Chapter Fifty Four
September 13th, 2077
Night City, Northern California
Niwaki Plaza, Japantown
With Cyrus out of action, all current operations were directed and managed by Chamber.
The AI proved to be just as effective, if not more so than her caretaker, but that wasn't particularly surprising to anyone involved. Cyrus was a decent strategist, but his talents lay in tactical scenarios where he could directly affect the battlefield with his presence alone.
Granted, Chamber was directing the movements of their Bloodhound teams in the past, but they were often green-lighted or modified by Cyrus himself, and he had a tendency to adjust her tactics to his style of warfare.
It is hardly an exaggeration to say that Cyrus flourished in the chaos of battle, and when strategies failed, his true potential as a Spartan came out. The Bloodhounds adapted their doctrine to their Sensei's dogma, and by all accounts, they had flourished underneath his tutelage
Now with Cyrus temporarily sidelined, it was up to Chamber to bring some order to his chaotic ways. Her first priority was reorganizing Disciple after the death of Tiger. His position as fire team leader was taken by Leopard, and not the first time the Bloodhounds were beginning to understand that they needed more operatives in their camp.
Thirteen highly-trained killers were decent in some categories, but a hundred would be far more preferable for the health and safety of their operators.
Chamber reopened the recruitment files on James Dragov and Vivian Conley. Their unique talents and expertise would be critical in the coming months, and Cyrus wouldn't want her wasting time gathering up like-minded individuals who were more than capable of pulling their weight.
However, Dragov and Conley needed a personal touch, and the Bloodhounds were good soldiers, but they weren't exactly the cream of the crop when it came to recruitment.
Iwasaki and his squad were reassigned to their prior activities in marking up the Valentinos for elimination or reeducation, while Chamber and their…newest member went to recruit Dragov and Conley.
"Why are we out here recruiting these mercs," Eliza complained, her visor zooming in on the former cop bashing an Animals brain in. "I could easily scrounge a couple of Sirens that can do everything they can with finesse."
Chamber hummed in disagreement but kept her opinion to herself.
Eliza had always had a tense relationship with her, and the only reason she consented to this second trip into the city was because the AI needed some muscle to back up her recruitment pitch.
Dragov and Conley were hired to take out an Animal gang, causing trouble for Taki Kenmochi's clan in the southern parts of Japantown. In most circumstances, the Astral Claws can handle an Animal incursion, but their response was postponed so Chamber could assess their candidate's combat prowess.
And they were…adequate for what Chamber had in mind.
"Evaluation?" As much as the AI didn't care for Eliza's opinion, she was banking on the fact that the Matriarch possessed swaths of experience from her time as a Siren leader.
Much like Cyrus, Eliza had recruited a cabal of skilled soldiers, mercs, and jaded police officers to her cause decades earlier. She had an eye for talent that brought the fresh perspective that Chamber was looking for.
Eliza stood at the edge of an adjacent structure monitoring the radio chatter between the Mercs. In the distance was the twinkling lights of Night City, basking her and the empty rooftops in an illuminating glow.
Below her, a pitched firefight between the Animals and their prospective recruits was reaching its climax. Despite her misgivings for recruiting mercenaries, she could confidently state that these two functioned like a well-oiled machine.
"Moving up!" Dragov pushed past Conley's position, stepping over the fresh corpses of recently killed Animals.
Dragov was your typical tank, utilizing a riot shield that shielded him from head to toe while he recklessly charged into the heat of battle. His armor was a set of ballistic padding that properly protected his limbs and torso, but the weight of his equipment also made him susceptible to flanking maneuvers.
In comparison to the walking behemoth, her protective gear met the bare minimum standards of protection. Conley's only means of body armor consisted of a singular kevlar vest as well as some padding on her elbows and knees.
But that reduction in weight and equipment is what allows Conley's agility and speed to more than make up for Dragov's sluggish movements.
Whenever an Animal sought to expose his weakness, Conley would intercept them with an accurate burst from her Copperhead. Likewise, Dragov screened her attacks by drawing as much gunfire to himself as possible.
