"Hiss… huh~"
Jackie stood beneath an abandoned building, a cigarette between his lips, quietly watching the situation around Petrochem Stadium.
Beside him, Rebecca held a stick and kept poking Pilar's head. Ever since Pilar had gained a "new neighbor" in his brain, he would occasionally drift into this absent-minded, spaced-out state.
Of course, only when it was safe.
"There's movement."
Jackie suddenly narrowed his eyes and spoke.
At his words, everyone gathered closer. This time, the whole group was present—Falco and Jessica included. Both of them had undergone plenty of cyberware upgrades.
After all, without at least some modifications, surviving the missions out in Nevada would have been impossible.
Falco had gone for a custom vehicle, while Jessica had chosen custom cyberware.
Pilar snapped back to his senses and slapped away Rebecca's stick, his face full of irritation.
"That's enough already. Every single day—are you done messing around?"
"Tsk tsk tsk. Don't tell me you were doing something shameful with that new neighbor in your head? Ew~ self-love? Gross…"
Rebecca backed away from Pilar with a look of utter disgust.
Pilar instantly felt a vein pop on his forehead. Even if Rebecca wasn't wrong, it was still infuriating to hear.
"Alright, you two, knock it off. The Voodoo Boys have started moving their equipment."
Jackie cut them off, jerking his chin toward the entrance of Petrochem Stadium. A group of Voodoo Boys had already driven away the civilians. A massive cargo truck was parked at the gate, and they were loading something into it.
"That truck… isn't it from the Animals?"
Jessica frowned as she stared at it.
"You recognize it?"
Jackie turned his head and asked curiously.
Jessica shook her head. "Not really. I quit a long time ago, and I've never had any contact with the Animals in Pacifica."
"Is that so? Then let's get ready and move."
Jackie nodded and made the call. No one objected.
"Then get in."
Falco tilted his head, signaling everyone to board. He was already in the driver's seat. His ride had been replaced with a combat armored vehicle designed by PROJECT Corporation.
As Falco pressed a button and switched the vehicle's mode, the engine roared like a beast, its sound tearing through the quiet night.
Boom!
The steel monster smashed straight through the barricading pillars and burst forward.
"What the hell is going on?!"
V, watching from the side, stared down in disbelief. She and Sasha had just reported the situation and were still waiting for instructions—yet the people below had already made their move.
"Looks like another corporate team. Their mission's probably different from ours."
And that was exactly the case. Jackie's team had orders to attack if the Voodoo Boys tried to relocate—delay them, and if possible, destroy their means of transport.
"Damn it, it's probably those Shadow Stream bastards! I'll deal with them!"
Orestes cursed. Data began to flicker across his eyes, and in Cyberspace, countless Daemons surged forward, rushing straight at Jackie and the others.
If Jackie's team could see them, they might have noticed subtle differences in the Daemon tech itself.
"Looks like prolonged contact with the Blackwall really did get them something."
Roland said calmly, watching everything through Kelly's perspective.
Faced with these Daemons tainted by the Blackwall, Kelly merely waved a hand. Instantly, torrents of purple data erupted around her, forming long spears that shattered the Daemons mid-attack.
The data followed the trail back to its source, surging straight toward Orestes.
As the purple data poured into Orestes's brain, he froze in place, his eyes glowing violet.
Placide immediately sensed something was wrong. He rushed forward and slapped Orestes hard, sending him flying.
"Wake up, Orestes!"
Placide grabbed him by the collar and roared.
Smack!
Placide's gaze sharpened as he looked down at Orestes—who had suddenly clamped down on his wrist.
"I see you, Placide. Second-in-command of the Voodoo Boys."
"Who are you?! You're definitely not an ordinary netrunner!"
Hearing Kelly's voice, Placide's eyes flew wide open. He had never encountered a netrunner who could control someone else so effortlessly.
"Orestes" released his grip and slowly stood up.
"You Voodoo Boys have no choice. Stay here and face the New United States. If you try to run now, death is the only road left to you."
Placide's expression darkened. Rage boiled inside him, but he said nothing. He knew the enemy's capabilities were far beyond anything he had imagined.
Outside, Jackie and his team had already charged into the crowd, pouring overwhelming firepower into the Voodoo Boys.
To be blunt, these people were far weaker than Night City's gangs. Living in Pacifica for so long meant limited access to cyberware—their main sources were Scavengers or smuggling.
Against Jackie's squad, fully enhanced with PROJECT cyberware, it was nothing short of a massacre.
"We understand. Tell the people outside to stop. We'll face the Militech forces here."
Bridget suddenly stepped forward and spoke calmly.
"Bridget!"
Placide whipped his head toward her, shocked. Bridget showed no reaction at all, leaving Placide no choice but to retreat unwillingly.
"A wise choice."
"Orestes" nodded, then went limp. Placide stepped forward to catch him—only to realize his brain had already been fried.
"A powerful cyber ghost."
Bridget looked at Placide, who seemed genuinely shaken, and spoke quietly.
"What?!"
Placide's face drained of color. In an instant, he connected Shadow Stream with Rogue AI, his expression turning grim.
"We've become their pawns. We have no choice but to survive… until we find Alt."
Bridget shook her head, then instructed Placide to retrieve the equipment and speed up the deep dive to search for Alt's presence.