Gearbound: Cyberpunk 2077

"The client is still alive. Although they sustained secondary injuries from the crash, there was hope as long as backup arrived in time to get them to a hospital."

Hearing that, the team leader felt a bit more at ease and used his communicator to request reinforcements.

Just then, a scream rang out. Two katana blades pierced the chest of a Trauma Team member standing guard. The guard was lifted into the air, and then the blades tore apart in opposite directions.

Splorch—

The guard's body was ripped into quarters, blood splattering all over the attacker. 

The team leader and the remaining medic's eyes went wide, an icy chill running from the base of their spines to the tops of their skulls. 

The reason their AV had crashed in the first place was this mercenary called "the Ripper," who had used a double jump to land on their craft before it gained altitude. Both pilots, caught off guard in the cockpit, had been stabbed to death. 

That led to the disastrous crash.

And now, he had caught up to them again.

"Open fire!"

The team leader and the remaining medic did not hesitate; they raised their guns and fired. Trauma Team always used smart weapons, produced only by top-level manufacturers. They watched as most of the bullets seemed to hit the target—but the target did not fall.

"How is that possible?!"

They gaped in disbelief. Then the surviving medic seemed to realize something. 

"That lunatic's body must be full of subdermal armor and Berserk cyberware!"

Subdermal armor, as the name implied, was embedded beneath the skin to provide additional defense. When it absorbed an impact, it briefly gelled to reduce a bullet's force, then instantly solidified around it. Subdermal armor came in many models, with the best offering the strongest protection and the least wear.

Berserk cyberware was another type of military-grade implant, like the Sandevistan. If the Sandevistan specialized in speed, Berserk cyberware focused on raw power. It gave the user a furious burst of strength and toughness, greatly increasing damage resistance.

Before the medic could say anything else, the Ripper rushed forward. He slashed open the medic's head as if it were a watermelon, gray matter and blood mixing with the torrential rain. 

Standing over the corpse, the Ripper bathed in the downpour, revealing a cruel smile. Blood stained the blade he held in his right hand. He pointed it at the team leader and the female medic who had just emerged from inside, as if to say:

"You two are next."

In mere moments, four members were gone. Fear spread like a plague, squeezing the hearts of the team leader and the medic until they could hardly breathe. 

The team leader gritted his teeth and stepped in front of the medic. 

"Nadia, get the client out of here. I'll hold her off."

"No, Dobbs!"

"Go! Otherwise it'll be too late!"

Nadia gave him one last look, then hurried back into the AV to drag the client away. 

The team leader quickly replaced his magazine and aimed at the Ripper, pulling the trigger. 

The Ripper charged like a hunting leopard in the rain. Most of the bullets, upon hitting his subdermal armor, simply flattened or ricocheted aside. Seeing those dual katanas getting closer and closer, the team leader stopped thinking about himself. He only hoped Nadia could escape. 

Just as he resigned himself to the impossibility of survival, a cluster of flashbangs arced through the air. The blinding white light flooded his vision. The Ripper reflexively shut his eyes and instinctively slashed toward where the team leader had been standing, though he hit nothing but empty air. 

Still off-balance, the Ripper stumbled forward and swung his blades wildly in all directions, but they met no resistance. 

When his vision cleared, he finally saw that Leo had dragged the team leader aside, saving his life. 

The Ripper's cybernetic eyes were not genuine Kiroshi models but rather black-market knockoffs. They had been heavily overclocked, providing effects nearly on par with the real thing—albeit at the risk of irreversible damage to his body.

When the Ripper realized it was Leo who had spoiled his fun, that taunting cat-and-mouse grin vanished, replaced by grim caution.

"You wanna die?" he snarled.

"No. You're the one who's finished. You almost killed someone important to me—do you get that?"

Had the mercenary not murdered Trauma Team's pilots, their AV would never have crashed. If Leo had been a split-second slower, Lucy would have died right then and there. 

All his effort had almost been in vain, plus he did genuinely value Lucy's compatriotism. 

Saving these two Trauma Team members was simply incidental—Leo had no intention of letting this mercenary walk away after nearly killing Lucy.

The Ripper ran his tongue over the blade still damp with blood and rain. Then he drove his right foot into the ground, launching himself forward like a bullet. 

Leo refused to yield, rushing head-on to meet him. Their three blades clashed, metal striking metal in a piercing shriek. The Ripper spun his twin katanas in a whirling storm that ripped the air with a keening wail. 

Leo had no Berserk cyberware, but he had spent the Potential Points from recent jobs to level up his skills. With Blade Proficiency at Level 5, Dodge at Level 5, Block at Level 5, plus the Powered Arm Bracers on both arms, he held the advantage. 

He parried or evaded each of the Ripper's strikes and fought back with equal ferocity.

Suddenly, the Ripper raised both swords and slashed at Leo's neck from either side. Leo ducked low, letting the blades slice off a few strands of hair as he swung his own sword in a gleaming arc, aiming for the Ripper's waist.

Subdermal armor could stop bullets, but it was no match for a razor-sharp blade. 

The Ripper jerked his body back like a drawn bowstring, narrowly avoiding a disemboweling slash. He quickly retreated, trying to open up distance. But Leo was already in pursuit, stepping forward. One more swing would hit its mark.

The Ripper lifted one sword to block. As he deflected Leo's blade, the other arm warped into a concealed firearm. 

Bang!

A bullet erupted from the hidden barrel, hurtling straight at Leo. 

The Ripper's face split into a cruel grin. "You're dead—What?!"

To his shock, Leo let go of his Muramasa with his left hand and raised that arm to block. The bullet crashed into the Powered Arm Bracer, grinding out a burst of brilliant sparks. 

Leo took that momentum to draw back his sword and lunge again. The blade turned into a streak of light, thrusting at the Ripper's head. 

Caught off guard that Leo had even countered that trick, the Ripper jerked his neck aside, barely evading the thrust. The blade still left a nasty slash across his face, blood pouring down. 

Hatred flared in the Ripper's eyes. He lifted both swords and swung them savagely at Leo's torso, gambling on a mutual kill. If Leo backed down, he could not possibly defend against both blades at once. After all, the Ripper had two swords, and Leo only had one.

"So you want us both to die? Nobody said I'd die with you!"

Guessing the Ripper's intention, Leo pulled back his Muramasa.