Eliza was moderately impressed at Dragov's ability to angle his ballistic shield with such grace despite its bulky size and weight. She could appreciate why Cyrus was so intent on adding the pair of Mercs to his ranks; they were disciplined and lethal killers.
"They're pushing into the target building." Eliza watched the Animals make a hasty retreat through a pair of reinforced doors leading into their hideout. Dragov didn't once let up his assault, cutting down a trio of gangers before they could make their escape. "What's the kill count so far?"
"Fourteen…." Chamber paused as Conley drove a dagger into a Brutalizers skull. "…Make that fifteen kills."
"Where's the main target?" The Mercs quarry was an Animal Captain called Dino. Sasquatch sent him out here to make inroads into the Japantown district, and there was no chance Cyrus would want such a thing to happen.
A glowing wire-frame view of the Animals hideout appeared in the bottom right corner of Eliza's HUD. The combat junkies modified a rundown apartment building to serve as their forward operating base in the district. It had everything the Animals needed, a drug den, sleeping quarters, and a command and control area for Dino to watch his undoing.
"Second story," Chamber modified the holographic view into a surveillance feed from inside the target building. "Dino's guarded by a few Bloodhounds that might be a little too much for the Mercs to handle."
"Then let's give them a hand," Eliza initiated her optical camouflage, basking her in a refracting light that intermingled with her darkened environment.
The Animals were a long-time foe. In the early days of Eliza's tenure in Night City, they were the one constant that always seemed to survive her hunts. They were the first faction she set her eyes upon when the Sirens first broke into the world, tracking down their Captains and stringing up by their entrails.
Eliza personally killed their leader time and time again, but no matter how many bodies she left in her wake, the Animals would immediately appoint another successor. They were cockroaches that refused to die out, and in that respect, she admired their fortitude.
Nonetheless, it was time to see how challenging these Animals were compared to their kin over a decade earlier.
Eliza hoped they wouldn't leave her wanting.
*BOOM!*
A concussive blast ruptured the reinforced doors shielding the Animal hideout from the outside world. Shrapnel and smoke scattered in all directions, impacting concrete and flesh with impunity.
A cluster of Animal grunts led by a Jackhammer were moving to reinforce the front doors when the explosion sent both themselves and their reeling comrades grunts flat on their assess.
Only one grunt near the main entrance managed to find his bearings long enough to have a Copperhead lodged into his mouth. His frightened stare fixed on the hazmat mask covering her lower face, and a pair of emerald orbs stared at him with a passive glance.
*BANG!*
The panic etched into the grunt's expression sunk after a burst of 5.56 blew open the back of his head.
The Animal Jackhammer rose to his feet, spittle falling from his lips as a fresh wave of combat drugs crawled through his system. "Kill them! Kill them now!"
Animals by the dozen rose to their feet, some on shaky legs, others with ringing ears, and unleashed what little retaliation they had into the death-dealing Mercenary. A ballistic shield burst from the clouds, preventing a hail of ballistic rounds from striking Conley's slender form.
Dragov grimaced as a burst of high explosive shells smashed into his protective shield, but he'd endured worst punishments from far better killers. Conley pressed into his back and snatched two M5 incendiary grenades from her vest, flinging them over his shoulders.
"GRENADE!" An Animal Raptor shrieked a warning heard by a select few over the raging gunfire. Six of his companions could not seek shelter leaving them at the mercy of Conley's white phosphorous.
*BOOM!*
The implosion was more subdued compared to the previous blast, but the room was soon covered in poisonous fumes that stung at the Animals eyes and burned their lungs. Two grunts had pieces of their skin exposed to the white phosphorous, and the chemical compounds burned into their skin until bone and cybernetics were revealed.
Dragov put down the unfortunate pair with a precise burst from his Ajax, releasing them from their excruciating existence.
"I didn't think you brought those." Conley shrugged absent-mindedly, sweeping to her left and gunning down a trio of Animal Grunts laying into Dragov's shield.
"Changed my mind." Dragov shot his partner a dirty glance but didn't provide further comment. He had a bad history with white phosphorous, and Conley didn't blame him for his disapproval.
Didn't mean she was going to say sorry any time soon.
