Server 9-Chapter 46: THE DRAGON’S PRICE

Wu didn’t attack right away.

That was the only reason we were still alive.

His riders spread out behind him — thirty, maybe forty bikes. Armed men and women with guns, blades, and cheap cybernetic parts that glowed in the dark. They formed a half-circle around us. Blocking the streets and the alleys. Sealing off every exit.

Wu sat on his gold bike with his arms crossed. His red energy gauntlets still burned around both fists — the dragon tattoo long gone from his skin — now it lived as fire around his fist.

He was in level 45. I was level 17. The math hadn’t changed since the Casino. He could still crush me like stepping on a bug.

But he didn’t attack. He was watching. Waiting. Studying me with those sharp old eyes like a man deciding how much a thing was worth before he bought it.

Businessman first. Sarah’s words echoed in my head.

"Wu," I said. My voice came out steady. I was surprised.

"The Devourer," Wu said. His voice was low and rough, like rocks grinding together. "The Harvest Breaker. The Rust King." He tilted his head. "You collect names like a child collects toys."

"I didn’t pick any of them," I said.

"No. Names like that pick you." Wu’s eyes moved over my team. Past Jax, who had her revolver pointed at the ground but ready. Past Sarah, who stood still with her chin up and her back straight. Past Tiny, who rumbled low like a truck engine behind Jax.

Then Wu’s eyes went to my right hand, hanging at my side with three dead fingers, and the black veins crawling past my elbow.

"You look worse than last time," Wu said. "When you jumped out of my window, you at least had two working hands."

"I’ve been busy."

"I can see that." Wu leaned forward on his bike. The red glow from his gauntlets lit his face from below, showing deep lines and old scars, and a warmthless smile. "My alarm system tells me someone just broke into a vault in my district. My vault district. Where I keep order. Where I decide who comes and goes."

He paused.

"Was that you?"

There was no point lying. The alarms were screaming. We were standing right above the entrance. And I probably had concrete dust in my hair.

"Yes," I said.

Wu’s riders shifted. Guns clicked as safeties came off. I heard Jax slowly pull back the hammer on her revolver. Quiet. And ready.

"Bold," Wu said. "Stupid. But bold." He held up one burning fist. "Give me one reason I don’t turn you to ash right here."

"I’ve got something you want," I said.

Wu’s eyes narrowed. "You have nothing I want, ant."

I reached into my pocket. Slowly. Every rider around us tensed up. Fingers tightening on their triggers. I could feel the power in their guns — hot, loaded, and ready to fire.

I pulled out the crystal drive and held it up. Golden light spilled between my fingers.

"The Golden Ledger," I said.

The street went silent. Not quiet. Silent. The kind of silence that happens when every person in earshot stops breathing at the same time.

Wu stared at the drive. His face didn’t change. But his gauntlets flickered. The red glow dimmed for half a second. Then came back brighter.

"Where did you get that?" Wu asked. His voice was different now. Lower. Careful. Like a man trying not to scare something away.

"Vault 19," I said. "Malachi’s black site. The place where he kept his insurance against you. Every name. Every bribe. Every dirty deal between the Corporation and the Triads. All on this little drive."

Wu didn’t move. His riders didn’t move. Nobody moved.

"If I drop this," I said, "and step on it — every bit of leverage Malachi had over you turns to dust. You’d be free. No more leash. No more blackmail."

"And why would you do that?" Wu asked.

"I wouldn’t," I said. "Not for free."

Sarah stepped forward. Right on time. The Queen showing up exactly when she was needed. Her back was straight. Her chin was high. Her eyes were sharp and cold and calculating. She looked at Wu the way she looked at problems — like something to be solved, not feared.

"Dragon-Head Wu," Sarah said. "We have what you want. You have what we need. I suggest we talk like adults."

Wu looked at her. Then at me. Then at the crystal drive still glowing in my hand.

"Everyone seems to wants to talk tonight," Wu said. He waved one burning hand, and his riders lowered their guns — not completely, but enough.

"Talk," he said. "But be quick. My patience isn’t what it used to be."

"We need a medical pod," Sarah said. "Corp-grade. High-end. The kind that can rebuild damaged tissue from the ground up."

"Medical pods," Wu repeated. "That’s what you broke into my district for. Not weapons. Not data. A doctor’s machine."

"A machine that can save a life," Sarah said.

Wu looked at me again. Studying me. Those sharp old eyes saw more than I wanted them to.

"The sister," Wu said.

My stomach dropped. "How do you know about—"

"I know everything that happens in my city, boy." Wu’s voice was flat. Not threatening. Just stating a fact. Like telling someone the sky was grey. "Jasmine Vance. Budget tier pod. Server 12. Silicosis. Declining." He shrugged. "The Corporation tracks its workers like cattle. Their records are not hard to find, if you know where to look."

