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***
We did get out for kebabs, and a day later, in the evening, Misty called us and told us that some guy with disabled corporate implants had brought Vee, who had a bullet in her head....
- What do you want us to do?
- Well, um. can you come over?
- Hmm?
- Victor might need some help...
I shrugged, which my avatar had to repeat, and agreed to come over. Luckily we were already done with work that day, so there was no need to postpone or reschedule. And within half an hour we reached Victor's clinic.
- Vic, hi...
My Sandy switched on when they tried to point a gun in my direction. Two steps and I find myself close to a man of Asian appearance and twist his arm, and I twist it so that the muzzle of the gun was not directed at anyone present, which causes additional injuries to the man. So, basically, I just broke his wrist. I also dropped him to the floor, smashing his forehead into the floor.
- Agh!
- David!
And that's when the gun fell out of his wrist, which I intercepted in flight.
- What?
- Let him go!
I looked at Vic in surprise.
- Vic, are you sure? This guy wanted to point a gun in my direction.....
I demonstrably waved the gun I was holding by the muzzle in the air.
- Yeah. On my responsibility...
I shrugged and let the guy go, then quickly dismantled the gun into parts, which I tossed precisely into his lap.
- So?
- V...
- I see, what do you want from me?
- I don't know what to do... she has some kind of chip that restored her brain, or rather made alternate connections that allowed Vee not to go to the other world, but at the same time there's something written on the chip and it started rewriting her...
I frowned slightly. Even if I didn't know the canon, I would most likely come to the same conclusions Vic had come to and didn't want to believe.
- The only thing that comes to mind is that chip from Arasaki...
- But you yourself.
- Vic, if that Kopeki hype is her....
Vic nodded jerkily.
- ...then you must realise that it was probably this chip she was kidnapping. And that it's not just any chip.... it's probably either a prototype of a technology that's been cut down for mass production or a prototype of a more advanced technology.
- Fuck...
I nodded, looking intently at Vic.
- So why'd you call? I don't believe that you couldn't identify something like that yourself...
- I could. but... ah...
Vic waved his hand.
- So, get the data, maybe you can figure out how to stop the spread of nanites that rewrite V's personality?
I was sent a file, which I immediately dug into. Vic, meanwhile, moved Vee to a separate couch and helped the speedy-eyed man into the chair, who he began to give first aid to, then swore at him.
- What else you got?
- The only reason he's alive is because he's harmful! He's got a couple of non-corporate implants that kept him alive.
I shrugged. I didn't give a shit about corporate life. I didn't like him back in canon... there was something about him. but he only seemed good if he died after kidnapping the girl from Arasaka. And if you save him and choose to storm Arasaki at the end...
You were so full of shit....
I sighed and shook my head. It's none of my business, I'm not going to contact him, nor am I going to storm Arasaka. It's none of my business.
- Hmm...
What have you got there?
Vic didn't take his eyes off his work yet noticed that I was up to something.
- Hold on. Can I text the girls the data?
- Hmm?
- Ice.
Vic looked up at me in shock.
- ...and if you do a spacer...
- A spacer?
- Yeah. extract the personal port that this chip is plugged into, then run a duplicate system through a small microcomputer with a strong ice on it. And then cut off the port's main communications link, leaving only the new one....
- Wait till I'm done with corporate and see if it's feasible. But even if it is feasible, you realise it's only a temporary solution...
- I do, but the two or three weeks she has now and the two or three months she'll have after my plan... The difference, as far as I'm concerned, is tangible...
- I'm not gonna argue about that.
I thought about it and with a suspicious glance at Vee, I began to quickly calculate another option.
- Hmm... and it is possible to raise the lifespan to a couple of years...
- A couple of years?
Vic again looked at me in surprise.
- Yes... But I'll need Judy's help, I can do it myself, but it'll be faster with her....
- What else you got in mind?
- We could make a low-powered EMP generator. Not powerful enough to knock out the chip, because that would probably kill V, but powerful enough to slow down the chip's processes a bit.
- And you can do that?
I shrugged.
- At the very least I can try... but I'd have to go to someone from Arasaki.... except... Vee's just going to get reset.
- Not zeroed out... if I can contact Mrs Hanako... and I have proof that V didn't kill Saburo-san.....
I snorted.
- Vic, did Vee listen to me even a little bit?
- А?
- Well, she's a third-generation kiroshi... did she record what happened during the order? If she was recording what was happening during the ordering process.
- When she wakes up, we'll check it out. And you, don't worry. I don't want you to make me do something wrong.
