Locust took a bite out of the burger held in his hand, watching the streets bustle with people as he sat on top of a roof in Watson. Spartan IV augmentation had specialised material lining the organs such as stomach, lungs and intestines. Which meant that Locust was capable of breathing in nothing but Methane for an hour and survive in a toxic environment eating nothing but tree bark for nutrient.
Meat such as beef and pork was replaced already with actual, natural pork and beef supplied to nearly all food and agriculture manufacturing Megacorps by Reds and Blues, but that didn't mean things like the sauce was still perfectly replaced. Most from places like Duhan's 4 eurodollar burger still used synthetic materials mixed with the naturals, and that meant Locust could feel his organs working on removing the toxicity and excess chemicals.
Locust looked through his phone for the shards he had found on his journey around Night City. About Johnny Silverhand and his past. He couldn't find much, most were redundant piece of information describing the fame of his band 'Samurai' and the speculations of his final moments bombing Arasaka Tower in the 2020s.
Speaking of the terrorist, the engram now-turned-Smart AI was deathly silent after his initial outburst. Not even appearing as a voice or hologram in the portable projector Locust wore under his coat.
Locust finished the last of his burger as he stood up, wondering what he should do next. Locust scratched the scars on his face before deciding whatever he would start in, he'll start by going back to street level.
Locust himself wasn't too familiar with down times- his memory started in burning buildings and rubbles, before the covenants even attacked the colony. Geron-21 was a colony planet already made into a war zone due to an insurrection extremist faction waging war against the UNSCs with a 'with us or against us' mentality to all. Which also meant that Locust himself witnessed the execution of his own parents by an M6G magnum, and him living as a street rat. Bunching up with other youths that didn't want to rely on the hands of those who murdered their parents.
Then the Covenants came, and razed the planet until the surface was glass, killing both the extreme factions and civilians alike. He tried to sign up for the Spartan III program, but was rejected due to him lacking the minimum prerequisite for the genetic markers. He was conscripted into ODSTs as a paramedic with Spartan Bones, before he was placed into ONI as a black ops unit combating insurrectionist forces.
Never in his life did he know peace. But the work he did made sure that he stayed content with always having a gun in one hand and a knife in the other.
Locust jumped down from the roof, using the neon sign panels and edges of the buildings as platforms to break his falls. The reinforced bones, muscles and tendons absorbing the shock.
His mission was to find out the following: History of Johnny Silverhand, the reason for Johnny Silverhand used as subject of the engram, and the classified main reason for further development of the engram shard.
There could be several routes to finding this information, but the best chance he had was Evelyn Parker.
Which meant Locust might have to go back to the Mox club for more information, or to Rogue.
[Zapper dumples and filth. In some ways, Night City still hasn't changed.]
Out of the blue during Locust's walk through the streets, the holographic projector sparked and flickered, before a miniature model of Johnny Silverhand walked up on Locusts shoulder and sat down. Locust only have Johnny Silverhand a side glance before continuing to walk.
"Took you long enough to become active again."
[I was always active. Just decided not to talk to you until now.] Johnny quipped as he took out a holographic cigarette and took a deep smoke in.
[I've processed some shit, saw what you were reading and heard what you were listening to. So, I've made up my mind. Your Megacorps, the Reds and Blues. They want to know more about me? Well, count me in as your guide.]
Locust took a right turn around a corner and walked down a flight of stairs, not even bothering to give Johnny Silverhand a second glance.
"And what made you come to that decision?" Locust asked as he swiped a card in the metro station before walking into the cart. Johnny scoffed as blew a non-corporeal smoke at Locust.
[What, choosing between the fact that you managed to give Arasaka the biggest fuck you imaginable- after courtesy of yours truly, of course- and the fact that one of your guys is capable of building me and then unbuilding me? It's clear that whoever you guys are, you're interested in me. What I have right now? It's a second chance.]
"I didn't take you for a person interested in a second chance at life."
[Not a second chance at life- a second chance to get even with Adam Smasher and Arasaka. A god given opportunity to stick it to the corpos and that Saburo fuck.]
"What a coincidence, those are none of my objectives. At all."
Johnny sneered at Locust's dry remark.
[Yeah, but you want the truth about what happened. Which means, we might be able to help each other. We could start with Rogue. Her and I go back to the stone age.]
"Or I can go to the Mox, find out how Evelyn Parker managed to find out about your engram."
[Look, you're wasting your time. All those Joytoys are good for is getting a quick lay and a smoke break.]
"One of Evelyn's contact is a Brain Dance Editor underground the club. I just need to talk to her first." Locust replied firmly and curtly, as if it was an ultimatum- Locust was going to the Mox first, and that was final. Johnny threw his hands up in frustration.
[Fine, if you want to waste time and get your dick wet from holograms, be my guest. If you want some real leads, call me.]
