Burn Bright-Never Die (a Primarch si in Cyberpunk Edgerunners/2077)
作者: vtorx_0867© WebNovel
章 1: Chapter One
Opening his eyes, Manny knew at that moment that he wasn't on his bed anymore—well, besides the obvious of him being up on his feet rather than lying down flat.
"Hmm..."
Just yesterday, Manny had been in his room, crashing after a long tiring day. His high school final year exams were around the corner, and while Manny felt quite confident in his ability to pass, his capability to excel on the other hand, not so much.
To compensate for that, it was only obvious that he had to read like crazy...
Of course, he took a breather now and then to play some video games and—
"Weird… I kinda' remembered doing something else, yesterday—eh."
Freezing, Manny blinked, tentatively lifting his hands to his throat—only to once again freeze at the sight of his arms... And his body.
At that point, Manny felt confused about whether he should scream, laugh, cry, or whatever...
"What kind of cosmic joke is this?" Manny muttered, clenching what could be described as the trunk of an arm.
"What the hell happened to me last night?"
If one were to sum up Manny's physical description in a simple sentence, it would be a skinny brown geek. He had the iconic wide-frame glasses and slouchy look to go with it.
But this... This... Manny was looking at a version of himself only in his private self-made comic books.
Wirily lankiness was replaced by corded muscle sculpted to appear like an Adonis, the new eye elevation implicitly told Manny that he was much, much taller.
And that doesn't even begin to describe the sensation coursing through him.
Power; pure unadulterated power.
Manny felt like he was capable of anything.
A jump as a test sent Manny soaring above the alley set in between tall story buildings. Landing unsteadily, he looked over himself with a shaky laugh.
"Seriously, did someone pump me with some kind of super serum?"
Whatever or whoever did this to him even had the decency to change his clothes -A simple t-shirt and jeans- thankfully, one large enough to fit his new physical frame.
Feeling a bump in the pocket of his slacks, Manny pulled out a piece of paper.
"Be watching with interest, II Lost Scion: Imperium Legacy... The hell?" Manny's face scrunched in confusion—before widening in realization. "Wait a minute, last night... Now I remember!"
It was late in the night, approaching 12:30 that Manny had his fill of LoL. In chatting with his online teammates, Manny had gone into a discussion on Warhammer, particularly on the lore of the Primarch being potential Greater Demons due to their Wrap-like nature.
He had been discussing with his friends a potential fan-comic centering on this lore with one of the two missing Primarch as its main character. There was the option of using Russ or Khan, but their lore had already been deeply entrenched.
Not to mention how disrespectful it would be to the Imperium.
Glory to the God-Emperor!
"Primarch... II Lost Scion: Imperium Legacy. Isn't that the temporary title of the fan comic we had come up with?"
Logically, the succinct insinuation of the words on the paper provided was too asinine to believe. But, the present reality of the situation couldn't be denied.
Manny was no longer in his room, he wasn't a thin kid anymore, now he looked more like Captain Marvel (DC version), and more importantly, his thought pattern has changed or rather, been immensely altered.
Logically, Manny should have been freaked out upon waking up in an unfamiliar location. But currently, all he felt was a little surprise sprinkled with wariness.
'Could this be a side effect of becoming a Primarch?' Manny thought—although, he knew that he had just answered his question.
Damn, he still could not comprehend this.
Manny couldn't deny the fact that he was kind of excited.
Seriously, who wouldn't want to be given the chance to be a demi-god super-solider, and if this new body of his followed the lore then there were many things he could do to guarantee his safety.
But sadly this is Warhammer—a place saturated with Gods, Demons, monsters... And Orcs. Manny wasn't the biggest fish in the pond. Heck, even amongst the Primarch ranks, most if not all of his known 'big brothers' could kick his ass six ways till Sunday.
Manny has to be extremely careful if he wants to even survive.
"There's Big E, not Langston, any Greater Daemon Prince—considering if this is after the Horus Heresy, the 4 Bedlam Gods, and heck, any Eldar Farseer lucky enough to ping me... That is if they haven't already."
Sighing, he tucked back the piece of paper and walked out alley—into the futuristic setting.
The first thing that hit Manny was the familiar blare of a megalopolis (only this one was cranked up to eleven) and the lancing daylight that dilated his pupils.
Manny stood still, visually taking in the spanning city filled with architecture he couldn't recognize.
After a moment used to compose himself, Manny walked out and melded into the streets. His senses being superior to his former specs picked up the small details around this new area.
