Watson District.
The YAIBA TV building, a modest 13-story office tower.
It appears to be a media studio, but in reality, it's the base of fixer Regina Jones. The rooftop is equipped with various high-frequency transmission devices, officially controlled equipment in today's regulated network environment, but she has managed to obtain legitimate credentials for it.
All thanks to her mysterious benefactor.
"The Burger King is smuggling stuff for some big shot idiot? How are they bypassing Militech?"
"His agent didn't give specifics, only said that Militech personnel would be distracted at the right time — I guess Militech already suspects him from that day when they chased down the cyberpsycho."
"And he plans to take advantage of that suspicion for something big, but I can't figure out what exactly."
"Huh, bold move. I like it — Burger King smuggling for some big shot idiot, typical of your kind."
Even though the mysterious benefactor's voice was processed, it couldn't hide his admiration.
Had the voice been unaltered, Regina would have noticed not only admiration but a hint of excitement.
"What does he need?"
"A special pass from the NCPD. When the time comes, and Militech leaves their post, they'll slip through unnoticed."
"That's easy. The NCPD issues a ton of those passes daily for confiscating contraband. You know what to do, right?"
"I do — though I don't understand why you're so invested in this. It doesn't seem related to the cyberpsycho."
"Cyberpsychosis reflects society's ailments on the individual. If someone repeatedly defeats cyberpsychos, maybe it signifies something bigger."
Regina didn't quite grasp the meaning — by that logic, what does the MaxTac squad represent?
But, on second thought, without MaxTac, things might be worse.
"In any case, I'll allow you to leverage NCPD connections to help Burger King pull off another job."
Regina had a puzzled expression.
"...Why do you keep saying that name?"
"I like it."
Click. The call ended.
Regina scratched her head. This mysterious sponsor had provided a lot of assistance in securing the NCPD connection and also in opposing News 54.
But the person's true identity and intentions remained a mystery.
At least her other sponsor wasn't so enigmatic—
Regina picked up her phone.
Caller: A Representative of Kang Tao.
Kang Tao Rep A: Who captured the cyberpsycho at the highway checkpoint?
Regina: Consider it paying back a favor.
Kang Tao Rep A: ...So it was him. You've repaid half of the favor, settle the other half with this job.
Regina: Explain first. I'm not going to jeopardize my mercs.
Kang Tao Rep A: He has one of our sandevistan prototypes. We need the operational data he's collected. He'll be happy to hand it over.
Regina: I'll pass along the message.
Kang Tao Rep A: Let's leave it at that.
Kang Tao always had clear boundaries. Once they finished talking, they hung up immediately.
In all her time working with them, Regina had gotten two clear impressions: they had strong boundaries, never overstepping to pry or gather unnecessary information, and they operated transparently.
And the second impression? They always made a profit.
It sounded strange. In Night City, scheming and backstabbing were common, and in any power play, there were winners and losers.
Yet Kang Tao always focused on achieving their goal without crossing lines, and overall, they always came out ahead.
(TN: This is BS the author is biased because they are Chinese lol)
A strange feeling.
And their favors were the hardest to repay — they really valued Burger King.
After thinking for a while, Regina stood up and instructed her team, "We need a special transport permit from the NCPD. Get it done, and quickly."
Badlands, Red Ocher — Bright Family Camp.
Nomads, always on the move in the Badlands, were resilient. After a full day of rest, most had recovered. Even the wounded were awake and ready to drive, with only Scorpion still unconscious.
In the tech workshop, Mitch took a deep breath and glanced at Leo, saying, "It's been years since I've used this function of my prosthetic arm… Let's hope it still works."
Leo nodded, signaling to proceed.
They began assembling the drone wreckage before them.
Leo wore his tech specialist gloves, which could function as both a welding torch and a high-temperature cutting tool as long as there was sufficient power and materials.
Mitch's arm, on the other hand, was a mechanical repair prosthetic from his time serving in the Militech armored corps.
[Militech Armored Transport Soldier Arm (Model Unknown)]
[Description: Enhances arm strength and includes driving programs and vehicle interfaces. In extreme situations, it can ensure single-handed driving. The arm also contains repair preset programs, integrated with cyber optics for automatic diagnostics of mechanical status and repair suggestions. Compatible with all combat equipment used by Militech combat units.]
This arm had an onboard computer — though after the Unification War, these functions had been disabled.