-oOo-
"Absolutely not, Dee!"
"Oh come on, why not! You said we'll find something that I want to do together! Well, I found it! So why not?" David protested as he helped his mother pack her belongings and carry the employee package Arbees had provided for Gloria.
"You know damn well why not, mijo! What made you think I'd say yes to that?"
"Because that's what I decided I'll be!" David shouted back. "That's what I want to be! Not some corpo suit, not some scientist, a Spartan! I want to be a Spartan, just like dad!"
Gloria placed her belongings on the bed and sighed, running a hand across her face in frustration. She already felt a tear well in her eyes due to the frustration and worry, stinging her eyes even as she closed them.
"Dee, mijo… you, you have a chance to live a safe and happy life. Really now! Genjiro already provided support for your education, and guaranteed you a safe position as an engineer in Reds and Blues when you finish being tutored!"
"I know that, but I don't want to be an engineer!"
"Why?!" Gloria shouted questioningly, head snapping to her son. David flinched, but still stood his ground. "Why do you want to be some… bio-modded soldier?! You've seen how your father died!"
"Exactly!" David snapped back. "I finally know how dad died! And now I know how he felt! About the Spartans! About UNSC! I know he was scared, and hurt! I want to change that! I want to show him that he fought for a better tomorrow! That he did the right thing, and that he shouldn't be scared! If there's an afterlife, I want dad to be watching me from the other side, and see what being a Spartan means now!"
"And you can do that another way! You can… you can help develop new armours for them, maybe build better environments! Some other ways to support the Spartans without BEING a Spartan!"
"There isn't!" David quickly responded. "At least not for me! Look, mom! I know you want me safe, I know you want me to live a cushy life in Glen or Corpo plaza, waking up every day on top of a tower! But that's not what I want, mom! I… I never felt this strongly about my dreams before, I can feel it! This is what I have to do! It's what I was born to be! Born to do!"
"Like hell you were, Dee! You weren't born to die in some unknown war field! No, not my son! Not our son!" Gloria spouted in an outburst, tears finally forming and dribbling down the edge of her eyes. "Your dad fought there so you wouldn't! I already lost a husband to them, I'm not losing my son to them either!"
Silence fell to the two of them, before Gloria couldn't handle her own emotions anymore- and started to hold back an audible sob in her throat. Heavy breathing was rushing through to calm her nerves, but it wasn't helping much.
"…Mom…" David powerlessly muttered as he watched how his mother reacted. A few more silence mixed with heavy breathing was filling the air.
"All my life, Dee." Gloria said when she finally spoke, her voice visibly cracking and strained from pushing and holding it all down. "All my life, I tried so hard to get you a better life than the rest. I busted my ass off for 17 years and more just to get you a safer life and good education. If… If-if by some bullets or some grenade, you come back in a body bag… what the hell have I been busting my ass for then, huh? You tell me, I raised you the best I can to be away from all those bullets flying through the air, and… you want to jump right into it? What, did Killshot say something to you for you to think of it like that? Did he talk about how great being a Spartan is?"
"No! He told me how hard it is being a Spartan! He told me what the Spartan IIs had to go through, and he didn't like me being a Spartan either! This is what I want, even if he said I shouldn't!" David shouted before he looked to the floor, lightly kicking the ground with his shoes before he replied. "I always did, every since I was walking the streets of Santo Domingo. Every time I heard gunshot around the corner I rushed in to watch."
"David!"
"It's true! I did! I always talked to Edgerunners and Ripperdocs to know the latest ins and outs of the city! New detes, new weapons! I just never told you! And you never told me what you do behind everyone's back either! Going around corpses to steal shit like this-" David rustled in his pants to pull out a familiar looking cyberware sealed in a plastic bag- the military grade Sandevistan, throwing it onto the bed for Gloria to see. Gloria looked at the smuggled Sandevistan, and then to David with the most perplexed expression David had ever seen on his mother, eyes wide and mouth slightly ajar.
"Dee, you… Mijo, this is-" Gloria tried to explain herself, but David cut her off by raising both of his hands up.
"Look, I get it. Got some edgerunners on a hotline, sell chrome at a reasonable price as a side gig. I found out about the secondary bank account with lots of eddies. I'm not angry, but… ugh, I just wanted you tell you that I always did that! The quiet life? That… never fit me! Ever since I was a kid, I always thought I was destined for something! Destined for being bigger! I didn't know why until now, I just did! Now I know! Mom, dad was a Spartan! Even if he didn't like how the UNSC was, and how they kidnapped him- in the end, he fought with them when the chips were down and every man had to fight! He fought for us, for his family too! I want to do that! I HAVE to do that! It's in my blood!"
David scratched the back of his neck before he exasperated.
