Goro Takemura x Reader

Two

With a cold expression in your eyes, your arms folded behind your back and your chin raised, you climbed the steps leading up to the roof of Konpeki Plaza.

Yorinobu's flying vehicle was already ready to take off.

It was a cold day, with enough wind to ruffle your hair. Goosebumps crept up your arms. You pulled your Haori jacket tighter around your body.

A handful of security guards stood ready to see you off. No matter how late you returned, they would all be there to make sure you made it back to your brother unharmed. That was their job.

As you made your way across the landing field, you noticed a man. Or rather, a creature.

Again a strange shiver crept up your spine. But this time it wasn't from the cold of the wind.

"Smasher.", you politely bowed your head to acknowledge his presence.

Bright red eyes fell onto you. However, they weren't really eyes but prosthetics that he had his real eyeballs replaced with.

Adam Smasher was a Night City legend. A man made of more metal than he has ever had flesh covering his bones. He was what people would have called a cyborg, covered in cyberware to the point of hardly being recognised as someone who once had been an actual man.

As he turned to follow you with his uncomfortable feeling eyes, his metallic joints made a sound that resembled an old engine. Not only did he look heavy, he also sounded and moved like he was.

It was a surprise to you that it was even possible for him to be out on the roof without breaking straight through the layers.

"Yorinobu said-.", he was cut off by a raised hand of yours.

Calmly, you took a seat and made yourself comfortable in one of the white leather coated chairs.

"I know what my brother said.", you replied soberly, your eyes lowered to avoid looking at his strange structure of a body replacement. "But I also know that he won't force you on me. I don't want your company. Leave."

Smasher stared at you. There wasn't a single emotion on that deathly pale face. He looked so dead. So little alive.

You had seen robots that looked more human than him.

"I have orders.", he insisted with this underlining tone of disrespect.

Arasaka was like royalty amongst Night City's high society. Whenever that name was mentioned people tried to please the ones who carried it. Only very few deemed themselves powerful enough to complain.

Smasher, however, failed to respect anyone. All he knew was his own wants and needs. Sure, he was Yorinobu's bodyguard, but that did not necessarily mean he respected him. It just meant that Yorinobu had the means and enough money to feed into Smasher's own benefits.

Displeased and already a little irritated, you frowned. It wasn't in your nature to throw a fit. But this creature managed to get so deep under your skin that it itched you in all the wrong ways.

Maybe it was just the primal instinct that was still left in most of the human species, but you felt threatened by his sole presence.

Why else but to scare people would he chose to look like this?

"Do I need to call my brother?", you asked in a last attempt to settle this matter civilly.

His head moved, red eyes wandered over your face that was turned straight, away from him. Once more there was this awful wound. Like a war robot moving.

"Hiding behind his back?", oh, how much mockery could he heard in every single letter of the words that he used.

A smirk appeared on your face.

Just how foolish was he?

Perhaps the metal had also taken his common sense.

For the first time since you've started this conversation, you turned your head and gifted him a cold glance. Your eyes met.

"Don't forget yourself.", you said, so calm and unbothered that it made him take a step back. "I am Arasaka as well. Yorinobu might be your boss. But when it comes down to power, him and I are equals. Always remember that."

It seemed like Smasher had to swallow hard. However, it was hard to tell. His throat was covered in metal too after all.

"I apologise.", it finally came from his mouthless head, yet so full of displeasure that it couldn't have been taken as an honest try to reconcile.

As his red eyes left you a kind of weight fell from your shoulders. Finally, you could let your shoulders fall. Your posture relaxed.

He turned away to leave, the ground trembled below his heavy feet.

"Wait a moment.", you called him back to your side with a gesture.

He followed the order like a dog that suddenly realised that obedience was key to being fed. But everyone knew that dogs who didn't obey from the minute they were first fed were not loyal. Just pragmatic.

Smasher worked for Yorinobu because he could provide something that nobody else could. This wasn't loyalty. It was delayed danger.

You had made sure to keep a constant eye on him anyways. Just to make sure that Militech didn't try to bribe him into turning against your family.

He stopped, just far enough away to not have to lower himself to meet your face once more. If he would have wanted to, his long robotic arms could have reached your throat without effort anyways.

"Tell my brother I'll be out till the early evening at best. My locations will be fairly public, not far from Konpeki Plaza.", you flicked a switch on the emergency device that Yorinobu had given you. "He's free to track my location if he pleases."

"Anything else?", how impatient and uninterested he sounded.

There wasn't a single care towards you. To Smasher, you were just as replaceable as his own body parts.

You swallowed to fight down the goosebumps that started to creep up your back once more.

"Tell him not to worry too much.", you gifted him a cold, reserved expression. "But... I also want him to give his opinion about our recent conversation a second thought."

You pressed two buttons to shut the door of the flying vehicle.