Ding—
Peter received a phone call he had been expecting.
"Hey, David. What's up?" Peter asked knowingly.
He had a good idea of why David was calling. It was clear that David had installed the Sean Wistan prosthetic on his body and now wanted to meet Peter to discuss joining his team.
"Brother Peter, can I meet you now?" David asked nervously as he walked away from Arban Academy.
"Sure, come to the Wild Wolf Bar," Peter replied before hanging up.
Peter and his team had only one job today—taking care of the San Della Dorset contract. Their original plan after finishing was to head to Jack's mother's bar for a drink.
David felt a surge of excitement as Peter agreed to meet him. He turned back to glance at Arban Academy, feeling a mix of emotions.
The academy, which once symbolized all of his mother Gloria's dreams for him, was now nothing but a severed tie. He felt no nostalgia for the place, only guilt and shame for letting Gloria down.
David knew there was no turning back. His decision to publicly beat Katsuo Tanaka was deliberate, meant to burn his bridges with the academy and solidify his choice to leave that life behind.
---
"Peter, who was that on the phone?" Jack asked curiously.
"Just an interesting kid. He might surprise us," Peter said with a faint smile as he took a sip of beer.
"Peter, are you talking about the guy you saved yesterday?" V chimed in, sounding intrigued.
She hadn't forgotten David. After all, the young man owed Peter three thousand euros. But V was skeptical. David had been nothing more than a student yesterday. How could someone change so drastically overnight?
"Oh? Peter, what's this about? You've got me curious. Tell us what happened yesterday," Jack added.
Peter chuckled and shared the story.
When he finished, both V and Jack looked just as confused as V had been the day before.
"Peter, you're telling me you saved him but didn't even pay for his medical bills? It seems like you still don't fully grasp how ruthless people can be in Night City," Jack said, shaking his head.
Just as Jack was about to launch into a lecture, a teenager in a yellow shirt appeared and casually sat across from them. Without asking, he grabbed an unopened beer from the table and took a swig.
"Ahem! Guess I'm still not used to this kind of thing," David said, coughing slightly after taking a sip.
"Hey, you little punk! You don't just drink someone else's beer without asking. Don't you have any manners?" Jack snapped, glaring at him.
"Jack, didn't you say you wanted to meet him? Why are you so mad now that he's here?" Peter said calmly, suppressing a grin.
Jack paused, realizing Peter was right. David had arrived out of nowhere, and his sudden appearance was intriguing.
"Heh, looks like you've got some interesting upgrades," Peter said, eyeing David with a faint smirk.
David didn't respond immediately. Instead, he turned around, shrugged off his coat, and revealed the Sean Wistan prosthetic on his back.
"How about this? This is a military-grade prosthetic, Sean Wistan. Brother Peter, can I join your team?" David asked confidently. In his mind, being able to wield such advanced tech made him stand out.
"Wait a second," Peter said, narrowing his eyes. "Isn't that the prosthetic from the cyberpsychopath a few days ago?"
David nodded. "Yeah, it's the same one. I think my mom must have picked it up when she cleaned the scene after that incident. Otherwise, I can't explain how it ended up in my hands."
Peter raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Then show me what you can do with it."
"Alright!" David replied eagerly.
He activated Sean Wistan and reached for the beer bottle in Peter's hand.
Swish!
Just as David's hand was about to touch the bottle, Peter moved. In David's accelerated perception, time seemed to slow down—but to his shock, Peter moved even faster.
No matter how hard David tried to catch up, Peter stayed one step ahead, easily dodging him and keeping the beer out of reach.
"Hahaha!" Peter laughed as the two of them reappeared outside the booth, ending their brief test of speed.
While Peter looked completely at ease, David was sweating profusely, clearly out of breath.
"David," Peter began, his tone calm but firm, "I don't want to crush your confidence, but if you think you can challenge me, you'd better give up now."
Jack chimed in, shaking his head. "Kid, you're not bad for someone new to this, but you've got a long way to go. Do you even know who you're dealing with?"
Jack had seen Peter in action before. On his first day in Night City, Peter had taken on an entire squad of NCPD terrorists, most of whom were equipped with Sean Wistan prosthetics. None of them had been able to stop him.
"You've got potential, David," Jack continued. "The fact that you can even use Sean Wistan without losing your mind is impressive. But let's be real—your body's already at its limit, isn't it?"
David didn't respond, but the strain on his face was enough of an answer.
Peter nodded. "Jack's right. Sean Wistan is powerful, but it's a double-edged sword. Push yourself too hard, and it'll tear you apart."
David clenched his fists, unwilling to back down. "I'm ready to do whatever it takes. I'm not going back to my old life. Please, let me prove myself!"
Peter studied him for a moment before nodding. "Alright. You want to join us? Then you'll need to prove that you can handle the pressure. Stick with me, and I'll make sure you're ready for what's coming."
David's face lit up with determination. "Thank you, Brother Peter. I won't let you down!"
Peter smiled faintly. "We'll see."
As David took a seat with the group, Jack leaned over to Peter and whispered, "You sure about this, man? He's got guts, but he's still a rookie."
Peter shrugged. "Everyone starts somewhere. Let's see how far he's willing to go."
---
By the time the night was over, David had a new sense of purpose. He had burned his bridges with his old life, but he didn't regret it.
As he walked out of the Wild Wolf Bar with Peter and the others, he felt a renewed determination to prove himself worthy of his new path.
But deep down, Peter couldn't help but wonder if David truly understood what he was getting into. Night City was unforgiving, and not everyone survived its challenges.
For now, though, he decided to give the kid a chance. After all, even the strongest warriors had to start somewhere.
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