After the hard work, Nova and the crew booked a meeting with Padre Ibarra. Thanks to favors Nova had done long ago, they managed to secure a space to talk.
“Nova. Pleasure to have you here. I assume you need a favor,” Padre said, welcoming them while his guards leveled rifles at the rest of the crew. “Remember when I brought you before — you didn’t know where you were. I hope these people are trustworthy, or I’ll have to take care of them.”
“You can be sure they’re top-tier cyberpunks,” Nova answered, calm, trying to steer the room. “And not stupid enough to make you an enemy. Yes — I need a favor, and I’ve got news. First, read this. It’ll interest you.”
Padre received Nova’s packet over Neuralink and scrolled. The data showed Ivan had been skimming from Padre’s operations like a rat — tiny thefts, hard to trace — and using Padre’s name to get contacts.
“Son of a bitch. You’ve got my attention.”
“This is Ivan,” Nova said. “A ‘corpo’ working under Regina. I’m sure Regina doesn’t know what he’s doing. My guess — he’s trying to break free, build his own network, grab power. Hard to prove, but after our last job I think he controls a pack of cyberpsychos. He also has our friend; we’re going after him. Problem is he’s richer and better-armed than I expected — we need sponsorship.”
“Understood. Solid intel, Nova. I’m pissed he pulled this stunt and stole what he wanted, especially if it affects me. You’ve proven yourself reliable, so yes—I could ‘sponsor’ your hit on Ivan. I’ll investigate Regina to make sure she’s not behind this. Until then, you hold.”
David erupted when Padre said to wait. Guards moved to restrain him but Padre silenced them with a single gesture.
“Wait? We can’t — we don’t even know if she’s alive! The longer we wait, the worse it gets.”
“Ah, boy Martinez. I’ve heard of you,” Padre said softly. “You’re a topic among corpos. Flashy, yes. Not my business. I suggest you mind yourself, I can even take a guess by saying she got captured for your fault. I will provide what is needed. The world doesn’t run on heroics, boy — it runs on cash and advantage. Be grateful I benefit from this and that I had prior business with Nova. Try to lose the idealism.”
Reluctant and shut-mouthed, David stepped back. The guards lowered their guns. The group had to wait for Padre to contact them. In the meantime they hunted for Lucy and Kiwi using Nova’s flat as a staging point — but without a netrunner it was near impossible.
“Looking for intel? Or hiring me for a job?” Kiwi said, stepping through Nova’s front door.
“Kiwi!” Pilar barked, surprised.
“Glad you’re alive. We were worried,” Dorio said.
“Sneaky bitch—how the hell did you get out?” Rebecca demanded.
“It wasn’t easy. They had me on 24/7 watch. I hacked a terminal during a lapse and slipped. I hid inside the facility, waited for a window. It took forever. But I got everything we need — and I found Lucy,” Kiwi said, summarizing.
“Perfect!” David and Maine said together.
Nova sat back, skeptical, eyes narrowing. He had no clue how Kiwi had slipped away — escaping Faraday or Ivan wasn’t trivial, and she should’ve been hurt. She wasn’t.
“That son of a bitch will pay,” Kiwi muttered, stepping to Nova’s desk. “I’ll share everything I pulled.”
They all got the files. Faraday had painted the crew as wanted by corpos and low-riders to flush them out. Ivan and Faraday were allied: Ivan would use Lucy to bait Arasaka and Millitech while Faraday would hijack an armored Arasaka truck carrying the cyber-skeleton — a weapon built for total destruction. Ivan would then encrypt and ghost the data using Lucy to trick Millitech and Arasaka into a fight. If both sides acquired that tech, the fallout would be catastrophic — corps and gangs would funnel fire at them all. No one would survive being targeted with that kind of weapon.
“What is this shit! I’m gonna die a virgin!” Pilar screamed, half-laughing, half-mad.
“This leaves us one option: take action. We can handle the low-tier punks, but if those two corpos get that skeleton, we’re fucked,” Maine said, analyzing.
“What the hell do you expect us to do against two corpos?” Rebecca shouted.
“Simple,” David said, steady. “Split into two teams. Stop them from working together, and they can’t win. We steal the cyber-skeleton — then decide what to do with it.”
Nova kept turning it over. Kiwi’s intel matched his worst fears. Was it all true, or a trap? He’d already been targeted by Faraday — so being hunted by the corpos wasn’t a surprise. Faraday wanting the skeleton made sense; if he got it, they were finished. Nova didn’t know what to trust. While he spun, the others kept talking.
“Nova, you with us?” David’s voice cut in, solid and loud.
“Huh? Yeah.”
Incoming call: Padre.
“Nova, I confirmed Regina’s clean. Your intel checks out. I’ll back you. In Heywood, Metro Market, I’ll have men and gear ready. I want Ivan dead — confirm the kill. I’ll send you the data. Remember: you never had contact with me.”
Everyone except Kiwi got the message. They geared up. Nova stayed skeptical — still no bulletproof plans.
“Get the gear first. I’ll meet you at the rendezvous in a bit.”