"Look, I get that you want me safe. And… I didn't really know what I wanted to do in life, so I just decided to follow through, because I didn't want to let you down… But… But, I know what I want to do now. And whether you support it or not… I'm, I'm going through with it. I'm going to be a Spartan, no matter what."
David made his voice clear, that there was nothing capable of stopping him in his dream.
Gloria baled her hands into fists, nails digging into her palm as she scrunched her face in emotional pain and digging her face into her fists. "I don't want you to be a Spartan." Her muffled voice echoed out between her hands. "I don't want to lose you too. I don't…. I don't want to wake up one day and get a knock on the door and… and hear that my baby boy is never coming back home. I… Dee, I already faced that with your face this week… I… I can't go through with that again…"
David's jaws tightened. Great, he was so sure about it no matter what. And now here he was, getting softhearted. He couldn't help it, his mom was the only person he had left as a family. Only recently finding out about his Father's side.
That's why David chose to take a few breaths before pushing through.
"I'm sorry, mom. I get that. But… I'm already 17, and I'm turning 18 in 7 months. What, were you going to coddle me and my every choice even when I'm 72? It's my own life, and I'll have to work on my own soon. And it's not like living in Night City is any safer, at least I'll be strong and fast enough to handle my own when I'm a Spartan." David replied, with a softer tone than before, as he picked up his mom's belongings for her and hesitantly walking out of the room. Stealing looks over his shoulder at Gloria between the walks he took around the corner.
Gloria had to take few more breaths, trying to wipe away tears from her reddened eyes before she followed David.
She didn't want David to follow through with that, but she didn't have enough strength to talk about it tonight. All her life, ever since she gave birth the David in the ambulance of REO Meatwagon and being helped by the Merc she was reattaching an entire arm back on moments before, she took David into her arms and had vowed to do absolutely anything for him. But what was she to do if what David wanted was something Gloria was so sure would get him killed? She was perfectly fine with admitting that Arasaka corpo life wasn't any better, but there was better alternatives for him. Couldn't he see that?
He did. Rather, for only a few moments for consideration. Then he just tunnel visioned onto becoming a Spartan. Gloria knew deep down that she couldn't stop David. She did, in an instant- she saw it in David's eyes, and found Leopold in those two bright brown irises. And she hated that fact. She hated that a part of her admitted to being helpless to stop David from his own warpath called life.
All she did was stare at the Sandevistan on the patient bed, before picking it up.
She was realising too late that, for how much she wanted David to have a better life… she didn't think through her choices far enough to make it happen.
Gloria would have to call Maine tonight, and sell chrome to him for the final time.
-oOo-
David helped his mother settle back into their old apartment, paying the bills that was way past the deadline due, the landlord only stopping himself from throwing everything David and Gloria owned onto the street floor because Gloria payed double the original bills as compensation.
Gloria had her first paycheck sent to her account, as per contract she signed. Next morning, she'd be starting work as a medtech for the Reds and Blues. Mixed in with the other paramedics, Marines, ODSTs, and even the Spartans.
But she didn't want to talk about it. She needed some time to herself. David was quick to catch onto his mother's need for space, and quietly travelled to Reds and Blues Hospital again on the metro. Seeing how the setting sun in the horizon had its own brilliance of light replaced by the cold neon pollution.
David was already planning everything in his head. First, he'll go to Killshot. Ask him to take him to the leader of the Spartans. Tell them everything about himself, if they didn't already know it. David blinked as he looked at the window. They probably did.
Second, David will ask to join part of the Spartans. He already heard enough that they were essentially bio-sculpted with alien biowares. And he knew he could handle shit like that with no problem.
Then he'll train. He'll learn how to fight like Spartan, shoot like a Spartan. Save lives like a Spartan.
See? It was simple.
David heard a faint sound of chips unloading out of sockets in the distant part of the metro cart, the kid instinctively looked to the sides to witness a familiar-looking girl around his age standing nearby some suits, before walking off as soon as shards shot out of the suit's neck socket. David soon realised why she looked familiar- she was there at Corpo Plaza, same haircut and same silvery-white hair colour. The girl that disappeared the moment David had reached the top of the stairs.
David watched briefly as the girl repeated her fluid form of picksocketing, before she momentarily disappeared through a crowd. David rolled his eyes in every direction, but unable to notice where she had disappeared to.
David looked back to the window in front of him, before he felt the socket in his neck beep 3 times before his own shard popped out. Spartain time activated and his reflexes kicked in, swiftly turning around and grabbing the hand that just catched his shard.
The girl looked surprise, caught off guard. But soon shook his grip off her wrist and grabbed David by his.
"Come on." The girl bluntly said as she dragged David to the space between the current cart and the cart in the back.
"So what's your angle? Spill it." The girl commanded with a controlled monotone.
"My angle? Whatd'ya mean?" David, confused, replied.
