The police cruiser's glass was bulletproof, but it couldn't handle firepower like that. Damian didn't have time to react so I had to. Without thinking, I grabbed the wheel and yanked it hard to the side, throwing my body over my partner to shield him. I could be repaired he couldn't.
Trrrt-rrrt-rrrt-rrrt...
The staccato roar of a machine gun echoed. The car swerved violently as I pulled it off the bullet's trajectory. A few rounds still punched through the armor and tore across my back. We were losing speed fast. No time to hesitate I unbuckled Damian's seatbelt, shoved him into the back seat, and slid behind the wheel.
"Get down!" I barked, flooring the accelerator to chase the fleeing vehicle.
Despite the incoming fire, I kept the pedal down. The engine roared back to life, the cruiser surged forward and closed the distance. At full speed, I rammed the van from behind. The impact launched me forward I smashed through the windshield and catapulted inside the enemy vehicle.
Bullets tore through my body armor. I dove under the barrel and shoved it upward. The gunner didn't even have time to let go before his head slammed into the weapon, knocking him out cold. A pistol dropped into my hand, and three shots fired in rapid succession put down the rest of the van's passengers.
I barely had time to step back when a flaming blade sliced through the van's wall and tore the machine gun shield in half.
A katana, burning hot melting steel on contact.
Jiro Obata had entered the fight.
"Accept your death," he hissed.
The blade moved too fast. If not for my machine reflexes, I'd have been dead. I raised my weapon, but before I could pull the trigger, the sword cleaved it and my trigger finger clean in half.
Damage: Index Finger – 100%
The next instant, I barely managed to block with my arm only to have it sliced clean off at the forearm. The sensation of loss was muted, like something important was missing but there was no time to dwell on it in combat.
Damage: Forearm – 100%
Bam-bam!
Bullets whizzed past Jiro, but he dodged and deflected them with ease. Without turning, I sensed my partner was back he had caught up with us.
"You bastards are doomed," Jiro growled, lunging forward with such speed I was forced to retreat to the edge of the van. I knew I couldn't beat him in close combat, so I vaulted onto the hood of the patrol car.
He followed a heartbeat later, bringing his katana down in a crushing blow. I rolled back just in time as the blade sank deep into the metal, slicing the car's body like paper. Somehow, the vehicle kept moving though it should've been dead by now.
"Gun's in the trunk!" Damian's voice crackled through the comms.
Dodging another slash, I leapt backward and gripped the trunk's metal, tearing it open to reveal a weapon of death.
Weapon: Militech KKP-31
Type: Automatic Heavy Machine Gun
Caliber: 12.7×99mm
Rate of Fire: 600 RPM
Magazine: 300 rounds, compatible with extended ammo packs
Effective Range: Up to 1500 meters
Features: High armor penetration, barrel cooling system for sustained fire, tactical scope for mid- and long-range targeting
Modifications: Supports thermal optics, recoil compensators, sight stabilizers, and compatible with armor-piercing, explosive, and tracer rounds.
[image]
"Chew lead, freak!" I growled and the machine gun roared to life. A torrent of bullets rained down on Jiro, but with impossible agility he dodged and deflected the shots. The few that hit bounced off his skin, throwing sparks.
Sandevistan Active
His movements accelerated faster, sharper. Dodging the hail of fire, he bolted straight for Damian. I couldn't let him reach my partner. I swung the barrel toward him, but even as I did, I knew I was too slow. The car spun out of control and slammed into a building wall.
I didn't see where Jiro's strike landed as the crash flung us forward. My body tumbled across the asphalt, slamming into the ground again and again until finally coming to a stop.
Module Damage Detected
Body Integrity: 75%
My HUD blinked with critical damage warnings, but I ignored them and focused on Jiro. He was getting up slowly, skin scorched cybernetic implants exposed. I raised the machine gun and opened fire, but he reacted instantly, diving behind the nearest debris. Bullets shredded everything around him but not him
Ammo: 128
Damn it not much left.
I checked Damian's vitals: critical injuries gut shot, broken legs, internal bleeding. Without medical help, he wouldn't last a few minutes. I kept Jiro's last position in my sights as I cautiously moved toward my partner.
That's when Jiro suddenly burst from cover, crossing the distance between us with a few explosive bursts of speed. I didn't even have time to aim he was already on top of me.
A grenade dropped into my hand, and I activated it instantly. The flash blinded everything around, plunging the world into a temporary darkness. My targeting systems glitched, losing accuracy just like the enemy's. I fired blind, relying on internal targeting protocols. The ammo drained fast, vision coming back slow.
When my sight finally cleared, Jiro was crouched against the hood of the car, blood trailing down his body. He was clearly hurt badly but still lethal.
Ammo: 12
I took one last shot.
The gun roared, emptying the last rounds in a final burst. Even in his state, Jiro dodged the bullets. The mag was dry. And in melee, I was no match for him.
"You made me sweat," Jiro growled, raising his blade, "but I never lose."
Patrol Unit 4318: Assault team is en route to your location.
"Private Matthew Krangtino my partner is down! I need immediate medical assistance!" I shouted, activating the comms.
"Hold position support is seconds away," the dispatcher replied.
I knew I had to buy time. I grabbed every grenade I had left, yanked the pins, and hurled them in Jiro's direction before sprinting toward the patrol car.
Explosions erupted behind me but I couldn't afford to look back. Damian was on the brink of death.
I threw open the driver's door. The interior was soaked in blood. Damian was barely breathing his condition worsening by the second.
I grabbed his sidearm and emptied the mag in Jiro's direction. When it clicked dry, I threw the pistol at him out of pure desperation. I had no plan nothing left. Just one thing I could do.
I pulled out the injector from my pouch and jammed it into Damian's arm.
Now the only thing between Jiro and Damian was me.
"I'll kill you. Then I'll slice your partner into little pieces," Jiro snarled, stalking forward with his blade.
"We'll see," I said quietly, realizing that no matter how deadly he was, Jiro was also badly injured. If he didn't get medical attention, he wouldn't make it. Probably running on stimulants.
But maybe just maybe luck was on my side for once.
Tactical vehicles screeched onto the scene. Doors flew open. Armored operatives spilled out, wielding heavy weapons and ballistic shields.
Jiro understood immediately if he didn't leave now, this was the end.
He bolted.
In an instant, he was gone putting distance between us faster than anyone could follow.
I used the brief moment of calm to rush back to Damian, checking his condition again. I pulled out my med kit, quickly applying trauma pads and clotting agents.
"We'll take it from here," said one of the operatives an officer with a medical insignia knelt beside Damian, taking over first aid.
I looked closer at their uniforms this wasn't our local unit. Reinforcements from another district. Things had gotten serious enough that they called in backup from across the city.
Despite my cybernetics, I could feel the weight dragging at my body like the fight had drained everything out of me. I slumped down beside the car. My whole frame ached from the beating I took.
This wasn't some street-level punk. Jiro was a full-blown assassin high-tier, top-line killing machine. Head to toe, he was equipped with cutting-edge cyberware every inch of him built for death.
And thinking back… that soldier with the unknown implant if he'd had a blade like Jiro's, I'd have been diced into cubes before I even realized I was dead.