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"Kael! I'm here for support!"
Rebecca rushed toward the ridge, but the sight that met her left her stunned. The smoke hadn't even cleared, yet the threats were gone.
"Is that it? All resolved?"
"Clean up the battlefield. Wipe every trace," Kael said, checking his Kiroshis. Only three minutes had passed since the first detonation. They were still well within the operational window. "You've arrived at the perfect time. I'll leave the scavenging to you."
"What the hell, choomba? Making me do the grunt work," Rebecca grumbled, though her hands moved with practiced speed.
Cleaning the field meant two things: collecting high-value Militech firearms—which fetched a premium on the black market—and destroying any local data storage. The latter was easy; every soldier Kael had zeroed lacked an intact skull. Their neural links and brain-chips were nothing more than charred scrap.
"Objective secured," Maine's voice crackled over the team channel. His squad had finished clearing the transport's survivors.
Pilar roared up in the Arasaka SUV. Lucy retrieved her drones, ensuring their flight logs were wiped, then pushed open the door and hurried toward Kael. She scanned him with a mother-hen's intensity, only exhaling when she confirmed he didn't have a single scratch on his chrome.
"Lucy, crack this transport door. Let's see the prize."
Kael stepped toward the central truck. Lucy interfaced her portable deck with the vehicle's locking mechanism. A progress bar flickered in her vision until the warning red light turned a steady, inviting green. Kael pulled the heavy door open.
In the center of the bay sat a reinforced carbon-fiber case. He stepped inside and popped the latches. The Sandevistan V had mentioned lay nestled in foam, glowing with a soft, blue internal light—a masterpiece of industrial lethality. Kael breathed a silent sigh of relief.
"Is that the Militech tenderloin? Doesn't look much different from a standard Mk.3," Rebecca said, poking her head over his shoulder. She reached out a hand, but Kael swatted it away.
"It's a Sandevistan, Rebecca, not a steak. I think you're just hungry."
"Eh, you caught me." Rebecca grinned, unfazed.
Kael handed the case to Lucy. "Reseal this and put it in a lead-lined pouch. I don't want Militech tracking a dormant signal back to our front door."
"Nothing else?" Rebecca looked around the cavernous transport bay. "All this hardware just for one little chip? I was hoping for a windfall."
"Stop chattering. It's time to ghost." Kael pressed his hand onto the top of Rebecca's head, ruffling her hair.
"Damn it! Get off me! If I never hit five-foot-three, it's officially your fault!"
"No problem, Becca. I'll have Old Vik set you up with some leg-extensions. I guarantee you'll be taller than Pilar by next week."
Rebecca stomped her foot. If she were willing to trade her "natural" look for full-body chrome, she'd have been six feet tall long ago.
"Everything's packed. Let's move," Kael commanded.
Jackie pulled Pilar out of the driver's seat, tossing the complaining techie into the back. "My turn, hermano. I want to see what this Arasaka beast can do on the open road."
"Let me go! What are you doing to my wife?!" Pilar shrieked, referring to the car. A sharp smack from Rebecca's hand silenced him instantly.
Kael ignored the chaos. He was already on a secure line with V. The Badlands signal was choppy, but V's excitement was palpable.
"Brilliant work, Kael! I've sent the coordinates for the hand-off. Get back to the city immediately."
Jackie floored it. Ten minutes later, Militech support AVs touched down at the site, but all they found were scorched earth and headless corpses. By then, the crew was already breezing through the Night City checkpoint, their forged Arasaka permits acting as an all-access pass.
They met V in a darkened underground parking lot beneath Corpo Plaza. V climbed into the back seat, his eyes darting to the case in Lucy's lap. He opened it, his technical readout confirming the serial numbers.
"Incredible," V whispered. "Militech's experimental 'Apogee' series. This is a game-changer."
"Glad it meets the specs."
"The Eddies will be in your account shortly. I need to get back to the tower and secure this. As for the files on your father... I need a little more time to bypass the senior-level encryption."
"Take what you need," Kael replied.
V vanished into the elevator banks. Rebecca watched him go, crossing her arms. "Corporate dogs. Always so damn arrogant."
"Rebecca, V is the reason we're not currently being hunted by a Militech strike team," Kael reminded her.
It was true; V's "corpo air" was thick, but it was the shield they lived behind. Maine and the veterans didn't mind. They'd dealt with enough Fixers to know that a cold hand that pays is better than a warm one that stabs.
Then, the notification chimed. [+1,000,000 Eddies Received].
Kael's eyes widened. This wasn't V's personal cash; it was a "discretionary fund" he'd skimmed from the department. Usually, a Fixer would take a 40% cut of this, but Kael was playing the middleman now. He divided the sum equally among the crew.
"Oh wow! I'm rich! I'm actually rich!" Rebecca shrieked, her earlier grumpiness replaced by pure greed. For a street merc, this was more than a year's worth of standard gigs.
"Is this... allowed?" Maine frowned, looking at the massive transfer. "Usually, the lead takes the lion's share."
"Everyone took the same Militech lead today," Kael said, waving it off. "My decision. Now, disperse. I've got a date."
"Tsk," Rebecca pouted. "No fun."
"Wait! No!" Jackie shouted. "We just cleared a million Eddies! We're going to the Afterlife! First round is on me!"
The Afterlife.
Inside a private booth, Pilar was performing a lewd juggling act with his multi-jointed technical arms, much to the amusement of the surrounding mercs. Jackie was locked in an arm-wrestling match with Dorio; the table groaned under the pressure of their synthetic and organic muscle.
Kael, however, was blissfully ignored. He lay back on the sofa, his head resting in Lucy's lap while she performed a delicate ear-cleaning service—a rare moment of "ganic" intimacy in a world of metal.
"It's good to have a natural partner," Kael murmured. "Maine couldn't do this; his head would just clank against your knees."
Rebecca, biting a straw, squatted on the table to stare into Kael's eyes. "What's the word, Techie?"
"The word is 'go away', Rebecca."
"No way. Move over. I want a turn on the soft pillows." She tried to shove him aside, but Kael caught her wrist, twisted her around, and gave her a playful swat that sent her sprawling onto the cushions.
"Trying to steal my girl? You've got a death wish, choomba."
The laughter was interrupted by a shadow falling over the table. It was one of Rogue's personal bodyguards.
"Mr. BT? Rogue wants a word. Now."
The table went silent. Jackie and Maine looked up with wide eyes. To be summoned by the Queen of the Afterlife was to be acknowledged as a legend in the making.
Kael sighed, stretching his limbs. "She sure knows how to kill a vibe." He looked at Lucy, who gave him an encouraging nod. "Lead the way."
He followed the guard into the deep, quiet corners of the bar. Rogue sat alone in her private booth, the lighting casting long shadows across her weathered, yet still regal face.
"BT," she began, her voice a low rasp. "That Militech job you pulled for Arasaka? Exquisite."
Kael didn't flinch. "I don't know what you're talking about, Rogue. I haven't worked for Arasaka."
Rogue smirked. "Cautious. I like that. The loud ones usually end up as a drink on my menu before the month is out."
She leaned forward, her eyes locking onto his. "I don't bring people in here for small talk. I have a contract. High-value. High-fatality."
"I'm listening," Kael said, leaning back. "If the Eddies are right."
"The reward will be more than just Eddies," Rogue said, sliding a data-shard across the table. "I'll send the specifics. Go back to your friends for now. We'll talk soon."
Kael took the shard and walked out. He knew the game; he'd just been invited to the major leagues.
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