Michael 'Magos' Sobronov
Hours passed as I aimlessly drove across Watson, doing my best impression of an emo teenager and staring off into the distance, or as close to it as I could considering I was at most times surrounded by buildings covered top to bottom in eye-watering neon signs.
I knew I was acting the gonk and wasting my time thinking about could have beens but I needed some time to just let myself process without people asking me... bothersome questions.
And the worst part? I wasn't even sure if I was actually shaken by the death, or if I was merely acting out in a way I believed I should because of my own self-perceived 'guilt'.
Emotions were really fucking confusing sometimes.
Thankfully, as I began contemplating smashing my head into the dashboard out of sheer dumb frustration, the world provided me with a distraction.
I slammed down on the break, twisting the wheel so hard the metal groaned and drifting my van sideways with a loud screech of tires on asphalt, just in time for the speeding car covered in scavenged metal 'armor' to zoom past me and slam into an overfilled trash container.
The engine sputtered a rapid and rather final death though by some unholy miracle it did so without detonating into a massive fireball.
The familiar music blasting at full volume and the many flashes of red dotting the heads of the occupants made their identities pretty obvious and for a moment, my hand moved to the control panel of my autocannon.
But I quickly stopped myself "You fuckers aren't worth the shells." And simply grabbed my shotgun before stepping out.
At the same time, the Maelstrom driver had hopped out and was drunkenly hollering at his co-driver, not even acknowledging my existence "Dammit Jimmy! Think you can make this tin can run again? We'll miss the moshpit!"
"Boom man, at this point we might as well just get a new one." The twig of a cyborg across him said in a dead tone and patted the car muttering something about 'his poor baby girl'.
"Fuck!" 'Boom' smacked the top of the car.
Only my growing amusement stopped me from blasting them into pieces.
Which gave enough time for the third and final member of the... exemplary Maelstrom specimens to roll out of the car face first, slurring out a curse and clumsily rolling on his back only to still like a deer in headlights as his nine eyes landed on me.
The glow in his Optics increased dramatically "Oi bossman." He slurred and hiccupped "What in the everloving fuck did you put into our drinks again?"
"Wonderboy's newest and most preemest mix." Said bossman said proudly and started turning "Why do you... ask..."
Naturally his pride disappeared the moment he was met with my Crusher pointed at his center mass.
But the fear and aggression I was expecting was nowhere to be found as the gonk swayed, actually swayed on his feet before reaching over and shaking 'Jimmy's' shoulder so he would look as well.
"Dear web, we are in heaven." Was the thin cyborg's... elucidating reaction.
My right Optic twitched "Kindly cease projecting your cyberfetishism onto me, it is quite uncomfortable."
They didn't seem to register me speak for a moment before they realized I was in fact not a hallucination and the shotgun pointed their way was very much real. They all startled away a step or two, though surprisingly none of them reached for their guns.
Probably because all of those guns were still in the car, but one should never underestimate just how stupid gangoons could be.
"Well I'll be!" The boss exclaimed, his arms spreading jubilantly "If it isn't our own local Smashman!"
'Smashman? How flattering.'
The third yet unnamed member of the group slumped on the ground again, ass first this time.
While 'Jimmy' suddenly squealed like a girl and began walking over to me like some kind of frenzied zombie "EEEE! I'm your biggest fan man, can you sign my faceplate? Come on man the bitches will love it!"
Before I even realized it I had taken a worried step back and would have probably shot Jimmy's head off if not for his boss handily yanking him back and tossing him behind himself.
"Sorry about that." He chuckled "These gonks are high off their asses on the preemest fuckin' glitter in this scrapyard of a city."
"And you aren't?" I allowed myself to calm down a bit though my gaze refused to leave the half feral 'strommer behind him.
"I got a detoxifier installed exactly for shit like this." He shrugged, voice turning more coherent by the second "Don't want us comitting suicide by big fuckoff borg when I can help it."
"Name's BoomBox by the way." He offered me his hand.
I looked down at the hand covered in God knew what and didn't return the gesture "Magos, but something tells me you already knew that."
"Doubt there's any fuckers in the gang who don't after your rampage." He snorted, seemingly not caring about my ignoring him "Most nova shit I've witnessed in fuckin' years!"
"Riiiiight... So what was the plan here?" I allowed myself to relax a bit more, shouldering my shotgun and crossing my arms "You wanted to what? Scrape some of my paint off in revenge?"
"WE WOULD NEVER!" Jimmy shouted in outrage, to which the silent third member just facepalmed.
