Use the Hack-Gun to make Bortnik open the door for Despedida (Hack-Gun -1)

You thought the Hack-Gun should be an ideal weapon against Bortnik, but there was one problem, you had to admit: you didn't see a single sensor of any kind projecting from his body. There didn't appear to be any place to aim with the Hack-Gun in order to take control of his prosthetics. In fact, you weren't sure how you'd get an opportunity regardless, given he was staring right at you with nothing to distract himself. You needed something that would make him not just distracted, but so much so that he wouldn't notice you pull a gun on him.

You decided to talk to him about Despedida, your hacker. It sounded like Bortnik had a long history with Tschau, but barely knew your team's tech expert, despite the two of them probably sharing the pedestal of great, technological geniuses living in these times. You started by questioning what he knew about her.

"Hm? Despedida? Is she Spanish?" the old man questioned, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. That seemed to bring another question to his mind, but he laughed it off as though he was being silly. "You're stalling. You know I am only interested in that one as far as her potential. She's certainly been an obstacle to overcome in this operation-- destroying my robots like she did-- but in the end, I will give her the same implants I give others I desire not only to enhance, but to make faithful. She will hear the Machine Voice, in time." Another thought occurred to him; this one really did make him chuckle.

Eager not to lose momentum, you asked why he was laughing.

"Oh, well... I just realized. I'm talking as though I'll make her truly intelligent by allowing her to commune with the Machine Voice, but she certainly must already hear it, mustn't she? It's not possible to overcome my security and encryption with human skill or by relying on today's level of technological advancements. That friend of yours... I guarantee it. She is also enhanced. Like me." You felt a shiver run down your spine as the man's lips widened into a big grin around that vent unit in his mouth and steam slowly escaped from it, like an excited masochist panting around a ball gag. "Ah! But I hope she hasn't. If someone could obtain that level of prowess without first communing, imagine what she will become once she receives the blessing of augmentation! It makes my heart patter, Mister Ciao."

You'd never seen any evidence that Despedida had any kind of cybernetic enhancements, but you had to admit, his words had an effect on you. It would explain a lot, wouldn't it? It could explain how she was capable of the level of thinking needed to quickly construct and field-modify tech to suit any situation. It could also serve as an interface method for her drones and other machinery, the operation of which seemed to require the "Newtype skills" of an evolved human from those animes she loved.

You could think about that later. For now, you saw him beginning to raise that gun-hand in your direction. You taunted him one more time, asking if he'd like to see whether he was #1 or #2 in terms of today's geniuses of the world.

"Of course. I will, when I encounter your hacker friend."

You asked him: why wait? You lied and told him you had one of her inventions right now. You brought out the Hack-Gun and pointed it in his direction. If he believed he was on top, then he wouldn't mind letting you fire this thing.

The doctor laughed deeply from his belly, then shook his head. He kept his gun-hand raised. "Then to make the competition even, I will fire at the same time, right, Mister Ciao? Ha ha ha!" Doctor Bortnik's cybernetic body was truly advanced... His arm had no visible scanner whatsoever, nor did his eyes, nor that plate in his head. It seemed he was beyond needing them. Still, you knew there would be one thing that had to require some means of interface from him: the barricades, which he'd brought up at a moment's notice to entrap you here. Bluffing, you spun to point your gun at the one behind you.

That did the trick; his next move was to bring out something like a handheld laser pointer and aim it towards the door. He clearly anticipated you were about to attack it in some way. What he couldn't anticipate: your next move, as your spun around and aimed the hack-gun into his pointer's laser and pulled the trigger. You managed to hack it seamlessly, but now you had to key in the right command on your terminal. The man's impatient frown told you that you weren't going to get the chance; he fired. You took more shots in the shoulder than you could count and fell, landing with the terminal clutched to your chest.

"Aaah, I don't know what you were planning to do, but it didn't work very well, did it? This is why you should receive augmentations, Mister Ciao! Your reasoning is weak. You need the Machine Voice." Scoffing, Bortnik approached his barricade and began to inspect it for any signs of malfunction. While he was occupied, you maneuvered the terminal onto the floor and, with great pain, executed the useful of the pen's two features: "OPEN." Just like that, the door opened and the man was left face-to-face with Despedida.

