"Right~" Lucky and V said in unison.
However, Jack seemed to still be immersed in his previous performance: "I am loyal and... steadfast in my feelings."
"Mm~" Lucky and V expressed their high approval.
"And not ostentatious, you know~" Jack raised an eyebrow.
"Ugh... that's enough, haha..."
The car crossed the bridge and drove on the streets of Watson District.
The radio played upbeat pop music, making the night feel lively.
As they turned a corner, Lucky saw several people running on the road ahead.
"Get out of the car, quick!"
Before figuring out what was going on, Jack stopped the car at a red light and looked around.
"Joder (Damn)... look, there's trouble over there." Jack looked at the scene at the intersection ahead.
Several gang members with weapons were forcibly dragging a driver out of a car.
They were really just blatantly robbing.
How desperate must they be to do such a conspicuous and stupid thing?
Aren't they afraid of the NCPD chasing them all over the city?
Before Lucky could finish his comment, a roaring sound whizzed over their heads.
With blue propulsion tail flames flickering, an air-cushioned armored vehicle stabilized its posture under the gang members' fire.
"They're here! Start shooting!"
The driver, who had rolled on the ground, took the opportunity to flee the scene during the chaos.
Bang!
Bang!
Two figures jumped straight down from the flying vehicle, landing on the ground with incredible stability.
Bullets bounced off their bodies as if they were made of rubber.
"This doesn't look like ordinary police catching criminals..." V said.
"These guys are done for." Lucky shook his head.
Then, the gang members were shot like paper figures, flying chaotically.
Who knows how much kinetic energy those officers' weapons had?
Adults weighing over a hundred pounds flipped with each shot, the dazzling muzzle flash was exceptionally eye-catching in the night.
"They're not ordinary cops; they're a SWAT team," Jack explained, "NCPD's elite enforcers."
"If a case is significant, they'll come. Those idiots over there are not even enough to get stuck in their teeth."
While Jack was explaining, the SWAT officers casually fired a shot at each corpse—the noise was deafening, blood spraying everywhere, a small fountain with each shot, and fragments scattered all over the ground.
Perhaps this is what they call "fighting terror with terror."
When the enemy is terrorists, you must be more violent and more terrifying than them.
It's freaking brutal.
Lucky realized he had misunderstood the criminals just now.
These gang members had a reason for their urgency, and it was a big one.
"Ah, the show's over, and those poor bastards got what they deserved." When the trouble wasn't on his head, Jack was super calm.
Seeing a SWAT officer waving at the stalled car, Jack quickly stepped on the gas and sped away from the scene.
As the car passed by the officer, Lucky's gaze was fixed on the weapons they were holding.
Purple light, full of energy, these were expensive tech-charged weapons.
He was envious to the point of drooling.
"That's a good gun, but it's freaking expensive. Selling me wouldn't be enough to buy one." Jack noticed Lucky's gaze and laughed.
"I'm just looking," Lucky laughed as well. "We'll talk about it when we have money in the future."
The car drove on the night road for a while, weaving through the city under the night sky.
"We're here, your place is just ahead." Jack said, driving the car into the parking lot.
"What about you? You can't go back to Heywood now..." V asked.
Jack usually lived in his childhood home in Heywood.
"It's fine. They'll let me through." Jack said, confident in his acting skills.
"Are you sure?" Lucky asked.
"Of course, I can be the friendly Jack once again."
They climbed up several floors of the parking lot and parked the car.
"Sweet dreams then." Jack said goodbye to his two friends.
"Say hi to Misty for us." V fist-bumped Jack, and after the bump, Jack stretched his fist back and bumped with Lucky as well.
"Same here."
This was Lucky's classic line, and Jack was very familiar with it.
"I will, Ahí luego (see you later)." With that, Jack drove away.
V and Lucky entered the elevator and pressed the 8th floor.
Like "15th floor, room 1237," it was clearly the third floor of the parking lot, but the floor was labeled "Negative third floor."
Seeing a flash of blue light in V's eyes, Lucky knew someone was calling.
"What's up?" Lucky asked.
"T-Bug told me she has a netrunner plugin for me."
"Oh, that's good." Lucky nodded. He didn't need that thing at all, but it might be very useful for V.
Elevator TVs were playing advertisements, just like when V and Lucky first met Jack, the ads on the Arasaka box were for high-energy bars, similar to Snickers.
Stepping out of the elevator, a few idle people were gathered, chatting and joking with bottles of alcohol in their hands.
Vending machines flashed bright colors and lights all around.
Garbage and stains in the corners were left uncleaned, and residents complained that the corridor door had broken yet again.
High-tech slums, that's Lucky's intuitive feeling about this place.
"Lucky, let's part ways here, sweet dreams." V stood in front of his door, waving at Lucky.
"Come on, don't make it like we're parting for three or five years. We're just a few rooms apart." Lucky smiled, watching V go in. "If you need anything, feel free to find me."
"You too." V's voice came through, and then the door closed.
Familiar apartment.
Full of high-tech structure and design, holographic projection TV, touch-controlled home vending machine, a relatively clean floor, and a large, soft bed. Although the home is empty, there's a saying: a close friend is close even if they're far away. As long as V and Jack are okay, even a small nest of one's own is particularly cozy.
Take a shower and go to bed, and as for tomorrow's troubles...
We'll talk about it tomorrow.
Chapter 7: Wake up to a world full of NCPD
"ZZZ..."
Lucky was sleeping soundly in the early morning when the phone started ringing.
Every time he went out for some action, the sleep quality that night would be quite good.
So even when the sun was shining and trying to reach Lucky's behind, he still had no intention of waking up.
Waking up groggily around six or seven in the morning to relieve himself, then continue to hug the blanket—wasn't it happy?
But Jack ended this rare sweet dream.
"Hey, Lucky, don't be a bed slug! Get moving, V is going to see a Ripperdoc."
Jack saw Lucky struggling to answer the phone, but still closing his eyes, mumbling.
"Ah... I knew it... I'm so freaking sleepy..." Lucky, with a dying tone, fought a tough battle to get up from the soft blanket. "A neural virus, huh? Old Vic can handle it."
"How do you know?" Jack asked, shocked.
"Uh..."
Lucky suddenly became alert.
But even if Jack had a rich imagination, he could never think that Lucky actually had some foresight into the future.
"What do you think the Trauma Team used to block Sandra's bio signal? The chip is one thing, paralyzing the neural firewall is another." Lucky bluffed casually. "Where are you guys... ah... damn, I'm so sleepy."
"Didn't V come to find you? I'm downstairs, hurry up, bro." Jack urged while slurping noodles.
"At least let me wash my face, see you downstairs."
Lucky pocketed his phone, stepped barefoot on the floor, shuffled towards the bathroom, smeared face wash on his face, rubbed it casually, rinsed it off with water, gargled a few times and spit it out. With water dripping from his face, he put on socks and shoes.
He went out and knocked on V's door.
No sound, probably gone.
Although Lucky knew V didn't want him to worry, would he really just stay home and not accompany V?
The same went the other way around.
Taking the elevator downstairs, TV ads for "Biotechnica" and "Techtronika" played. WNS reported on