For one, wherever or 'whenever' Manny thought he was at the moment was a bustling conurbation. People moved around in droves, all from different walks of life.
Manny also noticed that most, if not, 'all' of the people he passed, sported one form of 'cyborg-like' characteristics on their person.
The mild ones had silver lines tracing down their faces, with their eyes fake. While the starker ones, had their entire face and body configured to the extent that Manny subtly raised a brow wondering how they could live in such a manner.
The more notable ones had their entire body exchanged from flesh to metal—Manny's enhanced senses could pick up the whirring of wires and slight metallic groan as they boldly strutted the streets.
It's like they had decided to discard their human forms.
'Wherever this is must be an Adeptus Mechanicus wet dream?'
There is no strength in flesh, only weakness.
Everyone Manny had passed sported one sort of cyborg part or the other, prompting Manny to conclude that whatever Planet he had been transmigrated to was a filthy rich one.
Not to get him wrong; from what Manny could remember from Warhammer's lore, while cybernetics was easy to access and could even be self-crafted provided you have the materials. To make cybernetics like the ones he is seeing requires a filthy amount of money.
Even the cybernetics of High Lords from elite Hive Worlds didn't have the kind of exquisiteness and sophisticated exterior he had seen from the normal-looking man he had just passed by.
There was a reason why he didn't like his comic characters sporting Warhammer cybernetics despite their practicality—too unsightly for his liking, but that's a given considering the Warhammer's setting.
'Could it be that I'm not in Warhammer?' Manny pondered.
Anyways, most of the vehicles zipping up and down the road bore a disturbing similarity to the vehicles of his own time... Now, Manny did say 'most' which meant not all, as he had sported a special-looking train over 700 meters away and what appeared to be flying cars overhead.
The synthetic voice of the traffic PA prompted Manny to stop as he waited for the cars to pass by. Observing the traffic device that appeared more sophisticated and futuristic than the one he knew, made Manny consider whether he was even in the Warhammer galaxy to begin with.
After all, the more Manny observed his surroundings the more he was less sure of this place being a Hive world.
'There's always a certain theme to Warhammer's setting and I don't think any kind of world—even, ones that are not under the Imperium could be this advanced...'
Though, this could be Terra... But Manny wouldn't bet a cent on it. Certainly, the Emperor's light would have been visible from here.
The sound of hushed whispers drew Manny out of his musing as he observed the people who gave him a wide berth while shooting him nervous and awe-filled gazes...
But then again, that didn't surprise or befuddle him as much as he thought it would.
It is only normal to feel unnerved if you're near someone so huge that you can't even reach their chest properly. Even those fully big carbonized people Manny had seen barely reached his shoulders.
But then again...
"I think I'm on the smaller size. At least, compared to most Primarchs." Manny absently commented. "Probably 8 to 9 ft—yeah, I'm around the size of Custodes."
This could be either a good or a bad thing depending on whether he truly is either in Warhammer or not.
'Let me gain a bit more mass if it's the former.' Manny hopefully implored the higher power that brought him here.
The traffic PA spurred Manny to walk across the street as he wandered around this futuristic city.
First things first; what the hell is he to do now?
ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ
The sun had already moved a fair distance signifying that it was approaching evening, Night City -yes, Manny had been able to get the name of his new location thanks to his enhanced senses- was seeing the end of another day.
Speaking of this city, if there was one word Manny could use to describe it would be; fake.
It looked beautiful, -at least, that was the first impression that Manny had gotten. But that was just one big fake makeup caked all over to cover the ugliness beneath it.
Just the past few hours, Manny had picked up multiple gunshots in the distance and the people around him didn't show any form of reaction to it.
He had also seen someone getting assaulted and when he went to go stop it -after taking one look at a 9 ft. Primarch, the muggers decided that a trip to the hospital wasn't worth it- the guy who he'd helped just muttered 'thanks charm (?)' and practically sprinted away.
It kind of hurt, to be honest.
Although that word, 'choom' sounded kinda' familiar.
Manny had felt eyes following him for a few moments before it abruptly stopped as he turned in the watcher's direction.
Damn, if that ain't creepy.
To make matters even more startling, the area Manny was currently entering didn't possess the opulence of the ultramodern district he had just come from.
The houses looked like something out of the twentieth century, with the only difference being the large satellite antennas that decorated their roofing.
Not to mention the smell... Ugh, just this once, Manny hated the enhanced sense of smell his Primarch physiology gave him—his nose felt like it was going to fall off.
Probably due to the obscene amount of garbage and trash Manny had seen as he walked further past the city proper.
