Into the Hive
Things had gotten quiet around Robin's neck of the woods. Apart from the usual clients and repairs he had to do, he'd taken time to scavenge more parts and pieces to keep tabs on the city. On his work bench was a frequency decoding machine he put together. It was bulky and some parts were exposed. With the flip of a switch, he would hear what was going on in the city, but for the most part it was all static or random music from the radio. Sighing, Robin went back to tuning up the antenna. His first radio interceptor glitched most of the time, but that was to be expected since he used three radios and a police scanner to make it work. By the twist of a nob and a few antennas scattered throughout the city, Robin would be capable of intercepting and listening in to any Arasaka frequency. Not bad for a quiet week for him.
"Yo! Rob! You in here?!"
Quiet being rather loosely.
Robin looked up from his work, spotting Rebecca walking towards him. And she wasn't alone. He quickly put a cover over his working radio interceptor before walking towards the entrance of the garage. Once there, he caught sight of two familiar faces and two new ones. Apart from Rebecca, he recognized Falco and next to him was Rebecca's brother, Pilar. He hadn't seen much of him but Becca had told him enough to know that he was a bit of a dumbass who couldn't keep his hands to himself. He did make a note to tell his home security to attack if he touched anything important.
Then his eyes landed on the other two new faces that Rebecca had brought over. The first one was a tall muscular woman built like a truck with short blonde hair, blue eyes with some cyberware on her right cheek and cybernetic fingers. She wore an open black jacket with blue lapel and neck with a pair of short shorts that left her chrome legs exposed and ready to fight if needed. The other guy was as big as Adam Smasher, muscular with chrome all over his tanned body with blonde hair styled like a flattop with an emphasis on the top part, a blonde goatee and dark eyes behind his sunglasses. He was dressed up like a military man, carrying an armless jacket with lots of pockets for ammo and other trinkets, a neon yellow inside neck, a red rag around his neck, army pants with lots of belts and army boots with armored knees and heels. If Robin had to describe them in one word it would be 'bosses'.
"Hey, Rebecca, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Robin asked.
"Well, Rob-"
"Huh? This the guy, Becca?" Pilar got in Robin's face, cutting off Rebecca. "He doesn't look so tough or anything. I bet he doesn't even have a piece to fight. So what's your story, bob? You and my sister seem to be getting a little chummy, choom. What's all that about?" Pilar poked at Robin's head, annoying him.
"Hey, Falco, your car need a hand or something? What seems to be the trouble?" Robin asked, looking at Falco.
"Hey, don't ignore me!" Pilar snapped only for Rebecca to kick him in the ass. "Ouch! Hey, Becca! Cut it out!" Rebecca continued kicking him for acting like a dumbass.
"The car drives like a charm, Robin. That's why we brought here someone that needs a hand with his ride." Falco gestured to two new faces. "These two are acquaintances of ours. The lady is Dorio and the handsome fella is Maine. Their usual mechanic is away so I figured it would be a good idea to bring them here. Hope you don't mind."
Robin looked at the two edgerunners and then at their car. It looked a little banged up almost as if they had crashed it against something or someone. The last thing he needed was to get caught in a cover up or a crime. But to come here in the middle of the day said something else. This could very well be just a couple of new clients. They were certainly eyeing him with curiosity.
"Not at all, Falco. So, what seems to be the problem?" Robin asked. "It looks like you crashed into something."
"The dumbass here didn't know when to stop now the car is busted." Dorio elbowed Maine with a glare.
"It doesn't look so bad, I'm gonna have to pop open the hood and see if there's any damage." Robin looked at the motor, noting a few things that would cause some problems if they weren't taken care off. "What exactly did you hit? This doesn't look like a lamp post."
"Some dumbass driver that should've looked where he was driving." Maine shrugged.
"Did the guy walk afterwards? It doesn't look like a body rolled on top of the car, so you did a good thing at stopping after you hit them." Robin pulled up a few of the cables. "At most, you'll have to get these replaced as well as the busted headlights. If you don't, then you run the risk of having the ignition short out on you or worse, it could lead to an electric fire. I think I've got the cables to fix it."
Maine looked at Robin, trying to get a read on him. He'd met a lot of punks in his day but this guy was not like any of them. Every step he took was calculated, keeping to himself before slowly opening to others. The tone he had with him and Dorio was a lot more professional than with Rebecca and Falco. It was probably because he didn't know them. Maine couldn't blame the guy for keeping his cards close to his chest.
"Alright, see what you can do." Maine shrugged.
Robin pulled out some cables and started doing his magic. As he worked, he could tell that Maine was keeping an eye on him. Probably to see what he was doing or something. But his first guess was that Maine was looking for any signs of chrome in him. Not that he could blame him for being curious.
"Huh, so Becca and Falco were telling the truth," Maine said. "You really are all meat, huh?"
"Apart from a few scars both mental and physical, I am." Robin just smirked as he finished doing his work.
"Yep, he's all natural," Rebecca said. "Though the dinging of his massive balls makes me wonder."
"Let's keep it family friendly, Rebecca. Your brother is right there," Robin said.
