Valerie sighed as she cracked her neck and straightened her back, preparing herself for another day of thankless grunt work. Being a member of Arasaka's Counterintelligence, Valerie rarely finds a day where she'll get a lot of breaks in her short life. Over the past two weeks, she'd been busy doing operations regarding the current conflict raging on the streets of Night City.
The Builder's War, named after the (in)famous corporation that suddenly sprang upon the doorsteps of Night City, was certainly devastating the hold Arasaka has in Night City. Lucius Rhyne - who, in Valerie's mind, is a stooge for allowing Arasaka to regain their foothold within America - had not only rebuffed Arasaka's efforts when it comes to destabilizing Builders Incorporated, he was also - according to the reports she'd gotten when Abernathy, in a rare circumstance that her boss allowed Valerie to work for Abernathy- taking more Militech bribes and favors compared to keeping a status-quo in regards to appeasing the megacorporations that litter Night City.
In short, Militech's influence is steadily rising within the city, and her boss' superiors are determined not to allow that to happen. Builders Incorporated - whom many within Arasaka Counterintelligence considered one of Militech's important allies within Night City - became the target of a destabilization operation meant to lower their influence within the city or kill their company entirely.
And so far? It wasn't going so well.
The gangsters that were supposed to cause chaos by attacking Builders Incorporated facilities? They utterly failed in their mission. Initially, things were going well. From what the stock market told her that day, Builders Incorporated stocks dropped by five percent, which while insignificant for a megacorporation like Arasaka or Militech, was devastating to a local corporation like Builders Incorporated. That they were able to breach their surprisingly well-guarded servers was the tip of the iceberg, as they're able to gather enough intel on their dealings regarding Militech.
Then, two weeks later, Builders Incorporated turned the table against the gangoons.
Maelstrom was the first to go down. Or rather, run away to the hills. The Badlands became the new home of the Maelstorm, competing with the Raffen Shiv for territory while the local Nomad clans wreak havoc amongst the unprepared migrants to the Badlands. Sure, they maintained their attacks and managed to cripple some of Buiders Inc.'s factories, but they retreated. The fact that Maelstrom didn't settle within Pacifica or Santo Domingo told Valerie of the desperation that the Maelstroms were currently suffering. The second to collapse was the Tyger Claws that joined in on the fun. They were the focus of NCPD's SWAT and MaxTac divisions, which both severely decimated them. It was telling how much hold the Builders Inc. had on that two divisions, with many of them packing the latest Militech weaponry and budget. As for the Animals and Voodoo Boys, it seemed that both quickly retreated, with the two gangs running back to Pacifica. And as much as Valerie would've liked to praise them for their foresight, it didn't help them as they were now the focus of both NCPD and Builders Security Services.
What was more devasting about the failed op was Builders Incorporated realizing their involvement in making the gangoons attack their company.
Oh, sure, Valerie had managed to cover her tracks well: with most of her hard-earned eddies going down the drain as she hired numerous proxies to shake off her trail. Fortunately, her involvement in the build-up was unsuspected by Builders Incorporated, gaining a raise in her salary for a job well done. Though, the same couldn't be said for her colleagues as they were 'punished' for their ineptitude or outright dumped by Arasaka's operators in the river.
In short, the eddies that she spent went down the drain as the higher-ups declared the op a failure, with many of the gangsters that served as cannon fodder for corporate interest removed, giving way to Builders Inc. to expand their influence and to the ire of Arasaka, gaining a new rival in the form of Builders Incorporated.
Valerie sighed as she felt someone calling her. Seeing that it was her boss Jenkins calling her, Valerie took a breath before answering, "V here."
"V. Good, you're still alive. I would've hated to lose one of my operators." She withheld a complaint as she wanted to say she was her boss's only operator but remained silent, "In any case, I have another mission for you."
"Of course." Valerie could only say as she heard her boss let out an exhale.
"With the failure of the gangsters to disrupt Builders Inc. operations and the higher-up not wanting to spend more EuroDollars than they wanted to, your orders are to infiltrate one of Builders Inc. factories and glean any information that might implicit their image to the wider public."
Valerie's eyebrow rose at her mission statement, "Tarnishing their image? I have a better chance of infiltrating one of Militech's highly-guarded facilities that finding evidence of them being a dirty corporation."
Her boss chuckled at her answer, "The higher-ups and I know that better than anyone else, V. But you see, we only need to find even a sliver of maliciousness in their company, and Counterintelligence could run with it. A little bit of dirt is enough for doubts to spring up in consumers' minds."
"Ah, the old fake it 'till you make it strategy, huh." Her boss nodded at her words.
"Indeed. In any case, I'm expecting success in your work, V. And remember, I don't tolerate failure." With that parting words, her boss left the office, leaving her alone in the room.
As she sighed at the complicated work she was about to embark upon, her HUD popped a call, seeing that it was Jackie calling her.
Answering the call, Jackie's voice bombarded her ears, "Chica! How's your work?"
"Doing fine, Jack." Blinking at the opportunity that popped into her mind, she focused back on the call, "Actually, I do have a gig that I might need."
"Oh? What kind of gig is this all about, V?"
"One that'll involve Builders Inc., of course."