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Chapter 261 c
🕑 Added 2025-06-01 15:03:01 +0000 UTCChapter 261 c
“Snatching Hellman from Militech isn’t exactly easy. Got a plan?”
Inside the room, V sat on one of the two beds, crossing her legs casually.
The hardest job they’d done so far had been sneaking into Yorinobu Arasaka’s suite at Konpeki Plaza to steal the Relic. Strictly speaking, that job couldn’t even compare to the one scheduled for the day after tomorrow. Back then, if not for Saburo Arasaka’s unexpected arrival, they could’ve left unnoticed. But the upcoming operation was destined to be a direct confrontation with Militech’s security forces.
Leo used the coffee machine in the room to pour hot coffee for both V and Lucy.
“Jackson Plains may be outside Night City, but we can’t let the fight drag on too long. Otherwise, it’ll hurt our chances of retreat. Militech’s transport convoy includes a large number of drones and security bots. If we give them enough time to form up, we’ll be in danger. So we need to strike hard at the start and take out as many drones as possible in one go to reduce their numbers.”
“Also, before we launch the attack, we need to identify exactly which vehicle Hellman is in. After all, we’re not out to destroy the entire Militech convoy. Our goal is to extract Hellman for Rogue. If we blow him to bits, there’s no way we can explain ourselves to her.”
Though it was unlikely that someone as high-ranking as Hellman was the only person who knew about the Relic, and there were surely other engineers and tech experts involved, this was still the best opportunity. If they missed this shot, finding another expert would mean going all the way to Japan and kidnapping one—something close to impossible.
“In short, the operation the day after tomorrow must succeed. Failure is not an option.”
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The next morning at 8:00 a.m., Leo met Panam in the motel bar. She yawned, looking groggy. “Morning. You guys are up early.”
“The early bird gets the worm… or some such thing. Sleep well?”
“Haven’t slept under a roof in ages, honestly still not used to it.” Panam slapped her cheeks to wake herself up. “Noha, I’ll have fried eggs, two sausages, a burger, a steak, and of course, a bottle of beer.”
Leo watched her order like she was reciting a grocery list. “That’s a lot. You sure you can eat all that?”
Panam waved him off. “I’m not some corpo desk jockey. You think that’s a lot? I don’t think it’s enough.”
“Alright, take your time. We’re done eating. We’ll wait out back,” Leo said to her, then turned to the bartender. “I talked to the fixer last night. The thing you asked for will be delivered in a few days.”
The owner was surprised and delighted. He hadn’t expected Leo to act so quickly—he thought it’d take longer.
“Thanks. Should I pay now or…”
“No need. Pay once they’ve installed it.”
The guy looked like a straight-laced, honest man. Leo didn’t mind waiting for payment—he didn’t think this was the type to try scamming a fixer. And even if he did… that motel wouldn’t be standing much longer.
Out behind the motel, Leo, V, and Lucy waited a few minutes before Panam finally came around the back.
“Want to take my car? My Thorton can seat five.”
“Take us somewhere first.”
Leo sent her an address. As soon as Panam received it, a marker popped up in her cyberoptic HUD.
“What are we doing there?” she asked, confused.
“Don’t ask. Just get us there.”
Hearing that, Panam stopped pressing the issue. The four of them loaded into her vehicle, and she drove off toward the coordinates Leo had sent. The location was deep in the Badlands, far off the main road.
They drove for over forty minutes, following the marker, until Panam finally brought the car to a stop. She looked around and realized that from here, the Sunset Motel was no longer in sight, nor was the lone road leading out of the city.
This place was barren—no tin shacks, no caves, nothing.
Leo, V, and Lucy got out of the car. Seeing them disembark, Panam followed.
“Why are we stopping here?”
“Waiting. I’ve called a ride to take us to Jackson Plains.”
“A ride?” Panam frowned. “You could’ve just said so. I’ve got a car—why call for one?”