"Ha! Like I give a crap about what you have between you legs, dumbass. In fact, I wouldn't even blink if someone shot them off and stomped on them!" Pilar got in Robin's face once more. "You may think you're better than me but let me tell you, you ain't. Being Becca's boy toy isn't gonna save you from an ass whooping when I'm done with you. So keep your friendly BS to yourself. I'm onto you, you-"
Click.
"You what?" Mrs. Adonis asked as she stepped up with a couple of her own guards. "Please, continue, young man. Unless there is a problem here." Her two armed guards aimed their guns at Pilar's head, causing him to flinch before pulling his own piece at them. "Is there a problem here, señor?"
Say what you will about Mrs. Adonis, but she was one tough and scary lady. She took the security of her people and the residents of the borough very seriously. And that often led to pulling up and throwing hands with a bunch of edgerunners if they stepped out of line. She had been around this city for a long time. She'd seen edgerunners like Pilar and Maine come and go and yet she was still standing while everyone else was six feet under. Those weren't good odds for Pilar or anyone else.
Robin however, didn't want one stray bullet to damage or make his work a waste of a whole week. He stepped up, holding his hands up.
"There's no problem here, Mrs. Adonis." Robin spoke up. "Just a big brother running his mouth. Nothing to get into a fight about. Right, Pilar?" Robin looked at Pilar with a glare that said 'do what I say and maybe you don't get pumped full of led'.
"Like hell do I need some, g-!" Pilar was cut short when Maine punched him over the head and Rebecca kicked him in the nuts.
Robin couldn't help but wince at the double knock out that had just been served.
"Sorry, ma'am, we just came here to get my car looked at. My associate here spoke good things about this dog's skills," Maine said. "We were just about to pay him and be on our way. Last thing we want is to start a fight over nothing." Maine picked up Pilar before tossing him inside the car with Dorio closing the door behind him.
"Then I suggest you get on your way, señor." Mrs. Adonis signaled her men to stand down.
Maine transferred some Eddies to Robin's account before going for his car.
"One more thing. Have either of you seen or run into someone wearing a Sandevistand?" Maine asked.
Robin had heard Rebecca mention that piece of Chrome before, and had heard in the news that someone had gone psycho with a piece like that. He'd done some research and it turned out that it was a military grade chrome spine that made the user go super fast for brief instances. Definitely something he should be on the lookout for.
"Sorry, but I only put cars and machines together. Chrome is someone else's business." Robin replied.
"Alright, see ya around then." Maine drove off in his ride, leaving Rebecca and Falco with Robin.
As soon as he left, Mrs. Adonis and her guards left the area, giving the two edgerunners a look of warning.
"Sorry about that, my bro tends to bark more than any annoying pest. One of these days I'll end up killing him for screaming about how cool he is." Rebecca put her hands behind her back. "But hey, at least you and Maine got off on the right foot."
"Yeah, I guess that's a win. I know this isn't my business, but why is he looking for that piece of chrome?" Robin asked. "He looked pretty armed and ready to me."
"Maine isn't the type to slow down for anyone but himself. And in Night City, the more powerful the chrome, the more likely you are to be at the top," Falco said. "There ain't many who can say they aren't trying to reach the top. Though, there are many who're remembered more for how they died than how they lived."
Robin looked down at Rebecca. It was no secret that the edgerunner career was not for the faint of heart or for those that wanted to live forever. The saying 'beware an old man in a game where men die young' was almost tailor made for the edgerunner lifestyle. And after meeting Pilar face to face, Robin was pretty sure that if Rebecca didn't follow through with her own threat, then it would be someone else. After losing Doc, the idea of losing someone close haunted him even if he had gone in peace.
"Let's change the subject. So, do you have any plans for later? We're going to meet up at a good joint in the city in case you wanna come," Rebecca said.
Robin was about to answer when some of his ants called to him. He turned around to see a light blinking from the radio interceptor.
"I'll have to get back to you on that one. Someone asked me to put their new stereo back together and I gotta come through." Robin shrugged.
"Man, another picnic. That sucks." Rebecca turned to Falco. "Let's go." She jumped into the car, leaving Falco and Robin.
Robin was about to walk back into his garage when Falco sighed.
"You know, you can't stay in the shadows forever, right?" Robin turned to face Falco, ready with a witty retort only for Falco to continue. "Listen, I can't make you do anything, Rob. But I've seen guys like you before. They hide for some reason or another, looking over their shoulder type. But you're a little different. No one seems to be looking for you and yet you keep yourself at a distance. Some might say you just do this because you don't know how to open up or don't want to. Just think about your situation and see if it's really worth keeping yourself hidden." Falco turned to his car before driving off with Rebecca in tow.
Robin looked down at his feet, thinking about Falco's words. The darkness of his garage and workshop beckoned him to go through with the mission. He still wanted to make Arasaka pay for what they'd done to him and Doc. But Falco was right, once that was done, what would he have left. His old life was gone and had been for two years. Could he really live outside who and what he was becoming? There was so much in his head buzzing that he almost forgot the beeping noises of the radio interceptor.
Taking off the cover, he put on a pair of headphones and pressed play.
"Alright, choom, I'm in on your little test drive."
"Good. We'll deliver the piece and the enhancements at these coordinates. Come alone."