"ARGHHH!" The Animal Jackhammer had grown sick of his men's failure and sought to violently turn the tide of battle. He shouldered past one of his grunts, sending him sprawling to the ground with a broken jaw.
Conley brought her Copperhead to bear, firing off a burst of 5.56 that impacted along the Jackhammers torso. The Animal's subdermal armor tanked the ammunition but managed to stumble his balance enough for the Mercenary to retaliate.
She pushed her feet off the bloodied ground and slammed her hand on the Animal's shoulder, using it as a plant to propel herself up and over the combat junkie. The Jackhammer swung his carnage around, attempting to sever Conley's head from her body, but he missed the top of her skull by a fraction of an inch, leaving him vulnerable to a final devastating blow.
Conley unsheathed a serrated dagger from her forearm and drove its jagged edge directly into the Jackhammer's jaw. She pulled backward, splitting the Animal's jaw in half and allowing shrieks of muffled pain to spill into the corridor. A Unity was pressed against the side of his skull, and a single bark ended his anguish.
Blood and brain matter splattered across the already bloodied floors, and the Animal elite joined scores of his men on a one-way trip to the afterlife. Dragov cleaned up the remaining grunts, crushing the skull of a screaming Raptor with the full weight of his ballistic shield.
Brutal and efficient, that's what Rogue considered the pair of mercenaries whenever they took a job together. She would have made each of them one of their lieutenants if they didn't have the one thing a Mercenary should never have.
A bleeding heart.
With the entrance secure, Dragov took point, flashing his headlamp down every gloomy corridor searching for lingering Animals. Conley maintained proper spacing at his rear, double-checking rooms in case her companion had a lapse in judgment.
A muffled cry reverberated from an adjacent room as the pair approached the staircase to the upper floors. Dragov halted at the stairwell's edge, motioning for Conley to clear the space.
The Merc nodded sharply, bracing herself against the doorway and tossing a concussive grenade inside. She ignored the high-pitched cries as a concussive blast sent the room's occupants curling into the dirty floors.
Conley shined her torch upon the closest occupant and only years of experience and training kept her from adding an eleven-year-old girl to her kill count. Unfazed, she illuminated the rest of the room, whereupon she observed adolescent children aged six to twelve cupping their ears and wiping tears from their eyes.
"Conley!" Dragov's rough voice echoed from the hallway. "What's going on in there?"
"Shit." After a thorough search, Conley was forced to admit that she had just concussed a group of children who were taking shelter. Rather than soothe the little tykes, she exited the room earning a questioning look from her brute of a companion.
"Just concussed a bunch of kids," Conley pointed back to the muffled screaming. "I suggest you go in there and calm them down. You know how much I hate handling kids."
"Idiot," Dragov growled at his partner's idiocy, and driving his ballistic shield into the ground and leaving it to block the staircase should any Animals try their luck. "Give me five minutes."
While Dragov settled the kids nerves and applied medication to their bleeding ears, Conley settled her attention upon the vacant stairway. She couldn't see the second floor from her angle, as it stopped halfway and ascended parallel to the lower staircase.
However, what grabbed her attention was the severe lack of noise coming from upstairs. Animals weren't known for being silent, and in the heat of battle, their Captain and Lieutenants tended to let their adrenaline raise their voices into guttural screams.
There was nothing but pure and unadulterated silence originating from the upper levels, and that gave Conley pause. Dragov eventually emerged from the occupied room, the children sedated by his calming presence and ripped his ballistic shield from its place.
"We need to get them out of here," Conley glanced at Dragov out the corner of her eye.
"Do we, though?" The silent stare of contempt shot her way made her argue the point further.
"I'm just saying, Dragov," Conley bumped her fingers against her Copperheads frame. "Kid's aren't exactly quiet when the bullets start flying. They'll be loud, obnoxious, and draw every barrel to their heads faster than they can scream for their dead mamas. And even then, where the hell are we going to take them? Afterlife? It's a nightclub, not a daycare."
"We'll figure it out…." And just like that, Conley found her night turning sour. Dragov was a stubborn prick when he set his mind to something, and she had yet to convince him to her way of thinking in their time together. "…Stack up."
Dragov brushed past Conley, ignoring the woman's exasperated look as he started up the empty staircase. She spared a glance at the children's room before letting out an annoyed exhale.
"This better be worth it."
"Keep quiet." Dragov began his slow ascent to the second floor, the grip on his D5 Sidewinder tightened with every step. His cybernetic eyes scrutinized every inch of the stairwell, and they sharpened when he noticed the impenetrable darkness that shrouded the second floor.
He expected a barrage of gunfire to greet him as he reached the top, but all he received was silence. Dragov's adrenaline spiked when his foot stepped into a puddle of blood pooling from his right.
His headlamp followed the bloody trail to a butchered Undertaker, and her eyes were wide with unexplained terror. Animals don't scare easily, and by the dead ganger's expression, the devil had walked in here while they were clearing out the lower floor.
"Eyes up." The Merc conveyed to his partner as she came to his side, her rifle firmly braced against her shoulder. "We have company."
"Do you think it's him?" Dragov didn't need to ask about the 'him' she was referring to.
"Maybe." Conley shined her light down another corpse-filled hallway, scanning the bodies for their target.
The entire reason they were here in the first place was to bag and tag Dino, so if someone managed to snatch their kill out from under them, Conley was going to be pissed. Dragov hoped the pair of them hadn't anything that might have caught the Headhunter's undivided attention.
Cypher's work was well known in the Afterlife, and Rogue's standing orders for all her Mercs was to avoid him at all cost.
The only issue was that no one had seen him since the NCPD siege. A few of their compatriots assumed that Cypher was finished, while those more intuned with the streets knew that he was simply biding his time.
Except for a few minor discrepancies that Drgaov observed, this massacre of Animals was strikingly identical to Cypher's previous brutalizing efforts against the Maelstrom.
Bodies practically littered the floor, and several were slumped against the walls wherever they went. Synthetic blood mixed in with concrete, staining its once lifeless grey in a nauseating mix. Bullet casings and scorch marks were all evidence of a fierce gun battle that left more than a dozen Animals dead, including their leader, Dino.
The Animal leader had his own Mantis Blades ripped from his forearms before they were unceremoniously used to lodge his massive frame into the concrete wall. The thermal blades were still actively charring his exposed innards.
Not for the first time, Conley was relieved that she and Dragov always donned hazmat masks for their gigs. The noxious smell of Night city coupled with the putrid scent of decaying bodies could temporarily choke the life out of anyone.
"What do you think happened?" Conley inquired while kicking at an Animals body to see if they still remained among the living.
"Someone broke through the skyline," Dragov informed, stepping into the moonlight as his boots crunched shattered glass. "First one to go down was Dino. After that, it turned into a free for all. The Undertaker back there tried to squeeze off a shell from her Carnage, but whatever took her out crushed the damn thing in her hand."
Conley flicked her torch in the direction of a humanoid figure moving in the darkness, only to find another dead Animal sprawled against an upturned sofa. They had company, so she retreated behind Dragov to establish a back-to-back position that would thwart a flanking maneuver.
"Our guest is still here," Dragov grunted at Conley's statement, regripping his ballistic shield and flashing his headlamp in all directions. "Could we take them?"
"I'm not sure if we want to."
"Believe me, Merc," A voice echoed in the structure's antique speaker system. "Fighting, my friend, is not advisable."
Dragov and Conley shared an uncertain glance, but before either of them could respond, the previously offline monitors propped up on the concrete walls came to life.
A woman that Dragov could only describe as eerie was broadcasted on each screen. The blue tinge of her skin was hollow, and she looked more like an avatar than a human being.
"Good evening Mr. Dragov, Ms. Conley." The woman warmly greeted the pair of mercenaries despite their otherwise horrific environment. "I apologize for the inconvenience. I know how much Night City Merc hates when someone takes their contract, but the main purpose of bringing you out to Japantown was an evaluation of your character and capabilities."
"For what reason?" Conley's suspicious personality started to crop up.
"Because my….collegaue and I believe we can help each other." The blue-skinned avatar was replaced by a dossier of both Dragov and Conley. "We've been studying the both of you for weeks now, and you wouldn't be here if we didn't think you weren't up to the task at hand."
Conley made to confront the woman, but Dragov stopped her with a narrowed glance. "And what…task is that?"
"To secure the future of humanity, Mr. Dragov, but to do that, this city requires a revolution." The Mercs' dossiers were replaced with a sequence of news pieces from all across the globe. "And we want your help."
….Arasaka and Militech use security forces to secure natural resources in South America. Death toll has climbed into the tens of thousands.….
Dragov immediately identified the event as the 2060s South American Resource Wars. The conflict saw Arasaka and Militech security forces fighting for control of the continent's natural resources, and they often came into conflict with one another that only seemed to escalate the bloodshed.
But it was not the first time major corporations abused their power to subjugate third-world countries, and they weren't the only ones who did it in the name of progress. Biotechnica, Kang Tao, and the recently defunct Night Corp were just some of the many corporations who tried to match Arasaka and Militechs might often at the expense of the less fortunate.
Dragov had a deep hatred for Corporations of any kind, but Conley despised Arasaka. Her service with the corpos CTU Division guaranteed that she served alongside the likes of Adam Smasher, and that tenure alongside the brutal cyborg left Conley with a hatred so deep that even a decade later, she would often go out of her way to make Arasaka pay in money and blood.
Many Black Element Mercs operating in Night City had already suffered a grievous death at Conley's hands whenever she came across them, and Dragov already had to help her bury a few patrols that went missing in Watson.
"You going after Arasaka?" Conley's sudden inquiry startled Dragov, but the intensity of her gaze centered upon Yorinobu Araska accepting a Nobel Peace Prize for his peace efforts in Thailand.
The nomination and its subsequent appointment to the Arasaka heir was the biggest sham Conley had ever seen. She was well aware that the situation on the ground differed from what the media outlets reported.
The few contacts she kept in touch with inside the Mega Corporation shined a beacon upon the massacres carried out by Black Element Mercenaries. The death toll climbed into the hundreds of thousands, and the world just stood by and fucking watched.
Conley had concerns about this woman, but she was all in if they were going after Arasaka.
"Ms. Conley, we're not going after Arasaka alone…." The blue-skinned avatar returned to the monitors, and a knowing grin fell upon her lips.
"…We're going after everyone."
"Then count me in." Conley glanced over to Dragov and watched the emotion play out in his eyes. For a few moments, the behemoth struggled with something brewing inside him, and doubt began to creep into his gaze.
But all of that hesitation vanished in a heartbeat, replaced by a serene demeanor that accepted the conclusion Dragov's mind and heart settled upon.
"When do we start?" This time a humanoid voice echoed in the darkness mere inches behind the pair of Mercenaries.
"Now." An armored hand fell upon their shoulders, sending chills of panic crawling up their spines. Conley glanced back to find a golden visor and its towering owner easily loomed over her and Dragov alike.
At first, they mistook their interloper for Cypher. Dragov and Conley had been inside the Afterlife when he came knocking for Gideon Brook, and his voice was something they would never forget.
"Welcome to Blackwatch."
However, as they stared at the golden visor, their ears registered a feminine voice that didn't match Cypher's lethal and neutral tone. Belatedly the pair realized that more than one Headhunter was looming in the darkness.
And that terrified them even more.
Night City, Northern California
Bloodhound Sanctuary, Northside
Cyrus's return to the Sanctuary immediately uplifted the tense Bloodhounds who had eagerly awaited his return. It was a pleasant and welcome surprise to find their sensei/commander walk into their home without his armor.
That action alone told the Bloodhounds all they needed to know about Cypher's opinion of them.
The Bloodhounds had been in the middle of a tense training session that Cyrus had unceremoniously interrupted. An anxious atmosphere hung in the air, but it dissolved into silent elation amongst the old guard once his presence was acknowledged.
"Tsutsumi," Cyrus greeted the approaching Bloodhounds with a respectful nod. "Hattori."
"Sensei." Falcon and Sparrow were the first to greet their Sensei, saluting their arms over their chest. "It's good to have you back."
"Wish it were under better circumstances." He replied with a furrowed brow. "How are the new bloods?"
Cyrus never wanted the new recruits to be bloodied so early into their tenure, but considering the circumstances of his capture, he also understood why Iwasaki brought them along for the rescue attempt.