"What do you want?" The girl specified. "You're mussing up my work."
"Work, huh?!" David snapped back this time. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were a picksocket."
"So what? You're gonna put cuffs on me?" The girl spoke, not backing down from David's rather accurate accusation.
"Can't believe that you're a petty thief." And David didn't back down either. The girl didn't answer back this time, simply opting to place her hands on the sides of David's head, before slowly and rather suggestively sliding her palms and fingers down David's cheeks to chin, before reaching down his neck to chest.
David was caught off guard, expression changing from stand-offish contempt to slightly panicked anxiety.
"Hmm… Do I know you?" The girl spoke in a more energised tone, almost in a rhythm or melody.
"No- uh, Not really. I don't think so." On the other hand, David's tone was a little more forced and cutting off. But he was quickly cut off when the girl pushed David back against the door, pulling him back quickly to turn him around and push him back into the door. Hand on his chin and one leg between David's, using her centre of mass to pin him to the door and using her monowires to wrap it around David's neck in case he had any funny ideas in how to get out of being pinned to the wall.
"Hmm… Strange, thought you'd be having a Sandevistan with the moves you showed. No signs of Bodysculpting either. Search for pin codes of bio wares coming up zilch. What makes you that quick, do tell. Wait, never mind. Curiosity killed the cat and all that." Almost in a staccato rhythm, the girl's voice ringed softly in David's ear. "Say, Crazy Idea. How about we work together?" She offered.
"Doing what, stealing?"
"Is it stealing if I only hit Arasaka suits?"
"Come on, do I look corpo to you?"
"Funny you should ask, scan shows up that you have an Arasaka Academy ID. But you're right, you definitely don't look the type, that's for sure." The girl replied with a slight smile on her lips.
"I uhh… I dropped out."
"Ah! What a bad boyo."
David was having a hard time handling the sultry playful tone this girl was speaking with, almost made him nervous and uncomfortable.
"Look, as much as I'd like the idea of some quick cash, I'm a little busy right now." David replied. If it was any other time, maybe. He really meant what he was telling the girl, but he had more important biz to prioritise.
"Oh? And what would that be?"
"Need to meet someone. Not gonna say anything more, but I ain't gonna stop you pick socketing if you get out of my way. Happy?"
The girl closed her eyes and took a step back, releasing David from both being pinned and getting wrapped around in Monowire glowing yellow. David rubbed his neck as he was about to turn around.
Suddenly, something hit the sides of metro station two carts back, rocking the two and the rest of the passengers off balance. David crashed into the wall, and the girl crashed into David. And the metro cart itself was sparking at the rails it was attached to before it too crashed into a nearby building.
The metro rattled as people started to scream as alarms started to flair. David quickly pushed the girl safely aside and tried to stand up, trying to find out what caused the crash.
An aerodyne, the smashed windows showed it travelling down to the ground and crashing, flames spouting out from the front, back, top and sides. It left a huge dent in the metro cart, and below the cart there were several cars- Armoured Vehicles of Militech. The soldiers coming out of the car had rifles and shotguns, armoured up more than a standard soldier.
David watched as the aerodyne exploded, but soon after flaming claws from a Mantis blade chrome flashed out of the explosion and started to rush into the corpo soldiers, who were all wildly shooting. The bullets weren't hitting their mark, as the flaming figure slashed open a soldier and threw the body at their comrades.
Then bullets sprayed out from the flaming remains of the aerodyne, and soon more figures were coming out to shoot at the sodliers. It was clear what was going on- cyberpsychosis. More specifically, the Maelstrom gang. Clearly a failed heist when one of them decided to go nuts at a crucial moment.
"Urgh…" the girl groaned in pain as she stood up as well, looking down to see what was going on, and processing the situation quickly. Her eyes darted to the doors of the metro, and soon her eyes started to blare orange again. A few moments later, David witnessed the doors opening on its own. Everyone started to rush out, train rustling.
"Hell are you standing there for, move it!" The girl shouted at David over her shoulder as she mixed in with the crowd. David quietly decided to let the rest flow out, watching the fight happen.
Soon, modified cars of the Malestroms started to rush in from every corner of Watson, surrounding the soldiers in an attempt to fight the soldiers back and save their fellow gangoons and whatever package they stole from Militech.
Some of the Maelstrom gangers were looking at the crowd exiting the metro and into the building, and started to point a finger and shout.
Oh, no. That didn't look good. David quickly rushed out of the now-empty cart, and soon found a bullet whizz next to his head. Reflexed kicked in, bullets slowing down in front of his eyes as he quickly dodged and dived into cover.
The girl herself was behind cover too, holding up a Constitutional Arms Unity but not even bothering to use it. Instead, opting to quick hack some of the Maelstrom Gangers that decided to rush up the building to take some people for hostages and meatshields- and kill the rest to clear the way for an escape route.