"Jeesh. Make it more ominous to the girl. Why don't you just say, 'come alone to the dark corner of the city where no one can see or hear you'? It sounds a little less sinister than you chooms say."
"..."
"Oh shit, you want me to go there? Man, talk about a cliche. Just know that I won't hesitate to claw out your eyes if you try anything funny."
"The warning is acknowledged. But don't worry, this is all strictly business, not pleasure."
"Baby, my business is pleasure."
Robin wrote down the coordinates as the transmission ended between the transmission ended. Arasaka was moving and putting another piece of dangerous tech out on the streets, tech mostly likely made out of what they stole from Alchemax. The perfect distraction from the questions of where his life was going. He might not have everything figured out, but Robin would not let these people put the tech others invented just to make a profit at the cost of others.
"Sorry, Falco, but I have other matters to attend to. And that means crashing a party," Robin said. "Time to suit up." He summoned his ants with his command over them.
Robin flew through the air on top of one of his ants as he followed up the frequency of the transmission. Arming himself with his fixed blaster and his new short sword, he was aiming for a quick hit and run strategy to bring down the Arasaka corpos and whoever they were setting up with the tech. The flight had given him time to think about who he could be going up against. The Arasaka goons would most likely have some muscle by their side, either hired by the company or through one of the middlemen handlers he'd heard about. The one they were giving the tech was a complete mystery and that was a problem. By the voices in the conversation, it had been a woman. Perhaps another edgerunner from a gang wanting to get one up on the other gangs? Or maybe the owner of a bar or location that had to do with pleasure. Maybe he was overthinking things. He would hit them fast and hit them harder than they could get back up.
He commanded his ants to go down to the edge of the tall building next to the location. The transmission coordinates hadn't lied, the spot looked like a dark and shady dump. An old abandoned building that was covered in graffiti and garbage bags that had been washed away by the rain, time and other people just forgetting about them. There were cracks on the floors, walls and ceilings of the whole place, rats, roaches and other insects had made it their home. Probably the only wild animal sanctuary that could survive in Night City. Some parts had bullet holes on them and show that the only reason people would come here would be to test out their new guns or chrome. It was both sad and beneficial to Robin in the long run.
To most, it would be the worst place to sneak in and spy in a strange new deal between Arasaka and another person. But most people didn't have what Robin had: being the smallest thing around and an army. He jumped off of his flying ant, landing on the ground before pressing his hand on his helmet.
"Alright, guys, time to rally the troops." Robin commanded through his helmet, reaching out to every single one of the ants around him and on that floor.
The sound of thousands of heavy feet stomped towards him like a marching band of elephants armed to the teeth. To many, it would be a freaky sight, but to Robin, it reminded him that he wasn't alone and was ready for a fight. He reached out into their mind with his helmet, looking for the answers that he needed. The ants before him replied in kind.
"How long ago did they arrive?" Robin asked.
The ants chirped and buzzed.
"That's good. Let's get to it then." Robin jumped on top of one of the ants before riding down to where the corpos waited.
Going through the cracks in the building, Robin and the ants arrived to see three corpos from Arasaka waiting patiently for their contact. They carried a large package with them that screamed dangerous to everyone else. Robin spotted the three of them packing some big guns tucked away inside their coats as they looked for any signs of their contact. It looked like this would be another quick and deadly strike against the corporate goons Arasaka sent out to make deliveries. He commanded the ants to move into position as the corpos started talking to each other.
"This place reeks." One of the corpos kicked a can away. "Couldn't we have made the delivery in some place nicer? Like one that didn't come with the threat of turning stomachs?" He put his hand over his nose, not noticing the ants slowly making their way through the room.
"Oh yeah, let's do this in the middle of a nice little cafe in the middle of downtown where everyone can see what we've got," the corpo next to the first one joked. "Dumbass. They wouldn't have sent us here if it wasn't important to keep it under wraps. This thing needs to be tested before it's sent out."
"Considering who we're delivering this to? It's probably for the best," another corpo replied as the ants climbed up his clothes. "But she is taking her sweet time. Dumb bitch."
"I heard someone calling my name~!"
The three corpos and Robin turned to the source of the singing voice. Then as soon as they did, they all heard something rolling down at their feet. The room filled up with colorful yellow and pink smoke, making all the corpos freak out. Robin wasn't faring any better, he was coughing and having a hard time figuring out what was going on. All he could do was hope the corpos didn't do something hasty. Which of course they did.
They pulled out their guns, coughing as they looked for their attacker. Then amidst the smoke, a slender figure with glowing yellow eyes started to sing.
"Istanbul was Constantinople! Now it's Istanbul, not Constantinople~!
Been a long time gone, Constantinople. Now it's Turkish delight on the moonlit night~!"
The corpos started shooting at the silhouette who dodged all the bullets with ease. They could barely see the silhouette, but they fired regardless. The figure continued singing as they danced and spun around the three corpos. It was all a game to them and they were liking it.
"Every gal in Constantinople Lives in Istanbul, not Constantinople~! SO if you've got a date in Constantinople, She'll be waiting in Istanbul~!
Even old New York was once New Amsterdam~. Why they changed it I can't say~!"