Meanwhile, the girls came in with Misty, and I have to say, Misty was clearly led here by my girls. And the looks she was giving Vic. Ugh! There was a lot of embarrassment. and shame. и...
So my plan had pulled their relationship off the rails a little bit. Of course nothing's gonna happen between them now, neither of them are the type to start a relationship right after the death of a friend and boyfriend... but at least now they have a chance.
- Lucy, Kiwi, see what kind of ice you can put on the intermediate calculator so that the sliver doesn't rewrite V's mind so fast....
- Yep...
Kivi and Lucy said this in sync and nodded, then clearly immersed themselves in their work.
- What about me?
- And you, Judy, will work with me on a low-power EMP emitter, get a sample task...
And I sent her the assignment.
- Hmm.
We booted up a bit and went round the corners of Vic's clinic, but not for long. Because if Kiwi and Lucy could work there, Vic had a calculator, and it was only necessary to record ice on it. Though it only sounds simple...
Record the ice.
In fact, there's not only recording ice, but also its optimisation, amplification, and a lot of things that ordinary runners couldn't cope with, but I believe in my girls.
Judy and I had to drive home. Panam drove, but I left Becca with Lucy and Kiwi, because I didn't trust that Jap of Chinese descent. He's a corporatist to the core. And Vee.
Now she's in a situation where she'll be clinging to opportunities tooth and nail, she hasn't had much time to get out of her corporate skin.... and now she's gonna have to make some bad decisions. to keep her from going downhill.
To my surprise, Misty, who had closed her shop to go with us.
- David. you did this on purpose, didn't you?
That's the question Misty asked as soon as we got to the flat.
- Hmm?
- Don't play dumb.
She looked at me sadly.
- Yes, Misty, I did it on purpose.
- Why?
There was sadness and disappointment in her voice.
- Misty, you know exactly why... I always thought you were too good for a guy like Jackie.
- David!
- Misty.
I squinted at her a little.
- ...you're the one who brought this up. And I know what I'm saying is uncomfortable for you. But you knew I was going to say it, didn't you?
She flinched a little and Panam's breasts covered her.
- David...
- Panam... if she didn't want to hear it, she wouldn't have started this conversation.
- Panam...
Misty put her hand on her shoulder.
- ...Thanks, but... I really need this.
Panam looked back at Misty confusedly and stepped aside.
- David...
- 'Yes, Misty, as I started to say, I always thought Jackie wasn't worthy of you.'
I shook my head.
- From the moment I met Vic, or rather from the moment I realised he was in love with you, I thought you two would make a good couple. How many times have I tried to influence him to decide to flirt with you? But that idiot just kept refusing. He loved you too much, and he respected Jackie too much, he didn't want to ruin your relationship--
- It's-- I saw his feelings, but, um. why now?
- Misty, when? When?
- Yeah.
- Misty, as disgusting as it sounds, now is the best time. Yes, you may not be a couple now, but at least you'll be moving forward. And in time, you'll probably find happiness with each other.
- Я...
Misty bit her lower lip.
- Misty, no one's asking you to jump into bed with Vic right now... just give him a chance to be with you. He was friends with Jackie himself and he's not going to take undue notice....
- Okay...
She nodded.
After we finished talking, Judy and I finally got to work. And we worked very quickly, but at the same time with quality. Realising that every minute we were late was taking time away from Vee helped us not to waste time.
Maybe we should have started building a device like this before Vee got into circulation. Or rather when she got into it, but before she was in this situation. But. there were too many unknowns to create a device that only needed a few tweaks.
It took us about five hours to build the device, which essentially started to look like a collar with some sort of attachment on the side.
And with this device we went back to Vic.
The Chinese Japanese was no longer in the clinic, but V was conscious.
- Here he is.
There was no judgement in her voice, just a statement of fact.
- Yeah, you're all set?
- Yeah. according to Vic, in this condition, I'll last longer than you thought. Your girls did their best. I've got six months.
She grinned sadly.
- Yeah... we'll try something else now... Vic, are you ready to track her vitals?
- Yeah.
And after saying that, I fastened the collar around V's neck. So that the protruding mechanism is exactly opposite the splinter connector.
- Switching on.
- Come on.
- Ouch!
Vee jerked like she'd been electrocuted.
- What's wrong?
- The optics are malfunctioning and my head's buzzing.
- Well, we'll get the power back up. just remember, it's an EMP, it'll interfere with your work just like it did before, so go to work, switch it off, finish the job, switch it back on.
- You think I'm going to switch it off?
Vee grinned sadly.
- Well...
I shrugged.
- Who knows you...