Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 349 Fatal Clue (Part 3)

"Damn, this place is stinking so bad it's making me faint."

Jack Wells walked down the corridor, with the burly Dorothy beside him. Her police uniform stood out starkly in the riverside shantytown.

"Hey sis... don't make it sound like I'm in cahoots with those NCPD cops, okay?"

When you're out working, keep a low profile and avoid drawing attention; that's the basic rule for mercenaries... Jack felt that this was a bit too blatant.

"Cooperating with the NCPD is the duty of every Night City citizen, so stop with the whining..." Dorio said, a cigarette dangling from her lips, her words filled with the rough language of Night City.

From behind, this doesn't look like a girl at all; her size is almost the same as Haywood's!

Jack thought about it and realized he might not be able to beat this guy, so he decided to uphold the Haywood tradition of "keeping a low profile".

"Officer, please go first."

Dorothy's lips parted as she gritted her teeth, revealing a set of teeth as healthy and strong as her body. "Thank you."

The two didn't team up on a whim; they had collaborated before. This time, they were working together to investigate a case involving a cyber madman, at the request of Regina, a middleman from Night City.

The NCPD does investigate the causes of cyberbullying cases, but nobody wants to do that unpaid, terrifying, and potentially fatal job.

Every year, the NCPD hotline receives cases of "suspected" cyberbullying. The callers have actually explained things quite clearly, such as the neighbor next door who suddenly stands motionless in the garden after getting a new arm and then starts shooting randomly. Unfortunately, these cases are usually classified as ordinary robbery and harassment.

This leads to the following situation:
The unsuspecting police officers who arrived at the scene were completely clueless.

If it were just a typical cyberpsychotic, it wouldn't be so bad; after a few rounds of shooting, he would fall asleep peacefully, a condition commonly known as "762 injection sleep."

But what if it's a military-grade cybernetic madman?

For example, in cases like those where dozens of police officers are taken down in less than ten minutes in the city center or Japanese neighborhood, the Terrorist Response Unit must be involved, so in most cases, the first group of people are basically killed.

Returning to the case, how do you investigate the cyber madman?
Anyone with a normal IQ would know that if the investigation continues, it will eventually lead back to the company.

The NCPD, which has become a profit-making organization in recent years, has no desire to provoke the company. As long as the Terrorist Mobile Unit can quell the cyber lunatics, everyone will let things slide.

But some people still disagree.

Both residents and the Night City government have requirements for the NCPD—

Companies can leech off people, but politicians still need to consider the needs of ordinary people.

Every year at the inquiry meeting, the NCPD will make a corresponding report. After all, a considerable portion of the income of this type of law enforcement agency comes from the taxes of the citizens of Night City, so they have no choice but to listen to the opinions of some politicians.

The most frequent requirement is to control the frequency of occurrence of cyber implant syndrome.

Where there are requirements, there are tasks.

The boss wouldn't do it, so he could only assign it to the lowly soldiers in the bureau.

Dorio's field team was not supposed to be responsible for investigating the case, since everyone in the department knew how dangerous it was to investigate cyberpsychosis.

Everyone was thinking of living one day at a time; they'd rather die from the dispatcher's deception than from an open investigation into the cyberpsychotic case...

Even courting death has its timing, right?
Strangely enough, the undesirable job that nobody wanted was taken by the guy who had just made a name for himself in the field team.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, but they also thought that Dorio must have gone mad.

But Dorothy had her own plans.

Since working with Jack, Regina's latest investigation has been remarkably similar to this case, which is why Dorio took on the task.

Furthermore, she never looked back or showed any fear when it came to anything that might involve Mann.

"I know a bastard kid from the NCPD who sells drugs in Heywood."

The two stood on a shantytown corridor that was raised a certain distance off the ground to avoid the dampness of the riverbank. The creaking sound was a little eerie, and Jack wanted to find something to talk about to avoid the awkwardness.

He has always been an optimist and loves telling jokes.

"That guy said you're pretty tough, gangs are like chickens in your hands, and you don't even take bribes... Aren't you afraid of getting messed up? Someone from Heywood's Valentine gang alone was hired to mess with you—but it seems like you took care of those few punks in the end?"

Dorothy has hardly smiled since Mann left, and she gave a cold laugh.

The prosthetics she wears are exclusively supplied to the NCPD, deducted from her monthly salary, and the interest is actually quite high, but Dorio isn't afraid.

She simply wants to legally possess the power and protection to complete the challenges she needs.

"Fuck? Then he'd better stick out his white ass properly. Who does who is uncertain."

That's fucking awful!
Jack sighed inwardly.

He even felt that Dorio gave him a V-like feeling; you could hardly perceive her vulnerability as a woman, and you just wanted to be friends with her.

"Brilliant."

Dorothy glanced at Jack.

Seeing the burly man beside her grinning smugly, Dorio was momentarily stunned, and when she turned back, her eyes held a tender and lingering affection.

My lover's smile is also so confident and cheerful.

Mann...why is that?