So, while yes, Manny felt like he had been transported to a place that seemed right out of an 'into the future' setting, there was no hiding the dystopian ambiance in it.
Seriously, Manny couldn't help but want to know the full story behind this Night City... And why the hell does its name sound so familiar?
"Anyways, I gotta' have somewhere to rest my head... Hah... I guess unlike in most fanfictions there won't be some kind of convenient public dorm or something I can just go to."
Just as Manny was contemplating the alleys, seeing that he was probably more than strong enough to defend himself if needed—the sound of an irate-filled cry prompted the Primarch to look in a particular direction.
At a woman being boxed in by what appeared to be an unruly group of muscle-jacked gangsters.
"Fucking let go of me, bastard." The woman belligerently said, struggling to pull her hand away from the grip of one of the gang who had held her.
The man who held her laughed. "Come on now, weren't you desperate to find your sister? Or is all that desperation hot air?"
"You dickwad... You have my sis, don't you?"
"Can't say…"
The bristling woman's eyes glowed—only for the glow to die down as guns from the mob pointed at her.
"Tut, tut, tut, girl." The man grinned, smugly. "You may be a preem netrunner. But at the slightest sign of our cyberware glitching out, we'll fuckin' zero both you 'and' your sister."
The woman bit her lips, and whatever resistance she had within her slowly disappeared.
"What do you want?"
"Like I said before. My boss wants you to do one small job for him. Do that and you get to see your sister and even go home, easy to understand right?"
The woman scathingly scoffed.
"Yeah right, Katz only wants me to take the fucking heat for him... But it's not like I even have the option of leaving here in the first place."
Just as the woman was about to go with them with an aggrieved heart...
"Hey babe, sorry I'm late..."
Their dastardly excursion had been interrupted by one 'friendly' Primarch.
"Huh..."
The gang turned aggressively towards the source of the voice—only for the aggression to sputter out at the sight of its owner.
Manny mentally smirked as he watched them comically crane their neck up to look at him. Yeah, he really could get used to looking like this.
The man who had been talking to the girl shook his head, before adopting a belligerent look.
"Got some business with us, choom."
'Choom? That word again.' Manny blinked and quickly brushed off the confusion deeming it as some kind of slang.
Probably otherworldly street talk.
For now, it was time to do some serious LARPing.
"No, I ain't got business with any of you. Just need to take my girl home, s'all."
While the unruly group bore confused looks at Manny's words, the woman on the other hand, thankfully understood the hidden meaning behind his words.
[Play along]
"Oh babe, didn't see you there."
The woman slipped past the unnerved mob and linked her arms around Manny. Granting, Manny couldn't help but feel amused considering how small she was compared to him -could barely wrap both her arms around his lone arm.
But then again, that's a Primarch for you.
"Come on, I've waiting for quite some time."
"Sorry, had some business to attend to."
After the wordplay, Manny turned to the mob.
"Now we'll just get out of your air."
Click!
The sound of guns snapping at Manny said otherwise.
"Do you think I'm some kind of lead head?" The man said, with some kind of handgun pointed at Manny. "Who the fuck do you think you are to just leave like that? Think we're lowlifes or something, huh?"
"No, I'm just trying to be reasonable—"
"Fuck you, Animals don't play reasonable."
The man looked like he so dearly wanted to use his gun and get this over with, but stopped himself from doing so.
"The only reason why I haven't zeroed you is because the boss wants me to keep this simple, considering this place is near 6th Street's turf. But I can always make exceptions for gonks like you..."
Manny raised a brow, "And how sure are you that I'm not a member of the 6th Street."
The man scoffed, "Come on, at least be original. I know you aren't part of the 6th Street. Fuckers don't walk alone at the edge of their turf and they certainly aren't brave enough to interfere with Animal's business."
'Well, someone's got all the angles covered.' Manny calmly commented.
But even so...
For someone who hasn't been in fights or even had any kind of aggressive bone in his body, Manny could not find it in himself to feel any sort of pressure despite being pointed at with heavy artilleries.
Manny drolly noted their stances and their itching fingers, sure that he was capable of taking them out before they could as much as blink. His conclusion wasn't based on some martial authority—heck, most of the scuffles Manny had been in before this has never been in his favor.
He was, no, is still a geek, through and through.
But strange enough, Manny could see their weak spots and blindsides (?) as clear as day. It was like they were inviting him to take advantage of it.
Damn, this physiology is truly meant for battle.
