The moment V finished speaking, Jackie and Rebecca's eyes both shifted straight to Arthur, who stood quietly nearby.
That alone was enough to draw V's gaze toward him as well.
"Nothing..."
Arthur rubbed the bridge of his nose, his voice deliberately flat.
"Just made a friend with Militech connections on a job once."
He left it at that, turning away to keep himself busy. First, he unstrapped the Giant from the motorcycle, then carried it toward the Armored Vehicle.
Behind him, the three exchanged glances. At last, Rebecca gave V a quick wink, breaking the strange silence hanging in the air.
A short, wordless exchange seemed to pass between them.
"I'll tell you later..."
"No problem..."
Rebecca and V climbed into the spacious Armored Vehicle, while Jackie swung back onto his beloved motorcycle.
The armored beast's engine was still idling, a steady low growl that rumbled like a massive cat purring in its sleep.
This time, Rebecca—short as ever—took the driver's seat.
"Damn it!!
Did they really have to make the seat this high?"
She complained the moment she got in, leaning down to wrestle with the adjustment controls under the seat.
Meanwhile, V finally had the chance to stretch out and rest in the vehicle's cavernous rear.
One big machine, one small—they started up again and rolled toward the factory gates.
...
Outside, Jackie felt exhilarated astride his motorcycle.
He had long wanted V free from the corp. Staying in that hellhole would've twisted her into something not quite human sooner or later.
With that thought, he gunned the throttle, his headlight sweeping across the gates ahead.
Darkness lay in wait beyond the light, still and silent...
The two vehicles burst out of the empty factory grounds and back onto the narrow highway.
Stay on this road, and soon enough the glow of Night City would swallow them once more. The crisis felt distant now, left behind.
The Armored Vehicle's powerful headlights lit the road far ahead, catching Jackie in their beam as he led.
Arthur leaned back in the passenger seat, mind already drifting.
A car, or a motorcycle.
He weighed the choice.
Truth was, motorcycles didn't have much going for them. In speed and in comfort, they couldn't match a good car.
But... why not both?
As those idle thoughts circled, the headlights rocked with the road's uneven curves. Jackie was slipping out of sight, right at the edge of the glow.
...Wait.
Arthur's pupils constricted sharply, his upper body slamming forward onto the dashboard.
In the darkness ahead, not far from Jackie, something was moving.
And then—suddenly—it lunged out of the shadows, smashing into Jackie and his bike from the side with bone-crushing force.
In an instant, Jackie and his motorcycle were flung beyond the headlights' reach.
Time seemed to freeze as Arthur watched helplessly, Jackie hurled into the air before vanishing into the roadside darkness.
An ambush.
The attacker was a matte-black Arasaka Armored Vehicle, sitting calmly in the road as though nothing had happened.
Arthur and Rebecca stared in shock as the driver's door burst open, kicked wide by a massive, armored foot.
From the darkness inside, another hand rose, the barrel of a built-in weapon locking on them.
A grenade spat from the arm-cannon with a hiss.
"Shit!"
Rebecca's only reaction before the grenade detonated.
The explosion ripped the world apart. Fire rolled across the road, swallowing everything in a deafening roar.
A towering figure emerged from the vehicle. Orange flames glinted in his crimson eyes—cold, devoid of anything human.
Heavy footsteps hammered the asphalt, each one like iron smashing stone.
He lowered the cannon attached to his arm, standing silent as he watched the fire twist before him.
"What a pack of useless trash..."
The voice that followed was low and distorted, buzzing like a broken radio, laced with a strange mechanical hum.
Even the fire seemed to recoil as he approached, retreating from the darkness that surrounded him.
No one expected Jackie to stir again so soon.
Darkness pressed in, threatening to swallow him whole, but he forced his eyes open with sheer willpower.
No sharp pain—only a crushing weakness, draining him to the bone.
He knew it was worse. His injuries weren't just wounds; they were killing him.
He struggled to sit up. Something rose in his chest.
"Ugh..."
He vomited a mouthful of blood, thick with the taste of iron. His throat convulsed, his breath easing just a little.
Head bowed, he realized his vision was damaged. A black blot hung in his sight, following him like a stain smeared across reality.
With one big hand, he wiped his chin, smearing away the sticky mess. His body felt unbearably heavy, dragging him down, begging him to just rest... just sleep...
On the highway, the blaze was sputtering out.
Too stubborn to die.
The man stood before the flames, their shifting light flickering across his monstrous form.
He was a creature of steel, black metal rods laced through his body, shaping a grotesque parody of a man.
Perhaps still a man. A pale head sat atop the frame, veins bulging unnaturally. The lower jaw was gone, replaced by black metal, but the rest of the skull remained disturbingly intact.
With a grunt of impatience, he pulled a gun free from its magnetic clamp on his leg.
"Letting these vermin scurry around unchecked... I'll put an end to it. Turn you all into meat."
The voice rasped again, harsh and grating, like a bloodied blade dragging across glass..
He hefted the heavy weapon, sighting down its barrel toward the fading flames.
Even the wind seemed to stop.
...
(70 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser