Chapter 17: Enlistment
She arrived with a convoy in tow.
Three black trucks, the Militech logo plastered on the side. They were functional vehicles, boxy, with obvious armour plating, chunky all-terrain tyres and hardened perspex in place of glass. The windows were all blacked out, and it all looked appropriately militaristic. Their engines roared loudly, and I expect they thought it was going to be intimidating, but I was not going to allow myself to be so easily intimidated.
Out clambered three men, two black, one white, all bald, all built like a pile of bricks. Pistols were strapped to their legs, enhanced muscles rippling beneath the fabric, one had a rifle slung over his shoulder, and another sported gorilla arms. They were easily twice my size and weight, and I didn't doubt that they could rip me apart with a single hand. Their eyes glowed red as they scanned the area, not that they would find anything, and then they gave me and my guard a good staring down. I wasn't scared. The district was mine, and if they pulled any shit, they'd all be dead before they got so much as a block away.
Militech might have boasted a great deal of military power, but it wasn't here, and I was, and that was all that mattered.
After a good minute of grandstanding the star attraction emerged from the middle truck. She wore a black suit, like the one in the game, the torso padded to the point where it looked like she was wearing a vest. I suddenly became aware that I wore no such thing. Her hair was slicked back, as blonde as ever, her eyelids shaded black, a thick line of gleaming steel running down her forehead through her left eye, disappearing back into her cheek. Ocular enhancement, maybe a brain implant? Who knew?
She looked upwards and ahead, gazing at the overpass under which this meeting was to be held. No doubt, she was committing the details to memory, trying to discern my reasoning for selecting this location. She walked forwards, her stride full of purpose, her heels clicking in the ground, the hum of the city and the purr of the engine of her truck the only audible sound.
Tap-click-tap-click-tap-click-tap-click-tap-click.
She stopped just before the shadow of the overpass, and I walked forwards, stopping at exactly the midpoint beneath the road overhead. She called to me from where she stood, unwilling to get any closer for the moment, "Tell me what you want."
I beckoned her closer, "Meet me midway, then we talk."
She rolled her eyes, gestured to her men, and then walked forwards till we were face to face, "How'd you get my number?"
"From V, remember her? Cut a deal for it."
She seemed irritated that her contact details had been given out without her knowledge, "Why?"
I quirked an eyebrow, keeping my tone as level as possible, "You are the Government Relations Executive at Militech, are you not?"
"You aren't the government," she said, impatience lacing her tone. "Why am I here?"
"Ah-h-h-h, I am not the government... yet. Give it a few weeks."
Her eyes narrowed, and her tone grew dangerous, "Don't waste my time."
I shrugged, "I can help you. I just want a favour in return."
"Hmm..." She narrowed her eyes at me, "Tell me what you want."
I reached into my pocket, and her guards hands began to stray to their weapons. I looked at one of them, winked at him, and slowly pulled out a datashard in the same manner in which one would surrender a firearm to the police, clearly mocking him, "Take a look at this."
She grabbed the shard with some suspicion, gestured one of her guards over, and had him slot it in. His eyes glowed red, and a moment later, he pulled the shard back out, "It's clean."
She took the chip, and pushed it into the slot in the base of her skull. Her eyes glowed, and a few moments later she popped it back out, her teeth clenched, "Arasaka. You in their pocket?"
I shook my head, "I'm not so easily bought. Nor so easily cowed."
She gestured with the shard, "You want me to deal with this? That what this is?"
I let out a harsh bark of laughter, shaking my head as I did so, "No, I'm here to offer you the deal of a lifetime. The deal that will make, or break, your career." I waved my arm through the air almost carelessly, "Kaoru I can deal with anytime."
She looked at me, suspicion and curiosity mixing in her expression. After a long moment, she spoke, "What are you offering?"
I smirked, "The one thing that you and all of your bosses at Militech have always wanted. To bring Arasaka down a peg or two. Not just a division or a subsidiary, but the whole fucking thing. Billions off the valuation."
She looked at me, clearly unamused, "This a joke? You messing with me?"
I shook my head slowly, "Oh, no. I'm dead serious."
Her eyes drifted over to one of her guards, the question implicit in her gaze. His eyes glowed red as he looked at me, "Can't get a proper read on him, though I'd say he's tellin' the truth, judging by his 'ganic's."
She gave me a long look, "Even if I believed you, why should I care? Corporate warfare and espionage isn't my area, in case you didn't notice."
I nodded, "Oh, I noticed. But you will care, because you'll get to take credit for it. At least, in Militech you will. And with that under your belt, how easy do you think it would be for you to get a promotion? Or, you know, a dozen promotions?"
She rubbed her brow, "And in exchange?"
I smiled, "A couple of small things. Firstly, Militech will agree to arm the whole NCPD, from beat officers to MaxTac, with all the gear they will need, for free. They will announce this publicly, starting when I take office."
She practically exploded at my request, "Are you fucking insane?! Give up a billion eddy contract like that? I'll be lucky if my bosses only kill me!"
I shook my head and smiled, "That's not all. There's more."
She shook her head, turning to walk away, "Fuck off. You can forget it."
I raised my voice slightly, "You know that unless I deliver on my end you don't actually have to do anything? If Arasaka doesn't go a-tumblin', then you don't have to do shit. All I'm asking for is an announcement, a press-release. One you can easily walk back at a later date."
She stopped mid-stride, and then turned on her heels, "Quarter off the price. I can't get away with anything more than that."
I decided to throw her a bone, "Quarter of the original price-"
She cut me off, an incredulous look on her face, "Half. Quarter, are you fucking nuts? Half."
I nodded my assent, "Half. Nothing more, nothing less. After the first round of arms sales are over, all future purchases will be at three-quarters the retail price during my tenure as mayor."
She looked at me as I said that, "Do you seriously think I can get away with that? You think someone in sales isn't going to object? How about PR, hmm? That announcement is a disaster waiting to happen."
"You're a clever girl, I'm sure you'll figure out a way to make it work for you." I looked her in the eyes, "Do we have a deal?"
She paced from side to side, unwilling to step closer to me, deep in thought. Finally, she arrived at a decision, nodded, and said, "And the other things?"
I smiled, "I'll need some goons, preferably ones with some sort of violent criminal past. Militech or otherwise, doesn't matter where you get them. You know the type, big, scary, modded out the ass, expendable with a reputation for being willing to die young in a blaze of glory. You shouldn't expect them to come back to you in anything other than a body-bag. Not the type of people that can be connected to you very easily, either, though that last part is entirely optional."
She scowled, and after a long moment, she nodded, "That can be arranged. What for?"
"Oh, just a little raiding party I'm putting together. I'll need maybe a dozen guys." I waved her question aside, "Trust me, you don't want to know the details."
She scowled, "You don't tell me what I do and don't want to know, you hear me?"
I shook my head, "Plausible deniability, woman. This will be front-page stuff, and a lot of doors are going to get kicked in after the fact. After all, bringing down a megacorp is messy work, and things will only get messier after the fact. The less you know beforehand, the less likely you are to get shot." I shrugged, "But hey, if you wanna be stupid, then go ahead, ask. I can hardly stop you, now can I?"
She grit her teeth, silently conceding my point, "Anything else?"
I smiled, and pulled out another shard. On it was a contract, stipulating the terms of the arms sale I had just negotiated. There was some argument over some clauses, and a few threats were tossed around, but after a few quick addendums and stipulations, it was all ultimately settled. Meredith clambered back into her truck, and I watched her leave, engines roaring. Looking up revealed that the sun was descending through the sky, the yellow light slowly turning orange as nightfall approached. I rubbed my aching head, the need to relax becoming more and more prominent.
I clambered into my car, and we took off. The engine roared for a moment as we accelerated, and then quietened back down. I pulled out my phone, scrolled down my list of contacts, and held it up to my ear as the ringing sound started playing. Panam picked it up after the second ring, "How'd it go?"
I looked at the buildings streaking past the window, "Good, I think. She wasn't hostile, but I don't get the feeling that she was eager to get friendly either. She's a corpo gunner through and through, you know the type: hard-nosed, paranoid, no-nonsense and no humour. Ambition at the cost of everything else."
"I do. So, what's next?"
I shrugged, "There's that interview in a couple of days, but not much else. We'll have to see if Meredith can be trusted to keep up her end of the deal, and I see a lot of work looming over the horizon just before the election and inauguration, but nothing for the moment."
"So, we're free and clear?"
"Yep. For the next few days, at least. Nothing to do but kick our feet up and watch the explosions from a distance."
"Sounds fun. Where're you headed now?"
I glanced at my watch, "To the office. Got some last minute stuff that needs doing. I'll be free by sunset."
She sighed, "Shame you don't have a couch there."
I couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow, "I take it someone's in the mood?"
"I need to be loved, Arthur, or at least lusted after." She paused for a moment, and then said, "To hell with the couch, the desk will do."
I smirked, "Not at the office, dear. People might talk."
"Hmm."
"I was thinking about dinner tonight. Something fancy. You got a dress?"
There was a teasing lilt in her voice, "Are you asking me out on a date?"
I teased back, "Please. This is a purely work-based outing."
"You're so romantic," she said.
"We can do the romance after."
"Forget the restaurant," she said. "I'll cook. Naked..."
I couldn't help but grin, "Dinner, and then a quickie?"
"How about a marathon, and then a quick dinner?"
"Oh, boy."
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Hope you guys are enjoying the story thus far!
P.S. Didn't quite like the way this one came out. May be subject to rewrite
