Chapter 8: Case 005 - Drugs, Sex and Panic at the disco.
I really hate Trauma Teams business model now. Why? Because anyone can buy insurance package varying from silver to platinum grade-level for as long as he wants. Where is the catch since this allows to reach wider number of potential clients? Well the problem is when some dumbasses want to do something dangerous and stupid but don't want to die they get 1-day silver or even gold subscription. In a worst case scenario some celebrity or blogger wants to get some hype and gets platinum subscription and goes for something extremely dangerous. Like showing middle-finger to maelstorm or perform drive-by shooting with livestream at some gang's base or turf.
So whole week we spend taking care of such cases as group of celebrities and influencers initiated competition for the most crazy video of a month with some big rewards for winners. Feels like every moron in Night City wants to participate in that competition. So we had a flood of clients requiring immediate evac and so on. Now I realise why Trauma Teams get blamed for some very rough playstyle. But what do you expect from overworked, tired and angry Trauma Team which was saving morons for the last few days without a proper break. Every team was on mixture of caffeine and military grade energy boosters, now if you see us without our helmets you will see pale faces with bloodshot eyes and twitching.
However, this week is almost over and that dumb competition ends this week as well. Today is the last day of competition and there are already clear leaders in that rat race but some people still want to give it a chance. Now we are flying to a night club where we have to save a client that had an overdose of some shit. I quickly searched in Net what happened there. Surprise surprise, club was hosting drug consumption competition. The last one to pass away or die is a winner and can win some cash and drugs for free.
We landed near the entrance and started clearing path for EMTs. Using fists and elbows we kept moving like a icebreaker throw the sea of partying people. Some wanted to fight back but pointing a gun was enough for them to fuck off and not mess with us.
Few minutes later and we are making a space near our client for EMT start their magic. However, there is no magic today. Not for this client.
"Dead cold, he had speedball combo but prior to competition he had some anti-toxin cocktail. Shit worked. Stimulants effect was completely off by anti-toxin but suppressant part made him unable to breath and stop heart beating. I am putting him in a body bag, we have to get out our tracking cyberware." - Jorg replied taking out a black body bag.
"Shit, this is another dead client on my week record." - Ron angrily said.
"Dumb fucks. Let's get out here. Even air here can make us high." - I snorted.
"Hey sweetie don't be sad. Let me give you kiss and world will become brighter." - unknown girl with tank top through which I could her nipples and long pink hair got on my way with a capsule playing on her tongue.
"Back off. Don't block my way." - I angrily shoved her aside making path for EMTs with body on stretcher.
"What a grumpy and rude man. Sweetie you don't know what you have just missed!"- she shouted at me.
Yeah, I missed having to see a doctor due to strange red rash on my lips and crotch as well as probably melting down my liver from your world-brightening capsule.
But shit hit the fan when we prepared to take off. Dispatcher told us that at nightclub which we just left one of our clients with platinum grade package is requiring urgent help. Platinum package is really important thing. I quickly adjusted a shotgun with non-lethal ammo to my back mag-strip. Feels like we have to rush in with guns ready.
"Hahah, this will new record for response team in our team." - Ron laughed.
"Let's do it!"
This time we crashed in like rhinos. No more need to be gentle. Anyone on our way gets kicked or shoved away. If they fall down we just step on them. My hands already got covered in blood and one glove has a tooth stuck in it.
Our target was in ladies toilet part which we quickly reached. We kicked a door and started aiming at everyone simultaneously looking for our client. To my big surprise it was that tank top girl that offered me cheap paradise. At the moment she was on a floor getting beaten up by one Tiger Claw thugs while others started ripping off her clothes. Girl was unconscious but he still kept punching her until he saw us.
Without much hesitation we shoot them all down like rabid dogs they are. Quickly checking every corner we went outside to make safety perimeter for our EMTs. Few minutes later people from Tiger Claws noticed that some of their friends not replying and started looking for them. Once they saw us in a toilet they wanted to see what happened but we told them to back off. Drunk and high mobsters got offended and started pointing guns and blades at us cursing and ordering to let them get their friends. Atmosphere started getting tense and then one of assholes crossed red line hologram barrier. I made a warning to him but drunk cunt decided to go. Next second me and Ron made few shots and killed him.
"Back off or we will exterminate you all!" - Ron roared at them using maxed volume speakers on his helmet.
