Chapter 951 Cyberpunk: Showing Off the Chrome, A Bizarre Club, Dealing with Brick, and Attacking Biotechnica?!

As they got out of the van, the passage became easier to appreciate.

The Totentanz club was a creepy place, while at the same time expressing the Maelstrom's philosophy, which was the most twisted and bizarre way of using implants.

Most people didn't like showing off their implants. That's what something called "Real Skin" existed for: a layer over the implants, practically indistinguishable from ordinary skin at a glance.

But the Maelstrom were the opposite. They showed off their implants with pride. It was like an addiction, a form of expression for their twisted nature.

When the Maelstrom gangers walked away, Allen turned toward the others.

"Dorio, Pilar, you two stay outside and keep watch. Maine, Rebecca, and I will enter the club."

Dorio wanted to say something, but stopped when she saw the calm in Allen's eyes. He definitely wasn't taking this situation lightly.

"All right."

"Tsk, Lil bro, if anything happens, just call us and we'll blow the entrance open, haha!"

"Shut up!" Rebecca scolded.

If the gangers heard that, it could complicate things.

The three of them walked toward the entrance as some Gangs watched them.

Inside was exactly what one would expect.

Some sections collapsed, stairs and metal floors in poor condition, some tilted and others broken, walls barely holding themselves up, and all of it decorated with implants here and there that seemed to imitate people, along with skulls covered in several red eyes.

A ganger guided them to an elevator.

In front of the elevator stood another ganger. He stopped in front of them, blocking their way.

"Show me your chrome."

Despite having an X-shaped visor with metal parts and plates covering his skin, chest, and legs, the man analyzed the three of them as if he were an art critic or something similar.

When he looked at Maine, he nodded in satisfaction. "Lots of chrome, sturdy, flashy. I'd recommend less Real Skin, but it's nice."

Maine blinked before laughing. "You flatter me!"

The man, Allen realized, probably thought the Maelstrom weren't as deranged as everyone said.

The ganger nodded and looked at Rebecca, who was standing to Allen's right. "Optics, subdermal armor?"

"Tsk, what did you say?!" Rebecca kicked him in the balls, knocking him down. "This is my Real Skin!"

It was true that, in canon, Rebecca had undergone an aesthetic biosculpting modification that basically gave her skin a light greenish-blue tone. But it was basically just like a tattoo. Since she was a Doll, she could remove the color and return to her natural fair skin, and in fact, she did so from time to time.

"Ugh, I see. Chrome in the bones, sweet~."

Far from being angry, the ganger admired Rebecca's strength and assumed she had installed titanium bones or something similar.

"Sorry," Allen said casually.

"Don't worry," the man said as he got back to his feet. He then looked at Allen, but frowned as he did. Even with his experience, he couldn't see any chrome on Allen. In fact, he looked completely ordinary.

"Bah, minimalist..."

"Is that a problem?" Allen asked mockingly.

The man shook his head. "You can pass. I just wanted to see your chrome. It's something I really enjoy."

"So you're just wasting our time!" Rebecca exclaimed angrily.

Allen laughed and proceeded to roll up his left sleeve. Suddenly, his perfectly normal arm took on a silver tone, revealing a dazzling implant that seemed to radiate energy.

"A... what a beauty..."

The Maelstrom dropped to his knees.

"Forgive me, guest. You are a true chrome connoisseur!"

At that moment, the elevator doors opened.

Allen shook his head and stepped inside before the ganger could start praying to him or something. Rebecca and Maine followed him.

Once inside, they saw another ganger. He was leaning against the wall, looking dizzy.

"Third floor... sorry... my fingers don't move properly... Tinnitus today, and I'm late," the ganger said in a robotic voice, perhaps because of some implant in his throat.

[Do you think this guy is about to become a Cyberpsycho, or is his hand just not working?]

'Who knows? These guys can install low-quality implants as long as they're at least minimally functional,' Allen thought.

The elevator doors closed, and it began to rise. At that moment, the ganger standing next to Allen seemed to receive an electric shock and jolted. A moment later, he froze like a statue.

Rebecca and Maine were surprised.

"I'll control him for a moment; I don't want him to listen to us. Well, stay ready. Despite what I said, the Maelstrom are still one of the most dangerous gangs. If things get worse, we'll have to kill dozens just to get out."

"Haha, you don't have to flirt like that!" Rebecca said excitedly.

"I expected this," Maine sighed, shaking his head, but then smiled. "So be it!"

Allen smiled as the sound of music slowly began to reach them, if it could even be called music.

"Sasha, can you hear me?" Allen asked.

"Loud and clear, Captain~."

"Any strange movement?"

"No. No movement in the streets, no NCPD activity, and no signs of other gangs."

