Outrun – Cyberpunk LitRPG

Chapter 178

I got a day of rest after returning from New Tress Radio. The doc gave me a quick check-over just before I went to sleep. The stim Yonrow administered had already stopped the internal bleeding of my muscles and stabilized my ankle by then, so he just ordered some sleep. Not that I was complaining. Sleep was exactly what I needed for Quick Healing.

He did ask a couple of pointed questions about the extent of my injuries, though I managed to glaze past it with Honest Face and some well-crafted deceptions about how the fight went from my perspective. No point in outing my abilities. What's the saying? Keep your cards close to your chest? And I was becoming more and more aware of such a thing especially after Sergeant Hampton had been honing in the Captain's combat rules. Such as always pay attention to the win condition. Having better and unknown cards was an obvious win condition.

The second day I spent repairing burned-out fuel lines of the various Prowlers and setting up the antennae in camp so Captain Roger could connect with New Tress Radio’s equipment. He wanted to use New Trees Radio’s weather equipment to watch for sandstorms and track radio frequencies throughout the city. Something about hunting down the Urjune Company’s HQ by finding where they control the drones.

I also repaired the APC’s sensors and got everything relinked back up. On the hardware side, at least. The gunners would have to recalibrate everything themselves. No way I’d throw myself into that mire. Better to let them, who made a living shooting the big guns, recalibrate said big guns. I was just trained to drive back then, so I only had a partial idea of how all the software worked. Or, at least the native software. There were a ton of extra guns jury-rigged onto the APC.

It was a bit annoying having to act as though I was still injured, though it sure beat the alternative if I hadn’t had Quick Healing. Felt a bit bad about it, especially since Lia stuck next to me to help out while I worked. On a side note, it was nice having an assistant.

And then I was done. There were a few issues, such as a couple members of the Crimson Company needing help with their chrome, but it was a relatively easy day. Lots of alone time too, so I didn’t have to worry about exposing the canteen as I stayed hydrated.

I spent several days resting and recuperating while fixing odds and ends around the camp, especially since the Urjune Company seemed to kick up their aggression a notch.

It wasn’t until the fifth day in the Laurus Theatre’s buried parking garage that I actually got to work getting into the theatre itself. It started with a hand on my shoulder, rousing me from where I passed out over my temporary workbench. ”Zuku.”

I flinched back, stumbling off my seat as my hand dropped to my pistol-

“Oh, hey Lia… what’s up?” I relaxed as I caught sight of her familiar face.

”Captain wants you.” She backed up, looking around my temporary workshop. It was a section of the parking garage out of the way from the rest of the camp. Something about the PMCs not wanting to get flashed by my welder. Wimps. 

I stood up, stretching out slightly as I fixed the poncho to cover me better. I’d swapped to my urban color scheme while we were in this area. Lot less sand down here. “You know what about?”

”Probably something to do with the theatre. It’s time.” Lia shrugged. “Then again, what do I know? Could be another mission to go fix something. Or to attack the Urjine’s HQ. The eggheads probably figured out where it is by now. Or maybe just one more check on the APC after their recent mission?"

I followed her out of my area and toward the rest of the camp. I threw in a slight limp with every step. “So it could be anything.”

”Chek.” Lia smiled, skipping ahead of me a few steps before flicking back and walking backward. “Or it could be nothing! Just hope it’s something. Preferably something fun.”

Well, that was helpful. “You’ve been bored?” Too much action in my opinion. I miss my safe days back in the city- er, relatively safe. 

She stroked her ring, turning back around as she fell in step beside me. “Well yeah. I’ve barely done anything since we’ve come to the city. This stupid place is like my anathema.”

“Big word there, Lia!” Renold approached from behind us as we passed by the mess tent. “I’m so proud!”

”Know what else is big? My foot! Especially when it's crammed up your ass if you keep going.” Lia glared at the chromed-out guy as he joined us.

”Don’t tempt me.” The Magus shuddered, though Renold didn’t seem to mind as he dropped his joking attitude and turned professional. “Captain calling for all of us, eh?” 

So probably not just checking the APC again. I doubt we’d—or at least I’d—be sent out to attack the Urjune camp. Not really my forte. Could be to fix something, but I got the feeling it was probably related to the Laurus Theatre. Like Lia said, it was really about time.