She kept appearing at the battlefields that the field team dared not touch, investigating clues to the most vicious cases of cyberpsychosis. After each brush with death, she would only reward herself with a cigarette, all for him.

"Actually, it's because of Mann. Do you know him?"

Dorio thought that the mercenary who risked his life for her should be somewhat honest. She didn't want to deceive others. As for why she was telling him, it was probably because she was under too much pressure and wanted to share some of it.

Jack wasn't joking.

His relationship with Rin taught him a lot.

"Good girls are as rare as animals in Night City. You, V, and my Misty are all top-notch girls!"

"Actually, that guy wanted to help you too..."

Jack also wanted to try and defend Rin.

He, who is always gentle, would indeed do that.

Dorio raised her hand.

"I know."

"There were too many things that needed to be prioritized for him... One shouldn't be too greedy, that's what Mann told our team, but... he fell victim to greed; with Regina providing what he needed, and with Haywood's best mercenaries helping me, he'd done more than enough—"

"Of course, thank you too."

Jack waved his hand dismissively.

It wasn't time for sentimentality yet. Seeing the two of them heading deeper into the shantytown, Jack asked, "Regina said that Rin had stumbled upon the Tiger Claw Gang's black market activities and traced them back to Cleaners. What's going on with this guy today? I don't know anything except that I have fried noodles in my stomach."

Dorio looked serious as she walked, comparing the images with the attached pictures sent by Regina.

"To be precise, this black market operation is very likely to involve all the gangs operating in the vicinity of Watson District in Night City. Without evidence, we can only proceed step by step."

Jack: "What does this have to do with cyberpsychosis?"

Dorothy slowed down, gesturing for Jack to join her in the search, and explained, "What does cyberpsychosis look like in your eyes?"

"That's insane! You've seen those intubation shows, right? That guy on camera who flips someone's head off without any weapons in his hand, just severing their head and neck—it's fucking terrifying!"

Dorio looked at her with an expression as if she were a woman.

Jack suppressed his fear. "Of course I'm not that scared, besides..."

"Could it be as scary as that guy?"

The muttered comment was naturally Jack complaining about Rin.

Dorothy continued, "Regarding the case of cyberpsychosis that occurred in Heywood, my colleague Stella and I, who were also interested in the case, investigated it. The evidence strongly suggests that these cyberpsychotics all possessed self-awareness and their behavioral logic was quite normal..."

Jack: "Wait, what you're saying is getting more and more..."

Dorio: "Don't understand? That's right... They call this high functionality."

"Generally speaking, there are limits to how much modification a person can undergo, even the most special kind—"

Jack clicked his tongue in amazement.

"You seem more like someone who works in science and technology."

Dorothy smiled helplessly, "It was all learned temporarily for the sake of the case." Jack: "So you're saying the company can't avoid the side effects of such extensive modifications, right?"

Dorio: "It can't be eliminated, but it can be improved. But there are limits. According to Regina's explanation... the company can probably control less than 60% of the cyber implant modification recipients' probability of developing cyber psychosis. Above that, there's only one person."

"But he's already dead. The rumors that were going around for the past few months said he was killed by Rin."

Jack, who was familiar with the legendary story, knew that Dorio was talking about Adam Hammer. "Monster, honestly, you guys might as well study Rin."

At this point, Dorio's gaze towards Jack immediately turned cold.

Jack realized that his attempt to express humor had touched a nerve and quickly waved his hand to indicate that he had misspoke. At the same time, he was also processing this information: in short, the company wanted to find or create someone with the foundation of a heavy hammer.

"He has no empathy and has no hobbies other than killing for pleasure, though some bad habits are not excluded."

Dorothy stopped in her tracks.

He gestured for Jack to look ahead…

A group of cleaners were gathered on a makeshift dock by the river. The jarring, raucous music could be heard from afar. They seemed to be talking about something interesting, bursting into laughter every now and then, and occasionally letting out strange screams...

From a distance, Jack couldn't find out who was making those beastly roars and howls; he just glanced at a peeling container next to the cleaner.

“There was a guy in Haywood who showed up at a location and tore two Valentino executives apart. The higher-ups thought that if it was Cyber ​​Madman, he would continue to commit crimes and even appear in downtown areas, and then the Terrorist SWAT team could clean up the mess. But Regina said that guy disappeared and is probably in the vicinity, so we have to ask those kidney harvesters.”

Jack scratched his head.

“I know the Terrorist Mobile Squad well. I’ve seen these guys jump out of the hovercars and beat people to a pulp several times. Isn’t your man in the Terrorist Mobile Squad?”

As Dorothy took off her police uniform and wrapped it around a blunt weapon, she said, "I wish I knew what the inside of the Terrorist Response Unit is like; they select people from the NCPD every year, and they also select cyber lunatics from prisons, but they have their own independent offices, and they appear whenever Night City's NCPD wanted level is raised to five stars, nobody knows why..."

"I don't want to cause trouble internally right now. I want to find out the truth of this matter first."

Jack glanced at Dorio's practiced movements; she was actually quite good...

