Cyberpunk: Ultimate Cyborg System-Chapter 489: Recruitment.
After meeting up with Ben, Dante dropped by the Triple Jackpot to ask Viktor if he knew anything about what was going on with Black Skull. The fixer said that he was looking into it himself, so it might be a while before anything concrete if found.
"Maybe I should just go beat the answer out of them," Dante said.
"I will pretend I didn’t just hear you say that," Viktor replied.
It would have been different a while back, but now? He couldn’t make any big moves himself—not without giving his enemies a glimpse of what he was trying to do.
"I’m starting to think you aren’t aware of your position," Viktor said.
Dante frowned.
"I wouldn’t be in this much trouble if that were the case."
"I don’t think you get me," Viktor said. "You aren’t just some solo merc now. You’re a gang boss. Get your goons to handle these tasks. You shouldn’t bother with the time-consuming stuff anymore."
~[ ]~
’My goons, huh? Not sure if I have anyone reliable...’
Though he took over Red Fist, Dante wasn’t too sure how he should run it. He wasn’t even sure if the members would listen to him.
’In the first place...’ He thought while parking his bike. ’Do we even have that many members left?’
[I have kept a record of all individuals who were present on the underground floor when you announced that you would take over the organization.] Volcan said. [Tracking them down will not pose a problem.]
’Sounds like a pain...’
He might have said that everyone who had been there that day worked for him now, but in truth, he couldn’t be bothered with keeping the gang going. He did have a reason for wanting people he would order around, but running an organization was starting to sound like a major pain.
’I should ask Henry,’ He thought. ’Surely he knows a thing or two about this stuff...’
Dante had practically moved into his office on the second floor of the Red Fist bar, so nowadays, it has become the place he returns to whenever he’s back in Hollowgrid.
’I really need to get a new sing...’
With that thought in mind, Dante tore his gaze from the empty space above the door and then entered. He was about to head for the stairs as usual when someone came running up to him.
"Boss! You’re back!"
Stopping in his tracks, Dante heaved a mental sigh.
’Who’s this guy again?’
[Carlos Rodrigues.] Volcan replied. [He’s one of your lieutenants.]
It would be more accurate to say he was Riot’s lieutenant, but since Dante kept the structure of the gang the same, those in charge were still the same.
"What’s up?"
Dante turned to face the man, pretending that he didn’t know who he was until a second ago.
"I just wanted to ask about our recruitment policy." The man said, Carlos said.
He seemed to be in his mid to late twenties and looked rough around the edges. His skin was on the darker side, and going by the scars on his face and head, he seems to have installed subdermal armor around those parts.
"Recruitment?" Dante frowned. "I don’t remember asking for that."
"Yeah, I know," the man shook his head. "We aren’t actively looking for new members, but we still have people wanting to join."
"... really?"
"Yeah," Carlos pointed over his shoulder. "I got about fifteen waiting inside. If you could just get a look at them and decide if you want them around, it would be a great help."
Dante almost refused on reflex, but on second thought, he realized it might be a good idea to go through it. He was the boss now, and he couldn’t just ignore such things.
’Still, fifteen...’
"You handled this stuff for Riot, right?" Dante said. "How did he go about it?"
"Well... we didn’t really have many people trying to join until now," Said Carlos. "Normally, we would have them do a job or two before letting them in. After that, we monitor them for a couple of weeks before deciding if they’re good for us."
’I thought they were starving for members...’
Dante remembered hearing that Red Fist was struggling to expand its influence in the district, so he didn’t think they would be very strict with whom they took in. Then again, one job and a two-week internship didn’t sound like a very strict recruitment process.
"Alright," Dante said. "Let’s see them."
Carlos led the way to a corner of the bar where a bunch of tables and benches had been set. There, a group of riffraffs loitered. Some looked nervous, others acted as if they owned the place. A few became really excited when Dante came within view.
"There they are, boss," Carlos said. "I have already talked to them a couple of times, but... You have the final way."
Dante looked them over one by one, and by first impression alone, he could tell he didn’t like any of them.
"It is very nice to meet you, sir!" One of them jumped up to his feet the moment Dante’s gaze landed on him. He seemed excited and overly enthusiastic. "My name is-"
"Sit," Dante said.
"Understood!"
The guy dropped back into his seat, still smiling from ear to ear. That one did not belong in a gang. Dante had seen many like him during his time in the Blood Hounds, and unless he got some loose screws, he was going to bite the bullet soon after they let him in.
’What do you think?’
A red line washed over the fifteen, and by the time it reached their feet, three were left covered in red.
[These three are Level 2 Intermediate Genomes.] Volcan said.
Dante’s left eye twitched.
’You sure?’
[No doubt about. Most of their non-human cell are around the brain, so it is likely that their abilities are psychic in nature.]
’Goddamn it...’
Dante heaved a long, tired sigh. He then looked down at one of the three. A moment later-
BLAM!
Before anyone could notice, red splattered all over the wall behind them. They stared at Dante, then at his extended arm, then at the pistol in his hand, a wisp of smoke slowly rising from its barrel. Their eyes turned to the spot it was pointed at, and once they saw the man with half his head missing, they suddenly sprang up, distancing themselves from the corpse.
"Sit."
One word. That was all it took to freeze them all. Lowering his gun, Dante sighed again, his free hand rising to rub the bridge of his nose.
"She couldn’t even wait for the deal to be over..."
Dante wondered whether he should just call it off. It wasn’t as if they hadn’t sent anyone to spy on him in the last few days, but this felt like crossing a line. His silence lasted one very tense minute, after which he turned to the two other Genomes.
"Tell Caroline," he said, fixing them with a cold, uncaring glare. "The next time she sends one of her freaks near me, the deal is off."
No one dared to say anything, and no one moved. As the silence lingered, Dante motioned for the exit with his chin.
"Scram."
With horror on their faces, the two Genomes snapped back to reality and stood up, carefully circling around him, then dashing toward the exit. Once they were gone, Dante turned to Carlos.
"I will be checking the recruits myself from now on. We will talk about the details later."
"Y-yes!"
Ignoring the trembling gangster, Dante turned to the remaining crowd.
’Anything else?’
[The others are all Level 0 basics.] Volcan said. [They barely have any enhancements besides the usual NIM and OAM.]
’That’s it?’
A line went over the remaining twelve, and the same red screen as before remained on five of them.
[These individuals have their NIMs turned off.]
’I see...’
Dante’s first thought was to kill another one, but the message had already been sent. He pretended to return his pistol to its place on his belt and unequipped it.
"You, you, you, and you," He said, looking at the people Volcan pointed out. "Get out."
They all stared at him blankly for a very long moment, then bolted out. Only seven remained, one of them being the enthusiastic guy from before.
"You," Dante looked at him. "Your first job is to clean this up."
The guy remained frozen, as if he hadn’t grasped that the words were directed at him. The instant he did, he jumped to his feet.
"Yes, sir! I will get to it right away!"
"Stuff that thing into a cooler or something and bring it to my office," Dante said. "You get one hour."
"Yes, sir!"
Once the enthusiastic guy was gone, Dante turned to the remaining six. Watching as they cowered under his gaze, he then looked over at his lieutenant.
"Give those who want to stay a job. If they complete it successfully, let them in. Kick them out if they don’t."
"... got it..."