"Revenge?" BoomBox blinked and then threw his head back and laughed "Choombatta we were just fuckin' joyriding around, didn't even know you were there." He pointed at my van "That fuck-off tank you are driving around was damn near invisible."
My eyes twitched sideways and I quickly realized what happened "Get better Optics, meat."
"Hah!" He barked out another laugh "Damn right I should, but pickings have been slim since Powerpump got his ass samurai'd and upgrades are coming slow. Think you could set me up with whoever did you? Looks like custom made-"
I didn't even need to consider it for a moment "No."
Giving high ranking Tyger Claws access to my stuff was one thing, giving it to fucking Maelstrom was something that would only ever happen over my dead fucking body!
BoomBox twitched in annoyance which quickly drew me from my asinine line of thought, but he quickly stopped himself from showing it and raised his hands placatingly "Alright, alright. Fair is fair choom, was just asking. Don't see shit that preem in NC without some big fuckoff corpo holding the leash."
"Right." I drawled slowly "Fair is fair."
"So uhh..." He trailed off "You looking to join up? Bosses will probably skin my ass if I don't ask. Fuck, big borged ass fucker like you could probably become the boss in like two days tops." He paused "Don't tell them I said that by the way."
Right. Like I'd ever associate with them willingly.
"Bosses?" I caught onto his slip instantly.
He twitched slightly before quickly correcting it into a shrug "You know how things get when the streets are on fucking fire, especially when the big bastards' brain chrome starts rusting and they decide they are the big borg and its their way or the scrapyard's way." He clapped his hands "So, whaddaya say? Wanna free yourself from all the meatbags pretending they're worth shit and join your true brothers?"
I just stared down at him in complete, utter disdain, saying absolutely nothing and letting my Optics speak for me.
His shoulders slowly slumped.
"Yeah that's what I expected..." He muttered with a nod.
Well that about drained all desire I had to blast them. How disappointing.
"I've wasted enough time on this. Try not to suicide yourselves too quickly." I said and promptly turned to leave, ignoring the two sags of relief and the loud wailing of the third.
I failed to hold down the shudder as I shut my doors and the chrome cultist began crying out for me to come back, promising he would be good and beautiful for me.
Something told me he was only stopped from bodily throwing himself on my windshield by the fact the third Maelstrommer had literally sat his ass on top of him.
What a bunch of fucking weirdos.
Still, I was grateful for the distraction, so they got to live for the day.
They'd probably just end up killing themselves sooner or later anyway.
-----
I rolled my eyes as I looked over Rita's most recent message, that being a particularly risque picture of the Mox twins sent as 'thanks' with no other explanation.
It wasn't all that surprising they managed to piece things together as I wasn't particularly subtle with how I went about freeing the Tygers' 'merchandise', but beside the slight thrill of satisfaction I got from the knowledge I will admit I also felt a bit worried.
Because if they could deduce I was the one to free the girls from Shobo's businesses, they could also deduce I worked with the Tyger Claws to get rid of the subhuman in question.
But aside from a simple warning to not trust the gang from Rita, which was perfectly understandable considering the reason she was so cyberized was previous encounters with them, there was no other mention of it.
No, instead the Moxes were far too busy trying to get me to come for a 'visit' so I could get my 'proper reward' through increasingly creative and suggestive means.
The fact they started trying to convince Rebecca into joining the 'celebration' after my first refusal as a way to get around my excuse of already being in a relationship was almost as annoying as the fact the little gremlin was egging them on just to fuck with me.
But I was ever an old fashioned pillar of chrome, and so they would just have to content themselves with simply thanking me and moving on with their lives.
'I had work to do anyway.' I decided and promptly ignored the group chat as I leaned under the slightly too low entrance to Vik's clinic, a large metal box filled to the brim with vials of grey goo held in my hands.
"I should really put a bell on one of these days." The ripper said without turning as I made my way inside, somehow noticing me despite the fact he was currently occupied with installing a heart replacement to an old woman.
"Why do you think I shoved the door while entering?" I said "Need any help with that?"
"No need, Mike. I'm just about done." Vik chuckled lightly.
"Alright." I shrugged "Where do you want me to put the meds?"
"Just place them under the workbench." He said wryly "Like every other time you asked."
"Don't get cheeky with me now, old man." I tutted and quickly did as he asked, noticing that the crate I brought him previously still had some vials left inside.
"Biz slowing down?" I asked after making sure everything is in order.
