"Yo, morning, Andy. I'm not late, am I?"
"8:10. Not a minute off."
"Looks like I've got a pretty decent sense of time after all."
Watching KK chat naturally with Captain Andy, the rookie from the NCPD Special Operations Unit was a bit dazed.
But it wasn't meeting KK that stunned him—though seeing him in real life for the first time was certainly surprising. What really had him thrown was...
Why the hell had a dog driven KK here?
The rookie had been a top student at a Santo Domingo community school, with grades good enough to land him a job at a small corp. He knew what dogs were. But a dog that could drive? And even drove a Hera to drop KK off?
What the hell? Braindances were one thing—pure entertainment—but KK in real life was even more bizarre than in a BD. Even fantasy BDs wouldn't dare try a setup like this.
While the rookie spaced out, Karl noticed the young man sticking close to Andy and casually asked, "A rookie? You're taking on mentees now?"
"This one's a standout from Santo Domingo. During his internship, he helped take down a group of Maelstromers causing trouble—alongside a few other cadets and patrol officers. Not bad, huh? Our Special Ops rookies are the real deal."
Andy actually cracked a smile while talking about the kid—rare for someone usually so composed. Clearly, he was proud. The rookie had done well enough to stir some sense of achievement in him.
"Taking down a squad of Maelstromers during your internship? That's no joke," Karl said. "No wonder you've got your eye on him."
Maelstrom were among the most dangerous gangs on the streets—body-mod fanatics who spared no expense or pain in cyber-enhancing themselves. Back when NCPD gear was weaker, even a full squad of cops might've struggled to take down one full-fledged Maelstromer.
Even now, with better gear and training, Maelstrom weren't easy marks. For a rookie to assist in taking them down during training? That was a hell of a résumé.
Impressed, Karl gave the rookie a nod, then casually pulled something from his belt and tossed it over. "Here. A little something for our first meeting."
"Huh? Uh, thank you, sir."
The rookie instinctively caught what Karl tossed—only to find it was a Kang Tao A-22B Smart Pistol.
"I was planning to test it out today myself," Karl said with a grin. "But since we've got a new guy around, it's yours."
"This is…" The rookie stared at the gun in his hand, unsure what to do. Looking between the pistol and Karl, his expression was a mix of awe and disbelief. Receiving something like this on their first meeting, and from Karl, no less—it was overwhelming.
He'd heard plenty about how different Karl was in real life compared to BDs, but the casually friendly guy standing before him was still hard to believe.
Just then, Andy clapped the rookie on the shoulder—firm but reassuring.
"Take it. I'm betting Karl just grabbed the wrong gun by accident. He doesn't usually carry that model."
Andy's voice was light, but his glance toward Karl carried a hint of teasing.
Karl chuckled. "Come on, Andy, don't blow my cover."
Then he looked back to the rookie. "But hey, it's yours now. Use it well, rookie."
Gripping the gun tighter, the rookie felt the cold steel in his palm—and a strange surge of excitement in his chest. He took a deep breath and nodded solemnly. "Thank you. I will."
"So, what's the situation today?"
Karl glanced over to where Johnny was clumsily parking the car and then got out—barely paying him any attention—as he turned back to Andy and the nearby NCPD officers. "What's with the corpse this early in the morning?"
"Cyberpsycho."
Andy's tone turned serious, though his explanation was still brief. "Illegal ripperdoc. Forced implant of dangerous cyberware. Went psycho in the street."
"A black clinic in Watson, huh…"
Karl frowned. "Old Vic's got a solid rep in Watson. Why didn't they go to him? He might've talked them down."
"Whoever brought in that cyberware probably didn't get it through clean means."
Andy shook his head. "Everybody in Watson knows Vic has your protection. If word got out the gear came from a scav supplier, they could lose their whole network. Based on what we've dug up, some scavs have already marked off 'no-go zones' and designated ripperdocs—just to avoid tipping you guys off."
Karl let out a speechless exhale.
So both the buyers and sellers were shady as hell, scared of exposure. No wonder so many of them went cyberpsycho—it was like karma catching up with them.
Still, their sins didn't cancel out the danger.
"How many dead?"
"None, thanks to us patrolling nearby. If we hadn't been, though—who knows."
After that brief update, Andy glanced toward Johnny Silverhand. "So this is the guy you brought to help?"
"Sort of. He's a bionic dog. Packs a punch. Just call him Johnny."
"Interesting name."
Andy thought for a second, then remembered. "You mentioned him and Brown before. Kerry's old pal? That Johnny?"
"Mhm."
"In that case, I won't even bother asking questions."
Andy didn't sweat the weird stuff. Compared to having Johnny Silverhand's mind in a dog's body, he was more focused on the case.
"I was planning to just have you guys do a patrol," he said. "But since we've got a cyberpsycho situation, I want to follow this trail. The ripperdoc bolted before my people got there, but we found a few clues. We're heading out soon."
"Where to?"
"Maelstrom turf. The cyberware might be linked to them."
"Dangerous chrome from those mod-crazed lunatics? Not surprising. When do we leave?"
"In a sec."
After a brief check-in, Andy gave a few orders to the surrounding officers and gestured toward a parked NCPD Enforcer. "It's been a while since you rode in a cop car, huh? Hop in. Let a proper Santo Domingo driver show you how it's done."
"Just the four of us?"
Karl looked around at the idle officers, then at Andy and the rookie. "You're really making use of every resource, huh?"
"Using a cannon to kill a mosquito is already overkill. No need to bring a whole squad. The department's swamped. Johnson's losing his mind."
"Hope he can hang on to what little hair he's got left."
As Karl and Andy chatted casually, the rookie slid into the backseat—only to see a dog next to him, one leg crossed, puffing on a cigarette with a paw.
Only then did it truly hit him:
They were headed straight into Maelstrom turf…
And it was just three men and a dog?
He glanced toward the front seat where KK was already buckled in.
Yeah…
Maybe this wasn't going to be so normal after all.
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🔥 CYBERPUNK: THE RELENTLESS
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🔥 THE STORY DOESN'T STOP HERE. NEITHER DOES HE.
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⚡ NO BRAKES. NO MERCY. NO TURNING BACK.
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