Cyberpunk City AI

They left the shop quietly, the white-bearded man’s silent nod their only farewell. Outside, Iron Alley buzzed differently now—closer, hungrier. Somewhere above, a small detonation echoed like distant thunder, followed by a chorus of barking voices and scattering footsteps.

“Not our problem,” Kael muttered, slipping the cores into his jacket. “Let’s move.”

Kira paused at the edge of the walkway. Her eyes scanned the chasm between buildings, cables like black vines sagging between shattered walls. She recognized one of the drones fluttering high above—a NeuroCorp recon scout, its sleek hull dulled by soot. She nudged Liora and pointed.

“Corp surveillance,” she whispered. “They’re getting more aggressive this deep.”

“Or more desperate,” Liora replied. She glanced at Kael. “Do you know how far this back channel takes us?”

Kael nodded toward a flickering neon sign across the alley—its letters mostly burnt out except for a few characters: “___ RE L E T”.

“There’s a maintenance shaft behind that storefront,” he said. “Old train tunnel cuts through beneath. No Rust Devils there—too unstable. But I’ve used it before.”

“Great,” Kira said. “Let’s hope it hasn’t collapsed.”

As they moved, a sudden voice cut through the alley—tinny, artificial, filtered through a speaker.

“Identify yourselves. This sector is under restricted surveillance.”

A rusted hover-drone zipped into view, red NeuroCorp markings still barely visible under grime. Its light beam stuttered across them, locking on Kael’s face.

“Run,” Kael hissed.

They sprinted. Past broken railings, under dripping conduit. Kira ducked under a rusting balcony as the drone fired a pulse. It hit a stack of crates behind her, sending up a shower of sparks.

They didn’t stop until they reached the storefront. Liora smashed the lock with a heel, Kael forced the door, and the three vanished inside just as another spotlight swept the alley.

Darkness swallowed them.

The maintenance shaft lay just beneath a hatch in the floor. Kael knelt to pry it open as Liora caught her breath, her hand still over the satchel—its weight steady, even in chaos.