Rastislav
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Chapter 12: Goals
🕑 Added 2025-08-11 08:39:16 +0000 UTCThis chapter too has received the dread gremlin's gaze, a terrible fate indeed.
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The Kabuki Roundabout was a pretty unique place, as far as Night City went.
A squat round structure with oriental roofing going up multiple floors of shops and kiosks and connecting to the surrounding buildings via high walkways.
There was simply something satisfying about the whole arrangement, despite the usual detractions.
A sight I'd almost dare call beautiful, if not for the usual blinding spam of neon signs.
The sheer pretention of those, and the idea they could hide the filth beneath always managed to bring my mood down.
Shaking my head at the constant childish bitterness of my thoughts, I returned to the present and resumed my stride, keeping it slow instead of satisfying my growing urge to see just how fast I could go, bystanders be damned.
But no matter how much I wanted to revel in the simple pleasure of superhuman movement, I was cursed with the peculiar ailment of not being an idiot.
There would be time to smash into a wall later.
My walk up the roundabout was not a waste of time either, as my eyes were quickly drawn by the numerous shops dotting its surface.
A quick scan of my Cyberdeck, and an even quicker banish quickhack on all their ad spams, and I had the approximate idea of what they all had on offer.
My earlier talk with Vik was nothing if not thought provoking, and finally I was able to stop worrying about the present and think about the future. For a moment at least.
And the future I wanted was as simple as it could be. Cyberware was my passion, and my path to power.
Not the soft power of money or influence but the power of simply being greater than those who stood against you.
And to reach that power I decided on a few reasonable (to me) initial objectives.
The first was to get my hands on quality ripper equipment. Dedicated bioscanners, operating chairs, better 3D printers, specialized storage, and a reliable source of medicinal supplies.
Second was far more simple but ironically far more demanding. I needed to expand my living space, preferably while keeping it within 'my' territory but also to the point it could contain both my home and future business.
It went without question that both ventures would require money, and lots of it.
And while I did not share the rest of the city's obsession with dying a 'right nova death', I knew mercenary work was the simplest solution to my question.
Netrunning was also a consideration, but the dangers of that line of work were ironically far greater than just walking out on the streets and shooting someone, especially since bullets were usually more of a suggestion to me.
One was infinitely more likely to be caught and have their brain fried by a defensive corporate AI than they were to meet something like a war cyborg on the streets, and despite my dislike of the subject, the math was quite simple.
I might be good but I will never be AI good.
And thus the decision was simple.
I'd just need to run the edge until I could set up my clinic, and then I would retire from the violence and focus fully on my true passion.
That a competent edgerunner's reputation would also help advertise my work to my 'like minded individuals' was just a nice little bonus, of course.
Something in the back of my head told me it would not be that easy, but I didn't expect it to be in the first place.
Before long, I had already marked down a few interesting places to visit on my return trip, and even marked a shop that sold training chips among other things (mostly BD smut because, of fucking course they did)
Having to walk everywhere was a chore I could do without.
But that was for later, first I had to deal with an old woman's pestering.
I walked into the EdgeNet shop, the light jingle of some Japanese tune playing in the background as a few patrons were sprawled out on their netrunning chairs, fully out of it.
"Greetings." The heavily accented voice of the proprietress welcomed me, drawing my eyes to a short bespectacled woman with black hair tied back into a bun "How can I help you today?"
Instead of answering I activated my Cyberdeck and the net overlapped with reality, revealing the admittedly plain older woman to be my 'friend' as her ICON was visible despite her being only half online at the moment [Magos: Hello Yoko.] I sent.
Her eyes widened slightly and she smiled as she leaned against her counter "Maggy chan! You actually came!"
Her suddenly happy expression shifted to a more serious one as she looked at me over "You really weren't kidding, huh?"
"I gave my word" I shrugged as I leaned against a wall, the shop was quite small after all "And yes, while I wanted to make some more modifications the situation called for a rush job."
"I feel like you just said something completely ridiculous so I am just going to pretend made perfect sense and forget about." She nodded to herself.
"Wise." I drawled.
"So serious" She chuckled and then sighed dramatically "You are too big now though, my kuudere fantasy is ruined, ruined I say!"
I just stared at her for a long moment before my drawl returned "Woe."
"Ach" She flinched back "So cruel."
"Dammit, Yoko" I sighed, palming my face.
She grinned, steepled steepled her fingers, and made her glasses emit a childish flash of light "Settle down, Maggy chan, deep down you know you just can't get enough of your great sensei."
"Sensei?" I repeated and rolled my Optics "You are somewhat useful, and that is all the good I can say."
