Chapter 20: Encounter
"12 euro bounty? The NCPD must be pocketing kickbacks in broad daylight."
Luis Navarro's sharp gaze scanned the scene and locked onto Kay, surrounded by people. As a member of the Sixth Street Gang, Navarro strutted like a rooster in his own backyard. He was the kind of guy who leaned on his crew's reputation to bully others, never expecting resistance in Santo Domingo.
He smirked, completely ignoring Dorothy—the wild girl with the tattoos and a temper to match. Why argue with a woman, even if you win?
Luis walked toward Kay, cocky and slow, pretending to be impressed.
"Well, I didn't expect the owner of the Wild Coyote Bar to be this young."
He reached out with mock friendliness, fingers stretching to pat Kay's cheek.
Bang!
"AH—!"
Before his hand made contact, Navarro collapsed, clutching his head and howling in pain. Three of his Sixth Street goons dropped right behind him, screaming as they rolled on the ground, blood trailing from their mechanical eyes.
Everyone inside the Wild Coyote froze.
"What the hell just happened?"
"Their cyber-eyes exploded?!"
"Was that a netrunner?"
"Shh! Brother Kay hasn't spoken yet. Keep it down!"
Kay's eyes returned to normal as the last data stream flickered away. He exhaled calmly.
This was his newly unlocked skill—a remote shockwave hack that interfered directly with visual implants using soundwave resonance. He didn't even need to inject malware. With the right signal pattern, he could target internal optics and overload the circuits.
He looked down at the writhing men and said with a faint sigh, "Luis Navarro… looks like you won't be collecting your 'management fee' today."
Kay's voice carried calmly across the silent crowd.
"Tell your boss this—I'm just a ripperdoc, not interested in your gang turf nonsense. If you ever want to grab a drink, the Wild Coyote's open to anyone. But if you come looking for trouble again…"
Luis twitched uncontrollably, smoke hissing from the scorched sockets where his eyes used to be. His voice shook with rage. "You… you messed with me?!"
Kay didn't even reply. He gave a flick of his hand, and a few regulars dragged the gangsters out and dumped them into the gutter like trash.
He hadn't killed them. That wasn't the goal.
No, Kay had bigger plans.
He wanted Navarro's boss to come personally—and when he did, he'd slap a tracking chip on him and turn him into a pawn. Once chipped, the Sixth Street Gang would be under his thumb.
If they retaliated? That's what Riko Vega was for.
Dorothy spat on the gang members as they were hauled away. "Scum. You think you can mess with the Wild Coyote and walk away? Get lost."
Kay ran calculations in his mind. Sixth Street had nearly three thousand members in Santo Domingo alone—armed veterans, ex-cops, heavily modded meatheads. Guns and chrome? They had plenty. Brains? Not so much.
Navarro was just a disposable grunt. If the Cult of Destiny was going to survive, he needed to build a proper security wing. Otherwise, he'd be stuck cleaning up messes like this himself forever.
Just as he turned to head inside, a familiar figure caught his eye in the crowd.
David Martinez.
Black hedgehog haircut, slouched shoulders, Arasaka Academy uniform. Kay blinked, realizing he'd forgotten the kid was still in Santo Domingo.
"David Martinez… Edgerunner in the making," Kay thought. "Way more potential than Riko had at that age."
Sure, David eventually got himself killed by Adam Smasher, but for a nobody with no backing, he left one hell of a legacy.
If Kay could recruit him early… mold him… guide him… Then David wouldn't just survive—he'd thrive. Maybe even take down Adam Smasher himself.
Screw the original story. Kay had no interest in playing along.
He turned to Dorothy. "See that kid in the Arasaka uniform? Go beat him up and bring him to the workshop. I'll be waiting."
Dorothy blinked. "Huh?"
Kay didn't explain. He didn't need to.
When Brother Kay gave an order—you followed.
---
David Martinez was walking to school like usual, hands in his pockets, head down. The streets of Santo Domingo were buzzing, but he didn't notice. Not the gang members thrown out of the Wild Coyote, not the people staring. Fights were just background noise in Night City.
But then… someone blocked his path.
A girl with a flaming red mohawk, tattoos of an evil god inked across her arms, and fishnet stockings that shimmered under the sun.
David sidestepped.
She stepped again—this time, sticking a leg in his path.
"Uh?"
The girl—Dorothy—grinned. "Hey, kid. You pissed off the wrong person."
David's face twisted. "Tanaka… that bastard! He hired a merc to off me?!"
His shout echoed down the alley.