"Those two—were they forr soldiers?" From the way they stood, and the military-grade combat implants in their bodies, it was sothing an experienced eye could recognize at a glance.
"Scorpion and Mitch? Yeah, they drove armored vehicles. Worked as rcs during the last war."
The "last war" referred to the Unification War of 2069 to 2070—fought between the New United States and the Free States. Both sides had their own standing armies and also employed large numbers of rcenaries.
"Armored vehicles? Like the Militech Basilisk kind?"
"Scorpion handled the driving. Mitch was on security. Yeah, they both had serious implants fitted—but also ended up in a seriously fucked situation."
Panam didn’t elaborate. But Leo could guess.
"Let’s talk about sothing else. You familiar with Rocky Ridge? I heard it’s just a run-down town in the middle of the suburbs. Either people moved to Night City or just fled entirely."
"Then you’ve heard right. They originally wanted to build a satellite city there, give people a shot at a better life—anything other than eating dirt every day. But yeah, that plan went to shit."
"How many ghost towns like this are there? Hundreds?"
"You an across the country? Thousands. I drove down I-80 the other day. When the sun sets and it all goes quiet, just pull over and listen—you’ll know when you’ve arrived."
"Know how?"
"The clack of wind against boarded windows, the rustle of tumbleweeds scraping across the dry ground... Towns like that don’t collapse in one big crash—they just whisper and weep as they die."
The group kept chatting like this until they reached Rocky Ridge.
Rocky Ridge—a place once intended to beco a miniature Night City, now reduced to nothing but a ghost town. Even people who couldn’t afford hos in the city didn’t want to live here. Worst case, they’d sleep under the stars rather than co out to this dead zone.
With no residents, the place decayed. Trash littered the roads. Billboards had long lost their color. A nearby garage had its shutter rolled halfway up, but only scraps of old cars remained inside.
"Rocky Ridge is done. Everything’s trashed."
Leo got out of the car, scanned the surroundings, and shook his head.
"There’s still..." Panam took out her phone and checked the ti, "...five hours until the scheduled et with Nash and the client. Okay, we’ve got ti to prepare."
Hands on her hips, Panam turned around and saw Leo, V, and Lucy unloading gear from the Delamain cab’s trunk.
"What are you doing?"
"EMP. You don’t want Nash getting away, do you?"
Panam was surprised Leo and the others had managed to get their hands on an EMP, but then rembered—these were people bold enough to go after gacorps. Getting EMPs didn’t seem that far-fetched.
With everyone working together, they quickly planted EMPs in the town center and at all major entry points. No matter which direction the Raffen Shiv convoy ca from, they’d be trapped in the EMP radius.
Watching the three of them move with fluid precision—like they’d done this kind of setup dozens of tis—Panam couldn’t help but ask, despite herself, "Who the hell are you people? And why are you hitting a corp convoy for hostages?"
Leo didn’t answer, just smiled. "I’ll tell you once we know each other better. If we end up working together again, that is."
Panam clicked her tongue, annoyed, but her curiosity only deepened.
At first, she’d assud Leo and his crew were working for Rogue. But now, that didn’t seem quite right. It felt less like they were her subordinates and more like they were working in partnership.
She felt a pang of regret.
If only, when she’d first co to the city, she’d t soone like Leo instead.
She looked at V and Lucy with a touch of envy—she could tell their gear was top-tier.
Still, at least they were helping her get back what she’d lost, and the price for their help was sothing she could afford.
It was just a matter of whether they’d have a chance to work together again.
Panam had a bit of a temper, but she wasn’t stupid.
She could clearly see the advantages of running with soone like Leo.
"So what do we do now?"
" We wait."
...................
......
.
In an abandoned tunnel the Raffen Shiv had claid as their base—
"Hey, ti’s almost up. Get moving. Don’t want the client thinking we ghosted him."
"You’re not coming, Nash?"
"What the hell for? You know the place, you know the buyer. Just go already."
A few Raffen Shiv thugs filed out, climbed into vehicles, and drove out of the tunnel.
"Fucking Nash, acting all high and mighty just ’cause he jacked so rides and loot off a vagrant."
"And that chick—damn, she really thought Nash was her ally. Idiot."
"Deserved it. Should’ve been smarter."
About half an hour later, the convoy rolled up along the road outside Rocky Ridge.
The town was already a ghost town by day—but at night, it was sothing else entirely.
It was eerie.
They’d already left late, and now they were running well behind schedule. The buyer—mbers of the 6th Street Gang—should’ve been waiting in the town already.
So why was there no light?
Would 6th Street really just sit in the pitch-black waiting for them?
"Sothing’s wrong. Why’s there no light at all in Rocky Ridge?"
"I’ve got a bad feeling."
"Shut your damn mouth!"
Even though several of the Raffen Shiv could feel the tension, the convoy still crept into town.
Turning back now? They would get flayed alive.
These goods were sothing only 6th Street would buy. If the deal fell through, the rchandise would be worthless. Worse, if they bailed on the client, that whole delivery route would go up in smoke.
Too much to lose. Even an idiot could understand that.
The convoy pulled into the town center. Just as it looked from outside, the place was pitch black—so dark they couldn’t even see their own hands.
Only the beams of the vehicle headlights cut through the darkness, catching swirling dust in the air.
The Raffen Shiv disembarked, looking around in confusion.
The buyer was supposed to be here. But there was no one. Not even a shadow.
One of them finally snapped, "Where the fuck is the client? Didn’t we agree to et here?"
Their squad leader barked orders. "You two—check those buildings. Maybe they’re inside, watching braindance."
"You serious, boss? Who the hell watches BD with the lights off?"
"Shut it. Just go."
Grumbling, a few of them flicked on flashlights and started toward the nearby structures.
The rest stayed put.
Seconds ticked by.
Standing in the middle of the ghost town, the Raffen Shiv stared nervously at the surrounding buildings. Everyone was on edge.
Suddenly, one of them pointed and shouted, "Soone’s there!"
"What?!"
Everyone turned in the direction he was pointing.
Nothing.
"You’re seeing things. There’s nothing there."
"No, I swear—I saw a glint. A reflection, just for a second."
"You probably just caught your flashlight on a mirror or sothing," another mocked. "This shithole’s dead. Only ones out here are us."
Only two kinds of people lived in the Badlands: Raffen Shiv and nomads. That was it.
No one else could survive out here.
That’s why gacorps spent fortunes trying to get people to buy property out here—and failed every ti.
Just then, one of the Raffen Shiv spoke up, "Hey... anyone else think those guys have been gone too long?"
His words made the others realize the team sent to check the buildings had been gone for several minutes.
The buildings weren’t that big—two, maybe three floors tops. They should’ve been back by now.
Even if they hadn’t finished checking, there should’ve been so kind of sound.
As the remaining Raffen Shiv debated whether to retreat or send more people after them—
A sudden gunshot rang out in the dark.
In the pitch black, a gunshot cracked out of nowhere.
One of the Raffen Shiv dropped on the spot.
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