BOOM!
Dust and broken concrete rained from above as Karl's boots hit the ground like a wrecking ball.
"Well… now we all look like Oliver."
He shook his head, a cloud of gray mist puffing off his hair. "Hope you all brought towels. First one to the bath wins. Good thing that new floor we rented's got a tub big enough for the whole crew. Feels like a Roman bathhouse."
"You say that like you've actually been to one," V coughed, swiping cement dust from his face. "What, you go sightseeing in Italy?"
"I meant ancient Rome, smartass. Ever read a history book?"
"Yeah. Once."
"Well, well — another scholar joins the squad."
Jack clapped the dust off his jacket with a grimace. "You guys talkin' Martian now? I understood maybe half that. Guess I'm the musclehead of the team."
Karl grinned. Jack's Mandarin wasn't perfect, but he'd just dropped the phrase tian shu — "incomprehensible." If that made him the dumb one, then 90% of Night City didn't even qualify as sentient.
"Let's roll," T-BUG chimed in over comms.
"I just pushed the fastest route to Arasaka Tower to your car's nav. You've got three minutes, maybe less, before they realize what hit them. You'll be moving before they can scramble."
Oliver dropped into the driver's seat of the Hella, trailing dirt everywhere. "Ugh. I'm gonna need to steam-clean this thing."
He waved the others in. "Buckle up. I'm driving like I owe trauma team money."
Jack jumped into shotgun. "What's our guy say?"
"He's waiting outside Arasaka Tower," Karl said. "Already started scrubbing exposed personnel. Right now? He's standing there alone."
Karl checked on V and Q-ball in the back. Everyone was in.
"Burn rubber, Santo Domingo. Time to fly."
Oliver didn't reply.
He just floored it.
The Hella roared like a beast — tires screaming, engine howling, pinning them all to their seats. V's mods paid off. For a tank that could take hits and keep moving, it moved like a damn racer.
They shot through Japantown, engine echoing down narrow streets, leaving behind a trail of angry curses and terrified pedestrians. In under five minutes, they were flying over the bridge into Little China.
At this speed, ten more minutes and they'd be skirting the edge of the city center. Arasaka Tower would be in sight.
But nothing in Night City is ever that easy.
Jack spotted them first.
"Two CT-3X Kusanagi Blades on our six!"
He recognized the model instantly — and damn near drooled.
"Arasaka collab. Sleek, fast, twitchy as hell. You need reflex augments just to ride one. I love those things."
"You forgot the best part," Oliver chuckled, eyeing the mirror.
"Tiger Claws love those bikes."
The grinning didn't last. The riders dropped low, leaned in — one hand on the throttle, the other gripping Shigure SMGs — and opened fire.
BRRRRT! CLANG CLANG!
Rounds slammed into the armored plating, but the Hella held firm.
"Those kittens are yours. I'm just gonna make us disappear."
"Hell yes!"
Jack leaned out the window, spraying his Saratoga behind them. But at this speed? Hitting anything was a crapshoot. The bikers weaved, bullets pinged off armor. Nothing stuck.
"V — time to get mean!"
Jack ducked back in, and V didn't waste a second. He reached under the seat, ripped open the modded case, and pulled out a fistful of grenades — auto-trigger frags.
He tossed them left and right, rapid-fire.
Beep—
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM!
Jack joined in, hurling flashbangs over the chaos.
FLASH! THUD!
The road behind them lit up like a warzone.
When the smoke cleared — no bikers in sight.
But the moment they exhaled, a truck swerved into their lane — blocking the road.
Oliver cursed, yanked the wheel, just missed it.
The truck's cargo doors opened—
Whirrrrr.
Six drones burst into the air, sleek and silent.
V's eyes widened. "Zetatech Octants."
These weren't toys. He'd heard stories — two Octants once wiped a whole nomad camp in eight minutes. Left no one breathing.
And now?
"Six incoming."
His voice dropped. Calm. Cold.
"Strap in, eyes sharp… or we die fast."
.
.
.
🔥 Cyberpunk: The Relentless
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