11: Chapter 11 The Lost Lamb

The comms unit barely rang once before it was snatched up. Jackie's booming voice, muffled by the roar of engines in the background, crashed into Lin Yi's ears: "Brother! Was just looking for you! How is it? Are the toilets in the Charter Hill luxury apartments gold-plated? Does taking a dump feel more invigorating? Hahaha!"

Lin Yi held the receiver a bit further away, though he couldn't help but curl the corner of his mouth: "Screw off. The toilets aren't gold-plated, but the internet connection is damn fast. Less chatter, where are you? Time to work."

"Knew you couldn't sit still! Come to the bar and let's talk. Just picked up a few small gigs, perfect to help you warm up, and a chance for our old friends in Watson to get to know you—'Ghost'! That's the handle the street gave you, saying you're like a phantom whether you're working on the ground or on the Net." Jackie emphasized the code name.

Half an hour later, the familiar clamor and smell of alcohol at El Coyote Cojo enveloped Lin Yi. Jackie was bragging about something to a few fierce-looking mercenaries, but upon seeing Lin Yi, he pulled him over and slammed a glass of ice-cold beer in front of him.

"You're here? Perfect. Old lady Wakako has a few odd jobs—delivering some stuff, collecting some small debts. It's perfect for you to practice and build up some reputation." Jackie winked, "Our 'Ghost' should come out and get some fresh air."

Over the next few days, Lin Yi's days were filled with these "odd jobs." The process was mostly unremarkable, even a bit boring.

During one delivery, the destination required passing through streets where two gangs had just exchanged fire. NCPD patrol cars with blinding blue and red police lights had set up a roadblock and were conducting temporary scans. Lin Yi sat in the passenger seat, his gaze sweeping over the roadblock as [Insight] operated silently (power consumption ~3%), instantly plotting three stealthy routes that bypassed all checkpoints, the pale gold paths flickering at the edge of his vision.

"Turn left, enter that alley, and go through the back door of the Totentanz club." He calmly directed Jackie, who was driving.

Jackie whistled: "Badass, 'Ghost'! Your brain is even more badass than Delamain's navigation!"

There was another debt collection. The target was a Maelstrom grunt who owed Wakako money, holed up in a den reeking of the burnt smell of low-quality cyberware and sweat. Jackie used his massive frame and shotgun to "persuade" the two thugs guarding the door, while Lin Yi leaned against the rusted railing outside, having actually hacked into the simple network inside the room long ago.

[Target personal terminal detected... cracking... access granted. Encrypted account found... beginning decryption...]

Just as Jackie dragged the grunt out of the room, Lin Yi shook the comms device in his hand—the screen showed the completed transfer record, the amount exactly the debt plus a "mental distress fee."

"Money's in. Let's go."

The grunt looked at the notification showing his account balance at zero, his face paler than death. He glanced in terror at the thug by the door who had passed out, and combined with Lin Yi hacking his cyber-eyes system, the quiet man before him seemed truly like a ghost.

These jobs didn't pay much, but like spring rain, they quietly nourished the reputation of the code name "Ghost" as it spread by word of mouth through the streets of Watson—from mercenaries to fixers. People began to know that there was a guy named "Ghost" by Jackie Welles's side. Ruthless, quiet, and terrifyingly efficient. Especially skilled at handling trouble that required some "technical means," coming and going without a trace.

Lin Yi could feel himself changing. Using [Insight] and quickhacks at the current intensity, the neural stinging was almost negligible, and processing the information fed back by "Baize" had become an instinct. His coordination with Jackie was also becoming increasingly tacit; a glance, a short phrase, and the other would understand. He even took the time to use his newly bought tools to modify the stabilizer on "Shadow" again, and the handling felt even more solid.

That day, the two had just finished lunch in front of an automatic ramen machine, and the old radio nearby was playing through static: "...Night City Meteorological Department has issued a rain warning. It is expected that the precipitation pH in Watson tonight will be 4.5. Citizens are advised to take precautions against the rain..."