Other people with firearms were shooting back at the Maelstrom in defence, few had the Arbee's uniform.
"Gimme the gun if you're not gonna use it!" David shouted as he held up a hand towards the girl, who was startled by David's decision. The girl didn't hesitate much, and quickly relinquished her Unity to David.
Spartan Time activated again by reflex- he was almost getting familiar with the feeling of it turning on. Maybe if he used it enough times, he'll get used to it enough to consciously activated it whenever.
David aimed, breath uneasy from the pressured situation. Yet he felt almost excited, grinning ear to ear like he always did when there were fights in Santo Domingo.
He fired wildly, most of the shots missing but a few hitting the neck or shoulder. One shot managed to strike right at a Maelstrom's forehead- but that was more of beginner's luck than anything. Killshot taught him how to throw a punch and dodge one like a Spartan, he never taught him how to shoot a gun, though.
To be quite fair, he never held a gun before, momentarily too late to realise that his was more bravado than actual confidence when he asked the girl for the gun.
Still, it was better than doing nothing.
Soon, however, a burly Maelstrom walked over with an M2067 Defender and started blazing, reducing whatever the Defender was aiming at into fine dust and gravel. David reacted much quicker than anyone, and by the time the girl had even noticed the Defender aimed at her and David, she found herself being carried out of the now-pulverized cover and into a corner of a building by the Santo Domingo Kid.
The girl stared blankly at David, only blinking a couple of time to realised that David just saved her by carrying her away from the Defender's line of fire.
"… Thanks." She spoke with uncertainty in her tone.
"Now's not the time to just stand there, you know!" David shouted as he tried to fire more shots. David had balls, that's for sure. Not a lot of kid in his position would dare to think about challenging someone with a Defender with nothing but an unmodded Unity.
It nearly costed him when the Defender bullet sprayed too close to his skull, only just grazing his hair.
Now was a problem, the Maelstrom was closing in on their position, slowly stomping forward while spraying with the light machine gun. David quickly grabbed the girl again and dashed further into the corner, the walls slowly crumbling away from the amount of lead peppering holes into the concrete. David and the girl was now on the floor, having a hard to standing up due to exhaustion, pressure, and the gunfire spraying just above their heads.
The girl had been contacting her crew about the situation, and at the same time trying to quick hack the Maelstrom. For someone that was plastered in nothing but cyberwares, this one had enough ICE to be a total bitch and a half to break into.
Soon the Defender fire ceased, evidently the ganger had run out of bullets. But judging by the sizes of the bandoliers wrapped around his leather coat, he wouldn't be out of bullets for long.
Gunfire still rang through the air, and several people were backing away and evacuating out of the buildings. David watched as the four optics blared red in the dark apartment, only a few surviving light bulbs illuminating the floor, as the Defender was fed a full belt of heavy ammos. The light machine gun was aimed at the two, and David was quickly calculating whether he had enough time to just bolt away. He himself did, but the girl behind him couldn't. And if David was going to carry her again, he didn't really know if he was fast enough then. It was a gamble that David was considering betting everything on.
… but then he didn't have to. Heavy footsteps were ringing through the building as lightbulbs were silenced with muffled gunfire. Both David and the girl was confused at suddenly being completely in the dark. The Maelstrom was too, his optics swivelling around in every direction, before everyone on the floor was suddenly met with a heavy bang and a bright flash.
Then there were vibrations in the air, rapid beats and heavy stomps felt in David and the Girl's bones.
Several groups had appeared by the time David had his vision and audio return. Clad in black armour that was so similar to the MJOLNIR David had mistaken them as a group of Spartans.
Everyone did too, the black armour blending in with the darkness, the visored helmet.
But no, there was only one Spartan that arrived in the scene, and that was Spartan Leon- who had dived out from a Pelican to fight the cyberpsychotic Maelstroms outside.
The ones deployed into the building, and extracting civilians as well as eliminating Maelstroms were ODSTs. Fighting in unison with suppressed M7S SMGs. Both down corridors and around corners, crouched down and using angles tactically to catch several Maelstroms off guard.
They were sweeping through the floor with terrifying speed. Using the darkness that moulded them as their weapon, tool, and ally. One of the ODSTs were met with a mantis blade of a Maelstrom that was hiding around the corner, only to effortlessly grab the attacking Maelstrom by the biceps and quickly shoulder charging the ganger, brandishing a knife and swiftly lodging the blade under the Maelstrom's chin. The Maelstrom barely said anything before flopping lifelessly to the ground, the ODST pulling out the knife and wiping the blood off the sides of the metal with the corner of the wall, before rushing in with 3 other ODSTs to flank the Maelstroms and unload and entire magazine into them.
