V de-Zigner

Industrial World vol.3 (Free)

Added 2021-12-09 18:34:58 +0000 UTC

In Industrially developed societies the technology level affects everything: inhabitants, environment and, of course, local crime. Here is a set of two industrial gangs of criminals with a different design and philosophy.

The first of them are gloomy and bloodthirsty K’Ux - rippers of industrial areas, augmetics hunters, looters, and techno-cannibals. Their maniacal obsession with new cyber improvements, based on semi-religious fanatism, makes them extremely undesirable to meet on narrow industrial streets. Taking cybernetics from the victim, often with fatal consequences for them, they send the trophy into the mouth of their cyber beast. There, in the caustic gastric juices mixed with acids and purifiers, the iron will be freed from the remnants of unwanted flesh and will be ready to install in a new carrier. A side effect of this dubious ritual is a change of color because of oxidation, which often gives away the origin of the goods, but does not always stop the shady dealers. Permanent implantations have finally destroyed their immune systems, and they can no longer live without continuous injections of antiseptics, painkillers, psychostabilizers and immunomodulators.

The second gang is the exquisite V-True-V. Led by a mysterious Teacher, these skilled masters of cyber beasts and advanced augmetics do not disdain orders for industrial espionage or even murder. They are few in number and don’t often appear at the crime scene personally, but remotely control their cyber pets, or hunt in pairs with them, driving the target to a well-aimed shot. But the resulting profit is just another step towards their secret goal. The perfect machine capable not only of thinking, but also of producing wonderful new machines is the crown of their Teacher's creation. However, what comes out from under the hammer of thinking machines does not look at all like a new branch of evolution and terrifies everyone who is unlucky enough to encounter it.