Cyberpunk: I'm Not a Scavenger - Chapter 91: Valerie (Patreon)

"I heard Intelligence took quite a beating this time."

"Yeah. I've got a friend in the department. Says their supervisor, Abernathy, was furious. Some guy named Koizumi was executed on the spot!"

"Fuck, seriously? Tell me more..."

Valerie slowed as she passed through the lobby, catching the conversation between two employees from other departments.

"Koizumi was just the fall guy. Somebody threw him under the bus."

"Shut up. Someone from Intelligence is coming."

They hastily changed the subject, stealing glances at Umeko Kawakami as she passed.

Umeko's expression was thunderous. She hurried by and shot Valerie a vicious glare.

Valerie had no interest in the complaints of a sore loser. She strode toward the elevator without looking back.

Intelligence and Counterintelligence got along about as well as the FBI and CIA.

Their responsibilities overlapped, so naturally the two departments were at each other's throats. Sometimes they were even willing to leak their own corporation's secrets if it meant bringing the other side down.

Intelligence had been thoroughly crushed by Militech in the recent operation. Counterintelligence promptly dropped its work in Europe and returned to Night City.

They hadn't come back merely to laugh at their rivals. They wanted to seize some of Intelligence's authority and resources for themselves.

There was another reason, of course. The two department heads had a minor personal disagreement.

How to put it?

They were the sort who would happily tear out each other's hearts.

Several colleagues greeted Valerie with unusual warmth as she made her way down the corridor.

She acknowledged them with a nod and headed straight for the office of her boss, Arthur Jenkins.

"V, you're finally back. Is everything in Frankfurt taken care of?"

Jenkins visibly relaxed when his capable subordinate returned. His spirits lifted at once.

Valerie, better known as V, nodded and delivered her report.

"All the weapons and equipment have changed hands, and we've dealt with the few locals who knew what was going on. Only people inside our department know about it now."

Jenkins still didn't look entirely satisfied.

"And you think everyone inside the department can be trusted? Later we should... Forget it."

With his hands clasped behind his back, he paced before the enormous floor-to-ceiling window.

"Never mind. That's not important right now. You've heard about Intelligence's little disaster, haven't you? The board had a tremendous row over it. Our 'Crown Prince' isn't pleased with their incompetence, and rumor has it he intends to handle the matter himself."

Valerie stiffened. There was tension in her voice when she asked, "Yorinobu Arasaka is coming to Night City?"

Jenkins looked grim and did nothing to deny it.

Her mind raced. This was hardly good news for Counterintelligence.

Her department generally favored a more conservative approach, placing it broadly in the Kiji faction.

Yorinobu, by contrast, was a notorious radical. He seemed almost eager to provoke a corporate war with Militech.

As Arasaka's undisputed heir, his arrival was certain to unleash a storm unlike anything Night City had seen.

"Is there anything we can do?" Valerie asked cautiously.

Jenkins shook his head with a sigh.

"Intelligence and the Arasaka family's ninjas are handling Yorinobu's security together. Adam Smasher will be accompanying him to Night City."

"Can't anyone stop him?"

Valerie couldn't bear the thought of Yorinobu destroying the favorable position her department had finally gained.

"Who could stop him? Saburo Arasaka?" Jenkins gave a contemptuous snort. "He had the nerve to sever ties with his own father, and he's still the undisputed heir. Not even Miss Hanako could talk him out of it."

He let out a long sigh, then changed the subject.

"Such a shame you came back so late. You should have seen Abernathy's face at the last meeting."

Whenever Intelligence came up, Jenkins could hardly contain his amusement.

If Abernathy hadn't sabotaged him before, he'd have become Director of Special Operations ages ago. Seeing her suffer a setback now pleased him more than anyone.

"Oh, and here's the detailed report on Intelligence's operation. Have a look."

He took a data shard from his drawer and handed it to V.

"Our department's top priority is testing the Cyberskeleton. Before those tests can begin, we need to find a suitable subject."

As she listened to his instructions, Valerie slipped the shard into her neural slot.

One figure immediately stood out in the report: Pantheon, codename 'King.'

His fighting ability was undeniable, but the real concern was his identity.

He had close ties to Militech, yet nobody could establish where he'd come from. All they knew was that he'd appeared in Night City out of nowhere a little over three months earlier.

Before becoming a mercenary, he'd worked briefly as an REO contract cleaner.

Everything about him suggested someone concealing his past. Intelligence strongly suspected that he was the secret creation of another corporation.

Valerie kept scrolling through the names. Suddenly, one caught her eye.

"Jackie?"

Surprise flickered across her face.

"One more thing, V," Jenkins said, remembering another matter.

"Militech will soon be shipping an experimental piece of cyberware to Night City. I want you to find a way to steal it. We need to show the board that Counterintelligence is more dependable than Intelligence, and that I'm a better choice for Director of Special Operations than that bitch Abernathy!"

Valerie frowned deeply, but reluctantly accepted the assignment.

"This isn't a request." Jenkins fixed her with a threatening stare.

"We're in the same boat. Everyone at Arasaka knows I was the one who promoted you. Of course, this is also a test."

He abruptly changed tack and dangled the prospect of promotion before her.

"V, you've been in your current position for years. Isn't it time you moved up? The Deputy Director of Counterintelligence post is still vacant."

The carrot-and-stick approach had stood the test of time.

Valerie's fists clenched almost of their own accord. Despite herself, she felt a thrill of excitement.

She hadn't yet been ground down by corporate politics. Some part of her still believed hard work could take her further.

She left the office excited, but with a headache already forming.

Militech had only just stolen Arasaka's experimental cyberware. Naturally, it would be on its guard.

She needed intelligence about the new implant, then someone capable of snatching it from beneath Militech's heavy defenses.

"Ugh."

Valerie sighed. Climbing the corporate ladder was never simple, especially at a Japanese company like Arasaka, where hierarchy mattered so much.

After a moment's thought, she called someone she hadn't spoken to in a long while.

"Jackie? It's me. I'm back in Night City. Got time to meet?"