"Hm?" He went to look up but stopped himself "No, everything is going pretty well here. I'm just keeping the supplies for when they are actually necessary. No point in wasting them." I went to speak but he preempted me "Also, I told you what you give me is more than enough."
"Well I was around, so I thought why not bring some anyway?" I smirked.
He fake huffed and asked "Misty still busy then?"
"She's got some ancient grandma asking about her grandsons' futures. I tuned her out somewhere around the part she started wailing about all her sons failing in life and having to rely on their kids for the family now." I huffed "How she can tolerate talking to people like that for literal hours I'll never understand."
"Misty is a treasure neither of us will ever comprehend." Vik chuckled before drawing my attention to his patient "Think you can give her a quick scan? Just in case."
Knowing what I'd find I still did so "Everything seems perfect, Vik. Even if the heart is lacking."
"It isn't a combat model, Mike." He said patiently and began stitching the woman up "It doesn't need to be perfect, just functional and affordable."
"Affordable doesn't mean it isn't overpriced for what it does, and designed to fail in a few years besides." I failed to keep a bit of annoyance from bleeding into my voice "That shitty model isn't worth five grand, much less the twenty they are asking for."
"Why not do something about it then?" Vik asked suddenly.
And the easy way he said it almost made me miss the implication "What exactly do you mean by that, Vik?"
"You are an artist with the chrome, Mike." He told me as he started injecting the stitched up woman with heal-boosters "And your nanomachines still look like technomagic whenever I use them."
"What are you getting at exactly?"
"Your work has already helped a bunch of people. Hell, there have been dozens I've managed to save just because of what you gave me." He paused "But-"
"What?" I cut him off "Do you want me to start selling the nanites openly? You do realize how stupidly suicidal that is, right?"
"If you'd let me finish first." His voice turned just slightly stern and it was more than enough to make me bite my tongue "I was going to say you could help a lot more people if you used your brilliant mind to make the affordable and efficient life support implants you yourself would approve of."
I will admit, the idea wasn't terrible but there were still some obvious issues to it.
"So what do you want me to do here?" I frowned, wisely ignoring how my spine straightened at the praise "Open my clinic up for the crowd and waste my time fabricating pacemakers?"
"You know exactly what I mean, Mike." Vik said and finally rolled his stool around to face me, his gaze a challenging one.
It was pretty obvious even at first, but for some reason the mere concept of it felt... dirty, antithetical to even my meager morality.
It felt like selling my soul to even say it out loud.
But I knew from Vik's look that he wouldn't let me ignore this one.
"You think I should start a corporation." I voiced hesitantly.
"Yes." Vik nodded and seeing my eyes crinkling he pressed "You know, just because the megacorps of today are soulless monoliths doesn't mean you shouldn't create something amazing simply because you'll be associated with them. You are smarter than that, Mike."
Exactly the same thoughts I had while I was staring down the corpo academy mere days ago... Apparently I am no les a sheep than the rest of the masses.
How low the Magos has fallen just because he's hit a tiny little snag!
Yeah, no.
Fuck that.
Hesitation is death, and so is stagnation.
And I plan to live for a very, very long time.
...But how to go about it?
Without realizing it, I had begun muttering to myself "...I'd need to get enough leverage not to provoke any of the megacorps into doing an 'aggressive takeover'. Probably get direct support from one of them and offer a bribe of some kind to the higherups... Security is also a must, and so is logistics..."
"Khm." Vik clearing his throat drew me from my rambling and I looked up.
"I see you've decided then." He said only a bit teasingly.
"Yeah." I exhaled before chuckling a bit "It's definitely possible."
"Possible?" He raised an eyebrow "You sound like you already know exactly what you need to do to get there. I'd even bet you've already decided to do it."
"Heh." I huffed "You know Vik, you are right. But I have one condition."
He raised his eyebrows expectantly.
"When I do finally manage it you are getting recruited, whether you like it or not."
He immediately frowned "You know I'm happy where I am-"
"But you can do a lot more good by helping me out, now can't you?" I grinned as I threw his words back at him "So what will it be, old man?"
His frown remained for only a few seconds before it disappeared behind a proud smile "If that's what it takes kid, it is a sacrifice I'll happily make."
No backing out now "I'll hold you to that, old man."
-------
Invest stone right now!
14 glorious chapters await for those wise enough to seek them upon the forbidden Patreon (at patreon .com/ Rastislav156)
If you want to discuss the story or just meme about join my discord server: https://discord .gg/fE4nB3CzDP (link should work for a week. refreshed as of 24.12.25)