Jackie wiped his mouth and was just about to say something when his comms device rang. He glanced at the caller ID, and the playful grin on his face instantly vanished, replaced by a rare seriousness and respect. He stood up and walked to a relatively quiet corner before answering.

"Buenas tardes, Padre... Yes, he is right here with me... We have indeed collaborated on quite a bit recently... Oh? About Heywood? Of course, I have always cared about home..." Jackie's voice was still boisterous, but his tone was noticeably softer.

A few minutes later, Jackie hung up and walked back, his expression now one of eager excitement.

"Big job, brother!" He slapped Lin Yi on the back, "It's 'Padre'! Sebastian Ibarra! The most respected fixer in Heywood! He asked for us by name!"

"Padre?" Lin Yi had an impression of the name, knowing he was one of the figures behind the scenes in Heywood.

"Right! Damn, it seems your reputation as 'Ghost' spread even faster than I thought! Worthy of my good mano." Jackie rubbed his hands excitedly, "Padre says there are a few 'uninvited guests' from outside who want to use dirty candy to lead our Heywood 'lambs' astray."

"Speak plainly, Jackie."

"It's those Tyger Claws scumbags! They won't stay put in their own Japantown, and they've stuck their hands all the way into Heywood. They want to incite a few young Valentinos to stir up trouble with them, playing that inside-and-outside game." Jackie spat, "Padre's intention is to bring the 'lost lambs' back, and by the way, make those Tyger Claws bastards learn a lesson. Is it their turn to run wild in Heywood's territory?"

This kind of work—maintaining order in the district, especially targeting provocations by outside gangs—was right up Jackie's alley. Lin Yi could also feel that this was a level higher than those previous odd jobs, and it would spread their name faster.

"Location?"

"Northside, an abandoned drive-in theater. They're meeting there tonight. Damn, just in time for the rain." Jackie glanced at the gloomy sky.

"Let's go." Lin Yi stood up and tightened his coat collar, "Just in time to test the modified gun."

The scent of acid rain had already begun to permeate the air, carrying a faint, metallic, fishy smell. The two got into the car and drove toward Northside. Outside the car window, the gray buildings of Watson gradually blurred in the increasingly thick rain and mist.

The abandoned drive-in theater was like a giant steel graveyard. Scrapped vehicles and rusted projection towers made a rustling sound under the increasingly dense rain. The mist splashed up by the rain hitting the ground made the view foggy.

Jackie and Lin Yi used an abandoned bus as cover, staring at the clearing in the center of the theater. Sure enough, there were several sports cars parked there, decorated in the flashy style of the Tyger Claws. A few guys wearing Tyger Claws jackets with ukiyo-e tattoos were talking to two young Valentinos members—the two young men's faces were full of hesitation and nervousness. One who looked like a leader was impatiently gesturing.

"Now?" Jackie lowered his voice, his finger resting on the trigger of his shotgun.

A pale gold data stream flashed across Lin Yi's eyes. [Insight] instantly marked all enemies and analyzed their cyberware and weapons.

"Wait." He held down Jackie's arm, "That leader has 'Blue Flame' Mantis Blades on his arms, and Kiroshi optical scanners for cyber-eyes. The big guy next to him has a 'Quasar' rocket launcher on his shoulder. Take those two out first."

"You do it, or I do it?"

"I'll do it." Lin Yi took a deep breath, his consciousness sinking into the cold access port at the back of his neck.

[Command confirmed: Target locked (x2). Executing quickhacks: [Weapon Glitch], [Synapse Burnout]. Power consumption: ~5%.]

Almost at the same instant—the Tyger Claws leader was about to swing his Mantis Blades to show off, when a burst of electric sparks suddenly erupted from his entire mechanical arm, making a harsh creaking sound, and it suddenly seized up! He screamed, clutching his out-of-control cyberware.

The big guy next to him carrying the rocket launcher was hit in the head as if by an invisible hammer; his eyes rolled back, he foamed at the mouth, and he fell straight backward, the heavy rocket launcher hitting the ground with a "clang."