The figure slithered around the corpos making them hit each other before disarming them. Their guns flew away from them before the figure continued singing in their ears. The more the song played, the more angry and wild the corpos behaved. Even Robin wasn't unaffected by it. His mind flashed to moments of rage and anger where he had to cut loose and crack some skulls. But to him, it was more like a migraine while for the corpos it was more of a drill digging into their heads.
"People just liked it better that way~! So take me back to Constantinople! No you can't go back to Constantinople! Been a long time gone, Constantinople!
Why did Constantinople get the works? That's nobody's business but the Turks~!"
A long sticky substance hit the three corpos in the chest, knocking them back. As they fell to the ground, the figure stood before them spreading the smoke away. Now the figure stood out before the three corpos and the slightly dazed Ant-Runner.
She was a tall woman with dirty blond pixie cut hair with bright yellow stripes running along the sides, four cybernetic arms and sharp fangs. She had sunglasses that looked like the eyes of a bug. She wore a full black, yellow and pink catsuit. Her outfit was all black with neon pink and yellow rings on her arms and legs, a pink midriff and a yellow heart on her chest. She wore black high heels with sharp stinger-like ends and walked like she owned the place, almost as if it were a castle and not a dump. In her hands she held yellow blasters with a strange gooey solution sticking out from them. They looked like a combination between a water gun and a bee.
"Q-B is in the house!" She twirled her blasters before putting them on her back. "You liked the song, right? I saw it and was like, Q-B, babe, you gotta play that bitching song. It was totally nova, wasn't it?" She skipped and spun in place but the three corpos didn't reply, they just laid there.
Robin rubbed his head, groaning as it throbbed like a ticking time bomb. The last time he'd been like that, he had been caught off guard by someone playing some loud music next to his ear. It was one of the reasons why he didn't go out to nightclubs, but this one felt different. It felt like someone had whispered into his ear in hopes of making him do something crazy. Whatever it was, it had to do with the woman called Q-B.
"Hello~? You heard me, right?" Q-B poked one of the corpos only for her to get nothing. "Well, at least I know my babies work. Complete neural freeze with one shot of these. Add a little hacking through sound waves and these guys are now my drones." She opened one of the corpos' eyes, revealing it to be glowing bright neon pink.
Q-B shrugged before snatching the suitcase from the hands of the corpo. Using her four arms, she opened it up to reveal a necklace and a pair of gloves connected between them by cables. There were bright blue circles on the back of the hands and a circle around the necklace. She laughed at the equipment before her.
"Now, what does this pretty thing do?" Q-B asked, kicking one of the corpos. "Seriously, man. What does it do? Something good?"
The corpo stood up like a marionette being strung up by invisible strings. He turned to Q-B with a creepy wide smile and glowing pink eyes.
"The necklace and gloves are known as the Claw Circuitry, my queen." The corpo spoke as though he was in the middle of a dream. "It is the newest in the field of converting soundwaves into energy and vice versa. With this piece of Chrome, you could turn your singing into powerful sonic attacks or turn all the noise around you into a shield should you wish it. Plus, I think it goes good with your eyes."
"Aw, aren't you a sweetheart. Where did you come up with this idea?" Q-B asked as sh took out the pieces of Chrome.
"We didn't. It was passed onto Arasak by a mole we had in Alchemax." The corpo blurted out, giggling.
Robin narrowed his eyes at the claim. He'd see the piece destroyed and those responsible pay for what they had done. Shaking his head, he prepared his ants for another attack on their enemy.
"Oh so you copied someone else's homework to get the job done?" Q-B asked. "Just for that, you get no money. But make it look like you received the money and then sent it to some other account rather than Arasaka. Think of it as punishment for doing this." Q-B put the collar on herself before detaching her two upper hands before putting on the new hands of the Claw Circuitry.
The corpo did as Q-B commanded only for him and the other two to feel a painful bite down their necks. Q-B looked back as the three corpos cried out in pain, shaking as they were attacked by something invisible.
"What the fuck?" Q-B asked only for Robin to jump up to her stomach and punch her.
Q-B was pushed back, feeling like her stomach had just been made friends with someone's fist. Her eyes quickly scanned the room for anyone wearing a protective or cloaking device, but she got nothing. She was positive that she was the only one with a mind of her own in the room. But another punch to the jaw told her otherwise. She pulled out her gooey blaster and started firing them in the direction of the attacks.
Robin rode on top of his flying ant, going around and dodging the gooey bullets. He didn't know what to expect from the attacks or if they would even work on him. He jumped over the last bullet, as the ant dove under it. Hitting the growth button on his suit, Robin grew back to his normal size. With a swift move, he unsheathed his short vibrating blade, cutting the gooey blasters with one horizontal motion. The look of surprise on her face was to be expected, but he wasn't gonna give her any time to react. He fired his grappling hook past Q-B's head, pulling himself towards her. He stomped his feet against her chest, sending her to the ground.
Q-B groaned in pain at the surprise attack. She tried to get up but stopped herself at the sight of a blaster aimed at her face.
"Stand down. I'll be taking those hands and that necklace." Robin didn't want to fire at her, but he needed to get the message across. "Take them off slowly."
