Cyberpunk: Ultimate Cyborg System-Chapter 503: Name.
"And that's most of it. We should be ready for the opening by the end of the week."
Leaning back in his chair, Dante stared at the ceiling, listening absentmindedly as Carlos delivered another one of his reports. Right now, the main topic is the grand opening of the Red Oni Club.
Previously, the Red Fist bar was the only establishment directly run by Red Rage. Such establishments served as a kind of symbol, representing the gang's power. Their prosperity was directly linked to the state of the gang and its grasp on its territory. Because of that, Dante had been advised to open one of his own. There was one problem, however.
"Boss?"
Snapping out of his thoughts, Dante raised an eyebrow at the young Tenebrosan.
"Uh… have you decided yet?" Carlos asked.
Dante knew exactly what he was referring to, and that was the reason behind his frown.
"Not yet."
"I don't mean to pressure you, but… It's better to get this out of the way early on."
The matter mentioned by his lieutenant was one very crucial for an emerging gang—the name.
'Goddamn it…'
Right now, the gang Dante leads is still known as Red Rage, and that name reeks like a half-decomposed corpse. To solidify their new identity and signal to the world the start of their era, they needed a new name that reflected all of that, and Dante was having a difficult time choosing.
The deal with the BEO had been sealed, so Dante had a minimum of four months of peace, so long as they honored that agreement. In that time, Dante has to achieve all of his objectives and prepare for the possibility that he might get the chance to deal the first strike.
His gang was one of those objectives. What was a decision he made on a whim was now en route to becoming a crucial pillar of his future plans, and because of that, he was being made to pay it much more attention than he would have liked.
There were a lot of tasks that could be delegated to others, but choosing the name of the gang wasn't one of them. Even hearing recommendations was frowned upon. What's worse, Dante didn't just have to come up with a name on his own; it had to be accepted by the others as well.
"Just… give me till tonight…" Dante said. "I will decide by then."
"... Understood."
Carlos left, and Dante was back to staring at the ceiling.
'A name, huh…'
[Is it really such a difficult task?] Volcan's voice came.
'Yup.'
Of course, Dante had asked his resident AI the first time the topic came up and realized how big a mistake that was when he got "The Red Demons" and "The Cyberpunks" as recommendations.
The gang's name has to represent something. A bunch of dog breeders terrorizing their enemies with blood thirsty beasts would name themselves the Blood Hounds. Red Rage was made of angry people who wanted to punch things. The Daggers came from the knives each of the founding members had.
When considering such examples, Dante felt that he had all the hints he needed. Nevertheless, the only thing that did was bring his attention back to how little he cared about the gang itself.
'... I need some air…'
Leaving the question to boil wasn't going to do him any good, so he decided to go out for a ride. However, just as he grabbed the door handle, a message notification dropped onto his OAM.
[Nobara: Going to the hospital. Are you coming?]
Dante stared at it for what seemed like forever, but his decision was already made.
~[ ]~
The Saint Garcia hospital was a gigantic tree just like any other in the concrete jungle called Hollowgrid. Being the only public hospital in the district, it was crowded 24/7. Well, the first few floors are. Just like with everything else, you can buy your way up to the upper floors where everything is simply better. With enough money, you can even acquire a room all for yourself.
Jonah didn't have anywhere near that kind of cash. In fact, his insurance only covered the second-cheapest care package, which didn't sound right, considering he was a police officer who got injured on duty. For those reasons, he felt bad about enjoying the luxuries offered by the VVIP package, which would have drained all his savings if he were the one paying for it.
A faint hiss alerted him to the door opening. A petite woman soon came within sight, and the moment their eyes met, the folds of her wrinkled face moved as she grinned.
"Well, look who's up," Said Nobara. "Guess we caught you at a good time."
"I can't be sleeping all the time, you know?" Jonah replied. "Even if this bed makes me want to do just that."
"Don't get too used to this place, or you won't survive the downgrade." Stopping in her tracks, the old cook looked over her shoulder. "Unless you plan on paying for an extension."
Jonah's eyes widened after a moment of confusion. He followed her line of sight, and soon enough, a familiar red head appeared from around the corner.
"Dante…"
"How are you doing, Mr. Johanson?"
Though he tried to smile, all Dante could manage was a wry one. Jonah was the same at first, but it didn't take him long to brighten up.
"Thanks to you, I have been feeling better than ever!" He said. "Maybe I should have you pick the bill more often."
Dante blinked a couple of times before raising one corner of his mouth in a smirk.
"Hey, hey, you think all of this is for free? You will be paying my tab till the day you kick the bucket."
"Then I got nothing to worry about. You barely eat at all!"
"Well, you'd better start eating less. Take this as a wake-up call."
"What are you talking about? If not for all this fat, I wouldn't have survived what happened."
The two exchanged a look, and a moment later, they burst out laughing. Nobara watched them from the side, a warm smile on her face.
~[ ]~
"I heard the news," Jonah didn't hide it as he gazed at Dante's hand. "You got some more upgrades, huh?"
Tea had already been served, and they had already gotten through the small talk. It felt like the right time to tackle the more serious topics, so the old officer started with the most obvious one.
"There was no way around it, I'm afraid," Dante said.
"Flesh isn't cutting it anymore?"
"There is only so much you can do with normal flesh."
The discomfort had been gone for a few days now, meaning his soul had already adapted to the changes his body went through. Volcan finished his sensory input project, too, though it still needs some tweaking. Long story short, Dante was starting to feel like he had settled in his new body. Even if he still has other bionics to install, it probably wouldn't take him long to adjust.
Still, the most important aspect of it all was power. He could now use VOLCAN for much longer, and thanks to the MBIs Suzuka created for him, his options were no longer limited to just donning the armors.
"Say, would it be fine if I asked?" Jonah broke the brief silence between them. "Sorry, kid, but… these don't look cosmetic. What Level are you at now?"
"You're probably going to read it in the reports anyway," Dante shook his head. "They put me at the high end of Level 3. It's all based on the people I beat, though. I didn't take any tests."
"High end, huh?" Jonah frowned. "The old gangs barely cracked Level 3, but you're already reaching for that 4?"
"And I will keep reaching," Dante replied.
The old officer regarded him for a while.
"The BEO, have they contacted you yet?" 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮
"Of course they did," Dante snorted. "Sometimes I feel like I can't get them off my back."
"You… aren't messing with people you shouldn't be messing with, right?"
"Appreciate the concern, but you have nothing to worry about."
"Then I won't worry."
Looking down at his cup, Jonah seemed to lose himself in thought. Dante left him to it for some time, but as the silence lingered for much longer than it should, he decided to speak up for himself.
"That's not like you, Mr. Johanson."
"Hm?"
"You heard the news, right? Don't you have more to say?"
Once again, the old officer stared at him for a long moment. A sigh escaped him after a while. Drinking some of his tea, he let his eyes fall to the contents of the cup and dove into his thoughts once more.
"Can't say I support you joining another gang, let alone being its boss." He said.
"That's… reasonable…"
"Dante, listen…" Pressing his lips into a thin line, Jonah stopped to think his words through. "You beat the bastards who came after you, and you beat the one who sent them. By all means, you have earned yourself that spot, but…"
"You think it's too much for me?"
"It's too much for anyone," Jonah said. "You know how these things go. Gangs don't usually have a happy ending. Whatever you're looking for, believe me when I say you won't find it there."
"Then there is nothing to worry about," Dante leaned back in his chair, letting his head hang back. "What I'm looking for has nothing to do with the gang. Besides…" Staring at the ceiling, he spoke in a hushed voice. "I never believed my end would be a happy one."
