Chapter 66: PROJECT Squad’s Debut
Click!
“Hiss—phew! Hey, what’s gotten into the higher-ups lately? They actually told us to drop everything and return to base for standby?”
“Who knows what’s going through their heads... I’m telling you, the guys upstairs are all the same—no jobs, no commissions. What are they thinking…”
Two Luvena Tech security guards stood at the gate, smoking, venting all their frustration toward the company.
“Hey, did you hear? Word is that squad sent out earlier—completely wiped.”
One of them suddenly leaned in, lowering his voice as if sharing a forbidden secret.
“No way. Seriously? That was Talamand's elite unit, right? One of the best-equipped teams we have.”
The other guard stared at him skeptically.
“Tch, why would I lie? Does lying get me a raise?”
“Fair… but still hard to believe.”
The guard nodded, then stopped talking, staring out at the dim outskirts of Night City.
Their base was in a remote area, where even the lighting was kept to a minimum—just another cost-saving measure. That was exactly why the base had been built here in the first place: cheap.
But tonight felt wrong. The night looked the same as always, yet a chill crawled down his spine.
He shivered, thinking maybe he should just go home to his wife and kids. But the thought of night shift overtime made him stay put.
Meanwhile, atop a distant building, two Night Owl robots had already set up sniper rifles.
Two barely audible shots rang out. Through night vision, two heads burst like overripe oranges—spraying “juice” everywhere.
“Targets eliminated. Proceed.”
At the same time, Tina and another cluster of Night Owl units hacked every camera inside the base.
Shadows began slipping into the perimeter, blending seamlessly into the night without making a sound.
Kiwi adjusted her crossbow, fired a steel cable that lodged firmly into the structure above the base, grabbed it, and slid down. Her Optical Camouflage activated instantly.
While the people inside were still resting, the entire base had already been silently surrounded by the PROJECT squad.
Not far away, inside an abandoned factory, Jhin sat watching silently.
Then, as if receiving a signal, he slowly lay back. A soft hiss sounded from his neck. A mechanical spider crawled out from his head, surveyed the area, then scuttled toward the base.
A true split-operation.
Thankfully, no Scavengers were nearby. Otherwise, this would've been the kind of “heaven-sent loot” they dream about.
Once all operatives were in place and all outer sentries cleared, the Night Owl robots aimed at the ventilation shafts and upper windows.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Countless tear gas and smoke grenades poured into the warehouse.
Panic erupted inside. Security personnel stumbled everywhere, grabbing weapons, running blindly like ants thrown onto a hot stove.
“What the hell is happening?!”
“We’re under attack! Prepare to engage!!”
Someone who seemed to be the commander shouted—right before a massive explosion lit up the warehouse, flames and thick smoke engulfing everything.
Bang!
A sniper round sliced through the air and buried itself cleanly in the commander’s forehead.
The Night Owl units surged forward like tigers tearing through sheep, cutting down Luvena Tech personnel with mechanical precision.
Across the battlefield, a purple streak shot past several figures and rushed straight toward the deepest part of the base.
Kiwi stopped before a heavy iron door.
Bang!
Clang!!
Her kick blew the door clean off its hinges, leaving a deep dent in the metal.
Whoosh—
Just as Kiwi was about to rush in and take down the base supervisor, a sudden gust split the air. She immediately ducked as a massive hammer swung past her head.
“DIE!!”
Another heavy strike came down. Kiwi planted one hand on the ground, pushed off, flipped backward, and fired her crossbow mid-air.
The purple-charged bolt struck the supervisor’s chest and discharged a wave of energy, instantly shutting down every piece of cyberware in his body.
He froze, completely incapacitated.
Kiwi moved. In a blink, she was in front of him, driving a lightning-fast punch into his abdomen.
The force tore through his subdermal armor and hammered into his internal cybernetics. Blood sprayed from his mouth before he could even scream.
Kiwi grabbed his head, twisted her waist, and slammed him into the wall.
Thud!
The steel wall caved inward. The Luvena Tech security supervisor collapsed unconscious.
Watching everything through the micro-spider’s feed, Roland jolted in surprise, scattering popcorn everywhere.
“Do all netrunners have a violence stat?! Why is she so brutal in close combat?!”
He couldn’t help thinking Kiwi had spent so long doing netrunning that she’d never really fought face-to-face. Now that her Purification cyberware had fully activated her body…
Well, as the old saying goes:
Every ranged fighter secretly dreams of melee.
By the time Kiwi dealt with the supervisor, the Night Owl units outside had also completed their sweep. Other than the few who surrendered, every remaining guard had been neutralized.
This gave Roland a whole new appreciation for the Night Owl robots.
They had strict discipline, excellent adaptability, and mastery over netrunning, sniping, stealth, and more.
A single Night Owl squad was equivalent to an elite Outcast team—without any manpower losses to worry about.
Roland was extremely satisfied with their performance.
Vilet, on the other hand, barely had any presence… though that was mostly because she was busy fighting the security personnel in melee.
And well—almost none of them could survive her punches now.
Author's Note
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