around the body; Billy kept his Saratoga ready with one hand as he reached to check both sides of the scav's head. Socket's empty, he moved the body out of the way and proceeded up the stairs.
Pops kept watch of the open area from the landing as Billy approached the door and peeked in through a slit window. All clear, he signaled, cracking the door open and sliding in, Pops moving behind him with one last scan before following inside.
Both inside, the door shut behind them. Their ears were immediately assaulted by gunfire ringing out through the warehouse, mixed with hellish screams from the Maelstrom pouring in. Billy and Pops both crouched, dodging ricochets and trying to make sense of the mess in front of them. Billy looked down for a moment and saw Miz weaving effortlessly in between shelves and rows of crates, dispatching any hostiles she encountered. He could count 5 incapacitated bodies already left in her wake, but none appeared to have the shard they were looking for.
He came back to focus as Pops' fired his Overture at a scav rushing them on the catwalk, the percussion nearly knocking him off balance. He was in awe that Pops was able to absorb the recoil with no effect. The scav's body dropped as a cloud of blood and bone fragments flew out and splattered the rails and grated floor. Instinctively, Billy rushed forward, checking both sides of the corpse's head for any slotted shards. He looked back at Pops and shook his head, eyes going wide as Pops appeared to be aiming directly at him. Boom, another shot fired, Billy dove to the grated floor. After a few seconds, he realized he was in fact not dead, turning to see another scav spewing blood out of a freshly severed arm socket. A second shot blew a six-inch hole in the scav's torso, knocking his body back and painting the wall behind him deep red.
Pops stepped forward and extended his hand out to Billy, but the jovial demeanor of "Pops" was gone. In its absence, this version of Phoenix Gray was something else entirely; a stone-cold killer with no remorse. Billy hesitated for a second before Pops reached down without even looking and grabbed his webbing, setting him firmly on his feet like he weighed nothing at all. His eyes were full of fire as he said one word without breaking his gaze, "Move."
Billy didn't waste any time, following Pops' lead and covering the rear. As they stepped off the catwalk grates onto the solid concrete floors of the upstairs office, a lone scav was frantically typing on a keyboard, the attached terminal flurried with activity. Pops stepped forward and planted the barrel of his revolver firmly into the scav's shoulder blade as he said, "You got one chance to do the right thing."
The scav took his chance, reaching for a machete on the desk as Pops pulled the trigger with no hesitation. The scav's lungs and fragments of his ribs blew out of the fresh hole in his torso, covering the terminal screen in streaks of blood and claret.
Pops caught the scav by the base of his skull, holding the limp body upright as he craned his neck to look at Billy, "Any old time, sweetheart."
Billy stepped up to inspect the sockets on either side. Finally, he thought, as he ejected a single shard, holding it up proudly in front of Pops who, in the same instant, released the scav corpse, its skull cracking against the desk before hitting the floor.
Billy hesitated for a moment. What did they teach us in school about slotting random shards?
More common sense, really, but the Night City public education system had to prove their worth somehow. Pops looked at Billy with a smirk, "Well?"
With a deep breath, Billy slotted the shard in a free socket on the other side of his head, praying it didn't pop like a balloon. After a second, his HUD pulled up the mounted storage, but it was just letters and numbers; encrypted data. Bingo.
Billy smiled as he pulled his personal link from his left hand, but paused before plugging it in. He turned to Pops with a smirk and said, "Mind cleaning up your mess so I can see what I'm looking at?"
The jovial demeanor returned, and Pops' mustached flared into a smile as he looked for something to clean the screen. He found a canvas tarp covering a stack of crates and pulled it off, turning back to wipe off the screen as best he could. Billy looked back at the crates and spoke up again, "Hey Pops? This gig is about stolen Arasaka tech, right?"
Pops answered nonchalantly, "S'posed to be, yeah. Why?"
Billy pointed back at the freshly revealed stack of crates, all bearing "BIOTECHNICA" branding. With a loud whistle, Pops said, "Well ain't that a bitch."