"Yeah, I bet that works with all the dolls and gals you go out with~." Q-B watched him like a lioness about to pounce. "So, you're the famous Ant-Runner. I guessed because of the badass ant-themed helmet and the hoodie. Very badass. But I'm afraid that I can't give this up, not even for a hottie like you."
"And why is that?" Robin asked, narrowing his eyes.
"I need them for a concert I'm playing and that's going to be a major riot, man." Q-B chuckled as the gloves started to glow. "And trust me, you are gonna want to be there to hear me roar!" Q-B opened her palms, sending two sonic blasts at Robin, pushing him back into the ceiling.
Robin fell to the ground as Q-B flipped herself back to her feet. Her eyes glowed as she tried to hack Robin, but quickly found out that he wasn't like the others.
"Huh? Not wired like the others? That's kinda cheating." Q-B pouted before dodging a blast from Robin.
"I like to think of myself as an independent thinker!" Robin aimed his blaster, firing at her over and over.
Q-B dodged the blasts with ease, dancing around them like they were flashing lights in a club. The feeling of heat and the closeness to danger brought a smile to her face as she danced. She jumped over Robin, kicking him in the back. She prepared to fire her sonic blasts once more, but they were out of juice.
"Seriously? Talk about a one and done." Q-B pouted as she put them to charge from the noises around her.
Robin jumped back in, kicking her in the stomach. He ducked, dodged and blocked her punches as she screamed like a banshee. She might've packed a punch with her chrome, but her hand-to-hand was garbage against him. He parried a left hook before slamming her against the corpos. Pulling out his blaster once more, he had the shot but didn't fire.
"Drop them. Final warning." Robin got ready to fire.
And Q-B took notice of this.
"Oh, I see, you don't like killing gonks. That's cool. But it will bite you in the ass, hon," Q-B said. "This is the world stage and no one is gonna roll over. Time to hit the metal to the pedal!"
"That's not how it goes." Robin narrowed his eyes.
"To me it does!" Q-B's gloves and necklace turned up, blasting Robin with a powerful sonic blast. "Hope to see you later, choomba~! By this time tomorrow, I'll be the queen of this city and so much more~!"
He crashed against the walls, breaking through them. Getting up, he spotted the ceiling falling down on him. He quickly shrunk down as the rubble fell on top of him. Narrowly, he escaped being crushed, but his head was ringing loudly. Everything went black as Robin fell down.
Robin groaned as he felt mandibles nudging him. He looked up to see the ants around him, like faithful dogs caring for him while he was out cold. He rubbed their heads, patting them as they helped him to his feet.
"Good guys, and girls," Robin rubbed the back of his head. "I gotta start thinking about names for you guys. How long was I out?"
The ants communicated with him, telling him he'd been out for at least an hour. Not a long time, but it was enough for Q-B to take her leave and leave him in the rubble. The machine she had taken was indeed dangerous, and if it was powered up by her singing then it could be a danger out on the street. Also, the way that she hacked and spoke about rioting sent him all sorts of red flags his way. He needed to find her quickly. Getting on one of his flying ants, he took off to do some investigating on his own.
"Alright, that girl didn't look like she was very into hiding, which means that finding her shouldn't be hard," Robin flew out into the streets of Night City.
Robin looked around the area, hoping for clues or something that could tell him about where the edgerunner had gone off to. He communicated with other ants and insects in a five mile radius. But each and every single one of them told him the same thing. Nothing. None of them had seen, smelled or even acknowledged the lady in question. Then again, he shouldn't have been that surprised that no insects had paid her any mind.
Robin sighed in frustration at the deadend. He thought of hacking the cameras and getting the recordings for any source of information they could give him. But that would take too much time and her words made him realize that she had plans he didn't want to see happening. Thus he arrived at the only sensible conclusion that he could come up with. He needed to make a call to the only edgerunner contact that he could trust.
He paced back and forth as he made the call. His stomach felt like it was trembling, as if he had a whole colony of ants inside his stomach. He didn't know why he felt so anxious about the call. He'd talked to girls before. Hell, he'd talked with her just a few hours ago.
"Yo. Robin, that you, choom?" Rebecca answered the call, almost making Robin drop his phone.
"Um, y-yeah, Rebecca. It's me." Robin caught his phone and started talking. "Is this a good time?" Robin heard some yelling and cursing in the background.
"Yeah, it's cool. Just my bro trying to woo some three breasted whore that claims to be from space. So, what's up, choom? Everything good?" Rebecca asked. "You need a hand in some tough case you're working on?"
"N-No, nothing like that. Well, kinda. There was a funky lady here not long ago that left without paying and I was wondering if you'd heard anything about her," Robin said. "She called herself Q-B, had four cybernetic arms, sunglasses that looked like big eyes, sang a lot-"
"YOU FREAKING MET Q-B! Holy fuck, choom! You better not be screwing with me!" Rebecca screamed over the call, almost leaving Robin deaf in one ear. "I mean, wow, I can't believe Pilar missed his dream girl for five minutes! Ha! I gotta tell him!"
"So, you know her? Is she famous?" Robin asked.