"Please, let's all walk away. Pretend like I did not see you attempt to kidnap someone. I don't want any trouble." Manny said in a cautioning tone.
"Light him u—"
A hail of bullets swiftly followed.
The world lost its color.
ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ
⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎
In hindsight, I should have expected a confrontation.
The image this Night City projected coupled with the trigger-happy sentiment I could (strangely) sense from the group told me all I needed to know.
This wouldn't end without some fisticuffs.
But then again, I still didn't... Couldn't comprehend the notion—the notion of what a Primarch truly is and their starkly vast difference from a mortal man.
When a God moves into the battlefield, mortals fall in droves.
⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎
Manny couldn't describe the sensation he was currently feeling. It was like a liquid fire—one that didn't cause pain but a strange form of pleasant trance- coursing through him.
Damn, weird...
Anyways, until further notice, he would simply term it as the Zone.
Everything seemed brighter, clearer... More vivid and the acidity in the air increased by a staggering amount.
It was like Manny was seeing the world in HD.
But what is even more 'cooler' was how slow everything was.
Before he had entered this mysterious Zone, Manny had heard the sounds of guns tattling and could smell the small spark the bullet made in the barrel
Don't ask how it's Primarch stuff.
So obviously, there should at least be bullets suspended in the air, and Manny kinda' wanted to evade them in anime style...
What? Can't blame a kid trying to live out his fantasies.
Then again the question remains: where the hell are those bullets?
Manny moved forward, slightly aware that his movements were doing something to the air and earth beneath him. He turned to check on the woman only to find out she was some feet away from him...
... And the bullets.
'Yeah, I figured.'
The Primarch reckoned that was why the thugs had decided to shoot him: the one they were after wasn't going to get hurt in the first place.
Manny frowned. 'I don't know if I should be happy or sad about that?'
Anyway, the woman was alright, and from what Manny could see; safely away from the budding sonic booms he was making and the earth that slowly erupted as he walked past.
Damn, how Manny wished his online friends could see him now! This is exactly how he had envisioned the second son to be; a legacy of the Imperium.
[An aspect of the God Emperor's might]
Manny blinked as that odd train of thought flashed his mind—and immediately filed it away. No sense worrying about it now.
It's time to teach some idiots a rather painful lesson.
Causing pain or even hurting in general wasn't Manny's thing... Well, disregarding his online friends who would be outraged and call him PK lord in battle game events.
What? That's the fun of the game.
But these... Miscreants had just unloaded a hail of bullets on him. They made it personal. However, from what Manny was beginning to suspect, the shells were still stuck in the guns.
Are Primarchs really this fast? The answer came just as sudden; so long as they got a little boost from one ridiculous and dangerous dimension.
⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎
Even to this day, I still haven't forgotten—no, I wouldn't allow myself to forget... How stupendously easy it is to take a life.
I guess that was my welcome to Night City.
⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎⸎
Manny reached the nearest gangsters and gave them a hard shove—and... Tilted his head in perturbed bemusement.
'Are human bodies expected to swell like that?'
Unlike in most anime or even comic books, the ones Manny had pushed hadn't been sent flying -in a more traditional sense. They were lifted off their feet that's for sure, but their bodies were bloating from the waist back.
That didn't seem... Safe.
They are going to explode into a mist of blood and metal bits.
An unfeeling pragmatic voice whispered to Manny. His heart thumped like a drum in the slow silent world, needing a moment to process what he had just done—color slowly painted the world—but just as suddenly, the voice returned once again.
Not here now. This is a real combat zone, not some game simulator. You don't get the privilege to sympathize with the enemy who points a gun at you.
You entered this fight to dominate.
You entered this fight to win.
The color died.
Those words were a magic charm. Whatever budding feelings Manny held immediately receded deep within his heart. This is not the time to ponder the significance of life and death.
But just in case, Manny grabbed two of the large rifles pointed at him and lifted them along with their wielders. Hopefully, these wouldn't die, but something told Manny not to bet on it.
The other two were met with a flick to their foreheads—that only lifted them off their feet rather than blow their heads off as Manny expected.
'Could it be that I can control how I affect things while I'm like this?' Manny pondered.
This only affirmed to Manny that what he is doing isn't just 'superspeed'; this is some kind of Warp manipulation. And that wasn't much of a surprise, considering all the Emperor's scions possess the potential of being powerful Psykers.
But that would mean...
'No, I can't allow myself to think of that... Not now.'
Manny did not—dared not turn his face back to look at the Humans who died without them themselves even knowing.
That would just be self-torture... At least, let him deceive himself with that.