It's important to know that NCPD officers can kill gang members without cause, but the scavengers who hang around in the area have some connection with the NCPD. Dorothy's best solution is to break a few of their ribs and make them obedient.

"Find the person, investigate who this person has contacted and who they have met. Regina also discovered that on several occasions, after the Terrorist SWAT team killed a target, someone appeared and disrupted the scene. Her other friends in the NCPD also don't know who was behind the chaos during the period after the Terrorist SWAT team took over..."

I said so much in one go.

We still have to take action, right?

Dorothy pointed to the side, and the experienced mercenary understood immediately.

Jack shook his head helplessly, stood up from his squatting position, watched Dorio walk around him, and then raised his hand and shouted, "Kidney donors! Dad's here to see you!"

A middle finger adorned with a Valentino glittering ring made the bewildered cleaners' anger soar.
"I'm..."

Jack wanted to curse these bugs a few more times, but before he could say anything, he quickly squatted down, and sparks immediately flashed from the fence!

"Give that bastard some!"

The cleaners don't care about any of that—

Just as we were about to swarm over, we heard a greeting from the side.

"Hi!"

The guy who had just turned his head was immediately covered by the shadow of the sandbag's huge fist...

A kite with a broken string—that's the perfect description.

Where the guy who was hit by the cleaner flew, drops of blood and broken teeth followed closely behind, instantly knocking down two guys who hadn't even had a chance to move yet.

"Depend on!"

Dorothy hunched over and delivered a powerful sweeping blow with her baton, immediately throwing the scavengers, who were holding guns and trying to fire randomly, into chaos.

If we're talking about the weakest gang in Night City, it's probably the Cleaners. They have a lot of members, are good at hiding, and are all ruthless thugs in the city. Forget about hitting anyone, some of the guys with assisted aiming prosthetics almost dropped their guns.

Dorio reacted quickly and pulled a scavenger in front of her over!

"Eh eh eh——"

The idiot was so frightened that he kept screaming.

Holding a gun, Dorio, who used his companions as shields and wielded a powerful club, wandered between them, and the scavengers fell one by one with strange cries.

Jack Wells arrived at the scene just then, shouting, "Hahaha! Damn it, I'll chop you bastards to pieces!"

The large cleaver behind him finally emerged.

The scavengers had never seen two such formidable individuals before, so they were instantly scattered. Most of them hurriedly ran around, but one of them was particularly strange.

He huddled in a corner out of sight of the two men, his terrified gaze shifting back and forth between the container and the two of them.

"Hiss hiss hiss..."

He was breathing heavily, like a venomous snake, as if he was adding layers of courage to his body.

If anything goes wrong with the goods, everyone present will have to hand over their kidneys to the gang; they might be the next ones lying on the operating table…

Dorothy's hawk-like gaze fell upon the scavenger who charged forward instead of retreating. Her expression shifted dramatically, first showing confusion, then a sudden change in her demeanor.

"Jack!"

"Stop that guy."

Jack knocked one of them down with the back of his knife. Seeing the guy suddenly charge forward, he sensed something was wrong and instantly sped up.

"Crap crap crap!"

The cool touch of the container lock on his hand brought a hint of joy to the face of the cleaner under the spoiler panel.

But the idea that big guys are slow is absolutely a stereotype; he immediately knew what Haywood's speed was like.

"Fuck you!"

Jack's oversized boots forced the skinny scavenger to lie face down, gnawing on the rotten riverbed mud, and then he blocked the container with his body.

Now it was the scavengers' turn to panic. Almost none of them stopped; they all fled in a panic, ignoring those who were lying unconscious on the ground…

The surroundings fell silent instantly.

The noise from distant city advertisements and the cool breeze by the river made the two of them feel a little uneasy.

"What comes next...?"

Jack pointed at the box with his thumb as he faced Dorio—

boom!
The sound that shattered my eardrums was like someone detonating a bomb right next to my ear!
"careful!"

Jack rolled over, and Dorio immediately followed up from behind to stand in front of Jack!
Still somewhat dazed, Jack quickly raised his knife, only to find a hand—no, to be precise, a hand that had pierced through the container—reaching haphazardly in the air. The mechanically jointed hand seemed to be malfunctioning, its movements strangely sluggish…

"Depend on…"

Dorothy had never seen such a strange scene before.

Jack, who had narrowly escaped death, swallowed hard, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

"Roar!"

Was that strange roar just now from the cleaners playing around?!

The voice coming from inside the container was like a vengeful ghost. Jack and Dorio instinctively took a step back, but suddenly the roar stopped...

A man's crying voice could be heard.

"Help."

It's like a spirit is hovering nearby...

Unbeknownst to the two standing side by side, while the contents of the container may have instilled fear and oppression in them, a figure was flashing behind them like a holographic image…

His bionic muscles looked like they were made of steel wire, and there were hideous scars stitched onto his face. He had blond hair, and the green skull logo of the Terrorist Mobile Squad was on his wrist...

……

……

(End of this chapter)