Into the Void

Warehouse Encounter

GingerBrave yelped as he dodged a swing from a large hammer belonging to a hulking man with a black mask and red visor. He was in the Circus base's warehouse-like area, where he and David were ambushed by one of the Ringmaster's goons. GingerBrave landed on his side with a grunt before looking back up at the man standing above him. This man only wore a pair of black cargo pants, black boots, and straps over his torso. He also had mechanical arms that appeared to be the same as Maine's. As GingerBrave was about to get back up, the muscular man approached him and was about to swing his hammer at him again. But before the man could strike him, David quickly ran out of nowhere and snatched the cookie off the ground like a hawk.

As the masked man's hammer hit the concrete ground and left a big dent, he gasped when he found that his target was missing. Looking up, he looked around, and in a loud, raspy voice, he shouted, "Where are you, you little runt?! Come out, come out wherever you are!" Slowly, he marched around the warehouse while dragging his hammer on the floor, causing it to make an ear-piercing scraping sound.

Meanwhile, David and GingerBrave were hiding behind a stack of crates, listening to the big man's heavy footsteps and the scraping of his hammer. Though he was scared, GingerBrave looked over the crates to see the man walking farther away from the duo's area. Going back into hiding, he turned to David, who was leaning against the crates as he was catching his breath.

"How are we going to fight that guy?" GingerBrave whispered, getting David's attention.

"We gotta give it everything we got," David replied.

"If we're going to do that, then we'll need a plan. You fought big people before, right?"

"Only a few times, yeah. But this one is different than the ones the others and I faced in the past."

"Different? What do you mean?" GingerBrave asked, confused.

"The Ringmaster watches everything and everyone here, especially their goons," David explained. "If I remember what Maine told me correctly, the Ringmaster only seeks perfection from those who work for them. If they fail to complete a task like wiping us out, then the Ringmaster won't hesitate to flatline 'em."

"You mean..." GingerBrave trailed off, his eyes wide with shock.

"Yeah." David nodded.

GingerBrave looked over the crates again to glimpse at the hulking man. Looking at him now, the cookie couldn't help but feel sorry for him. After all, he may be a strong ruthless man on the surface, but deep down, he was following the Ringmaster out of fear. At least, that was what GingerBrave believed after what David told him. 

Going back into hiding, he turned to look at David again and asked, "Is there a way we can save him, David?"

David's breath hitched at the question as he raised his eyebrows at the cookie. But then, his face became grim and he replied, "In a place such as Night City, you can't save anyone."

GingerBrave furrowed his eyebrows at his partner, watching him ready his gun before standing back onto his feet and crouching.

"Get ready. We're goin' back into the fire." David stood up from the crate and aimed his gun at the big man. "Over here!"

"Hmm?" The man turned his head around to see David pointing his gun at him. When he fired, the bullet struck his mask, making him bend over backward slightly. As the man stood up straight again, there was a small dent in his mask. Now provoked, the man screamed, throwing his hammer to the side and aiming both his arms at David before they opened to reveal guns. The hulking masked man fired at David, who quickly snatched up GingerBrave and dashed to evade each bullet.