Bowen: "The Nomads attacked, and their firepower is intense! My men were wiped out instantly! I need more support!"
Meredith Stout: "Are you saying they still have supplies?"
Bowen: "How would I know? But there are definitely no supplies at Stone Ridge Mountain. I already moved everything out."
Bowen: "Either they still have their own stock, or you've got a traitor in your team."
Bowen: "To be honest, I deliberately left that fool stationed at Stone Ridge Mountain, just to avoid something like this."
Bowen: "Now you see, the Nomads always find a way to pull off some tricks. More support, or you come here yourself."
Meredith Stout: "Did they enter the tunnel?"
Bowen: "Yes, they entered the tunnel."
Communication cut off. Stout had only one thought:
"Tricks? How tricky can they get?"
The whole of Night City is practically under lockdown right now, so anyone selling weapons would be caught immediately. Even if the Nomads got some ammunition, what difference does it make? Since they've come out in full force, don't blame me for wiping them out entirely.
In the Badlands, Militech forces began mobilizing. Stout sat in her office, watching the tactical map on the screen.
A full mechanized infantry company was encircling the exit of the Stone Ridge Mountain tunnel.
Yes, the chaos caused by the Nomads had surprised her a bit.
But Militech was forged in war. Even if the Nomads had picked up some extra guns or mounted heavy machine guns on their vehicles, they were barely infantry fighting vehicles.
But what difference does that make in front of real armored infantry vehicles?
As the last rays of sunlight disappeared over the Badlands, the desert began its cooling phase.
Militech was ready to strike.
Meredith Stout: "The target is at the abandoned tunnel of Stone Ridge Mountain. The suspects are heavily armed and extremely dangerous. Priority is to kill."
Militech Captain #5523: "Roger. The target is in sight. Alpha and Beta squads are advancing from the flanks to surround the exit."
Militech Captain #5523: "There are four vehicles at the tunnel entrance, two of which are suspected to be the Arasaka armored cars stolen earlier today."
Militech Sergeant #7634: "Alpha squad reporting: Nomad vehicles are on guard on the left side. Targets marked."
Militech Sergeant #7630: "Beta squad reporting: Nomad vehicles on the right side. Targets marked."
Militech Captain #5523: "Targets alerted, enemy vehicles are starting. Prepare to engage."
Stout unconsciously put down her glass of water as the two squads began approaching the target. Drones kept feeding back data from the surrounding area—thermal imaging, radar, all active—confirming no ambushes nearby.
It seemed like victory was assured.
But for some reason, maybe due to the Nomads' impressive record or the sheer pressure of her recent workload, Stout couldn't shake a feeling of unease.
Then she reassured herself: Even if the worst-case scenario played out, if the entire company were wiped out, as long as they inflicted significant casualties on the enemy and kept them pinned down here—
The reinforcements from other areas were already on their way. There was no way the Nomads could escape.
The Nomads' vehicles roared to life—clearly, they had detected the Militech forces.
"We're entering firing range."
A Militech soldier pulled out a recoilless M5 rocket launcher, specifically designed for anti-armor use.
Even a massive beast like the Basilisk would be shaken by a hit to its side. When used on vehicles, even Militech's own Ragnar armored cars—or the Behemoth following behind—wouldn't stand a chance.
To the Militech commander, the impending close-quarters battle wasn't enough to rattle him.
Years of training had eliminated much of their emotional response to combat. To them, this moment wasn't much more stressful than stamping a document in an office.
He monitored the distance—
They were in range.
"Within range. Fire the RPG!"
The Militech commander didn't even finish speaking before a rocket shot out from the nearby sand dunes.
Boom!
A burst of flames shot skyward!
Nomads buried in the sand spat out dirt and cheered, "Direct hit!!!"
Nature is the best camouflage!
Several veteran Nomads had been lying in ambush around the tunnel entrance, waiting for this moment!
As day turned to night, the desert's temperature dropped rapidly, falling to match human body heat. The drones' thermal imaging couldn't detect the ambush!
All three Militech squads were hit hard. Armored vehicles became burning coffins in an instant.