The cocky smirk she was wearing told you that she'd been listening. He hadn't caught her in the middle of attempting to hack a door; knowing you'd manage to open it, she'd stood there with her own weapon in hand, waiting for the barricade to open up. That weapon was no larger than a coin, held between two of her fingers. "Think fast, Mister #1 Genius~" She flicked the item at him and it stuck to his forehead.

You couldn't see his expression at the moment, but you imagined it must be unpleasant. The doctor convulsed like he was having a stroke, as smoke began to rise from the wire-like tubes on his head, then collapsed off of his feet, landing with a heavy, metallic thud just like Promethia's arm had earlier.

You'd have loved to see the rest of that outcome, but you instead found yourself weak from blood loss... You passed out.

When you awoke, you found yourself in one of CEDIT's Stables, on your way back to where the Gambit had set down. You suspected Tschau had probably been involved in extracting you, but whoever had, you were now riding with Despedida. She noticed you awaken and pulled the earphones out of her hears, giving you a wave and a bright smile. "Ha ha ha! I never thought your tendency to ask way too many questions and piss people off would come in so handy, Ciao!" Not exactly the warm greeting you'd wanted, but you had to admit, it had done the trick this time. "Luckily, it was easy to put some ice on that wound. Heh." You didn't laugh; you were still in too much pain to do so. "Hey, my other joke involved you losing your arm and replacing it with one of Bortnik's prosthetics. Be happy you got this one instead!"

That joke just made the pain in your arm even worse. Furthermore, it brought back to mind Bortnik's unpleasant theory... the idea that Despedida may have cybernetic implants she'd hidden from you and, with them, heard the same "Machine Voice" that the mad doctor had proclaimed to hear, issuing strange commands. You couldn't help but ask: had she ever heard any such thing? You feared for the answer... if it was "yes," how were you supposed to proceed? You were so weak right now, you were basically her captive.

"Nope. I mean, I heard everything that guy said, but it's all a bunch of rubbish. Sounds to me like he got some bad prosthetics installed and then spread those to everyone else! Guy was no genius, homeboy, he was straight-up delusional!" Despedida sounded mirthful at the idea that Bortnik had ever thought to compare himself to her and even more so that he thought listening to that strange voice would enhance her intellect. "If you start hearing voices in your head, Ciao, it's probably somebody playing a trick on you. Someone like me!"

... The whole business with CEDIT Russia had left a bad taste in your mouth. Doubting everyone was beginning to make you feel crazy. You couldn't laugh at anything.

Seeing that you were distressed, Despedida rubbed your back comfortingly once you turned over. "Hey. I get it. I warned you it was going to get rough being part of the Goodbye Girls. We've got like... your normal spy intrigue, cranked up to eleven. Maybe you'd feel better if you got a bonus after all you went through?" She smiled, then momentarily took her eyes off the road to lean down and whisper in your ear. "Enriqueta. That's my name. The real one, from my birth certificate. Don't go looking it up, though, cause you won't find any history on me."

You turned your head to see her expression, but she'd already sat up and was smiling vacantly, staring out the window. "You understand why I don't just tell it to people, right? It's old-fashioned. It's not the pretty sort of name parents give their girls these days. Plus, Vaarvel and Goodbye had to have their code names. So... mine just followed. Hey, in the old days, they had to give Street Fighters names like E. Honda and M. Bison and R. Mika just cause they didn't have enough space to write the whole thing. You'd call it inconvenient back then, but now, it's just a charm point! Ha ha." Her openness with you did make you feel a bit more at ease... It was nice to be freely given some info for once without having to dig in. "So I'll be happy if you keep calling me Despedida. You can tell me your real name the next time I get shot in the shoulder."

The two of you would arrive back shortly at the Gambit, along with Tschau carrying Doctor Bortnik. Promethia must have gotten away clean, but at least you had one high value hostage in tow.