People were crying at the sight of rescue. One of the ODSTs even held up a hand for David and the girl to grab onto.
David nervously took the hand, being helped standing back up.
"Situation clear. Extracting Civilians now. Requesting pick up for the injured. Yeah, yeah. Galahad has the biofoam canisters, but I doubt it'll be enough for everyone here. So hurry the hell up, would yah?" The ODST spoke through his helmet as he pressed the side with his finger. The ODST then looked at David and the girl. "Any of you hurt?"
David and the girl shook their head, the ODST shrugged his shoulders but soon added in a few more words of advice.
"Stay for the Pelican though, alright? You guys might have some injuries neither of us found. Just in case. Don't wanna be all happy about surviving only to drop dead because there's something you needed to be taken care of that you didn't catch on at all."
David and the girl nodded, before they were escorted out by the ODSTs along with the rest of the survivors.
David exited the building and was audience to Spartan Leon finalising the rest of the Maelstroms. Several people recognised the MJOLNIR, especially the girl. She saw the titan as part of the Baba Yagas stomping into the Afterlife to get a gig specifically from the Queen of Fixers.
And by god, was there a reason even Rogue wanted the Spartan for her gigs. Killshot was right when he told David about Killshot's capabilities. Daggers were appearing and disappearing from his hands in a flash of silver, cutting down and digging into flesh as swiftly as Killshot's kicks and punches were.
The leader of the heist was already on the floor- Mantis blade crushed flat. Leon threw one of his knives without even looking, and the blade found itself lodged in between the final Maelstrom's optics, deep into the skull. The Maelstrom's gun flared wildly, the bullets hitting the asphalt ground as the ganger fell to the floor to meet their friends.
Spartan Leon dusted his hands before clapping them together, giving a peace sign to the Militech soldiers who all stood around slack-jawed in shock and awe. All staring at the Spartan that was leaving the crowd.
"Hey, David! Shit luck being caught in this mess, huh?" Leon shouted the moment he recognised the Santo Domingo kid. Before the Spartan looked to David's side and pointed to the girl. "What, you were on a date? Kinda depressing way to ruin a night with your girlfriend, isn't it?"
David and the girl looked to each other, the girl visibly frozen in fear of the giant that just as effortlessly walked over to the two as he was slicing and dicing Maelstroms.
"She's… not my girlfriend, Leon… I just met her like, 5 minutes ago."
Leon nodded as he chuckled, mixing his laugh in with a little 'Ah.' Remark, before the Spartan gently and playfully punched David on the shoulder and gave the girl a thumbs up.
"Hey, I know this kid so I'm telling you now- he's a catch. Alright? It's a one in a lifetime chance to meet someone like him, so… take it as a sign, okay? Counting on you to give him a chance, will yah?"
"Leon!" David protested as Leon annoying guffawed. Cheekily dashing away to the ODSTs and raising a hand towards them for a high-five.
Both of them stood there quietly, both quite tired of surviving a gang attack. They watched as Militech quickly secured the burning aerodyne, extracting a package and leaving.
"Hey," The girl spoke after a while. David looked to the girl, her red make up that accentuated her lips and eyes like one of those Japanese depictions of foxes were slowly wearing off from the fire, dust, and sweat. "Thanks for saving me back then."
David shrugged his shoulders as he looked back at the Spartans and ODSTs. "Well, you're welcome. I guess."
"…" Silence fell between the two again, before David felt a hand lightly tap on his upper arm. He looked back to see a hand outstretched towards him.
"I'm Lucy." The girl announced. David smiled as he took Lucy's hand and shook it.
"David." He replied. As soon as Lucy and David let go of each other's hand, a Black Mamba rushed in and skidded to a halt around the corner, and out came a large burly man with bronze skin and blonde sports cut rushed out with a Kang Tao L-69 Zhuo.
"Lucy!" Maine shouted, "Where's the fuckers?! What…" He soon found the burning rummages and the sounds of the Darters flying down to pick up the injured.
"Thanks for coming for the rescue, Maine. Afraid you're a bit too late for the party." Lucy drily replied, Maine scratched his head in embarrassment. Lucy gave David a quick glance before slowly walking away from him.
"Guess this is my stop. You take care now, David." She spoke, waving goodbye at him.
David waved back, even if Lucy had her back turned completely away from him, walking to the car Maine came from.
Maine himself stood in his spot, watching his secondary Netrunner leave, before he turned to look at David. Maine's eyes were hidden away with his sunglasses, but there was a slight grin at the edge of the Solo's lips that David noticed.
"You the kid that saved Lucy from getting zeroed by the psycho with a defender?" Maine questioned with a gruff voice. David gulped air, briefly tapping his foot.
"Yeah, couldn't really fight him by us two, though." David replied, before he felt something in his pocket. He pulled it out, and realised that he still had Lucy's unity.
