Took Jax two hours to strip that half-mechanical body down to parts.
Old Joe still wasn't back.
Normal for The Underbelly. You go out scavenging, hit a bad Malfunction Walker tide, you don't show for three to five days. Happens.
Jax dumped the copper coils in the recycling bin. Was about to hit the Back Room for a nap—
**Thump. Thump. Thump.**
Three knocks.
Different this time.
Slower. Heavier.
Jax's eyebrow twitched.
He looked up. Eyes locked on the human-skin lantern by the door.
Flame was going crazy. Not scared—something was suppressing it. Barely staying lit.
**Someone important just walked in.**
Jax's hand was already on his revolver.
The person at the door wasn't a little girl.
Woman.
Long black trench coat. Collar up high, hiding most of her face. But the cold coming off her? Like she just stepped out of a freezer. Dropped the room temperature five degrees.
Her right arm hung at her side. From the elbow down, the whole forearm was this sick gray-black color.
Dead tissue.
[Ding! Quest triggered: The Hunter's Request. Objective: Treat the Hunter's necrotic limb. Rewards: New Coins +200, Basic EXP +100, Hunter Favorability +20.]
[Quest Failure Penalty: Hunted to death by the Hunter.]
Jax stared at the screen.
Then at the second line.
The hell kind of quest is this.
The woman lifted her head. Pale face under the hat brim.
Young. Maybe twenty. But her eyes? Ice cold. Dead cold.
"Where's Bone-saw Old Joe?"
Voice matched the eyes. Flat. No emotion.
"Out," Jax said. "No idea when he's back."
She was quiet for two seconds.
"You know how to fix this?"
Jax didn't answer right away.
Looked at her arm. Then at the lantern by the door. Still shaking.
[Ding! System auto-diagnosis in progress... Target's right arm infected with 'Black Frost' virus. Necrotic tissue reached elbow joint. Without treatment, spreads to shoulder within 24 hours. Fatal within 72 hours.]
Jax looked back at her.
"I can fix it."
She stared at him. Said nothing.
That look. Reminded Jax of the malfunctioning Stalker he ran into his first year here. The one in the abandoned subway station. When it locked onto you, every hair on your body stood up.
Jax didn't move a muscle.
Three seconds.
She stepped inside. Sat on the metal chair across from the operating table.
"Fix it."
[Ding! Quest progress updated: Treat the Hunter's necrotic limb. Current stage: Pre-operative preparation.]
Jax didn't waste words.
Grabbed his goggles. Gas mask. Took scalpels off the rack, ran each one over the alcohol lamp.
She watched him the whole time. Didn't blink.
"No anesthesia," she said suddenly. "Slows nerve response."
Jax's hand stopped.
He looked up at her through the goggles.
"You sure?"
"Yeah."
Jax nodded. Put the syringe back.
"Then don't scream."
She said nothing.
Jax picked up the scalpel. Made the first cut into the dead arm.
**Sss—**
Black liquid sprayed out. Smell hit him—rotten, chemical, wrong.
Her eyebrow twitched.
But she didn't make a sound.
Jax kept cutting.
[Ding! Surgery experience +1]
[Ding! Surgery experience +1]
The necrosis went deeper than he thought. He scraped layer by layer. Peeled off black meat and half-dead mechanical nerves. Tossed them into the metal tray beside him.
Sweat started beading on her forehead.
Still quiet.
Jax glanced up.
"Say something if it hurts."
Teeth clenched. She forced two words out.
"Keep. Going."
Jax looked back down. Kept scraping.
[Ding! Surgery experience +1]
[Ding! Understanding of 'Black Frost' virus increased. Surgery Efficiency +5%.]
Ten minutes later.
Jax put the scalpel down. Picked up the small electric saw.
Her face finally changed.
"What are you doing?"
Jax spun the saw once. Voice flat. "Necrosis reached bone. Scraping by hand takes hours. Saw's faster."
She stared at the buzzing blade. Then at his blank face.
"Have you done surgery on a person before?"
Jax thought about it.
"On machines."
Silence.
Three seconds.
"Give me the anesthesia."
Jax put the saw down. Grabbed the syringe. Injected her shoulder.
She let out a long breath. Leaned back in the chair. Closed her eyes.
Jax picked up the saw.
**Bzzzzzz—**
Black bone fragments and half-melted nerves sprayed out. Hit the metal tray with a sizzle.
Her face tightened. But she didn't open her eyes.
[Ding! Surgery experience +2]
[Ding! Surgery experience +2]
Twenty more minutes.
Jax killed the saw. Grabbed a magnifying glass. Checked the bone.
Clean.
He took a bottle of Grade B healing agent off the shelf. Spread it over the wound. Gray-white muscle tissue started growing. Fast. Covered the exposed bone.
Her face relaxed.
Jax grabbed sterile bandages from the drawer. Wrapped the whole arm.
[Ding! Surgery complete. Rewards: New Coins +200, Basic EXP +100, Hunter Favorability +20.]
[Ding! Understanding of 'Black Frost' virus reached Beginner level. Recipe unlocked: Black Frost Inhibitor.]
Jax pulled his gloves off. Wiped sweat off his forehead.
She opened her eyes. Looked down at her bandaged arm.
Moved her fingers.
Smooth as before.
"How much?"
Jax thought.
"Five hundred."
She pulled a stack of bills from her coat. Dropped them on the table.
Then stood up. Looked at him. Paused for two seconds.
"Name?"
"Jax."
She nodded.
"Remember my face. You need something later, you find me."
She turned. Walked to the door.
Stopped.
"That little girl—"
Jax looked up.
She didn't turn around. Just tilted her head toward the corridor outside.
"Watching you from the abandoned house across the street. Just now."
Jax said nothing.
She pushed the door open. Vanished into the fog.
Jax stood there for a few seconds.
Then walked to the window. Looked at the abandoned mechanical warehouse across the street.
Broken window. Second floor.
Eyes staring back at him.
The little girl's eyes.
Three seconds of lock.
She disappeared behind the window frame.
Jax turned back to the table. Kept stripping parts.
[Ding! Mechanical Blood Infant's attention toward you +10.]
[Ding! Mechanical Blood Infant's curiosity toward you +5.]
Jax glanced at the text. Swiped it away.
The wrench spun once in his hand.
He didn't look out the window again.