Fair is fair — Adam Smasher was a qualified boss.
He wasn't just Arasaka's top combat power; he was one of the most thoroughly chromed monsters in existence. Calling him "a person" was inaccurate — he was a purpose-built killing machine wrapped in corporate privilege.
Night City had plenty of legends. When people talked about Johnny Silverhand or Morgan Blackhand, they admired them, chased their stories — sometimes even fantasized about becoming that kind of name.
But when Adam Smasher came up, all anyone remembered was fear.
The guy was a pure combat maniac. Tempered by war, then leashed by Arasaka. Saying he was part of Arasaka's own chronicle wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Smasher kept walking forward, that nearly three-meter frame bearing down like a moving mountain.
Vash drew the Nekomata, settled the sights, and dumped thunderstorm rounds into the steel giant.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three shots in a row — each impact crackling with blue arcs. Unfortunately, the lightning was barely more than an itch on Smasher's plating.
"Looks like your firepower's not much." Adam Smasher rasped.
He raised an arm. The launcher in his palm began to charge.
BOOM!
A red beam lanced straight for Vash.
Vash shifted aside. The beam slammed into the ground and swept outward, carving a deep gash — then the heat caught up, turning the cut into a molten trench.
Extreme slicing. Extreme heat. This had to be cutting-edge Arasaka kit.
Smasher charged again and fired once more — but this time it wasn't a clean line. The beam burst outward like fireworks, scattering in all directions.
Facing the barrage like flaming meteors, Vash felt a chill slide down his spine.
So it wasn't just high output — it could reshape on the fly.
Vash threaded through the sky full of burning fragments, footwork tight, angles clean — leaving no opening for splash damage. Even while dodging, his marksmanship stayed absurd: every shot still landed on Smasher.
"All you can do is dodge and play these little itch-scratch tricks?" Smasher mocked — while his other hand started charging too.
The beam attack doubled, roaring like a volcanic eruption. Every strike that touched the street both cut and melted it.
Even parked cars ignited the moment the edge of the blast grazed them.
Konpeki Plaza's entrance had already become a ruin!
Vash kept a controlled distance. He rushed in close, mantis blades flashing in a storm — yet he still couldn't deal real damage.
Boom Boom Boom!
A cannon barrel rose from Smasher's back. Oversized tracking grenades screamed down at Vash!
This was already beyond the Psycho Borg Vash remembered from the game.
Vash cycled through every tool he had and nothing stuck. The suit could block the hits, sure — but "unharmed" didn't mean a damn thing if you couldn't win.
After a while, Adam Smasher's interest cooled.
"I thought you were different." He said, voice like gravel, "But you're the same as the rest. In that case… you can die."
He locked onto Vash with more than a dozen grenades. Then he brought both hands together, and an incredibly thick beam cannon erupted.
Boom Boom Boom!
Konpeki Plaza's entrance shook as heavy black smoke billowed up.
Up in the sky, the NCPD S.W.A.T. watched.
"No wonder it's Adam Smasher. He's still that strong."
"Looks like the murderer from Konpeki Plaza is dead. We can pull out." The team leader said.
"Captain… something's happening."The rookie said, stunned.
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On the ground, Adam Smasher swept the area with his optical cyber-eye. No life signs.
But when he turned his head, he saw something outrageous.
A black-and-gold combat mech, taller than even him, shaped like Vash: a scaled-up echo of the "dead" enemy.
And inside that massive shell, Vash — the one who was supposed to have been vaporized — sat calmly in the cockpit.
He looked down at Smasher from above, "Methods? I've got them too."
The words fell, and the Hulkbuster's fist followed — plain, brutal, an iron punch thrown straight through the air at him.
Adam Smasher immediately lit up every weapon system he had.
But in the face of raw force, it was useless. Vash broke everything with power — an uppercut sent Smasher flying, smashing him straight into one of Konpeki Plaza's floors…
After putting him down, Vash dismissed the Hulkbuster in an instant and sprinted in the direction Jackie had gone.
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T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
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