She slumped her shoulders dramatically and pouted "Gah! So merciless! That will teach me to help ungrateful kohais..."
God damn it but she was right. I sighed and inclined my head "My apologies."
Her amusement left her as she gave me an annoyed look "I was joking you know."
"But you were also right." I said in turn "Without your help I might not have been able to save the most important person in my life. If you ever need help or a favor, do not hesitate to call."
She placed a finger against her chin and tapped her foot for a long moment before nodding "So earnest!" She cheered "I like it."
Keeping my voice in a complete deadpan I droned "The local kitsune menace has been pacified, how felicitous."
"Don't get peppy with me now, and it's Yoko-Sama to you!" She wiggled her index finger playfully.
I just stared blankly.
Satisfied (for now) she clapped her hands "Anyway, now that you are here, interested in a new Cyberdeck? A Netrunner chair?"
And there it is.
"I have built all I need." I said simply.
Once more, her happy expression evaporated as she gave me a chiding look "You shouldn't say that to just anyone, Magos."
"Don't pretend you haven't already scanned it." I rolled my Optics again "Besides, if you can lure me in here as little more than an advertisement" She smirked smugly "Don't blame me if I flip the table."
She rose her eyebrows and began tapping her chin rapidly "Interesting... And just what are you offering?"
Having already brainstormed some designs for my future business, I forwarded her the specifications of two Cyberdecks.
One meant for maximum safety, effectively a set of high grade training wheels, while the other focused on high performance and heat efficiency while sacrificing a good chunk of the usual streamlining effect.
Both had emergency heatsinks of my own unique design and were a step above their generation of cyberware, namely the second for the first deck and the third for the second.
And despite it they were still not my best, not by a long shot, as those were reserved for the worthy alone.
"These are solid if they work as you say but the prices..." Yoko muttered and looked up to meet my eyes "Are you sure you don't want to make it more accessible?"
"I do not plan on mass producing these as some patent" I answered, utterly certain "I am not trying to become a corpo, but an artisan worthy of the name. All of my work is personalized, and the price includes both perfect installation and integration."
"Ambitious" She noted after a moment "You talk a big game but how do I know this isn't just some gonk's delusion? How sure are you you aren't just going to waste my time with this?"
Instead of immediately answering I just pointed at myself, saying nothing.
She waited for me to speak but seeing how I wasn't going to say a thing she turned contemplative and went through the whole conversation, her eyes narrowed in realization as she lowered her voice "You built a full body conversion... by yourself."
"For the most part." I nodded, pinging the surroundings just in case "It allowed me, a completely inexperienced combatant, to take down an entire den of Scavengers with only one gun to watch my back."
I leaned in, Optics shining "Now just imagine what I will be able to do with the time and resources my new form affords me."
Before she could answer, my ping warned me of someone approaching and I took a step back, just a moment before the doors of the shop opened up and a blonde woman wearing a red coat and with her mouth replaced by a sleek rebreather entered.
"Hello Yoko." She sounded almost bored.
"Kiwi" The older woman nodded "Here for your order?"
Before she answered, she gave me a sideways look, tensed, and I immediately felt a slight probe on the net.
One that I swatted away with just enough force to sting "Do you try this with everyone you see, or am I just especially pretty?" I deadpanned, earning a light chuckle from the fox.
'Kiwi' did not back down however and merely rose an eyebrow "Not every day I see a military grade borg in my favorite shop. A girl might worry."
"Awwww" Yoko cooed.
Both I and the new arrival groaned, sharing a quick look of pained solidarity.
This only served to amuse the fox menace further.
"Don't say it." Kiwi quickly warned.
"Say what?" Yoko smiled 'perfectly innocent.'
"We all know it, Yoko" I deadpanned and shook my head "And before I can get dragged into your newest attempt to live vicariously through me, I will leave you to your business. Call me whenever you want to continue our conversation."
"Yes, yes" She waved me off, pretending to be annoyed that I was leaving so quickly "Don't be a stranger Maggy-chan!"
The doors shut behind me.
The Spider
"Who was that?" Kiwi asked as she lit up a cigar.
"Oh, just a hopeful little kouhai of mine." Yoko Tsuru, one of the most infamous Netrunners in Night City smiled "You might have even heard of him, goes by Magos."
Kiwi's eyebrows went up to her hair "That was him?"
"Even scarier than his reputation, no?" The Japanese woman smirked.
Kiwi just shook her head and filed that information for later, staring at the retreating figure through the net, and pulling back only when the red robed specter stared back at her in warning.
"So, how are things with your boss?" Yoko asked, a fresh tinge of irritation in her voice.