We were supposed to start cracking into it as soon as we got back from our trip out to New Tress Radio. The combination of my 'hurt' legs making it difficult to get around and needing time to repair the APC ensured that didn’t happen. Now though? The sooner I got in the sooner we could get out of here and head back to the relative safety of Aythryn City.

Yonrow waited outside the Captain’s tent, idly sharpening a pencil. The shavings drifted down, forming a small pile that he swept with his foot, causing them to merge with the light layer of sand around the tent and disappear. He glanced up, nodding to us as he held open the tent’s flap.

Hampton and Captain Roger were in the midst of what seemed to be a rather intense discussion as we walked in. Said conversation immediately ended as we gathered around the Captain’s table in the middle of the large tent.

”Good, you’re all here.” Captain Roger motioned for Yonrow to tightly seal the tent flaps. He produced a small device, activating it before tossing it onto the table. I recognized it as a scrambler. “Just in case.”

”What did you need us for, sir?” Lia popped a salute.

Captain Roger sighed and leaned over the table, staring at the map resting on it. “We caught a series of transmissions from the Urjune Company. They asked for reinforcements. Heavy hitters. We need to move our timetable up.”

”How long?” Renold asked.

”Two weeks tops. We need to get out of here before then. We don’t have the equipment to resist a full frontal assault without taking heavy losses. Heavy Combat Drones are just the tip of the iceberg.” Captain Roger shifted his blond hair out of his face, revealing chrome eyes drooping with exhaustion. Can’t even imagine trying to keep this entire thing afloat as the leader. Especially considering the internal situation of the city.

Moving up the timetable wasn’t great either. I hadn’t even started trying to get into the Laurus Theatre. There was no telling how long it might take to get anything of value secured. Could be a matter of hours if the security was all shut down. Could be weeks if Acumen Industrial’s infrastructure held up.

Hampton spoke up, his eyebrows twitching in irritation, “Captain wants us to get into the theatre now. We’re leaving in a week and a half regardless, even if it means eating a massive loss.”

Captain Roger shot their sergeant a look with his inhumane blue eyes. They seemed to glow bright for a moment before shifting to me. “I know it's asking for a lot, but we need you to get us in there ASAP.”

I shrugged helplessly. ”I haven’t even seen the theatre yet. I have no idea how long it’ll take. Might be able to just pop the door and pilfer to our heart's content, though somehow I doubt that.” 

“I understand that. Still, start working on it. Let me know if you need anything at all that might speed the process up.” He tossed me a holo-puck. Probably the same one he showed off back at the Jagged Clover. “For the duration of your attempts, I’m putting you in charge of the squad.” 

Ah, I can see why Sergeant Hampton might be irritated now. Giving control of Red-Six to an outsider was a bit… though I guess it meant he trusted my skills? Or at least, trusted Athena not to set him up for failure. Then again, it could be an act of desperation. Somehow, I don’t see Captain Roger stooping to that level though.

“Right. We’ll go look now, I guess…” I thought up the perfect copy of the building’s public schematic I’d seen, trying to figure out the best way into it. Probably the front door? Or maybe the roof? Hmm… roof could have quite a few complications. Probably just the front door. Only, it's buried in sand like the rest of this place. “Do we know where the front entrance is yet?”

Captain Roger nodded. “A squad already dug it out a day ago. It’s covered in security shutters. We were just going to cut through it, but figured it was best to wait for the expert.”

A smart decision. No telling if sensors inside could detect them cutting through the shudders and activate even more security. I’d have to get a look at it before I started formulating opinions though.

“Is that everything?” Captain Roger asked. At my nod, he waved us off. “Then dismissed.”

We headed out of the tent, pausing just out of earshot from the Captain’s tent. Hampton was the first to speak. “Hey, Zuku, do you mind if we have a squad discussion?”

The ‘without you’ was heavily implied by the way he asked. I paused for a moment, staring at the group before slowly nodding my head. “Uh- yeah. Go ahead. I’ve gotta gather up tools anyway… I’ll meet you guys at the Prowler?”

”Chek.” Hampton pulled along the rest of the squad. Lia shot me an apologetic look as she passed. 

I get it. 

I really do. 

I’m an outsider through and through… one who’d been given command over a squad of far more experienced PMCs. Even though we were entering my field of expertise—getting in and out of places—I could see how it would cause issues. They weren’t really my squad at the end of the day. It was a bit of a sad thought, but after this gig I'd probably never see them again anyway. They probably had a lot to talk about.

