Pirates

[TN: Last Chapter night]

The Manhattan skyline gradually shrank from view.

Towering skyscrapers became silhouettes in the distance, their lights dimming and flickering in the afterglow of sunset.

Seagulls accompanied the ship's journey, waves gently lapping against its hull.

The coastline slowly disappeared, and the ocean embraced the vessel.

Ding—

The braindance ended.

This was the second braindance V had received, recorded by departing crew members—an experience of a world she had never truly known.

Although New York Harbor still had its issues, such as the stench of industrial pollution and the noise of large machinery—

All of that had been toned down by the editor, Leo, and for someone living in Night City like V, it had almost no negative impact.

On the contrary, sailing away from it all brought a sense of detachment from a chaotic society.

[V: The coast? Setting sail? Those buildings look kinda weird. Where'd you even get this stuff?]

[Leo: Be glad you have something to watch.]

V removed the braindance headset, savoring the feeling of sailing.

Heading into the unknown was always exhilarating—especially for someone as restless and young as she was.

What's more, being born in the 2050s, the ocean to them was a battlefield—littered with mechanical debris and biological wreckage.

Beneath the calm waters lurked extreme radiation and dangerous unmanned warships, ready to shoot down any organic vessel.

That only made her more curious about the sea.

[V: Got more? What happens next? Come on, bring it out already.]

[Leo: That's all for now.]

Even though this braindance couldn't compare to others V had seen, Leo could tell—V's curiosity and sense of adventure had been awakened.

[V: That's it?]

[Leo: For now. What about those two mercs and Jimmy?]

[V: Tch, they said they'll only talk to you.]

[Leo: Then keep them locked up. Contact Regina—see if she knows anything about this mess.]

[V: Got it. Hurry up with the rest of the tapes.]

Unfortunately, the rest had to wait until Frank's group made landfall to be edited.

Whether V could see more of the ocean depended on Frank and his team's performance.

Leo sat at the control console, staring at the live map on the wall—

It had been days. The company's revenue and scale had grown exponentially, and the world's eyes were on the many super-corporations under Leo's banner. The few remaining shares had become hot commodities in the stock market.

But Leo's focus wasn't on those steadily growing industries.

Days ago, a Wakandan Navy ship—specifically a patrol vessel—finally contacted Frank.

The freighter would continue toward Tanzania, while Frank's team would divert to rendezvous with a small vessel.

Africa's poor communication infrastructure made signals intermittent.

On the map, the waters off Somalia lit up.

[Leo: Frank, mission update.]

[A UN cargo ship will be passing through the Somali coastal waters in the next few days. The cargo is critical.]

[I need you to switch ships. Use the one Wakanda provided, patrol north, find the ship, and deliver the cargo and its personnel to Tanzania.]

[It's a small freighter, unladen, fast, painted blue, 87 meters long.]

[They have identification codes. Details are in the attachment.]

"I can't believe I'm actually going to be on an African ship one day..."

Kurt, Frank's comrade, had lost a leg in past wars and now used a prosthetic from the International Gene Cooperation Company, returning to the battlefield.

He was a medic. His exosuit was equipped only with primary and secondary firearms; most of the slots were filled with medical supplies and gear.

He removed a training chip from his neural interface and stretched.

Frank took the chip and placed it in the storage box for training modules.

"The world's changing, Kurt. Better this than doing black ops in some Third World country, right?"

"Heh. Can't say anything's worse than that."

The commercial cargo ship stayed on its original route to the port of Tanzania, while Frank's group split up across several African Union "warships."

Though called warships, they were really just patrol boats around 80 meters long, lacking heavy firepower—designed more for speed and endurance.

Poor nations put everything into just coastal patrols. Compared to the American navy, it was like modern men versus cavemen.

Outdated models, obsolete equipment—yet even so, they still outperformed most of the world—

Because the Wakandan Royal Guard was well-disciplined, and the ships were clean and tidy.

Quite spirited.

After wrapping up training, Frank returned to the captain's room to continue adjusting the comms.

[Frank: This is Theseus Escort Frigate 01, routine check-in.]

[Bzzt]

[T'Challa: Received.]

[Frank: Signal seems decent today. Any news?]

[T'Challa: Nothing new for now, but you're officially in Somali waters.]

[Frank: Any pirates or terrorists around?]

[T'Challa: Hard to say. Lately a lot of terrorists have been targeting American freighters. But they won't touch our ships.]

[T'Challa: You might've already seen them—just didn't notice. Their boats are too small to catch your eye.]

[Frank: Why's that?]

[T'Challa: Because they know it's a Wakandan ship. That's enough.]

Clearly, in this world, Wakanda still held a lot of sway in Africa.

After all, they were generous food donors.

Frank had indeed seen many small boats drifting about aimlessly in recent days.

If the terrorists passed by quietly, there was no way to confirm who they were.

Even now, two boats behaving suspiciously were swaying in the distance.

[Frank: Being on a terrorist "whitelist" feels... weird.]

[T'Challa: I can't be there in person, so this is the least we can do.]

[T'Challa: My men will try to stay in the nearest city. If anything goes wrong, dock immediately.]

[Frank: Roger—]

[Bzzt—]

High-frequency comms suddenly experienced interference—sharp static.

Everyone in the captain's room tensed—there was a signal.

[Unknown Signal: SOS—bzzt—SOS—]

[Unknown Signal: We are—UN research—bzzt—]

[Unknown Signal: Requesting backup—]

[Tat-tat-tat-tat—bzzt]

The signal was terrible, but after each message came a rhythmic knocking sound!

Though the signal was broken and hard to follow, Frank immediately realized—it was likely a code!

Frank quickly left the captain's room, sending orders through the cyber-battle network via wireless modulator:

[Frank: Target acquired. Prepare for engagement.]

Just as he stepped out and glanced out the window—he saw something incredible—

On the water, the two swaying boats suddenly turned and headed determinedly toward the signal source!

They were really pirates!