Chapter 234: Crimson
It was like ending a farce—simpler than that. The colossus merely shifted, and everything was over.
“Militech war machine... Zoo Series, Chimera...” President Miles looked shocked as well, though naturally she didn’t gape like Arthur, some farmhand seeing the world for the first time.
“This thing...” Arthur stood frozen, staring at the massive creature now slumped back onto the ground, awe slipping through his voice.
He’d heard plenty of talk about the so-called Corporate War. Now, seeing one of its beasts up close, he finally understood the despair in those stories.
“Damn—So Mi really hacked this thing...” V’s face was just as stunned.
But before the praise could leave her lips, something went wrong... First, the comms with So Mi cut off. She cried out a few startled words before going completely silent.
Then, across the machine that had just slaughtered their enemies and was now lying still, glowing crimson patches began to spread...
They weren’t physical markings but something only Arthur and V could perceive—unnatural scarlet stains blooming fast from within.
“So Mi?” V called out on comms, alarmed. Arthur, however, kept his eyes on the sight. Even as V tried again, he grabbed her shoulder.
“Something’s wrong!” Arthur barked, shouting to the President still by the elevator. “Move! Find another way!”
In that instant, the Chimera—half consumed by the spreading crimson—began to twitch violently, like a beast poisoned.
“Shit... this thing isn’t about to lose control, is it?” V muttered, still dazed. But the moment the words left her mouth, the spider-tank rose with a mechanical shriek, a red beam slicing across their path.
“Over here!” the President yelled from a corner of the hall, waving them toward a metal roll-up door.
The three rushed through.
The deafening roar that followed proved they’d made the right call.
“Keep moving!” the President urged. “That thing runs a baseline Carnage AI and bio-radar!”
A wartime safeguard—meant to keep units operational when electromagnetic interference jammed remote links. Now it was turned on its own.
Neither Arthur nor V slowed. Facing a rogue war machine like that, distance was the only safety.
As they rounded the next corner, the metal door behind them shredded like paper with a shriek of steel.
No time to look back—better not to imagine what would happen if it caught up.
They sprinted through several more exhibit halls before stopping cold.
Another elevator.
“Damn these things.” Arthur slammed his fist against the control panel. Against all odds, this one actually responded.
The ground quaked behind them. All three stared at the doors, praying. Just as the tremors shook the entire hall, the elevator opened.
Arthur shoved the others inside and dove in after them.
As the doors slid shut, the Chimera came crashing into view—fire blazing from its turret, tearing at everything in sight.
But the doors sealed just in time.
“That thing...” V muttered, then snapped her head up. “Shit. What about So Mi?”
She tried calling again. Nothing.
“She might’ve tripped a hidden protocol... or a Daemon got her.” V frowned, worried. She barely knew the netrunner, but they’d shared the day’s fight. And besides... her pay was still tied up with her.
When the doors opened again, they kept following So Mi’s designated route.
The tremors didn’t stop. The beast above clearly hadn’t given up.
President Miles raised a hand, holding them back, her eyes fixed on the ceiling where the shaking hit hardest.
“Chimera was built to adapt to complex interiors,” she said grimly.
Even Arthur and V could feel it now—the tremors were growing heavier.
“Its legs are designed to tear through structures. Maybe—”
Before she could finish, the ceiling gave way.
Debris crashed down in a choking storm, carrying the massive body with it. Dust and rubble rained so thick it blotted out sight.
The section by the elevator held. Miles slammed the button, and the doors slid shut once more.
“Not bad... guess my brain isn’t fried yet. Still remember my own product line.” Her voice carried a hint of nerves.
These things were meant to fight armies, not chase presidents and mercs.
“The museum connects in all directions. We’ll circle around,” V said with a sharp nod.
As for the Chimera, buried and crippled, Hansen could deal with it now. If anyone could fix it, it was Militech—not them.
“Idiots at Night Corp—only thing they’re good at is construction,” Miles scoffed.
They stepped out into a massive pit plunging deep underground.
Broken edges of flooring offered just enough space to cross.
From the rim, they could glimpse the Chimera below—half-buried, its legs mangled in the fall. Its systems were wrecked; even its bio-radar seemed dead. The turret spun aimlessly, hunting for targets it couldn’t find.
“This is what the corps built to ‘protect’ nations? Morons. A beggar on the street could hack it.” Miles spat, this time at her own people.
They moved on cautiously. This stretch was eerily calm.
No one knew how many of Hansen’s men had died tonight, but his attention was clearly locked on the President.
Arthur didn’t follow her to the safehouse. Only V went, just in case.
Dogtown still smoldered with chaos. Even at the crash site, thick smoke curled into the sky.
Arthur grabbed a cheap bed in some rundown hotel. Only the next day did the crew regroup.
V arrived too, sneaking out on her “presidential baby.” They met at Melanie’s hidden base.
“Looks like you slept well. Did our President use you as a pillow?” Arthur smirked from the corner as V walked in.
“Shut it. Not only didn’t she, she offered me a cushy job at the FIA.” V snapped back.
Right on cue, static flickered—and Johnny Silverhand appeared.
“Your friend should thank me. If I hadn’t stopped you, you’d already be lining up to play toy soldier for that dumbass President.”
“Like you?” V shot back with a grin.
This time, Johnny’s projection appeared clear to Arthur too—even the gravel in his voice.
Arthur frowned at the sight. Neither V nor Johnny seemed surprised.
“Remember?” V explained. “Yesterday, So Mi cleared Relic’s junk data clusters. That cut interference in the chip’s link.
So yeah, now you can see him too—but probably only when you’re close to me. Distance chokes the transfer rate. Remember the first time? We could barely exchange a few words.”
Arthur nodded, oddly relieved. He didn’t want this ghost popping into his head uninvited. V, he figured, had only learned to live with it.
“Let’s talk plans. Time’s tight,” V pressed on.
“Jackie’s got all the paperwork squared away... even wrangled a big shipment of meds from Mr. Hands.” Arthur said. They’d already spoken the night before.
“The scale of contraband in Dogtown’s bigger than we thought. Hands pulled it off fast—everything’s arriving this afternoon.
Now it’s on Vik...”
Arthur sighed, thinking of the patients the ripperdoc would soon face. “Hope the old man doesn’t burn himself out.”
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