"Oh, can you give this back to Lucy? It's hers, but she let me shoot at them with it." David asked as he outstretched his hand to Maine, hands gripping the Unity by the barrel, away from the trigger.
Maine looked at the firearm, before his grin widened.
"You've got some balls, kid. Sure, I'll give it back to her." Maine replied, his oversized hand gripping the gun and putting it in his jacket. The solo turned around too and started to head off to his car. Lucy was already in the passenger seat, smoking a cigarette while she waited for Maine.
"Oi, David!" David heard Leon's voice shout at him, and he turned his head over his shoulders to see a Pelican descend down. "Need a lift? We can take you to the hospital, or to wherever you want!"
David smiled as he walked over. He might not have quite the place, but he definitely had someone he wanted to meet.
And the Spartans could take him there.
-oOo-
David didn't know what to be surprised by. The fact that he had to go to the UNSC Revenant, or that Leon was perfectly fine with taking David there.
The Pelican ride was as smooth as travelling by car, reaching the atmosphere of Earth with no problem and docking itself down on the giant UNSC carrier ship.
David had been walking around the inside of the ship in awe at all the militaristic technologys. And his eyes even bulged out when he saw a couple of aliens like the Sangheilis and Unggoys run around the ship along with the Marines.
Unlike August-099 or Killshot, Leon wasn't the type to give a tour around the place. For someone as laid back and lighthearted as Leon, he was quite adamant with just taking David to meet with the Commander of UNSC Revenant's Spartan Division.
"We don't really have a leader, per se. Unlike the other branches of UNSC military, Spartan branch doesn't have a hierarchial rank structure. Everyone's an equal once you manage to reach this far. Still, some have more authorities than others. They have to, someone needs to clean our shit up. For UNSC Revenant? That's Spartan Commander Washington."
David watched as Leon knocked on the door of big office, the door soon automatically opening to show a full set of dark grey Mark VI with yellow markings.
"Uuuh… David, right? Welcome aboard to UNSC Revenant. Our main base that I had SPECIFICALLY. told my guys NOT. To bring CIVILIANS. ON BOARD." Washington, voicing amicably to David but soon devolving into a snapping tone as the Mark VI visor swapped gaze from David to Leon. Leon himself only shrugged his shoulders as he leaned on the door frame. Wash trusted Leon. But that didn't mean he liked half the things Leon did on a daily basis.
"So, what's the occasion? What uhh… what made you find the Spartan Commander in the middle of… What time is it again, Leon?"
"10 PM in Night City."
"10 PM in Night City?"
David closed his eyes for a moment and breathed in deep, before exhaling out through his nose as he stared at Washington's visor.
"I want to be a Spartan, just like my dad."
Silence fell in Washington's office, as Washington's visored gaze darted from David to the floor, to the wall and then to the ceiling. Suddenly, the crayon drawing Caboose gave him looked much, much more interesting than before, hanging on the wall.
A slight muffled voice of 'toot-too-doo' rang through Washington's helmet, before the Spartan Commander sighed and looked at David.
"Sorry David, no can do."
"Oh come on, why not!" David protested, but the kid got the answer from Leon instead.
"It's because we don't have the right equipments here for Spartan Augmentation." David whipped his head around at Leon's answer and stared at him in perplexed disbelief.
"You already knew about that?!" David shouted.
"Yeah."
"Why didn't you say that?!"
"Cuz you never asked me about it, now did yah?" Leon answered after shrugging his shoulders. "Besides, not like you'd take that truth as the answer unless you went all that effort to meet Commander Wash."
"I mean, that's one reason."
"There's another one?" Leon lazily asked, crossing his arms as he kept his body leaning on the door frame with his legs crossed to keep him balanced.
"Yeah. I mean… Cell's currently running a new project for an improved Spartan IV augmentation. Which means all of us Spartan IVs are gonna have to go through the surgery table again."
"Oh, yippee…" Leon replied in sarcastic excitement. David looked back and forth at Washington and Leon as the two Spartans held their own conversation, before Washington looked back to David with a question.
"David, how old are you?"
"… 17, why?"
"Yeah. No."
David blinked a several times, before his brow furrowed and his arms were held outstretched.
"What do you mean no?!"
"Yeah, nuh uh. I'm not letting a minor become a genetically modified child soldier." Washington replied curtly while shaking his head.
"Yeah, David. We stopped doing that after the Spartan III augmentation project." Leon quipped behind the two.
"We-well, I'll… I'll be turning 18 in 7 months anyway! Come on!"
"Riiiight…" Washington responded as he nodded his head. "Then uhh… ask me again 7 months later, after you enlisted. Of course."
"Then… then what about being an ODST? I've heard from Killshot that a lot of you guys were ODSTs before you became Spartan IVs." David asked, trying so hard to bargain and negotiate.
