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Inside a private booth at Lizzie's Bar, the air was thick with the scent of high-end synth-perfume and the low hum of electronic music.
Suzie, the current leader of the Moxes, sat across from Kael. She was a woman of sharp edges and neon-lit charm, her history with the city's underbelly etched into her high-spec cyberware. There was no shame in her game; in Night City, selling one's body was a far more honest trade than selling one's soul to a corporation.
"Don't look at me like that, Suzie. Lucy is handling the logistics. Just pretend I'm part of the furniture," Kael said, leaning back and focusing on the holographic pole dance. He admired a particularly athletic waist twist. Damn, that's some serious motor coordination.
"Men like him are a dying breed in this city. You've got a rare find, Lucy," Suzie noted, finally turning her gaze to the silver-haired Netrunner.
"I didn't think so at first, but now? I agree," Lucy replied with an affectionate glance at Kael before shifting into her professional persona.
The negotiations were one-sided. With Kael's reputation backing her, Lucy didn't need to resort to the typical gang tactics of intimidation or threats. Suzie tried to play the "vulnerability" card, but Lucy—hardened by years as an Arasaka runner—didn't offer an inch of ground. In Night City, the "girls helping girls" sub-routine had been deleted long ago.
By the time Suzie left, a new smuggling route for the water plant was established.
"How did I do?" Lucy asked, immediately straddling Kael and wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Excellent. I didn't know you were a Tier-1 negotiator," Kael praised, his hands finding her waist.
"You're just flattering me. If you weren't my anchor, Suzie would have tried to pick my pockets," Lucy whispered, her breath warm against his ear. "Want a private performance tonight? I've been practicing some... new moves."
Kael's interest in the holographic dancers vanished instantly. He was about to carry Lucy out when his neural link pinged. It was V—the corpo-V.
"Nuo, I need a favor," V's voice was uncharacteristically tight.
"Is there something Maine and the crew can't handle?" Kael asked. Maine's team was currently equipped with military-grade Arasaka chrome; they were effectively a private army.
"Susan Abernathy is about to flip the table. She's hired a team of Arasaka Ninjas," V said. "I'm worried the crew's brute force won't be enough for that kind of precision."
Kael rubbed his chin. Arasaka ninjas were the stuff of urban legend—cyber-modified warriors who combined ancient martial arts with bleeding-edge technology. They were the corporation's "Delete" button, usually reserved for Board-level threats. Using them for an internal department feud was a desperate, taboo move.
"Susan must be truly cornered to risk the Board's wrath like this," Kael noted.
"She's desperate. Jenkins is a shark, and he's closing in. If she doesn't zero me and him now, she's headed for the scrap heap," V explained. "But we can't strike first. Murdering a director is a corporate sin that leads to a total board reset. We have to wait for her to move, then act in 'self-defense.'"
V was currently barricaded in his office at Arasaka Tower. Even the best high-end apartment wasn't ninja-proof, but the corporate headquarters offered a layer of bureaucratic protection—killing an executive inside the tower was a scandal no director could survive.
"I'm on my way," Kael said. "I'll bring the team."
Valerie (V) drove the off-road vehicle toward Corpo Plaza, with Jackie and Sasha in the back. Kael and Lucy arrived on his custom motorcycle.
"First time seeing this many corpo-dogs in one place," Valerie noted, her silver hair catching the sterile glare of the Plaza lights.
Kael handed out several Arasaka ID tags. "Whoa, these look real," Valerie said, examining hers.
"They are real. You're officially on the 'Ghost Payroll.' Gold-tier Trauma Team memberships included," Kael said. "Monthly salary is twenty thousand eddies."
"I am officially Arasaka's most loyal dog!" Valerie shouted, kissing the ID tag. She paused, looking at the name. "Wait... why does mine say 'Wahaha'?"
"And mine says 'Nongfu Spring'?" Jackie asked, confused.
"Water plant code names. Don't worry about it," Kael waved them off. He was 'Ganten', while Lucy and Sasha were 'C'estbon' and 'Ice Dew'.
Inside the lobby, V was waiting. The moment he saw Kael, the tension left his shoulders. He led them through the private elevators to the upper-level executive offices. Employees scurried past, their movements hyper-synchronized by combat-stims and corporate protocols, bowing as V passed.
In V's private office, Jackie didn't bother with etiquette. He found a bottle of top-shelf scotch, tucked it into his jacket, and sprawled out on the designer sofa. Valerie followed suit, her eyes wide at the luxury.
"I tried to track the ninjas, but they vanished the moment they hit city limits," V said, pouring a glass of liquor to steady his nerves. "Susan is going to move tonight. I can feel the ICE getting cold."
"Let them come," Kael said, standing by the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the neon abyss of Night City. "Ninjas or not, they're about to find out what happens when you try to zero a legend."
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