"Good. For now, keep your attention outside. Getting out is easy, but having hundreds of Maelstrom's gang members chasing us would be unpleasant."

"Don't worry. If everything goes to shit, I'll buy us some time by hacking their vehicles~."

"That's the attitude." Allen smiled.

Maine discreetly watched Allen. He was surprised by how easily Allen could manage a team in a dangerous situation like this. That wasn't something one could accomplish through talent alone. Allen had to have experience, and a lot of it. That made the man extremely curious.

When the doors opened, they were greeted by darkness and red lights here and there, creating the appearance of a twisted club.

The music was a mechanical pulse, industrial techno mutated at low revolutions that pounded against the chest like a hydraulic piston. To ordinary people, it was static and deafening noise. To the Maelstrom, who received the sound through their implants, it was music known as neo-death metal and hardcore industrial techno.

"What is this?" Maine asked.

Looking at the dance floor, one might expect to see people enjoying themselves and dancing, but there were bizarre sights among them.

In one corner, a man had his spine exposed as if he wanted to show off the connection between his chrome and what remained of his body.

Elsewhere, a faceless woman convulsed from a Glitter overdose without anyone paying her any attention.

Farther back, a man was beating another with a machete, cutting off his arm, which wasn't an implant.

"I heard someone dies in this club every day, but they just move them aside like garbage and throw them somewhere in the morning," Maine said. "You still want to negotiate with them?"

Allen didn't answer. He simply walked to the right, where a group of Maelstrom stood in front of a door. After scanning their implants, Allen noticed that some of them were Tier 3 and Tier 4. They were definitely strong, but that was to be expected since they were protecting Brick.

The three stopped in front of these elite gangers.

"Hold it!" a woman said in a strange synthetic voice. Like the others, she had red optics, four in total, short red punk-styled hair, and visible implants. "What do you want here, meatboy?"

"What a way to address people." Allen chuckled. "Well, I'm here to sell weapons. New and high-quality. Simple as that."

The woman scoffed. "Since when do mercs deal weapons?"

"We don't usually do this, but now that I have them, I didn't want to sell them for a pittance on the black market."

The woman thought for a moment before making a gesture. The door opened, and the gangers stepped aside, letting them pass.

"Follow me," she said before moving forward.

She led them through the club.

"Not only did you rob the Valentinos, piss off the 6th Street general, and now you're coming to sell weapons to Brick. Either you've got the biggest balls I've ever seen, or you're completely insane," the woman said. "By the way, my name is Patricia."

[Are you flirting with her?]

Akeno – Wow, this is a whole new level!~

Rangiku – Why don't you invite her out for a drink? Although I can't tell you whether she'll eat your heart out on the first date, ufufu~

McDragon – For once, I don't envy you, haha.

Allen's face became gloomy. Of course, he knew who Patricia was. In 2077, after Brick and Royce died, she would take leadership of the Maelstrom.

"I'm Allen Walker."

Allen had no problem with crazy girls, but one who had a habit of replacing parts of her body with implants and whose greatest happiness would be falling into cyberpsychosis was too much. No, the biggest problem was simply that she had no face. Even 2B seemed more human than the Maelstroms.

"Well, Allen, I'll give you some advice. Prove your worth in front of Brick."

Patricia led them to a staircase that went up to a balcony. There was a sofa there with someone sitting on it.

"You've got visitors," Patricia said before stepping aside.

The man sitting there was everything one could expect from the leader of the Maelstrom: implants covering his entire body, more metal than skin, and the upper half of his face replaced by a metal plate with six eyes.

Allen wasn't offended by having to stand while Brick was sitting. He was aware that, in everyone's eyes, he was just an unknown merc with a lot of trouble following him, while the other side was one of the most dangerous men in Night City.

"Why should I accept your weapons?" Brick asked, without looking at him.

Maine and Rebecca tensed at the question. There was certainly something strange about this situation.

There was no downside for Brick. All the weapons were new, and all of decent quality. What could be wrong with this?

"That's not the right question," Allen said calmly.

For the first time, Brick turned to look at him, but didn't speak, permitting him to continue.

"I certainly have weapons, and they're something you can use. But that's not enough for the leader of the Maelstrom to receive us personally."

"You should already know where the weapons came from. You should already know who I am, and you wanted to meet the person who managed to walk out of the 6th Street's house in one piece."

Brick smiled faintly. "You've got guts, I'll give you that. When I heard that the guy who robbed the Valentinos and fucked over the 6th had come to my door to sell me weapons, I wanted to see him and find out whether he was an idiot or a lunatic."

"..."

"But I'm surprised. You're neither of those things. I respect that. Even knowing my reputation and that of my boys, even knowing that anything that pisses me off could turn you into part of the decorations, you're still here. Where do you get all that confidence?"