“No. Driving will leave tracks in the Badlands. We’re dealing with a megacorp. We need to minimize traces.”
Driving through this terrain would inevitably leave tire tracks. Even dragging tree branches behind wouldn’t guarantee concealment. Militech would notice. Hellman wasn’t some low-level grunt—Militech would be watching him closely.
In short, this mission wasn’t ordinary. No level of caution was too much.
“You’re saying we’re not driving?” Panam, a seasoned Badlands nomad, understood full well what tire tracks meant. She didn’t think Militech was a bunch of amateurs either. But…
“If we’re not driving, how are we getting there? You don’t expect us to walk, do you? Do you even know how far Jackson Plains is? We’d have to go south to Sonora Ridge, then west across Laguna Bend. On foot? We’d never make it before sundown.”
“No, of course, we’re not walking. That would leave tracks too.”
“Then what? We’re not gonna fly there, are we?”
Leo smiled and snapped his fingers. “Bingo. We’re flying.”
He looked up at the sky. “They should be arriving about now.”
Panam looked up too, confused.
Moments later, a black shape appeared in the sky. At first, she thought it was a bird or a goose. But she quickly realized it was neither.
A heavily armored AV with white livery and a clearly painted Trauma Team logo descended slowly from above. Its thrusters blasted blue flames, distorting the air beneath it.
“Trauma Team? What the hell are they doing out here?”
Even as a nomad, Panam knew all about Trauma Team. They were a private medical service—expensive, elite, and strictly for their registered clients.
While she was still wondering how anyone staying at the Sunset Motel could possibly be a Trauma Team VIP, the AV began descending right over their heads.
“What the fuck is going on?”
Panam wasn’t a city girl, but she knew enough: if you weren’t a client, stay away from Trauma Team. Getting sprayed with bullets was no joke.
“Leo, move! We’ve got to clear the landing zone! Did you hear me?! Leo!”
But to her surprise, Leo—her temporary partner of barely one day—stood calmly in place, hands tucked into his coat pockets, making no move to retreat.
Not only him. Even V and Lucy made no attempt to move.
“Damn it, what the hell are you doing?” Panam’s instinct was to bail and leave them to their fate, but after a second’s hesitation, she rushed toward Leo. “I swear, if you just stand there like an idiot, I’m kicking your ass with my boot.”
Leo finally turned to her. “Relax, Panam. It’s my ride.”
“What did you just say? You—”
She was about to call him a liar, but then she remembered how last night, during the assault on the Raffen Shiv base, Leo had casually pulled a weapons case out of the Delamain cab’s trunk—loaded with high-grade gear.
And how he’d resolved Noha’s major security headache in a single night, even telling him to pay later, once the gear arrived.
Panam hesitated. Maybe Leo wasn’t bluffing.
Her doubt was quickly answered.
The Trauma Team AV touched down, its thrusters kicking up clouds of dust.
Hiss
The hatch opened, but instead of standard Trauma Team medics, two cyber-mercs stepped out.
Panam instantly recognized them.
One of them worked the door at Afterlife. The other she’d seen guarding Rogue’s private booth.
“You two?”
Emmerick gave her a glance, then looked away. In his eyes, Panam was no different from any bottom-tier merc who passed through Afterlife.
Crispin, more laid-back, gave her a quick wave. “Yo.”
Unlike other fixers like Faraday—who had to suck up to Arasaka just to borrow an AV—Rogue operated on a different level. No one knew how much gear she had stashed away.
When Leo had asked her for the same model they’d used to rescue Sasha at the corporate plaza—Rogue had turned him down. She thought it was too conspicuous.
Too few people in Night City had AVs like that. If anyone saw one flying around, they’d quickly connect the dots.
A Trauma Team AV, on the other hand, flew over the city every day.
It was much more discreet. Though Leo hadn’t expected Rogue to have even that at her disposal.
After arranging a rendezvous point with her, she’d sent her two most trusted agents to pick them up—choosing a remote meeting spot like this to avoid drawing attention.