However things went down south pretty quickly, bastards started spreading out and taking cover which meant that firefight is inevitable. SMGs started unleashing little killer bees and we were able to supress then for now. But this caused chain reaction in a nightclub. Gangsters, corporate and edgerunners started taking out guns and shooting at each other. Damn nightclub turned into warzone.
"Jorg, Sam hurry up. We got a fucking gang war here. Just stabilise a client to last long enough till we make it to our aerodyne. Continue medical procedures there."
"Fuck, Ron be ready to start moving in 40 seconds! We will stabilize her but we need a clear path she is very weak."
"Acknowledged. Markus use your shoty as icebreaker and I will try to cover you from behind. Switch to non-lethal mode we don't want too much blood on our hands otherwise fucking PR department will r**e us to death."
Short confirmation message and I take out my good old Pozhar, well it is time to add some fire to a party. I made a shot at group of people blocking pathway to exit, knocking them down. Not paying attention to moaning and twitching bodies of unlucky bastard hit with non-lethal projectiles I kept firing. In the end I had to face a huge group of people fighting with bare hands against each other. There is just too many of them and if I just shoot at them they cause a blockage. But I had an idea how to solve that problem. Quick reload and then I take out a flash bang, aiming at the centre of fight I let it fly and explode. Thanks to my helmet I was saved from amazing experience of flashbang exploding inside a room.
Without wasting time I started kicking and punching disoriented people trying to sway them aside and make a pathway for my team. Some bastard were tough and didn't want to give up so I had to shoot them at close range. Even non-lethal ammo can cause some really bad wounds at such small distance so I saw people fly off with blood spilling all over a place and even I started getting covered in blood and gore of few dumb bastards that didn't realise that I am not joking here.
Punch in a throat, kick in a chest one guy falls a side trying to breath. Poking move with a shotgun barrel and another dude falls off a railings and ends up on a bottom dancefloor. I take out a handgun and use both firearms as simple baton and knuckle duster. I evaded someone trying to hit me with a beer bottle and hit him back aiming at collar bone with handgun's stock then finished him with proper headbutt. Next was a girl with oni-samurai mask which tried to slice me with her little machete. I parried-deflected her attack using Pozhar and hit her right in a face mask with handgun's barrel as a counter-attack. Handgun managed to crack open her mask and even break some of her teeth. Girl was in pain shock so I just kicked her off my handgun This is Sparta!-style.
After such bloody breakthrough seeing exit and lights of our aerodyne was like a breath of fresh air. Ron and others followed my path of wounded and badly injured mob. I had a quick look at my equipment, I was covered in blood completely, even my helmet had some blood dripping of it.
"Markus are you alright you got blood all over your blood and I can't tell whether it is your or theirs?" - Ron messaged me.
"I am fine, but I really need to get some laundry done." - I replied trying to wipe off some blood from helmet and gloves using cloth I ripped off some unconscious person's jacket near the exit.
"Don't worry about that. Let's get back to our birdie I had enough of that shit for today." - he replied and I just nodded keeping an eye on perimeter while our boys were transporting client to aerodyne.
Finally this messy trip is over and we can have long deserved 8 hour sleep and a proper weekend rest. Well at least I thought so until next morning.
In the morning I got emergency call requesting to come to PR and Marketing department. I was preparing myself for a lot of headache, seems we caused too much damage last night and now I get scolded for that.
But to my big surprise PR specialists shoved me a news article with title - When Angry Guardian-Angel Turns Up At Party and photo of me covered in blood getting out of nightclub. I don't know who made this photo and edited it later but they did a really nice job. I looked like an angel covered in blood under the street lights yellow light column as if god's punisher and savour of innocent.
PR team wanted to use that image in their marketing and promos so they wanted to know everything. Who, why, what, when and so on. They even requested to take breakdance recording of that night.
Situation got even more weird when video of that night with me as a major character became viral over few hours reaching few millions and seeming to spread out even faster. Situation later got completely out of control to such extent that Trauma Team got awarded with 1st place in that competition promoted with celebrities I mentioned before as our video got one of the highest views as well as some really crazy moments such as using guns in melee and fighting like berserks of old times. What an irony, Trauma Team hated that fucking competition but end up not just winning it but winning at last moment.
PR team was ecstatic and started using that in their marketing they even found some guys who I almost beat to death at nightclub and requested to make braindance out of their experience being punched by me. They made some ad out of it and even come up with some weird and shit slogans like, emergency aid fist coming and so on.
And me? Well except for some cash bonus for helping TT's reputation and PR I can say the following - Hey Mama I made it to TV!
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