Malfunctioning Utopia

Chapter 42: The Clash

Sun Jack clung tightly to Tapai’s back, keeping his body as low as possible to avoid incoming bullets.

When he noticed someone raising a rocket launcher, Tapai quickly deployed his armor plates and tossed all the grenades it had, creating a series of deafening explosions.

The rest of the team provided suppressive fire, allowing Sun Jack and Tapai to narrowly escape the ambush.

“You okay?” Four Ai asked, patting Sun Jack’s shoulder as she crouched behind a car for cover.

“I’m fine. Took a few hits, but the bulletproof vest held up,” Sun Jack replied, exhaling in relief. Peeking out from behind the car door, he noticed something unusual—chaos breaking out among the gang members in the garage.

“F***ing hell, Tsunami! How could you let him get away? Aren’t you supposed to be a hacker?!”

“Shut the f*** up! How was I supposed to know that cyborg’s firewall would be so impenetrable? I tried everything!”

“Oh, so it’s the firewall’s fault?” Sun Jack growled, raising his cannon. He unleashed several explosive rounds toward the source of the shouting, filling the icy air with thick black smoke.

Their retaliation was swift. A rocket, trailing red flames, streaked toward their position.

“Take cover!” Sun Jack and Tapai dove behind a structural pillar just as the blast rocked the area. Both sides started exchanging fire in the dimly lit underground garage.

As bullets flew, the trash talk between the two groups escalated into a full-on insult war.

“You motherf***ers! You killed my brother!”

“비겁한자식! You rags-for-brains pieces of s***, you messed with the wrong people!”

Not one to back down, Tapai joined in with its bizarre arsenal of insults. “(‵□′)╯This D-tier excuse for a gang couldn’t handle my qualifications! Pillock! 똥개새끼! 凸ˋ_ˊ# くそやろう、死ね!!!”

“Where the hell did you even learn that crap?! Save your memory for something useful!” Sun Jack shouted as he ducked another volley of bullets.

Analyzing the battle, Sun Jack realized they were at a severe disadvantage. Not only was the hacker formidable, but they were also outnumbered. If the fight dragged on, their side would inevitably lose.

When he spotted a group of enemies attempting to flank them from the left, Sun Jack quickly formulated a plan. Looking up at the garage’s overhead lights, he aimed his gun and shot them out one by one. ᚱÃℕŐᛒƐs

The garage was plunged into total darkness.

Just as Sun Jack prepared to use his night vision to strike, he was caught off guard by the loud curses now echoing throughout the garage.

“Who the hell did that?! Turning off the lights—do you have no decency?!” That was Song 6’s voice.

“Goddammit, I can’t see a thing! What the hell is this?! Who fights in the dark?!” another voice bellowed.

“Yeah, big shot, just because you’ve got fancy night-vision cyber-eyes doesn’t make you special! Killing people like this isn’t even fun!”

Hearing insults hurled from both friend and foe alike, Sun Jack was dumbfounded. “What the hell? I only took out a few lights—why is everyone yelling at me?”

“Everyone, listen up!” A voice cut through the darkness—it was Tsunami, the hacker. “I’m turning on all the car lights in the garage. Nobody turn them off again, got it?!”

Cheers erupted from all sides, even Tapai joined in.

“What the hell are you cheering for? Don’t you have infrared?!” Sun Jack glared at him.

Moments later, the entire garage was illuminated, and gunfire resumed. Both sides resumed their curses and their battle.

“We don’t have much time! This is Graffiti Gang territory. If we keep wasting time, their reinforcements will arrive!” Song 6PUS’s voice came through Sun Jack’s system.

“Then why were you yelling at me earlier?!” Sun Jack retorted, firing a shot that obliterated one of the enemies hiding behind a car.

The destruction provoked even more intense fire from the gang, accompanied by renewed shouting.

“You money-grubbing scumbags! Just you wait! I’m gonna power up the exoskeleton armor and bring the wrath of Wall-Tech down on your heads!”

“ちくしょう! You dare mess with us?! You’ve made a big mistake!”

“Who hired you?! How much are they paying you?!” one of the gang members demanded.

“57@,” Song 6PUS calmly answered.

“I’ll pay 65!” The gunfire and shouting came to an abrupt halt as everyone turned to stare. Even Sun Jack and Tapai, still firing, froze under the collective glare.

“You’ve got to be kidding me...” Sun Jack muttered.

Tapai angrily threw his rifle to the ground. “Is this a joke?! Are we playing house now?!”

Ignoring the chaos, Song 6 crawled out from under a red car and strolled over to the Graffiti Gang members. “I’m the leader here. 65@? Deal!”

Song 6PUS flashed a wide grin, his gold tooth gleaming as he handed out e-cigarettes to the gang. Laughing and putting his arm around their shoulders, he acted like a long-lost brother.

After a few minutes of hushed discussion, Song 6 sent an emoji of a siren to the team chat: Mission resolved.

On their way out, Song 6 warmly advised the gang to relocate their operation quickly, warning them that the BCPD was closing in. He returned, puffing on one of the gang’s cigars with a satisfied smile. “All done. Let’s call it a day.”

“Call it a day?” Sun Jack asked, dumbfounded.

“What about our mission?” Tapai interjected.

“Bro, you’re overthinking it. Why do we complete missions? For money! Now that we’ve got the cash, who cares about the mission? The mission is making money!” Song 6PUS was beaming, clearly delighted with his impromptu solution.

“Ugh, fine. Let’s go.” Four Ai slung her sniper rifle onto her back, stretching lazily.

As they left the parking garage, Song 6 waved enthusiastically at the Graffiti Gang. “Sh*t! If I’d known it’d be this easy, I wouldn’t have sprung for full insurance coverage. Total waste of money.”

“What if they don’t pay up?” Tapai asked.

“They will. I streamed everything. Reputation matters in this business. If they cheat us, no one will ever trust them to sell electronic narcotics again!” Song 6PUS said confidently, clearly experienced in such dealings.

The team chatted casually as they made their way outside. But as they neared the exit, Sun Jack stopped in his tracks. Tapai halted as well.

The others turned to look at him, puzzled. “Jack, let’s go,” Tapai urged.

Sun Jack didn’t respond. He stood staring at the slowly closing garage door.

“What about them?” he asked quietly.