Gig Economies and Suspicious Packages Don't Mix in Cloudpunk

SPOILER WARNING: The following covers one of Rania's first gigs as Cloudpunk driver 14FC.

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Game: Cloudpunk

Task: Deliver payload from Cambria Heights to Metro Hub

Location: Cambria Heights, Nivalis

Summary: A few hours into her first shift as Cloudpunk delivery driver, 14FC (Rania) is given a seemingly unremarkable assignment: Pick a payload up from Cambria Heights and drop it off at Metro Hub. All is not as it seems, however - after Rania tracks down the unmarked package from an abandoned cul-de-sac and stores it in her HOVA, her automata Camus detects a distinct tick tock sound. Rania calls Control but to no avail - the helpful dispatcher remains uncharacteristically tight-lipped on the radio. Eager to succeed as a newcomer to Nivalis, Rania doesn't want to ruffle any feathers - but her gut feeling exudes a sinister sense of foreboding. She now has a crucial call to make: Follow the instructions or safely dispose of the suspicious package. 

More information: Cloudpunk Wiki | Fandom

In Nivalis, you either make it big or not at all. Photo Credit: FetchQuester

Welcome to Cloudpunk, Welcome to Nivalis

A vast neon metropolis rising from the depths of a stormy sea, Nivalis sounds like a cityscape of Atlantean proportions, replete with the splendour of its own hubris that dazzles while foreshadowing its own impending chaos. But that doesn't deter opportunity seekers from across the globe attempting to eke out a living in its floating thoroughfares and districts. For Rania, forsaking her career as a musician in the Eastern Peninsula to relocate to the ambitious city means getting ahead in the game - and paying off some debts. From one gig economy to the next, delivering packages for Cloudpunk is an exiting and lucrative trade but it comes with a caveat: Extreme danger.

Deliver the Package

Like many citizens new to Nivalis, Rania quickly learns the one golden rule of survival: Keep your head down. Already hunted by debt collectors from back east, she hopes to stay off the grid and rack up enough cash to buy her freedom - and it's going to take time. The last thing Rania needs is to draw attention to herself and cause discord between a disgruntled client and her superiors on her first night on the job. 

It is not only the repercussions which could set off an unknown chain of events working against her. Failing to uphold her end of the bargain proves her unreliable and disobedient (therefore a liability) by disregarding the two essential rules of Cloudpunk: Don't miss a delivery, and don't ask what's in the package. Rania already breaks one of them when contacting Control to question him about the contents, placing him in an awkward position. It isn't her job to moralize or theorize on Cloudpunk's behalf - particularly when she can't be 100% certain what the package is - but simply get on with the job she is paid to do. If she loses her only source of income due to insubordinate behaviour, she will have to find another source of employment below the radar where her debt record won't follow her. Without a vehicle or reference, an apartment to pay for and a dog to keep (albeit in AI form), her options appear bleak.

Rania begins her first night as Driver 14FC. Photo credit: FetchQuester

Trash the Package

It's amazing how much a city can change a person in one night. But Rania is Rania - yes, open to growth as her story-arc demonstrates throughout the game, but immovable in her sense of compassion and morality, no matter how the encroaching cynicism and mercenary culture of Nivalis gets under her skin. Rania has the resilience and know-how to face many adversaries, but can she live with herself if she is complicit in an act that may place innocent lives at stake? Even the typically play-by-the-book Control is reluctant to assign Rania this delivery, imploring his unknown contact to send someone else.

With news of fatal crashes, explosions, and demolitions filling the comms it is evident that a seedy organization is operating to sinister ends in Metro Hub's highly-populated civilian area; the safer option is to head to section 8B - an isolated refuse collection at the base of the city - and discard the package down the trash chute where no one will be the wiser. Should Rania comply with her task she may draw unwanted attention from the client who may contract her to carry out more suspect "deliveries". Despite placing her job in a precarious position, this is a precedence Rania does not want to set. Though her job prospects may be close to helpless, one must have faith that Rania's resourcefulness will see her through possible unemployment. It's also worth noting that Camus expresses his own sense of wariness regarding the package - and it's always a good idea to listen to a dog. 

Spoilers affecting choice:

If Rania completes the delivery, Camus becomes troubled and questions the "good" aspect of the job. Later on, a massive explosion is heard; Control confirms the blast location originates from the delivery bay of Metro Hub. Despite Control's attempt to wave off the incident as unrelated, Rania knows the truth and has inadvertently become one of the very problems in Nivalis she decries. She is paid a bonus.

Surprisingly, Rania's decision to dispose the package does not result in termination of her contract. Instead, she receives a severe reprimand from Ava: "First and final warning for a delivery violation, misdemeanour number 001: Failure to deliver to recipient through gross negligence and/or crisis of conscience. Further infractions will result in termination of your employment with Cloudpunk." Ava cautions that termination will cut off remote access to her HOVA and she will be held responsible for any accidental damage that occurs in the event of losing control of the vehicle. This doesn't seem to come into play regarding the rest of the game, however, and Rania and Camus can continue their work with a clean conscience... for now.

- Lucy A.

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Sources: 

Cloudpunk (Ion Lands/Maple Whispering Limited); fandom.com