"I mean, she is a very good DJ Pop Star, I've caught a few of her tunes on the web. But not really my thing," Rebecca explained. "My bro and every male that's a fan of her wants to bang her. Even some of the girls. Apart from that, she's pretty down in the totem pole in terms of street cred. She may act tough, but she's mostly known for one thing." Rebecca's tone turned a bit more serious.
"And what would that be?" Robin asked.
"The huge riots he concerts tend to turn into. And I mean riots as in get the 'police involved' riots." Rebecca emphasized that part in particular.
Robin narrowed his eyes as he remembered what had happened to the corpos when she sang. They went wild and dangerous. They became her pawns and practically did everything that she asked. Had he not taken them out, they probably would've attacked him without a second thought.
"Which is kinda weird if you ask me. But it seems that crime explodes whenever she plays one of her gigs. There's even one later today. You wanna go?" Rebecca asked. "No-wait, damn it. Maine has a job for me. Can't go out. But hey, if you want, you can swing by the Afterlife and have a drink with us."
"Thanks, Rebecca. I'll try to settle this and see if I can make it." Robin replied. "See you there."
"That's a promise, choom. Hey bro-!" Rebecca cut the call, leaving Robin with his own thoughts.
Q-B was clearly a different type of netrunner. She could hack people with her song and her gooey material increased the effectiveness of her hacking. Could it be possible that she was using a combination of hacking and hallucinogenic chemicals to make people follow her orders? That probably led to him being partially affected. And now she had a weapon that could let her control and use sonic blasts for her every whim. Paired that with a concert, it would be disastrous. He had to…
"…Did I just tell Rebecca that I'd be there?" Robin asked himself before shaking his head. "Gotta focus. The mission comes first." He got on top of the ant and took to the skies.
But as he flew through the air, he remembered Falco's words. He could not stay on his own forever. The only reason he kept his distance was because he had already lost everything he had. But now? He was free from any attachments and possibilities that could come his way. His bare necessities were being met but was that enough? Regardless of whether it was some part of his subconscious telling him to go out and find company or his own desire for intimacy, he needed to do something. Even if it was risky.
"First, Q-B, then we'll see what we do about the loneliness and the other stuff." Robin flew through the air with his ant.
After two hours of searching online and around the city, Robin had gotten a lead. Rebecca wasn't kidding, Q-B was planning on having a very big concert on the westside of the city. He saw the lights flashing up into the clouds as he and his small army flew towards the concert hall. It was hard to spot it at first but there was no doubt that this was where Q-B was preparing to make her move and sing her songs.
Robin narrowed his eyes at the sight of the growing audience of fans. If she turned all these people into her obedient zombies then they could cause some major damage to the westside. Worst case scenario, the police would get involved and arrest or shoot everyone. No, the worst case scenario would be if the anti-cyber psycho unit MaxTac got involved. It would be a massacre. He needed to find her and take her down before she started singing.
"Fifteen minutes before the concert starts," Robin said. "Just enough time to make a little modification to the helmet." Robin directed his ants down on top of a speaker.
He grew back to his normal size, snatching up some of the equipment pieces scattered around. He quickly put them together, making a pair of headphones that could protect his ears. They were big and would make his balance suck as long as his helmet had them on. But at least his ears wouldn't bleed from the sonic blasts. Putting his helmet back on, he looked around for the DJ Pop Star herself.
"Come on, where are you, you maniac?" Robin grunted, pulling out his blaster.
Screens lit up with animations of beating hearts surrounded by music beats. The flashing lights lit up as the whole crowd got up close and personal to the stage. The silhouette of Q-B was illuminated by flashing lights. It grew larger and larger until it became a large yellow hologram of Q-B. Her naughty smile was enough to send Robin into full combat mode.
"Are you all ready for the show?!" Q-B's large hologram asked.
Her fans exploded in an uproar of cheers and laughs as Q-B seemed to revel in it.
"I can't hear you!" Q-B smirked, putting her hand next to her ear. "Say it louder!"
The fans screamed in response to her smirk. She kept on walking towards them like a model on a catwalk. It would've been an amazing spectacle to see, but her intentions were far darker and chaotic than to just make her fans appreciate her music. Her collar and gloves glowed up as they became charged with energy and power. If anything, this meant that she was ready to blast her way through MaxTac and the police should her mood point her in that direction. And she looked all but ready to do so.
The large Q-B hologram opened her mouth, revealing the real Q-B stepping out onto the stage. Raising one hand into the air, she gave her awaiting fans a smile that bordered between mischievous and evil.
"Then let's get it started!" Q-B screamed as the music started beating, the lights started flashing and the crowd was going wild. "For the next three hours, your asses are mine!"
Q-B pulled out a DJ booth and started, playing her music like the world was her stage.
"Cotton Candy~! Cotton Candy~! Cotton Candy~!
Candy! Candy! Candy! Candy! Candy! Candy! Candy~!
Hey! I'm what you need, I'm what you want. I've got it all, a carnival~"
She sang as the entire concert lit up in a sea of bright yellow and pink lights. She was singing her heart out as everyone looked at her like she was the source of all light. It was her circus and she loved it.
"I'll bring you up, I'll take you down~. I'm sticky sweet, stuck in your teeth like Cotton Candy~!