Kiwi sighed and began talking.
Michael 'Magos' Sobronov
For the second time in a row, I returned to my apartment hauling the day's spoils behind me. Everything from training chips to food supplies and stupid trinkets I did not need but still felt like buying anyway.
I may have spent most of my immediate savings today but I wasn't poor by any means.
Most important of all of my purchases was of course the middle grade driving chip, one I inserted the moment I got into my apartment after ignoring the curious onlookers.
The night flashed by as I crashed a hundred imaginary cars.
The following day found me exploring the floor, talking with some of my 'customers' and some other people who were simply lucky enough to live in the area as I tried, and failed to be subtle in my quest to find out what a normal person should do with their day.
Ultimately I settled with visiting the local gun store, run by one Lily Adams, a far too foulmouthed young woman with bright pink hair, and an obsession with the 'Legends' of Night City.
Hours went by as I made myself at home in her shooting range.
I tried out most of the weapons my mother kept in storage, and even some of the ones I took from the Scavs, and quickly found out I preferred the shotgun to everything else.
There was just something viscerally satisfying abut pointing an ancient double barrel and making things disappear with the twitch of your finger.
Of course, my previous experience with fighting showed me that relying on one weapon was a gonk move, and so I also made sure to learn how to shoot better with my Copperhead, and even tried out the Burya that took my arm off.
Damn thing felt like it wanted to do it all over again with how hard it kicked.
Thankfully I was no fleshling, so it only made it twitch.
Five hundred eddies lighter, I left the gun store, and the now mildly disturbed owner, behind me.
The rest of the day I spent sipping on some shitty Nicola and listening to that irritant Stanley on the television as he droned on and on about some new scuffle in Pacifica.
Something about a fixer fucking up so badly he needed to flee from Night City while the new Vodoo Boys tried their best to murder his fat ass.
Just another day in Night City.
The next day found me calling Vik first thing in the morning, and after suffering the self-inflicted results of asking questions I already knew the answer to, I distracted myself with crashing even more cars in the training shard.
A few hours later I got a call from Jackie, and soon enough one of his Valentino friends stopped by to check the loot we gathered and buy it out, after nearly pulling his iron upon seeing me, of course.
That RealSkinn might not be such a terrible idea if this crap continued...
I sold everything except the Burya and the chrome I personally scavenged and both me and the Latino got just under three thousand eurodollars each, something that made him unreasonably happy.
A bit confusing since he wasn't actually low class like most mercs of his reputation but whatever, not my problem.
It was the third day since my mother's rescue, and I found myself slowly driving my shitty brown Mahir Supron through the streets of the Watson Industrial Zone, getting many an irritated beep for my lack of suicidal speed.
Naturally, one good staredown was usually enough to dissuade anyone from... pressuring me further but the truly enthusiastic ones needed to have a shotgun pointed at their face to desist.
None went further than that, thankfully.
At one point I had driven a bit too far out into the Industrial Zone and saw a group of three gangoons who had replaced the upper portions of their face with a set of five glowing red optics, and wisely decided to turn around before I provoked a bunch of Maelstromers into chasing me down for my chrome.
The whole gang was little better than Scavs, and that was only because they merely did business with the lowlives instead of scavenging by themselves.
Usually.
Something told me my chrome would have been far too tempting not to at least try.
But just as I (hopefully) left the sights of the chromeheads, I received a call on my Internal Agent, once more displaying the familiar eyepatched face of Regina Jones.
[Regina Jones: Magos.]
Eager, wasn't she?
[Magos: Miss Jones, I hope you are well.]
She raised an eyebrow.
[Regina Jones: I could be better.] She said neutrally [You told me to give you three days to settle things.]
Already knowing what this is about, I simply nodded.
[Regina Jones: Good, I have a time-sensitive gig waiting.]
[Magos: What's the job?]
[Regina Jones: Client has a meeting set up at 6 PM near the docks, they learned their contact plans on betraying them and want to send a message. Your job is to go there and kill everyone waiting for him. Payout is 14k]
Not your usual starter merc's gig, that much I knew.
Was it faith, or a gamble, I wonder?
[Magos: And who am I killing?]
Regina's face twitched slightly, revealing an almost imperceptibly light smirk.
[Regina Jones: Maelstrom.]
Small world.
Comments
Rastislav
The monowire has indeed been on my mind, but that is all I will say for now
TR59
Kinda curious, will Magos ever use a monowire? There is something immensely satisfying with cutting a room full of scavs in half in a couple of swings after frying them with quick hacks
Bonobo
Thanks for the chapter, loved it !
