The Scavengers were utterly defenseless.
They could do nothing but wait to be slaughtered.
But this was no more than their just deserts.
Compared to the countless innocent lives they had ruined before, a quick death was already mercy.
Ironically, the fate they now faced was no different from the cruelty they had once inflicted on their victims.
Helpless.
Powerless.
Like lambs waiting for the butcher's knife.
Faced with death, they let out ear-piercing screams, desperate cries, and frantic pleas for mercy.
It was all meaningless.
What answered them were only the blue glow of Power Axes and the blazing trails of Boltgun rounds.
By the time only a handful of Scavengers remained, their minds had already collapsed under the overwhelming pressure.
Unable to endure it any longer, they screamed in despair and turned their own guns on themselves.
At that moment, death became both release and punishment.
…
…
"Panam Palmer, I see your car!"
"Why the hell is your car with those damn Scavs?!"
Mitch of the Aldecaldo tribe drove Panam's beloved Thorton Galena straight toward them, shouting from a distance.
At this moment, most of the Cybernetic Apostles handling the cleanup were former Aldecaldo members.
Naturally, they recognized Panam's vehicle immediately.
And it was only natural that they found Mitch, the person closest to her.
Before Panam could even curse back, V spoke first.
"We came here because of that car."
"And because of it, we discovered the Scavs' disgusting experiments on the Cybernetic Apostles."
She made sure to casually emphasize her own contribution.
Mitch's expression immediately changed.
"So, it was you who recorded that video?"
He looked at V seriously.
"Then we really owe you this time."
"The Church and the Aldecaldos both owe you a huge favor."
"Ask for anything."
"As long as it's not excessive, the Church will do everything in its power to help."
V didn't hesitate for even a second.
"Perfect."
"I need to intercept a vehicle in the Jackson Plains."
"I want your help."
Her request was direct and without ceremony.
Mitch nodded.
"No problem."
Then he casually tossed something toward her.
It was a gear-shaped token.
"This is a Tier-3 Benefactor Medal of the Mechanicus."
"With this, you can freely enter and leave the Church's holy grounds."
V caught it and gave it a small shake in her hand.
"Then we have a deal."
After that, she carefully put the token away.
Mitch returned the car keys to Panam, then immediately turned and shouted behind him.
"Hey, Scorpion!"
"Time to move!"
"The holy war isn't over yet."
"This is only one Scav hideout."
"We still have a lot to do!"
Scorpion shrugged.
"Praise the God of All Machines."
He picked up the Power Sword beside him, put on his industrial mask, and swiftly rejoined the team.
In the blink of an eye, he had vanished into the darkness.
"Goodbye, Panam."
"Goodbye, V."
Panam silently watched them disappear into the distance.
There was endless loneliness in her eyes.
For the first time, she truly felt the distance that now separated her from her former companions.
In the entire Aldecaldo family, only Mitch and Scorpion still treated her as one of their own.
Everyone else wouldn't even spare her a greeting.
"Damn it…"
"Why am I getting sentimental?"
She shook her head hard, forcing the feeling away.
"Come on, V."
"We need to move too."
The two got back into the car.
The engine roared to life.
Soon, their taillights faded into the endless Night City darkness.
…
…
On the road, V suddenly asked:
"Can you tell me why you refuse to believe in the God of All Machines?"
Panam gripped the wheel tightly.
"It's not that I refuse to believe."
"I just don't want to join the cult."
Her voice was low.
"They're too crazy."
"The moment anything involves the God of All Machines, they stop being rational."
"That scares me."
V glanced at her.
"Other than that, have they changed in any other way?"
Panam fell silent for a moment before answering.
"That's exactly what scares me the most."
"They haven't changed."
"Not at all."
"Except for how they treat the God."
Her expression darkened.
"It's like faith appeared overnight."
"And suddenly they all became the most devout believers imaginable."
"Even after every corporation publicly revealed that the so-called God of All Machines is nothing more than Xiao's nanotechnology…"
She clenched the steering wheel harder.
"I still can't understand why they remain so fanatical."
At last, she revealed the real reason.
This was why she refused to join the Church.
V, however, understood her immediately.
Panam had once been the most beloved child in the entire tribe.
But everything changed after the arrival of the God of All Machines.
She lost the affection and care of the people around her.
Now even a casual complaint about the God could earn disgust and cold looks from her own family.
In a situation like that, anyone would begin to fear that even the people closest to them might one day turn against them.
The family that once felt like a warm harbor had become something else entirely.
A ticking bomb.
A place that could explode at any moment.
To Panam, they no longer felt like family.
They felt like lunatics consumed by religious fanaticism.
Any sane person would have run.
But in truth—
most of this fear came from Panam overthinking everything.
She always had a habit of rationalizing herself into deeper and deeper anxiety.
V had spent enough time around the Mechanicus to understand its believers better.
To outsiders, the cult looked hopelessly superstitious.
Religious fanatics.
Mad zealots.
But the reality was the exact opposite.
Many of its members were among the top scientists in the world.
The technology they possessed surpassed that of every major corporation by decades.
And yet—
that scientific knowledge only deepened their faith.
Even when the world told them that the "God" was merely nanotechnology, they still believed without hesitation.
Because to them, the God of All Machines was not separate from truth.
He was truth.
He was knowledge.
The more deeply one studied science and reality, the more one could feel the greatness of the God of All Machines.
That was why the higher the rank of a Cybernetic Apostle—
the more fanatical their faith became.
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