Cyberpunk: XYZ

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Chapter 14: Guided To The Abyss I

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Thus why he focused on creating tiny baby cyber spiders, using all the tools available to him in the clinic to facilitate their creation. They should prove useful for his next plan.

Boring would be how X would describe the following two weeks. Night City is the most thrilling place... For maniacs.

Unfortunately, he didn't get to taste the excitement, not yet as most of his time was spent studying.

Speaking of which, Y would describe life in Night City as exhilarating, a bountiful ocean of knowledge before him that he could never hope to finish for new knowledge is unearthed every single day.

Z, on the other hand, doesn't feel much. The only way he could describe NC is... Dangerous.

And naturally, as the guide, he often has to advise X not to put himself in precarious situations, thus X's lack of action.

Not today... Today started strong, with the sound of guns blazing at dawn, awakening X from his sleep.

The sound of gunfire isn't so rare around here in Little China, Watson. They're just usually not close.

People tend to avoid fighting around here as right by Vik's Clinic is a club run by the Tyger Claws, and if you disturb their business, they'll hunt you like the wild dogs they are.

Today, some individuals didn't respect the Tyger Claws' business. Those individuals were the Tyger Claws themselves.

X saw them as they walked out of the club, dragging two bodies with them, no fear of law enforcement whatsoever.

They then threw the bodies into the trash, pulling the trigger two last times just for safe measure, and went back.

The gunfire sound certainly did clear the streets about, if only for a few minutes as soon enough, people acted as if nothing happened, heading to their destination and passing by the dead bodies.

The streets were filled again with people moving about, likely going to work. It's after all very early in the morning.

"Good morning," Joi showed herself, materializing in a stunning glacier gray dress that perfectly showed her curves.

"Morning," X smiled as he sized her up and down, "You look... Gorgeous. I see you've taken it a habit to try everything the Net shows you."

"Thank you," Joi seemed gleeful, "I was created with only a limited option of customization. Now that I'm free, I can't help but want to try everything... Thank you, for freeing me."

"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself," X let out a chuckle, but still warned her, "However, better be cautious. Don't touch anywhere related to gangs and corps, alright?"

"I know, I've only uploaded back-ups of myself to devices in this building, and using just those devices to elevate my computing power," Joi nodded.

"Let's go, we have a lot of work to do today," X stretched a bit and changed his clothes before packing his computer which has a backup of Joi.

Today, X wasn't going to the clinic. That's not the kind of work he has today.

Today's work includes a bit of danger. X made his way to the NCART train station, taking it to his destination, Old Japan Town, or at least, near it.

Old Japantown is a lawless Combat Zone located in central Night City, right by Little China, so it didn't take the train long to reach the surrounding area.

X got out, having to walk a while more to reach Old Japantown as befitting of a lawless combat zone, train carts avoid it.

Combat Zones are after all the most dangerous and lawless areas of Night City, the only justice here was from the barrel of a gun.

X, however, seemed unconcerned as he swaggered his way into Old Japantown, and the people there seemed to avoid him, at least some of them did.

X's clothing made them believe he was one of the Tyger Claws, further confirmed by the print of the gang's logo on his back.

Indeed, X's target is the Tyger Claws, specifically, someone from the Tyger Claws.

Their headquarters is certainly not here. The Tyger Claws in popularity around Kabuki, where the gang had set their new headquarters in the Nakagawa Kabuki Theater.

However, they also have a base of operations in Old Japantown as well, where they're working to rebuild some sections of their former home.

You might expect to see gang violence around, and you would be right. The area of Old Japantown, while mostly controlled by the Tyger Claw, still managed to attract some of the most despicable of eyes.

The Maelstrom are likely the most evil and chaotic gang in this godforsaken city.

Maelstrom are fascinated with cybertechnologies and the Net.

Its members frequently undergo extensive illegal body modifications, with many on the edge of developing cyberpsychosis or already suffering from it.

Their physical appearance is distinguished by their dehumanizing heavy cyberware augmentations and occult-inspired tattoos.

They are basically cyberpsychos that don't consider themselves humans, or rather, they despise humanity, seeking some kind of high in the hard cold metal of cyberware at all costs.

Old Japantown became their target many years ago, seeking to expand their influence to the area, thus why it became a battleground for the two gangs.

It wouldn't be surprising, though, to know that there are very few civilian casualties around here, and that's because there are little to no civilians in the area.

The lawlessness of the combat zone pushed civilians away and attracted criminals.

X had planned his route carefully, avoiding any areas that had even the scent of the Maelstroms, sticking primarily to areas under the control of the Tyger Claws.

Even with such safety measures, X still heard gunfire nearby and the sound of shouts and laughter of pure insanity, likely the Maelstrom.

X quickly changed his route, walking by the shadows of the alleyways until he reached his destination, a damaged building, as most buildings around are.

There were a lot of Tyger Claws around, and some laid eyes on him, but he seemingly didn't care, kept calm, and walked in.

"Oh no no no, pretty boy, this no place for a white cracker like you... Unless you're willing to pay with your tasty body of course,"

X finally faced opposition in the form of a mostly naked Japanese gangster, the only thing covering him being his briefs.

The stranger's body was completely covered with Asian luminous tattoos, something the Tyger Claws are famous for.

Something else they're known for is their Katanas, one of which he was using to block X's way up the stairs as he sat there with a cigarette in his mouth, not smoking it mind you, but chewing through it.

X showed a frown on his face, making the gangster amused, and maybe things would've escalated if X hadn't said the magic words, "But Johnson told me to stay here til tomorrow?"

"Johnson? Tch, go and pick any empty room," The gangster seemed rather annoyed by that revelation though he didn't forget to remind X as the latter walked upstairs, "Hey! I'm still available if you need a good beating in bed!"

X ignored him and walked up, though strangely, the gangster grinned and chuckled, "Johnson found himself another victim... Ah, fresh meat and their desire."

Johnson happened to be Vik's client, the high-ranking gangster that had the Berserk implant installed, someone X studied thoroughly.

He knows that the Tyger Claws mostly comprised of the Japanese, one of the largest gangs in Night City with a number of approximately 5,500 members.

A white boy like him is basically an outsider and isn't usually welcome around here unless he's one of the expendables.

The expendables are aspiring mercenaries who are seeking fame and riches, specifically through joining the dominant gangs of NC.

They're very easy to use, just send them to do dirty jobs till they die. Most mercenaries are aware of the gangs' dirty tricks, but as the gangster said, some are just fresh meat, street kids who are none the wiser.

[Joi, let's start] X typed in his computer, took a deep breath, having found himself a room.

[Ready] X saw her response in his computer as he eyed his target, the largest building around which he could see through the window.

The large building is exactly the Tyger Claws' base of operation in Old Japantown, and there lies Johnson, the unsuspecting prey.