In the merc world of Night City, Maine's crew wasn't the strongest by raw firepower—but when it came to netrunning, they were untouchable.
Between Kiwi and Lucy, they had two of the sharpest digital minds in the city—each one capable of crippling a megacorp's data fortress before the alarms even finished blinking. Most teams would kill for one of them. Maine's had both.
"Maine, they're already fighting inside."
Kiwi's voice crackled through the comms, calm but tense. "I didn't have enough time to completely hijack their systems. I've scrambled the targeting recognition on the auto-turrets as much as I can, but they might still shoot you. Stay sharp."
"Got it," Maine rumbled back. "That's already damn good work for the time you had. Keep monitoring network flux—warn me if anything spikes."
He turned, raising his shotgun. "Dorio, Pilar—lock and load. We're going in."
…
All Foods Factory – Processing Floor.
Inside, the slaughter had already begun.
Royce was a limbless wreck bleeding out on the tiles, and every Maelstrom thug in the control room had a bullet or blade in their skull.
The mission had shifted. This wasn't a recovery anymore—it was an extermination.
Neo's voice cut through the gunfire like a blade. "Jackie—keep Royce alive. He still has value."
"On it!" Jackie grunted, dragging the maimed gang boss behind cover while exchanging shots with the few survivors still firing from above.
That was where Jackie's real strength shone.
He moved with the rhythm of someone who'd been through too many firefights to count—using cover, dragging casualties, scanning angles, suppressing fire all at once.
Even while patching Royce's bleeding stumps with a stolen stimpack, he managed to drop two Maelstrom gunners with clean, clinical shots.
Neo noticed—and silently, he was impressed.
Every crew had their strengths. Jackie's was versatility. He could fight, heal, drive, plan, drink, talk, or kill with equal ease. A man like that wasn't a soldier; he was a one-man army with a heart.
Then there was David.
The kid was a monster in his own right. Most people could only handle a Sandevistan boost twice, maybe three times in a day before their nervous system fried itself. David? He doubled that. Every twitch, every move was sharp, deliberate—textbook Arasaka Academy technique fused with sheer, raw grit.
And unlike the hollow-eyed chrome junkies in Maelstrom, he still had something they didn't: control.
He was calm even in the chaos, his focus so steady it almost unnerved Neo.
And finally, there was Rebecca.
Neo's little firecracker. She didn't need an introduction.
"You chrome motherfuckers! Come get some!"
The tiny girl with the iron pistol was pure violence incarnate. She darted between the rusted machines, twin barrels spitting molten lead, laughter bubbling from her lips. Every shot she fired hit.
Her energy was infectious.
Neo fought beside her, one hand gripping his blade but not drawing it. Instead, his right fist clenched tight, and with it, he unleashed wind itself.
"No-Sword Style… Great Tornado."
The air howled. The shockwave ripped across the factory floor, deflecting bullets mid-flight and slamming into walls like a storm.
Giant machines shuddered loose from their mounts and crashed down in a thunderous roar. The ones unlucky enough to stand beneath them turned into red paste.
Another pair of massive processors clanged together like cymbals—flattening two gangers into two-dimensional art.
Rebecca whooped, ducking under a spray of bullets. "Holy shit, V! You almost blew my hair off!"
Neo's lips twitched. "Then move faster."
The two tore through the floor like a cyclone—Rebecca's guns blazing, Neo's fists throwing arcs of air that cut like invisible blades.
Behind them, David darted through the chaos in bursts of blue light, his Sandevistan trailing ghostly afterimages as he picked off anyone stupid enough to peek out of cover.
And Jackie, steady as ever, kept Royce alive while advancing inch by inch.
The formation was perfect.
Neo and Rebecca: offense.
David: precision strike.
Jackie: support and stability.
It was chaos sculpted into art.
By the time Maine's team breached the lower levels, the factory floor was already half in ruins.
Rebecca vaulted over a conveyor belt, unloading her last magazine into a Maelstrom bruiser twice her size. "C'mon! You wanted to play, didn't you?!"
"Rebecca!" David's voice crackled over comms. "Found something!"
She turned, panting, blood-splattered grin wide. "What is it?"
David held up a small chrome wafer, gleaming faintly. "Some kind of implant chip. Looks valuable. You should take it."
Rebecca blinked, catching it as he tossed it her way. "A what-now?"
David smiled. "Cyberware plugin chip. They're used to slot into weapons or implants to boost power output. Arasaka, Militech, Kang-Tao—they've all been working on them. Not public yet, though. Still in testing."
He turned the one in his hand over, admiring its sleek casing. "This one's Militech tech—definitely from their labs. If it's out here, that means it's a stabilized prototype."
Rebecca looked down at it, curiosity glinting behind her crimson optics.
The readout flickered across her HUD:
[Cyberware Plugin: Thunder Core]
Manufacturer: Militech
Release: Unlisted
Description: An advanced Militech prototype chip designed to enhance electro-shock functions within compatible cyberware or weapon systems. Stores charge, discharges explosively on trigger.
Status: Inactive – Insert into implant or weapon to activate.
She grinned, fangs flashing. "Thunder Core, huh? Sounds like my kind of toy."
Neo chuckled, shaking blood from his blade. "Careful with that. Might fry half the city if you sneeze."
Rebecca winked. "Guess we'll find out."
…
The air filled with the scent of ozone and burning oil. Gunfire echoed from the lower levels as Maine's voice came through the comms.
"Main floor's clear. They're falling back! You're a damn monster, V!"
Neo stood at the center of it all, smoke rising around him, the Flathead crate resting by his side.
"Not a monster," he murmured. "Just efficient."