Finally, Manny found himself the leader; the one who had initiated this fight. His expression was one of maniacal aggression. It was all too easy to end him.
One punch to the head, that's all it'll take.
But Manny couldn't find it in himself to do it. Maybe it's because the threat's gone or there's already been too much life taken in one day.
You could come to regret this.
The voice whispered.
'Maybe.'
Come on, what's one more body to the pile?
'It's that 'one more body' that scares me. Maybe I would have to kill him. Just not today, and hopefully, this one should have learned his lesson.'
... Do as you will.
The first stopped before the man's face.
Color returned to the world.
ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ
(Unnamed Mob's P.O.V)
"...p!"
He had initially heaved a relieved sigh upon hearing the sound of gunshots that went off at his command.
The fucking nosy gonk should have flatlined—turned into a pile of meat and whatever cyberware, he'd used to chrome himself into looking that big.
He knew Katz wouldn't be happy about this. This could potentially bring the 6th Street into poking their patriotic nose in their business. Then again, he felt like he didn't have much of a choice; there was something about that big fucker that scared the hell out of him.
It was like he was standing bare juiced-ass naked before a pissed Sasquatch... No, even that felt like an understatement.
'Would being on the run from Adam Smasher with a pea shooter as a weapon be more fitting...? Somehow even that feels like an understatement.'
He had no choice but to zero the chrome junkie.
So why... Why did this happen? No, rather, how the fuck did this happen?
All he knew was that as soon as he had commanded his guys to let loose. Slash and Busoga had exploded into a bloody fuckin' mist. He didn't want to think why is it that Drox and Muller's voices were sounding from up high.
How the fuck did those two end up there?
The blur that'd just passed him and tipped over their ride was probably the last two. He didn't even need to turn back to know... Not like he could, considering the larger-than-his-head fist that was currently just some centimeters away from his face.
'What kind of chrome is he chipping to do this? A fuckin' military-grade Sandavistan? No, even that doesn't allow one to make those kind of movements. Could it be some kind of corpo chrome prototype? Fuck, of all days.'
With thoughts running wild, he couldn't concentrate on anything but that fist of death in front of him. This was why the man scared the shit out of him.
But even so...
'Flatlined, just because I had to nab just one stubborn bitch. Fuck!'
The fist shook and he felt his loins loosening—and then it dropped revealing the titan that stood in front of him.
"Get out of my sight."
"Eh..."
"I won't repeat myself..."
He blinked…
And, well, there was only one thing to do: with a smooth right-about-turn; he discarded his gun and ran away. Screaming like NC's boogieman was about to shove a scalding iron rod right up his asshole.
'Boss should better return that girl's sister, and look for another netrunner, 'cause I don't wanna' be there when that walking nightmare comes looking for her...'
ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ
Manny watched as the thug ran like the devil himself was at his heels, and sighed.
'I guess, he did get the message.'
Wiping a thumb across his face, Manny wasn't surprised to see the crimson lifeblood coated over it.
"Yeah, explains the stickiness I'd been feeling all over my body," Manny muttered, dragging a hand across his face with blood coating it. "Damn, karma's a bitch and a half for messing up my clothes."
Turning back, Manny regarded the gory spray ambivalently, shaking his head and turning over to the woman who had created more space with an intensely cautious look.
"You alright, there?"
"What?" The woman blinked, before realizing that she was the one being addressed. "Y-Yeah, I mean—I'm alright."
Despite her answer, Manny could recognize her defensiveness. Somehow, unsurprisingly, she hadn't paid much attention to the bloodstained street or the fact that someone had just been killed before her eyes.
It seemed like some kind of normal occurrence to her.
But that didn't make her any less wary of Manny—not like he could blame her in the first place.
'I need somewhere to rest and process everything before I end up getting swayed along the motions.' Manny thought as he nodded, and wordlessly began to walk away.
Just after Manny had walked some distance, he heard the woman running and calling to him.
"Wait up...!" She gasped out.
Manny waited for the woman to arrive and catch her breath.
Upon doing so, she said.
"Help comes my way, and I react by acting like a gonk… Umm, thanks for the save, choom, and for not zeroing Pepe... You know, the one you'd just let runoff. I'd placed a tracer malware on him and I don't want him flatlining just yet. Until my sister's safe and all."
'She's a blabbermouth.' Manny smiled and lifted his hand. "Manny, and you are?"
"Oh... Oh. That's rare." Her face lit up in a blush as she took his hand—or rather a fifth of it. "I'm Sasha. Nice to meet you, Manny."
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