Billy plugged his personal link into the terminal, using his HUD to begin navigating. Pops walked over to the office's windows looking out into the warehouse, and to his surprise, there wasn't a single Arasaka crate in site. The shelves were stacked to the ceilings with crates, but they all had the same stamp on them. Pops turned back to Billy, watching him work as he said, "Well, this just doesn't make any kind of sen—"
Pops' mind flashed back to the green tint in Tooley's eyes before he exclaimed, "Son of a BITCH!"
Billy's eyes were flashing blue as he searched the terminal's protocols and access logs. Finally, he found what they were looking for, raising Max and the crew-wide holocall, "Max, I've accessed the terminal upstairs. It shares a direct link to the servers we're looking for. Opening up the firewalls now."
A few seconds passed before Max replied, "Wi, 'am in. Good work, ti chen."
Collecting his thoughts, Pops spoke up, "Max, ditch the Arasaka angle. It's a bust. The distribution network map is probably legit, but this was never about stolen 'Saka tech. Comb the files and pull down anythin' you can relatin' to Biotechnica."
Max replied, "Wi, bosmang. Billy, unpwug you' link, I have fu' access to de system."
Pops continued, "Max needs time, but we got her what she needs. You see a body, drop 'em."
Billy unplugged from the terminal, his personal link retracting into the base of his palm. Pops looked at him approvingly before the persistent ringing of gunshots pulled his attention back to the warehouse. Sizing up the situation quickly, he slotted fresh rounds into the empty chambers of his revolver as he turned to Billy, "I'll hold down the fort here, get down there and help Miz!"
Billy shouldered his Saratoga and nodded, "You got things here?"
Pops put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it, saying through pursed lips and a smile, "Ya even need to ask?"
Billy smiled and made his way out the door, laying down covering fire as he moved through the catwalks to find a way down. Pops smiled to himself as he leaned back against the desk, revolver at the ready. Taking a long drag, he peeked over the terminal monitor and watched Max work her magic remotely.
Downstairs, Miz was in her own world. Having been given the all-clear, she was zeroing targets left and right with short controlled bursts from her Saratoga. Lucky for her, the Maelstrom had made short work of the scavs. After a while, the submachine gun clicked empty. No mags, no time. Miz pulled the weapon down with her right hand, using her left to simlutaneously draw her Unity at the ready and continue firing, counting down each round as she fired.
Click. She was out. No time. She made her way to cover behind a stack of crates and moved quietly, counting three Maelstrom gangers still firing at her previous position while yelling and laughing maniacally. She waited for her moment. The ganger closest to her stopped to reload and ducked in cover. Now.
Miz broke around the corner, sprinting at full speed to cover the twenty feet between her and the first target. The ganger spotted her, but was too late. Miz grabbed his slung rifle, bashing it against his face and pulling down, causing the ganger to flip over on his back. With a swift movement, she raised her hand and brought it down on the ganger's throat, crushing his windpipe with a gut-wrenching crunch.
The second ganger turned to face Miz and she stepped forward, deflecting his handgun away from her and pulling his head down to meet her knee with a loud crack. She reached down and grabbed his head with both hands, jerking in a clockwise motion, the bones snapping as the body fell limp to the ground. She grabbed the handgun off the ground and turned to meet the third ganger with the barrel pointed squarely at his head. He laughed, holding up a primed grenade. Miz's eyes opened wide.
From out of sight, a large body crashed into the third ganger, knocking him down, but also knocking the grenade loose. Miz recognized Billy and yelled, "GRENADE!", before pulling him back and diving out of the way.
A bright flash and a concussive blast followed by ringing silence.
It was several seconds before either of them came to, but by the time Billy gained his bearings and saw he was still in one piece, Miz had already made her way back to the second ganger, collecting his spare magazines and loading one into her Unity. What remained of the third ganger was spray-painted onto a wall of Biotechnica crates. Billy could barely make out Miz through the smoke, but the last thing he saw was her glowing red irises looking at him before she turned and disappeared entirely.
Silence, a peaceful calm. Billy pulled himself to his feet and followed Miz into the darkness, his HUD still showing Ready, but not Recording.
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