My jaw was tight. My left fist was clenched so hard the scabs cracked. Blood ran down my fingers. I wanted to drain every bike on the street. I wanted to eat Wu’s gauntlets. I wanted to—

Stop.

I took a breath. Forced my hand open.

Businessman. He’s a businessman. Play the game.

"One pod," I said. "Corp-grade. In exchange for the Ledger. That’s the deal."

Wu laughed. Short and rough, like a cough. "You think the Ledger is worth one pod? That drive is worth more than every pod in the city combined. It’s my empire on a chip. My future. My survival."

"Then this should be easy for you," Sarah said. "One pod is nothing compared to what you’re getting back."

Wu stopped laughing. He looked at Sarah with something close to respect. Not warm. Not friendly. The respect a snake gives another snake.

"One pod," Wu said slowly. "I have three in my warehouse. Stolen from a Corp shipment last year. Top of the line. They could rebuild your sister’s lungs in a week."

"Then we have a deal," I said. I held out the crystal drive.

Wu didn’t take it.

"Not yet," he said.

My hand stayed in the air. The golden glow of the drive lit the space between us.

"The pod is yours," Wu said. "But the Ledger buys you more than a machine. It buys you a seat at my table. An alliance." He paused. "And an alliance means you give me something in return."

"What do you want?" I asked.

Wu smiled. The kind of smile that had no happiness in it. Just teeth and calculations.

"There is a man," Wu said. "His name is Kang. He runs the east side of Sector 3. Used to be one of my captains. Now he thinks he’s a king." Wu’s gauntlets flared bright red. The heat reached my face from ten feet away. "He’s been taking my territory. Turning my men against me. Cutting deals with other bosses behind my back. He smells weakness, and he’s circling like a dog."

"You want us to take him out," Maya said from the rooftop. Her voice came through comms and echoed off the buildings. She’d been listening the whole time. Rifle aimed down at the street.

Wu looked up at her. Then back at me. "I want Kang removed. His operation shut down. His territory returned to me. You do this — you get the pod. And you get my support. Fighters. Weapons. Safe passage through Sector 3 whenever you need it."

"And if we don’t?" I asked.

Wu shrugged. "Then you keep the Ledger. And I keep the pod. And your sister dies in a budget coffin in Server 12. Your choice."

The words hit me like a hammer. Not because they were cruel. Because they were true. Wu didn’t need to threaten. He didn’t need to fight. He just needed to wait. Time was on his side. Jasmine’s clock was on mine.

I looked at Sarah. She gave me a tiny nod. Almost invisible. Her eyes said what her mouth didn’t — take the deal. We can handle Kang later.

I looked at Jax. She blew a bubble, popped it, and shrugged — her way of saying, why not?

I looked up at the rooftop where Maya sat with her rifle. She didn’t say anything. But she didn’t pull back either. Still aimed. Still ready. Trusting me to make the call.

"Boss," Glitch said in my ear, his voice low. "Kang’s operation is mid-level. Thirty, maybe forty men. A few combat drones. He’s based in an old factory on the east side. It’s doable. Not easy — but doable."

Doable. Coming from Glitch, that was almost a compliment.

I turned back to Wu. Held up the crystal drive.

"We keep this until the job is done," I said. "When Kang is finished, we trade. Ledger for pod. Same time. Same place. No tricks."

Wu’s smile widened. "You’re learning, ant."

"Stop calling me ant."

"Earn a better name." Wu snapped his fingers. The gauntlets faded. The red glow died. His tattoo settled back into his skin like ink sinking into water. "You have three days. Kang has been meeting with a Corp contact — someone inside Malachi’s circle. If that meeting happens, Kang gets Corp backing, and no amount of pod trading will save your sister. Or you."

Three days.

Jasmine had twenty days on her clock. My arm had four, maybe less. Now Kang had three.

Every clock in my life was ticking. None of them matched. All of them were running out.

Wu turned his bike. His riders parted like a wave. He rode through them without looking back.

"Three days, Devourer," he called over his shoulder. "Don’t waste them."

And then he was gone. Engines roaring. Lights fading. The street went dark and empty.

I stood there. Crystal drive in my left hand. Dead fingers on my right. Blood on my knuckles. Team spread out around me in a city that wanted me dead.

"Well," Jax said. She holstered her revolver and cracked her neck. "That went better than I thought."

"Better?" I said.

"Nobody died," Jax said. She blew a bubble and popped it. "That’s better."

I put the Ledger back in my pocket. Looked up at the grey sky. No stars. There was never any stars. Just smoke, neon light and the low hum of a city that never slept — because it wasn’t allowed to.

Three days to take down a Triad captain. Then get the pod. And then save Jasmine.

Simple. Easy. Nothing could go wrong.

My middle finger twitched. One last time. Then it stopped for good.

Three fingers dead. Two left.

The clock kept ticking.