"Now!"

Jackie, like a tiger released from a cage, roared as he rushed out from behind the abandoned bus into the rain curtain. His shotgun let out a deafening roar, instantly blasting two Tyger Claws members who hadn't reacted away.

"Heywood! Hurrah!!" He roared while firing.

Lin Yi followed closely behind, [Insight] running continuously, constantly marking the positions and threat levels of the remaining enemies. "Shadow" in his hand fired precisely, the bullets whistling through the rain and hitting the wrist of an enemy who was trying to raise his gun to aim at Jackie.

The battle exploded in an instant.

The Tyger Claws were caught off guard but quickly launched a counterattack based on their numbers and ferocity. Laser beams and live ammunition shuttled between the abandoned vehicles, splashing up strings of sparks and debris.

A Tyger Claws member roared and pounced on Lin Yi from the side, a stun baton in his hand flashing with dangerous electric arcs. Lin Yi dodged sideways suddenly—[Insight] predicted the opponent's movement trajectory, avoiding it by a hair's breadth. The stun baton grazed his coat, bringing a wave of numbness. He almost instinctively raised his knee and slammed it hard into the other's abdomen, and the moment the man bent over from the severe pain, he smashed the gun butt into the back of his neck.

The movement was clean and neat. It carried the shadow of practical combat skills learned from Viktor and Jackie, as well as those absorbed from the Old Net data chips.

"Watch out to your right!" Jackie's voice came through the noisy gunfire.

Lin Yi didn't even turn his head, backhanding a shot that blew up the rearview mirror of an abandoned car wreck on the right—a Tyger Claws member who was preparing to ambush from there was forced to shrink back by the piercing laser.

In the chaos, the two young Valentinos were already scared silly, squatting behind a car with their heads in their hands, shivering.

Jackie changed magazines while roaring at them: "Idiots! Look closely! The Tyger Claws will only use you as stepping stones! They'll sell you out and make you count the money for them! Even if you're fixed up, you'll just be drooling! Get the hell back now! Maybe Padre will still give you a chance to turn over a new leaf!"

His words broke the psychological defenses of the two young men more effectively than the gunfire.

The Tyger Claws leader barely repaired part of his cyberware and still wanted to organize a counterattack. Lin Yi's other [Short Circuit] directly made him collapse to the ground, twitching all over. The remaining Tyger Claws members saw the leader fall, lost all fighting spirit, screamed, and climbed into the cars that could still move, fleeing the scene in a panic, leaving behind only a few corpses and the wounded lying on the ground.

The rain was still falling, washing away the bloodstains and wreckage.

Jackie walked up to the two young Valentinos members and dragged them up like little chicks: "Get lost. Tell your friends who have crooked thoughts about what happened here. Heywood is decided by our own people."

The two scrambled and crawled away, running far away in terror while profusely thanking them.

Jackie walked to Lin Yi's side, looking at the direction the Tyger Claws fled, and spat out a bloody glob of saliva: "Damn, let them off easy."

Lin Yi put away his gun, feeling the slight coolness of the rainy day on the back of his neck and the pungent smell of gunpowder in the air. The intensity of this battle was not small, but with the RAM balancer, he didn't feel too much discomfort.

"Job's done. Tell Padre."

Jackie grinned and connected the comms: "Padre... Yeah, it's resolved. The lambs have been persuaded back, the Tyger Claws... got a beating, they should remember the lesson... Haha, you're too polite, it's our duty to maintain the peace in Heywood... Good, ready whenever."

Hanging up the comms, he lifted his chin at Lin Yi: "Padre is very satisfied! Payment received! He also said his church is always welcome for 'Ghost' to visit—whether it's to confess or to pick up new jobs."

The rain drizzled, washing away the traces of the battle. Lin Yi and Jackie got into the car and left this abandoned place.

After tonight, the code name "Ghost," along with the disastrous defeat of the Tyger Claws and Padre's recognition, would spread throughout Heywood and even further afield.