Cotton Candy~! Ah-ah! Ah-ah~! Cotton Candy~! Ah-ah! Ah-ah! Cotton Candy~! Ah-ah! Ah-ah~!
I'm what you want, not what you need! Ah-ah! Ah-ah!"
Robin closed his eyes, making sure that his modifications were working. He waited, hearing noise was being canceled and he could move without issues. Using the flashing lights and the shadows to make his way through the stage, Robin tried his best to stay out of sight. He caught sight of the people in the audience, seeing their eyes turning pink. Even if he didn't hear what was being sang, he could tell her hacking was making its way through their brains. Some already started swinging wildly and picking up fights with each other. If this was only a few minutes he did not look forward to three hours of this.
"I don't know why I'm what you want but it's the truth~!
I'm not your lie. Let them eat cake, let them eat pie~! Or better yet, let them eat Cotton Candy~! Cotton Candy~! Ah-ah! Ah-ah~!
Cotton Candy~! Ah-ah! Ah-ah~! Cotton Candy~! Ah-ah! Ah-ah~! I'm what you want, not what you need! Cotton Candy skies sweet as apple pie!
I can't help but shine brighter than the starlight in the sky~!"
Q-B watched as her fans started dancing and some fighting, ready to go out and spread her music to all the corners of the city. She fired her gooey guns into the sky, spreading her solution through the air and hitting everyone. Her hacking plus her solution were the perfect combination of hacking. While other netrunners focused on the electrical chrome brains and implants people had installed, she focused on the organic parts of the brain to make them her puppets. The ears, nose and mouth all were connected to the brain and could be used to alter the chemistry. Like a queen bee to her subjects, she could command them like a queen, or a very influential DJ Pop star influencer. Why nitpick.
"Alright babies, let's get this groove through the whole city!" Q-B called out! "Everyone with a weapon better be ready to use it! I want chaos, I want broken bones, I want it all baby! I want-"
"You to stop this madness." Robin pressed his blaster on the back of Q-B's head. "Your little coup d'etat is over, Q-B."
Q-B smiled as she looked back to the Ant-Runner.
"Anty, so good to see you again." Q-B giggled. "So glad that you didn't get squashed by the rubble. No hard feelings?"
"Of course, if you tell your fans to stand down." Robin was ready to fire, even if he didn't like it.
"Sorry, gonna have to take it with security." Q-B pointed behind Robin.
He turned around to see the three corpos from before aiming their guns at him. They fired, forcing Robin to shrink down. He dodged the bullets by the skin of his teeth, but he still had to fight them back. They fired around Q-B, hoping to hit him. A shot nearly got him, forcing him to jump to the side. He continued running, jumping over the random shots that nearly got him. He extended his arm, firing his grappling hook at the first corpo's gun.
Robin flew through the air, being pulled by the hammer of the gun all the way up. He released his grappling hook, jumping straight at the man's face. With a punched reeled back, Robin cracked the corpo across the face, breaking his nose in the process. As the corpo stumbled back, he ran on his shoulder as the other two corpos fired in his direction. He ducked under one bullet as it passed over him, hitting the corpo behind him. He jumped over another bullet before growing back to his full size slamming his forearm on the corpo's throat.
His eyes landed on the other corpo as he was about to aim his gun at him. He grabbed his gun and hand, pulling him under his right arm. The corporate stooge threw a left hook at Robin, only to hit the helmet. More specifically, one of the headphones. But that didn't deter the Ant-Runner. Robin punched back the corpo in the face before twisting his arm. He aimed the corpo's pistol at the DJ booth, letting him fire his gun until it was empty.
Q-B spun out of the way, letting the bullets hit her equipment. Sparks started flying all over the stage, much to her displeasure. She still had her pawns, but she was not a fan of someone destroying her things and cutting her fun short. She turned to Robin, glaring at him as he still held the corpo agent back with his arm around his throat.
"Sorry to cut your show short, Q-B," Robin said. "But the noise complaints people were receiving were calling for some serious action. Surrender now."
"Not happening baby!" Q-B fired her sonic gloves at Robin.
Robin released the corpo agent, shrinking down as the corpo took the blunt of the attack. She was blasting everything in sight, sending pieces of equipment and stage flying. Robin ran as fast as he could, avoiding the attacks as best as he could but every step sent him flying into the air. He jumped off of a broken piece of a guitar to grab hold of a flying piece of board. He jumped on top of a microphone only to be knocked for a loop and forced to make a hasty landing on the ground. He rolled over the ground as his mind was triggered with images of anger. His last two years flashed before his eyes, followed by the faces of those that had taken everything from him.
From Cross to Adam Smasher to Arasaka's executives that screwed him and the doc over to stop them from helping the world. But they weren't what made Robin the angriest. He saw all the things he'd had in life and lost because of them. His home, his job, his prestige, his way of life. His eyes narrowed as he glared at Q-B. She was making him angry and he needed to take it out on someone.
Robin sprinted across the stage, summoning his ants from underneath the stage. Hopping on top of one, they flew around the sonic blasts, avoiding them as best as they could. Some got hit, but Robin never lost focus. The ants flew and swarmed around Q-B, making her step back and stumble as they circled her. He commanded the ants to bite down on her exposed flesh, giving him the chance to pull out his short sword.