"Rough around the edges, but their training is adequately progressing." Sparrow's eyes lost a bit of light as she turned back toward him. "Do you want to see Tiger?"
Cyrus nodded sharply, tuning out Iwasaki's corrections of the concurrent duel between Ocelot and Vulture.
His impervious gaze momentarily roamed over the battling Bloodhounds before his crimson orbs fell upon their mute spectators. The new bloods kept to themselves while shooting curious eyes towards the Spartan, and each pair possessed their own set of questions that yearned for an answer.
Ocelot and Jaguar sent Cyrus respectful nods before returning their attention towards their companion's duel. He never traversed these corridors without his midnight armor, and seeing him in the flesh gave them a sense of belonging that made their near-suicidal assault on NCPD HQ worth every setback.
Well, almost every setback.
Fujima 'Tiger' Seiesnsui
Killed in Action
September 6th, 2077
Cyrus stared at the name engraved into the recently installed monument sitting at the unused section of their Sanctuary. Flowers and unread letters to the deceased rested at the base of its black marble foundation. Its height and width soared well beyond Cyrus's towering stature, and he absently noted that the shrine had room for additional names.
Chamber spared no expense in honoring their fallen, present, past, and future. The path Cyrus chose to take would lead hundreds if not thousands to an early grave, but to turn back now would only waste the lives already spent.
"He died well," Falcon murmured from Cyrus's flank, drawing the Spartan's undivided attention.
"He shouldn't have died at all." Tiger's passing was completely avoidable, and while Cyrus wasn't stubborn or naïve enough to think that he'd be able to keep all of his Bloodhounds alive, that didn't mean he was willing to let his failures lead to their casualties.
Cyrus was designed to be perfect, and he would be damned if he didn't live up to that potential.
The Spartan crossed his hand over his chest and knelt before the monument.
"Non temete l'oscurita — accettate il suo abbraccio. Requiescat in pace."
There was a moment of pure silence that reigned throughout the Sancturay corridors. Tiger would not be the first to walk into the howling dark, and he would not be the last.
But Cyrus would be damned if he didn't do everything in his power to ensure his Bloodhounds didn't walk into the darkness alone.
The Spartan stood on his feet, paying one final tribute before turning on his heels and marching towards the training arena. The new bloods felt a shiver of anticipation crawl across their skin as Cyrus came to a slow stop not feet from their gathered formation
Iwasaki knew Cypher's impenetrable gaze anywhere, and even without his menacing armor or visor, he managed to instill respect and fear into any who stared into those crimson orbs.
"We have work to do."
The New Bloods were about to undertake the Crucible, and Iwasaki could only pity the uncertain glances from the recruits as Cypher marched up to them.
They were about to experience hell on earth.
Late night for me. Didn't get home until an hour ago and I spent that entire time calming down a friend of mine. That being said it was weird to update this story on a Friday but unfortunate events caused by yours truly are to blame.
This is the end of ARC number Nine believe it or not and we will begin Part Two ACT ONE next week.
Now next weeks chapter will serve as an introductory chapter so it will be shorter than the rest but not to worry the following will be at a minimum 4k+ that will keep the plot rolling.
As always I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and remember to PLEASE! review to your heart's content every little bit helps my motivation.
Reviews:
TheJSmooth: Valentinos, Voodoo Boys, and Animals gangwise. Corpo wise Arasaka and Militech.
MEleeSmasher: Much like the Flood and Covenant, no Banished will be appearing in this fic.
Sciny: Broken in half really but yes Rory's story isn't done yet.
hellion117: Absolutely!
BoarLord: You will soon find out.
Next Chapter: February 5th
This week's update will be delayed for a week due to minor writer's block and a sudden influx in me writing up my HaloxSkyrim fic.
I found myself writing up the third chapter to my Skyrim fic when I should have been working on my Cyberpunk one but inspiration is hard to ignore.
Sorry for the inconvenience but be on the lookout my Skyrim fic is on the horizon.
The next chapter is available on my Pa t re on for those who would like to see it. The Link is below.
www .(p)at (r) e o n. co (m) /Cypher1597 (remove the spaces and () to access