I pushed it to the back of my mind as I headed to gather up my stuff.

— — —

“So this is it? Somehow I thought it’d be bigger.” Lia stared toward the entrance to the theatre. A tunnel of sand dropped down to a set of double doors leading inward.

"That's what she said." Renold paused. "Wait, that's not what I meant-"

"Oh yes it is! Micro Renold over here. Why don't you be a good boy and stay quiet?" Lia taunted the man.

He simply growled back. Like a dog, almost? 

I thought back briefly to the half-finished blueprint Eidetic Schematic copied. ”The rest of it is buried. There’s at least a dozen sets of double doors right here.” 

I slid down the sand toward the dug out door, stabilizing myself before I could fully slam into it. Just as Captain Roger had said, the door was covered in metal security shutters, making it impossible to open while they were deployed. Part of the lockdown procedure, if I had to guess.

Lifting the lockdown was priority one. With it lifted, the rest of the company could come in, clean out, and then we could leave with all the loot in tow. As for how exactly I was going to lift it? No idea…

A good starting point would be the building’s actual blueprint, not the barebones version I was working with. If I could get to the offices, I might be able to find one. Then again, my knowledge really only extended to the public spaces of the theatre, nothing else. I didn't even know where the offices might be.

Then I could plan from there… or, if the security wasn’t anything strong, it could be as easy as getting the door open. That was doubtful though. Really, it all boiled down to getting the door open to start with.

I approached the metal shutters covering everything, looking for how they worked as I tried to formulate a plan. I was hoping there would be some kind of external release for the lockdown, like a card scanner or something, but that was obviously too much to hope for. Getting the shutters to go up wasn’t feasible either without getting inside the building to mess with the mechanisms.

That just left cutting or exploding through it, the latter of which I’d save for if nothing else worked. I might be able to disable the sensors with the Jammer, so cutting through it wouldn't necessarily be a terrible idea... hmmm.

I thought through everything I’d need before calling out to the squad behind me. “I need one of you to go grab the plasma torch from my workshop. The rest, help me dig out some more space so I have room to work.”

Lia jumped happily, shooting her hand up into the air. ”Oh! I’ll go-“ 

"Nope!" Renold backed off, holding the keys in his hands. "No way I'll let you trash my baby."

“Splitting up is a bad idea-” Hampton muttered hypocritically. We literally just split up under his orders back at New Tress Radio, which was a far more dangerous situation. I get he’s mad about having his leadership- 

No… reading his Cues, there wasn’t a bit of anger in him… maybe it's me that has the issue? Am I just seeing things that aren’t there? Or maybe I'm projecting how I think he should’ve felt onto him based on past experiences… 

The entire ride over I thought I felt a bit of hostility. It’s just the whole argumentative look both the Captain and Hampton had as we entered, combined with their annoyed looks and having a private chat by kicking me out made me assume there would be conflict. The argument and private chat could’ve been about anything.

Just because I can read the Cues doesn’t mean I fully understand what’s going on. Once more, my own lacking social skills were kicking me in the rear.

Was it just paranoia then? That feels like a cop-out excuse though… See! This is why I hate social stuff. It’s just too complicated, especially considering how easily my own mind can warp interactions into something they’re not.

Sergeant Hampton, completely unaware of my internal conflicts, finished his statement, “-when there’s an easy alternative. As a leader, it's important to always use every available resource.”

There wasn’t a hint of mockery or snideness in his voice. Instead, he seemed full of patience. It was almost as if- is he trying to teach me? I really am just projecting then. I guess that says more about me than it does about him.

I got my mind back on track, flushing myself with a surge of Cold-Blooded. I could think about all of this later. For now, the mission. 

Use every available resource… that's something I did as a thief too. It was important to take a step back and check every route and entry, even those that don’t immediately stand out. Hmmm…

With the increased aggression from the Urjune Company, he was probably worried about either the solo driving to camp or the four back here getting caught out in an ambush. There was a good chance they'd be emboldened by the incoming reinforcements and start setting up even more ambushes.

Then, to get around it... “Call someone back at camp and have them deliver it?”

Hampton nodded subtly to Renold. Renold backed off, shifting to the side as he called back to camp. The rest of us took up shovels and started to dig as my mind shifted through how exactly I was going to do this.