Screams filled the combat channels as Militech Captain #5523 was thrown by the explosion. Flames engulfed him, but he seemed unaffected.
"Regroup—"
Buzz!
Nomad vehicles roared into the Militech convoy, tossing several EMP grenades.
Zzzzz—!
All communications were cut off. The cybernetic relay inside #5523's body burned out completely from the overload. His neck was even scorched through.
All communication was down!
Drones fell from the sky like rain—
And it didn't stop there. Any soldier attempting to use the radio at that moment had their cyberware fried by the EMP. Only a few officers and elite soldiers equipped with advanced bionic implants could withstand the EMP barrage.
The Nomads were completely unaffected!
"We should've done this ages ago! Saul, you're an idiot!"
Panam's vehicle was the first to break through the Militech convoy. The machine gun mounted on her car fired continuously, taking out several soldiers with ease.
She saw a man standing in front of her with his head tilted—a closer look revealed his neck had been burned through!
What kind of cyberware could handle that kind of power?
Panam floored the gas, charging straight at the man!
Bang!
An unbelievable scene unfolded:
In a blur, the man with the scorched neck pushed off Panam's car hood and was sent flying backward.
With one hand, he held his gun and aimed it at them!
"Sandevistan!"
No time to think about how crazy that was, Panam yanked the steering wheel, causing her vehicle to flip over.
Bullets riddled the windshield as the car flipped, crashing into a large rock. The car and rock together crushed the exaggeratedly acrobatic #5523 into a bloody pulp.
The car landed with a thud, smoke billowing out.
Panam wasn't in great shape either—
A stray bullet grazed her waist.
Looking up, she saw her fellow Nomads methodically eliminating the remaining Militech soldiers around the crash site.
Some soldiers were even engulfed in flames but still standing—albeit moving slowly. One shot couldn't bring them down, but ten or even twenty might.
The ambush was a success, though she had suffered for it—oh, and so had her passenger, Ted.
"Still alive?"
"Yeah, just banged my head up real good."
Ted shook his head—he wasn't shot, but the crash while he was neural-linked to the vehicle left him nauseous and weak.
Saul: "Panam? Ted?"
Panam: "We're... fine. Ran into one hell of a guy."
Reporting their status over the channel, Panam collapsed onto the steering wheel.
"Damn it, today's been the worst. The most cowardly and the toughest fighters all come at me at once."
Aldecaldo Combat Channel:
Bob: "We did it—we wiped out the Militech forces! Damn, that was incredible!"
Saul: "Don't leave anyone behind. Sweep the area. Burger King, is that it for today?"
Leo analyzed the combat data from everyone.
The tactic had been too successful. The people in the cave hadn't even joined the fight, and it was already over.
Desert ambushes weren't uncommon, but if you didn't see it coming, they were devastating.
This revealed something important: the enemy commander had been in a hurry when they called for reinforcements and likely had little experience fighting Nomads.
A textbook tactician, strictly following the rules—but not experienced with unconventional warfare.
Their haste suggested that corporate tolerance for mistakes was much lower than Leo had expected.
Or maybe this commander had other concerns.
In any case, rushing leads to more mistakes, and few people can keep calm in such a state.
It was time to apply more pressure.
Leo: "No, we're hitting the second Wraith stronghold. Nash's superior had the coordinates stored in his database."
Saul: "Why? We never store that kind of info in our hardware. Could it be a trap?"
Leo: "A carefully planned trap? Unlikely. A rushed one? Almost certain."
Leo: "But this is the best opportunity to deal a heavy blow to both the Wraiths and Militech."
Leo: "Another tough fight is coming. Any injuries?"
Saul: "Panam, Cassidy, Spark, Lando. Panam's vehicle is totaled too."
Leo: "Have them clean up the battlefield. Wake up the wounded in the camp. We need to move fast."
Saul: "...Alright, we'll keep trusting you."
Leo: "Thanks for the trust. Coordinates are uploaded."
The location was ironic—it was the abandoned cement plant to the south.
In the game, this was the same place where the Wraiths had taken Saul.
(End of Chapter)