With a swift cut, he sliced through the two cables that connected the necklace to the gloves. Q-B's hands dropped with no power.
"What the hell?" Q-B asked, just as Robin appeared before her with his blaster ready to fire. "Oh, here comes the good guy to arrest me? Not before I send every single one of my fans to wreak havoc across the city-!"
Robin fired at Q-B, hitting her square on the chest. As she fell to the ground, Robin's mind cleared up. It wasn't his first kill but it was the first one driven by rage. A nasty taste in his mouth was left as he saw her body fall to the floor. He didn't like it, but he needed to use it sometimes.
"Sorry, show's over." Robin took the chrome off of her before shrinking down.
Robin flew through the air on top of his flying ant. He rubbed his head as he still thought of what had happened. Taking down another human being like that wasn't right. But at the same time, he gave her a chance to come quietly and give up the Arasaka chrome. She would've unleashed innocent people to destroy the city to take it over. No more than zombies that she was willing to throw under the bus to make her way to the top. The body count would've been far too high for anyone to stomach, not to mention that she would've caused a lot of destruction with that chrome. Arasaka didn't care. They needed a lab rat to test stuff they stole so they could sell it to the highest bidders.
But that wasn't all that was bothering him. He looked around and saw that he was alone, and had no one but the ants to unload all his loneliness. It was what he needed to keep his secrets safe, but just like an ant colony needed many ants to keep it running and for each to rely on others, he needed people around him.
"What do you guys think?" Robin asked his ants as they landed on top of a lamp post. "Should I go and have a go at this? I don't feel like being alone for the moment."
The ants all chirped and buzzed around him, giving him their own thoughts on the situation. It was muddy and a little all over the place, but he knew that they were trying their best. He couldn't help but smile at the words of the wise ants.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Robin turned to a glowing sign across the street.
"-And it would appear that the DJ Pop star Q-B had a chrome malfunction after three rogue Arasaka employees fired upon her and her equipment. Arasaka executives have yet to issue a response to these actions and we await to hear what they have to say about the situation."
"Man, this is so boring!" Rebecca groaned as she watched the news in the Afterlife bar after finishing their job. "Hey Johnny, can't you put something better? Like a movie or some cool anime?"
Johnny turned around, revealing that he was a robot with long thin arms with three fingers in each hand, a skinny metallic torso, and all terrain continuous track bands for legs. His head looked like a pair of binoculars with eyebrows meant to show emotion by all the wiggling and movement. And on his back was a tool box filled with tools and a few cleaning utensils.
"You got it, Rebecca." Johnny changed the channel showing a soccer game playing on the other side of the world. "There we go, some nice sports. Everyone loves those, right?"
"Meh," Rebecca groaned.
"You, um, need another drink, Rebecca?" Johnny asked. "You've only taken… a sip from this one. Something wrong?" Johnny's eyebrows moved, showing his curiosity.
"I was kinda looking forward to seeing some guy. He's cool and doesn't take crap from no one. He also has some big ass balls!" Rebecca gulped on her drink. "But it looks like the rat bastard gonk isn't gonna show. Well, who cares?"
Rebecca's job had been pretty boring and even with everyone celebrating with a drink and some fun, she wasn't much in the mood. Not even her brother's tricks with his chrome hands could cheer her up. It didn't help that he, Maine and Dorio had left to answer a call from the newbie, Lucy. Plus, there was another reason to be in a crummy mood. She was looking forward to seeing Robin and getting to know the guy.
Johnny refilled Rebecca's drink, patting her on the head to calm her down. He may have been a bot but he had some semblance of a heart.
"There, there." Johnny spotted someone walking towards the bar. "Oh, a new face, what can I get you sir?"
"I'll have what she's having. Assuming it doesn't knock me on my ass."
Rebecca turned around, seeing Robin standing there.
"Hey, sorry I'm late. The bouncer at the concert wouldn't let me in." Robin smirked sheepishly. "So, what's good here?"
"Y-Y-You actually came?" Rebecca asked, not believing her eyes.
"I figured, I was in the neighborhood and this seemed like a good place to take a drink." Robin shrugged. "You weren't waiting long, were you?"
"Me? Wait for a guy? Never." Rebecca played it cool.
"She was about to call it a night and shoot some poor gonk before you showed up." Falco walked up to them. "Good to see you, kid. No jobs tonight?"
"It was a little too quiet. Figured I had to at least see some of Night City's nightlife before becoming a hermit," Robin said. "So, what's good to drink here?"
"You could have some fizzy soda if you wanna start soft, or a Cuban if you want a little more edge, sir." Johnny recommended, lifting a pair of bottles. "The name is Johnny Five, nice to meet you by the way."
"Robin, pleasure's all mine. If you need repairs, I'm your guy." Robin shook Johnny's hand. "I'll start with a soda. Someone needs to stay sober around here." Robin smirked before Rebecca jumped on top of him.
"Choomba, this will be the last night you're ever sober if I can help it!" Rebecca laughed.
It was loud and full of dangerous people. But in a way, Robin felt like this was a good place to start being more social and maybe more. The world was dangerous, but there were many wonders out there to explore and discover. And a part of him knew that this was the start of something more than anyone knew.