"You're a good shot, David."
"I'm still far from being as good as you and the others, Karl."
After taking down the Tyger Claw as payback, David turned to Karl with a request.
"Karl, can you recomnd a rc team for ? I want to start taking jobs like you do—after school."
"You… want to be a rc?"
Karl looked at David, eting the unwavering determination in his eyes. Amidst the relentless gunfire outside their cover, he remained silent for a mont before speaking.
"That look in your eyes… Have you already decided not to go down the corpo route anymore?"
"I still have a year until I graduate from the academy's high school division. Then, Arasaka Academy's university division takes another two years. That ans it'll be at least three years before I even beco a low-level corpo employee. And after that, who knows how long it would take before I climb up high enough to have any real protection? That's too long. I want the power to protect my mom now."
"But you've been safe all this ti, haven't you?"
Karl stopped mid-sentence.
How long would that luck last?
Tonight had been proof that it wouldn't last forever.
"Even so, you don't have to be a rc," Karl countered. "Being a rc is more dangerous than the life you're living now. You could take a job in the morning and be dead by noon—hell, even before lunch. If you want to get stronger, there are other ways."
Karl knew exactly what kind of business rcenary work was.
"You could hire soone to train you."
That was a stupid thing to say.
David's family? Hiring bodyguards or trainers? That was never an option.
Karl sighed and added, "I can lend you money. Enough to hire a trainer or a bodyguard. When you start making money as a corpo, you can pay back—or not. I don't really care."
"No, Karl."
David shook his head, rejecting the offer.
He looked Karl dead in the eye.
"I've been relying on you guys for everything… But this is the one decision I don't want to depend on anyone else for."
David thought back to that mont of desperation—
When he was pinned down, when his mother was bleeding out—
The first thing he thought of was Karl.
That wasn't right.
That wasn't how it was supposed to be.
"I'm really grateful to you guys, Karl," David continued. "You, Jackie, Oliver—you helped grow. You made see what the corpos really are.
"But I think—at least when it cos to things that could cost my life—I have to make those decisions myself."
"That's a very mature way of thinking, David."
Karl studied him for a mont—then asked a question.
"What's your dream?"
In the past, under his mother's expectations, David would have automatically answered:
To climb the ranks of Arasaka.
But this ti—
David didn't hesitate.
"I want to protect the people I care about."
It sounded the sa as before.
But the way he said it—the way the words held weight—
That made all the difference.
Watching David, shining like gold, his ambition glowing like a fire that had finally been ignited, Karl asked one last question.
"Aren't you afraid of what would happen to your mother if you died?"
"I don't want to live with the regret of being too weak to protect her."
David's voice was steady.
"I want to beco stronger.
Stronger than thugs.
Stronger than gangs.
Stronger than the darkness of the corpos.
So just this once, Karl—let be selfish."
To live in constant fear, clinging to the illusion of safety within a corporation's walls—
Or to walk into the darkness on his own terms, carving his own path, fighting to truly stand above the corps in his mother's na.
David had already made his choice.
To stand still, paralyzed by fear, waiting for death to co at any mont—
Or to move forward, to face death head-on, and try to overco it?
How do you choose?
Everyone has their own answer, but Karl knew one thing—anyone who took that step forward was soone he would always respect.
"You're an incredible friend, David."
David knew he wasn't strong enough yet, so he had chosen to beco stronger.
He refused to keep relying on Karl, Jackie, and Oliver.
The David standing before him now—
Was a man who could stand as their equal.
So Karl realized—he hadn't been wrong to treat David like one of them from the start.
A man's conviction wasn't sothing he had the right to interfere with.
So in the end, he simply smiled and said sothing that made David, who had been standing so firm in his decision, let out a small, exasperated chuckle.
"You keep saying you don't want to rely on us… but now you're asking us to recomnd a rc team for you."
"Well—"
David's face flushed red as the determined image he had just put up completely crumbled.
Then, a little embarrassed, he muttered, "Just this once."
"Then let's call this your first real favor owed to , David."
Karl grinned.
"A favor from a future legend—guess I better find you a damn good rc team, huh?"
Karl started going through the rc teams he knew.
Not many—just two.
But both of them were trustworthy.
One was Brown's squad—he had t them during a convoy job.
A team that faced certain death with such ease, who nearly got buried alongside Karl and his crew.
Even in their final monts, they looked after the youngest—made sure soone got out alive, made sure soone carried their legacy.
David would be in good hands with them.
But Karl didn't know if they were looking for new mbers.
That's why the second option was a safer bet.
Maine's crew.
Karl thought back to that sa convoy job—
To Maine, who said he'd take the front line—
And actually did.
To the way his team worked like a machine—efficient, well-organized, clear roles.
Yeah—Karl figured he could ask Maine if he'd be willing to take on a rookie looking to learn the ropes.
But throwing in a kid with no chro at all—even if it was just for supply runs or grunt work—
That didn't sit right.
"If you're gonna juggle being a student and a rc, David, you're gonna need so cyberware," Karl pointed out.
"Luckily, I've got sothing for you.
Sothing I wasn't gonna use anyway—I don't like the neural link on it.
If you want it, it's yours—for free."
"You don't have to refuse," Karl added quickly, seeing the look on David's face.
"This isn't a favor, just a gift between friends.
If it makes you feel better, consider it your first job paynt."
"Job paynt?"
"Tomorrow, I'll take you to et a rc crew I know. You'll run support work for them—just grunt stuff.
If you do a good job, you'll get your first payday and my recomndation."
"And if I don't do a good job?"
"You doubting yourself?"
David's eyes hardened. "No."
"Then you owe that favor."
Karl smirked.
"I trust you—so I'm paying you in advance."
Outside, the gunfire gradually died down.
Karl checked his comms and hit up Vik.
"Yo, Vik—you got a Ballistic Coprocessor?"
[Ballistic Coprocessor] – A cyberware implant that directly links the user's optical implants with their weapon systems, providing real-ti tracking and targeting assistance.
Tomorrow… David's new life would begin.
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