But Washington put his foot down on the subject.
"Yeeeaaah…. No. David, I don't know which part of 'We're not turning minors into child soldiers' you don't get."
"Probably the part where we consider a 17 year old still a legal minor." Leon commented.
"He clearly knows that putting a 17 year old into military is also considered a child soldier, right? Does Night City know that? I don't think Night City knows that."
"It's a shit hole, of course they don't know that."
David wanted to protest against the statement, but he found that doing so wasn't going to help his case, nor his dreams. Right here on the doorstep, was David left dejected. David stared at the two, before kicking the floor with his shoe in disappointment.
Washington sighed as he took a bent his knees to put himself on the same eye level as David- the kid still having to look up at the Spartan.
"Look, I know you're dad was Leonard-133. And I kinda get why you'd want to be a Spartan. It's just… you have to take in the fact that you can't be a Spartan right NOW. 'Kay? You're only 17. You've got lots of time to just be a normal kid. You know, hang out with your friends, go to school. Not some… battlefield where bullets and plasma charges are flying through the sky, your ride back home is suddenly shot down by a rocket launcher, or you have a… AI ruining your head and you have to stay brain damaged until you're fully rehabili…tated… you know what, forget the last part. Just be a kid! Not a soldier. You've got lots of time to be a Spartan, but not enough to be just a normal boy in a… relatively normal city… Leon, how bad is Night City?"
"It's a shit hole."
"O…kay… maybe I'm not so good at handling this subject. Just… David, no need to rush things, alright? I get that you're upset about our answers, but you have to realise that there are a lot of reasons why we won't allow a 17 year old to join the UNSC. Let alone the Spartan Branch. Trust me when I say this- if you jump into this that early, you're not gonna come out the other end intact. I've heard from Killshot that Genjiro's keen on tutoring you. That's good, isn't it?"
David blinked.
"I… guess…"
Washington nodded as he lightly tapped David's shoulder with his palm.
"Hey, words of encouragement? 7 months flies by quick. Although I'm not too happy with someone joining the army as soon as they turn 18, it's when you're a legal adult where you get to make choices for yourself and you take full responsibility for it, so not even I can stop you from joining the army then. Till then, just relax. Okay?"
David didn't answer, opting to move his gaze from Washington to the floor.
"Oookay… Leon, can you take him back to Earth, please?"
Leon responded with a silent salute as he snapped his fingers at David.
"Come on, Davey. Time to go back home. Hey, we can grab some burgers and fries on our way back if that'll cheer you up. Or maybe Tacos. Or Hot dogs. Whichever one you want."
David nodded as he turned around to follow Leon back out the office.
But before the two could leave, Washington called Leon back from his office.
"Oh, yeah- Leon?"
"Hmm?"
"I'll be telling the rest of you guys tomorrow, but we'll be restarting the other part of Project Freelancer. This time, instead of Spartan Fireteams bunching up together to be a mercenary and black ops, we're gonna have you guys try to blend in with pre-existing mercenary groups. You know, mix in with the natives to make sure you guys can keep working."
"… Riiight… Like that's gonna be easy." Leon replied while nodding in exaggerative motions.
"Which also means," Washington added. "That Fireteam Bodach is also gonna go down as part of Project Freelancer."
"Oh, fuck off!" Leon shouted in an exasperation and frustration tone.
David looked at Leon when the Spartan reacted, before Leon shouted at Washington.
"They're shit! They're absolute shit!"
"Hey, cut the shit Leon! Fireteam Bodach is still a capable Black Ops unit!"
"How the fuck is getting caught and surrounded by enemy forces every 1 out of 2 missions, a fucking capable Black Ops unit?! You might as well send out Fireteam Titan for the Project Freelancer while you're at it, judging by the fact that you don't give two shits about subtlety as the fucking bomb squad does!"
"They don't get caught every 1 out of 2 missions, you're exaggerating!"
"You sent us to bust their ass out every 5 minutes, how the fuck am I exaggerating?!"
Washington didn't answer for a full minute, standing there and staring at Leon from his office as David uncomfortably shifted in his shoes at the Spartan shouting match.
"… They're still good!"
"'They're still good' my goddamn ass, Wash! You're better off sending out Fireteam Sandman instead!"
"They're going down as part of Project Freelancer too!"
"OH, THAT'S JUST FUCKING PEACHY!" Leon shouted, before stomping away throwing his hands up in the air, not even bothering to wait for David to catch up to him. The kid looked a little dejectedly at all the other Spartans and ODSTs jogging around the ship, carrying cargo around and talking with each other. Witnessing Leon flip the bird at one of the Spartan Groups, who promptly returned the kind gesture with both their hands each.
Maybe there was something that could stop David after all.
… At least the Hot dogs tasted nice.