Soon after there was cyberware, there were cyberpsychos. Soon after there were cyberpsychos, there were those who thought being chromed out of your mind sounded cool, actually. Enter Maelstrom.
The original home of the gang was the nightclub Totentanz, but the original location for it was destroyed along with most of central Night City at the end of the Fourth Corporate War. They recovered quickly, though and thanks to their obsession with augmentation, their members were often able to scavenge expensive equipment from the destroyed parts of the city. This and an increased involvement in smuggling and protection rackets provided enough funds for even more augmentations. It's been spinning out of control ever since.
A gang of Cyberpsychos?
To members of Maelstrom, flesh is a pathetic weakness that should be carved away. All of them have significant amounts of cyberware and they take pride in not looking human. Extreme modifications, such as splitting the optical nerves and installing up to a dozen eyes, are badges of honor. The fact that this is almost exactly how to intentionally trigger cyberpsychosis hasn't been lost on those living in Maelstrom-controlled areas.
Initiation as a full member of the gang includes being given a gift from the gang in the form of a cybernetic implant that will be installed without any sedation or pain management. As much as that might be seen as a symptom of the mental health of the gang, it's not as bas as their general experiments. When they're trying to optimize what augmentations they can do and want to practice, they have been known to kidnap innocents to replace parts on with old and defective tech to try it out. Sometimes the victim dies on the table and sometimes they're let free in whatever state they're in. In a few rare occasions, the victim has ended up joining the gang.
Since the gang encourages triggers for psychosis, and activities that are seemingly psychotic episodes, how does it still function? There are multiple answers to this and an ongoing field of research at NCU. First of all, about a third of the members could be said to be in a state of functioning cyberpsychosis. Their peers provide them with enough context clues for them to interract with the real world and channel the destructive results towards the gang's enemies. Second, Maelstrom is very fond of creating small rituals. Passing around the huffer of Black Lace in a certain way before a deal, a group's friendship howl at the club, etc. This helps them form detachment to a lot of their activities. They're "playing Darryl's racing game," not "hooking chains in someone's limbs and then pulling those chains in different directions with cars until the person is ripped apart."
Comments