"I had confidence in you." Allen gave him a faint smile.

"Me?"

For the first time, Brick looked perplexed. To most people, the man was the devil incarnate. Even his own subordinates didn't completely trust him. Now, some stranger had come to his door and said that to him. What was he supposed to think?

"Everyone knows the Maelstrom are unstable, and all their leaders change whenever the next one makes their move. It's bloody and raw, just like your existence. But among all the Maelstrom leaders, you honor your deals, reward those who deserve to be rewarded, and you're capable of reason. The proof is that you haven't tried to kill me yet."

When Allen finished speaking, the atmosphere fell silent. No one expected him to say that. It was so bizarre for someone to claim that the leader of the most deranged gang of them all was reasonable.

Did he seriously not see the body parts being used as decorations?!

Brick burst into laughter and then pointed at Allen.

"What's your name, merc?!"

"Allen Walker."

"I like it. Nobody introduces themselves with their full name anymore. I'll take your weapons for 80% of their price," Brick said, signaling Patricia.

"I was expecting at least 90%," Allen replied.

Maine almost smacked Allen on the back of the head. This guy had just managed to negotiate with the devil and still wanted to haggle?!

Brick hesitated for a moment before answering. "85%. Deal?"

"All right."

"Go with Patricia. She'll take inventory and pay you."

Allen gestured for Rebecca and Maine to follow him.

"Walker, if you have more weapons, Glitter, or implants, think of us first."

"Yeah, of course." Allen nodded.

He knew that even though they had few allies, they wouldn't agree to work with just anyone. The fact that he had come here today and negotiated with Brick was more significant than many people would think.

....

It took them half an hour to take inventory, inspect the weapons and ammunition, and calculate the price. Once everything was completed, Allen received a credchip containing 290,000 Eddies.

Although the weapons they had weren't worth that much on their own, Allen had also brought several weapons from Johnny Silverhand's hideout to sell. As tempting as it was to stay and enjoy watching someone die after having their heart ripped out, they decided to leave.

Once they were in the van and on their way, everyone remained silent, unable to believe that they had actually gotten out of there in one piece.

"Do you think the 6th will still come after us?" Pilar asked with a smile. She really wasn't afraid. If she died, then she died. Nothing out of the ordinary. "You know, now that we've sold the weapons, I don't think they'll gain anything by chasing a bunch of average mercs."

Despite Allen being younger and Pilar not having known him for very long, she felt like he had an answer for everything, so asking him about anything was becoming a habit.

"They're coming. The question is when." Allen smiled.

Everyone remained silent. Most mercs avoided gangs, or at least moderated their actions around them. However, their still-growing team had already gotten tangled up with three: one as a complete enemy and another as an ally.

"But by then, we'll be ready." Allen transferred 40,000 Eddies to each member of the team, keeping 90,000 Eddies for himself.

"Oh, shit!" Pilar exclaimed.

"Hey... are you all right?" Dorio asked. She had practically done nothing, only accompanying Allen.

"Boss, I don't think I should be getting this much either..." Sasha said through a video call.

Allen smiled. "It's not money for doing something. It's money for not saying no to a crazy stunt like the one we just pulled."

Negotiating with the Maelstrom? Going to the Totentanz Nightclub? Talking to Brick?!

Everything sounded like suicide, and yet nobody had abandoned him.

"Just accept it~" Rebecca said while sitting on Allen's lap. "My darling is very generous with his people, so use it to upgrade your chrome and keep yourselves from getting killed in the future."

It was true that the main reason Allen gave them so much was so they could upgrade their cyberware faster than they did in canon. After all, as Maine had said, cyberware was directly tied to survival.

Maine laughed. "I didn't expect such easy money. If I'd known, we wouldn't have wasted time investigating Biotechnica. We could've just raided gangs and stolen their stuff to get better chrome."

"While it may seem like easy money, keep in mind that we literally risked ourselves against three of the major gangs to get it." Allen nodded slightly, but quickly realized what Maine had said. "Biotechnica?"

"Hm?" Maine looked at Allen. "Yeah. A few days ago, we were offered a job to extract information from Biotechnica's main building. This would be our first big job, and if we pulled it off, our reputation would grow. Of course, it means messing with one of the biggest corporations, perhaps only behind Arasaka and Militech."

Allen and Rebecca exchanged glances. The real reason they were in this year instead of at the beginning of Edgerunners was because of that job. The Biotechnica data theft was the reason Sasha died, and because of that, they hired Kiwi, and everyone knows she betrayed them.

If they hadn't lost Sasha, perhaps the crew's fate wouldn't have been so miserable.

"Of course, you're the boss now. What do we do?" Maine smiled. "Fuck over Biotechnica?!"

"..."

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