Had Mitch not escaped quickly to the Badlands, the arm would have definitely been removed.
Later, with the help of nomad netrunners and tech experts, they unlocked the software — hopefully, Militech's gear hadn't changed too much in the past seven years.
Since energy and materials were scarce, they couldn't afford a second attempt.
As Mitch began identifying parts, a system interface appeared in Leo's mind:
[Current Task: Drone Design and Construction]
[Assistance Mode Activated]
[Available Modules Loaded:]
[Militech Drone Hover Engine, Militech Drone Sensor Module.]
There were seven drones in total. Aside from the one Panam had destroyed with a surface-to-air missile, the core components of the remaining six were relatively intact.
Leo had launched various modulated attacks on the drones, especially ensuring the hover engines' mechanical structures remained unbroken.
He had encountered and hacked enough drones by now to have plenty of ideas.
Given their supply limitations, these drones couldn't be equipped with weapons — drone targeting modules were notoriously inefficient.
So they'd focus on support roles.
[Design Template 1: Hornet Drone]
[Description: Recon drone, constructs battlefield maps using multi-dimensional cellular networks and extends communication signals.]
[Design Template 2: Griffin Drone]
[Description: Weapon modules removed, reducing weight and enhancing mobility, with reserved space for radar and other communication components.]
Leo quickly generated design schematics in his mind and transmitted the blueprints to Mitch's system.
Their coordination was flawless, with no wasted movements under the guidance of cybernetic software.
After a morning of adjustments, three drones with a distinctive nomad style slowly powered up.
Unlike the sleek exteriors of Militech drones, these were pitted and scarred, with visible welding marks.
But they could fly.
Sizzle.
The engine emitted a brief arc of electricity as Leo adjusted the power, allowing the three drones to hover gently.
The surrounding terrain came into full view, and their visuals were integrated into a tactical 3D map within the combat channel, in conjunction with Mitch's own drone.
[First-time Drone Construction Completed]
[Tech Points Reward: 300]
[Current Tech Points: 790]
As the tactical signals appeared in the eyes of the nomads, the Aldecaldos erupted into cheers.
"Awesome!"
"I can see everything — even my grandma could hit someone now!"
"When are we raiding another corpo convoy? I can't wait!"
The successful drone assembly meant a lot to them — the most direct implication being that they had finally stolen something truly useful from the corps.
A series of failures had taken a serious toll on morale. Even something that once seemed routine now felt like a major victory.
Leo took off his gloves, knowing this was a bit of a last-ditch effort—
The batteries they had brought from the camp had limited storage, and both ethanol and fuel were running dangerously low.
Mitch sat down, sipping a drink. "You're pretty good. My prosthetic only tells me how to diagnose and repair components, but piecing together a new drone from parts? That's a first."
"With skills like this, we should try our luck at the scrapyard."
"No way. The scrapyard's dirty and stinks — show some pride, Mitch."
Leo chuckled as he looked outside.
Through the cracks between the cliffs, they could still see the sky from the camp.
This place was good. Not only hidden, but shaded from the sun. It met all the criteria, without making them feel like cavemen huddling in a cave.
The only downside was how poor they were.
At that moment, Saul rushed into the workshop.
"There's a problem with Dakota's signal. It's probably Militech."
As they prepared their deception, Dakota had been contacting other nomads, hoping to rally their forces.
But clearly, the frequent communications had drawn Militech's attention, and now the situation was becoming even more precarious.
Leo remained unfazed. "Proceed according to the plan. Gather everyone, and let's run another rehearsal."
Meanwhile, operations in Marvel World had also resumed after repairs — their previous action at the corporate plaza had similarly burned through a significant portion of their systems.
[Information Technology Research Progress:]
[NYPD Contract Completed, Final Payment Received]
[First Batch of Commercial Chips Produced]
[Server Acquisition Complete, Processing Capacity Increased, Cross-dimensional Data Transmission Bandwidth Enhanced]
After all this time, the manufacturing plant had finally delivered the first batch of computers using Leo's chip designs.
These chips weren't cutting-edge in terms of manufacturing process, but their architecture was innovative and perfectly suited for bridging research between cybernetic components.
This would allow Leo's IT capabilities to reach new heights, providing safer and more secure support for the entire operation.
The counterattack was about to begin.
(End of chapter)