Saul sighed once again as camp started to argue amongst itself. At some point in his life, he wondered how he became the leader of the Aldecaldos branch in Night City. That said, he didn't dislike it. He was humbled when he was chosen as leader of the Aldecaldos, even though Cassidy or Carol could've taken charge.

Then again, Saul doubted they were willing to take leadership, especially with what they endured during the Unification Wars. From what he'd managed to glimpse off their stories when the both of them were in service to NUSA wasn't something he'd have his family do.

Despite that, the Aldecaldos he'd inherited was on the verge of collapse. One wrong move, then the Aldecaldos in NC would fall apart and be taken away by more nefarious nomad clans like Raffen or the Wraiths. And by God as his witness, he'd be damned before that could happen to his family.

That's why he broke the clan's tradition of smuggling and opted for establishing corporate connections. Which is currently not going well. True, Biotechnica is quite ruthless regarding with who they interact. How else Biotechnica survived the near-apocalyptic war that is the Fourth Corporate War intact?

Regardless, Saul is determined to do anything for his family, even if that means sucking up to some megacorp.

Although, it seems that his family had other opinions on their minds.

"Saul, as much as I respect you as a leader, what you're proposing is suicidal for our family. Not only are you planning to put our family under the heels of a fucking megacorp, but you're also betraying the traditions of the family!" Panam Palmer, the firecracker who's been giving Saul much headache recently, shouted as some of the family unconsciously nodded their heads in agreement.

Saul withheld a sigh as his eyes turned to Panam, whose eyes filled with anger.

Panam, for all her impulsiveness, was fit to be an Aldecaldos leader. She's quick on her feet, can handle herself on the roads, and can act decisively. If the clan wasn't in a precarious situation, he'd be inclined to make Panam a co-leader. Unfortunately for him, Panam tends to act with her feelings instead of thinking of the long-term effects of any actions she'd make.

And so, mentally preparing himself for a spat raging on the camp for a week, turned to her fully, "And what'd you have me do, Panam? Slink back to SoCal? Let ourselves be gouged upon by the Raffen; ready to pounce at us the moment we even show a hint of weakness? And what about the other Aldecaldos outside of NC, you think they'll welcome us back to the fold after we'd made a fool ourselves in NC? Especially when we've made such a mess of ourselves?"

"Yes, they would! Nomads are family, especially Aldecaldos!" Panam shouted, slamming her hands on the table.

"Then you're still ignorant, Panam! Everything I've done, every decision I've made, was done for the family! How long until you realize that having connections with even a single megacorp would save our family?!" Saul roared back, moving closer to Panam.

"At the expense of being under the heels of a corpo? Wasn't a nomad supposed to symbolize freedom? What good is nomad freedom when we're only going to be corpo-slave in the end anyway, especially when you're willing to throw away our traditions?!"

"Then what you would have me do, Panam?! Tell me, goddamnit it!"

Silence permeated the camp as Saul and Panam glared at each other, with the on-lookers weary of involving themselves between the two.

It wasn't until Scorpion coughed that Saul and Panam's glares turned to Scorpion, who wilted under their looks before taking a deep breath and straightening his back, "I... may have an answer to our woes."

Saul grunted as Panam backed away from Saul, with the rest of the camp sighing in relief. "Well, spit it out, Scorpion." Saul rumbled as Scorpion looked to where Panam was before nodding to himself.

"Well, firstly, have you kept up with the latest news from Night City?" Saul shakes his head, causing Scorpion to continue, "Then, do you know of Builders Incorporated?" Once again, Saul shook his head in response, although Panam seemed to have an idea: judging from Panam's widening eyes.

"You mean the one providing cheap, organic foods in Night City? That corpo?" Saul's eyes widened at Panam's answer, the same as the rest of the camp now listening to the conversation.

"Yeah, that. Man, let me tell you, the feeling of actually eating an authentic steak brought tears to my eyes, man. Even Mitch ugly cried when we were eating during our visit there." Mitch sputtered at Scorpion's word while the rest of the camp was stunned silent.

"...and how much did you pay?" Saul slowly asked Scorpion, whose face grinned even further.

"Oh, it was twenty eddies. It's like paying two Burrito XXL Rosado, but instead of eating kibbles, you can feel the taste of an actual cow." Scorpion's words seemed to cause Saul's mind to stop in disbelief as he was left gaping, with the rest of the camp following suit.

'Twenty eddies?! How in God's name is that corpo able to sell that cheap?!' Saul internally shouted as he was still attempting to process the words sprouted out by Scorpion.

"Okay, but how could this corporation help us, Scorpion?" Cassidy asked as Saul internally thanked Cassidy for rebooting his mind before focusing back on Scorpion.

"Well, apparently, if what the words on the street were saying is true, then they're looking to expand outside Night City and are currently looking to set up trade lands along the 101 while attempting to dodge the rather exuberant trade barriers between NorCal and SoCal. Going by what I said, they're either going to haggle with either NorCal or SoCal for entry or -"

"Hire a Nomad for logistics..." Saul uttered, his mind already running through the implications of what Scorpion had said.

If what Scorpion said was true, then the Aldecaldos within Night City might be saved. While Nomads were nothing compared to the shipping lines that megacorps employ under their belt, nomads were more accessible as an alternative. After all, Nomads were responsible for most of the transportation within the ravaged Great Plains, Mountain West, Northwest, Southwest, and West Coast.

And Nomads know more about the lands better than those corpos living in their gilded megatowers.

In any case, Scorpion's words seemed to invigorate the camp: with many muttering about the golden opportunity that fell on their lap.

All except for Panam.

"Scorpion, you don't believe their words. For all we knew, this could all be a big ploy to deceive the people." Panam uttered, causing some within the camp to grumble.

But before Saul could utter a rebuttal, Mitch spoke up, "No, Panam. It's not a ploy. Everything of what they're doing is legit. Besides, the CEO was a renowned Solo in NC and was even responsible for decimating most of the gangs in Night City. All by his lonesome at that."

"Then, it's decided then. For those who want to ditch Biotechnica, raise your arms." Saul nodded as everyone raised their arms, "For those who want to form a partnership with Builders Incorporated, let your arms down." While some lowered their hands, almost everyone agreed, even though Panam's arm was stuck on whether it should go down or not.

"With a decision made, we should start planning. Panam, you'll act as our liaison for Builders Incorporated, and don't worry, you'll have Cassidy and Carol to accompany you there," Panam's mouth thinned as she muttered unpleasant words, with Cassidy and Carol nodding at Saul's words.

"Everyone else, prepare camp and wait for further news. Dismissed." With everyone leaving except Cassidy, a lull of silence enveloped the tent before Saul felt an arm clasp on his shoulder.

Cassidy nodded his head in understanding before leaving Saul alone in the tent.

Inhaling a deep breath in preparation for informing his Biotechinca contacts that the deal he was supposed to agree to was null and void, Saul only had one thing on his mind:

'Scorpion will need to dig more latrines after this.'