Chapter 40: Chapter 40: Sense of Urgency
John came to his senses when the battle was already over.
The Gaia Cells soldiers had all been stripped of their gear, three armored vehicles were decrypted and retrieved, and all salvageable supplies were accounted for.
Harbor Company made a killing this time.
John, after finishing up, sat on a boulder to catch his breath, the blood on his face completely dried, leaving an odd tautness on his skin.
A black sealed box was placed on the open ground.
It was placed next to Geoffrey’s corpse, supposedly waiting for a partner to come and pick it up.
Not long after.
A hovercar flew in from the direction of the city, visible from afar with the Plato Company logo; it stopped by the roadside as two squads of heavily armed company soldiers escorted an executive out.
The man wore a champagne-colored suit, his expression gloomy, perfectly fitting John’s image of a cold company lackey.
[Name: Bismarck Ritter]
[Faction: Plato]
[Scan: Bionic Vessels, Neuron Amplification]
[Bounty: None]
[File: Manually Deleted]
John was somewhat surprised—company executives wouldn’t go to such lengths to clean up their tracks unless involved in top-secret projects.
"What’s this guy’s deal?"
Tinfoil replied coolly:
"He’s a supervisor in a technical department of Plato. The data from his sub-project were stored in the warehouse that got blown up a couple of days ago. The bounty and task details were all coordinated by him with the boss."
She was wearing a black hydrophobic work hoodie, a tactical respirator mask, protecting her body from the dust and industrial fumes.
John, meanwhile, had a scarf given by Nando wrapped around him.
Eden made a deal with the suit, carrying the box.
The heavily armed Plato soldiers were busy, first loading Geoffrey’s corpse onto the hovercar, then spraying DNA diluent over the blood left around the battlefield. Even the getaway car was reswept and then set ablaze.
John frowned as he watched.
"Do they really have to go that far? It’s like dealing with a contagious virus."
"Could be. After all, which killing neural virus hasn’t been a product of the big corporations? You’re new, remember to get a blood test and scan done at the company after each mission."
Tinfoil suddenly patted John’s shoulder.
Her exposed prosthetic eye began to flicker.
"I’ve got a gift for you."
John received a piece of software through the internal channel.
[Module: Advanced Language Pack 77-15]
In the Cyber Era, citizens usually have language plugins installed. In Eden City, with its ethnic diversity and variety of languages, people communicate primarily through simultaneous interpretation and text scan translation.
The software Tinfoil shared was a bit more advanced.
It not only included sign language and lip-reading but also had more impressive camera scanning and intelligent recognition algorithms, resembling military-grade equipment from the company.
John zoomed in with the camera.
Subtitles appeared next to the suit’s mouth.
[...It’s very clean. Has anyone come into contact with the files? The deceased, any anomalies before death, feel free to inform me of any findings.]
Eden, having his back turned to John, couldn’t read the lip movements.
[F*ck, I knew it, Gaia Cells are not trustworthy, acting like some slum saint choking me...]
[Don’t let me get the impression that we’re on good terms; otherwise, it will be ironic when it’s your turn to point a gun at my head next time.]
[...More people will be held accountable for this...do you really not consider taking more jobs? Mercenaries can’t handle tasks as cleanly as your team can; they’re a bunch of half-cyber psychos, and if things go wrong, no middleman can clean it up.]
[Alright, I knew it, you just want to shoot the ones in suits, waiting for the opportunity to collaborate again.]
[By the way, keep your people in check.]
[Curiosity killed the cat, you know.]
The suit’s gaze passed over Eden’s shoulder, staring far into the direction where Tinfoil and John were located.
John felt it wasn’t the first time he’d seen him:
Recall feeling he’d encountered Bismarck at Tiebang Logistics, could even imagine the tone when he said this line.
Curiosity killed the cat, indeed.
...
The hovercar buzzed away.
Once Eden received the payment, he immediately distributed it. The voice channel was filled with dirty jokes and cheers, all discussing where to spend the loot next.
Harbor Company was generous with the pay, dividing the gains based on contribution; large assets like the three armored vehicles might be handled as company assets or dismantled into parts to pawn off for monthly bonuses.
Eden was a good boss.
At least that’s what John speculated.
Though he hadn’t received any money, it likely wasn’t about bullying a newcomer but something else was planned.
Eden and John got into a car.
"You’ve seen how we operate. If you’re willing to join us, I’ll sort out some decent prosthetics for you to boost your combat capability, what do you think?"
John hesitated a bit, then chuckled after thinking for a moment.
"I do envy your chips and prosthetics, but inherently I’m someone who just likes to wander around. I have no problem taking assignments; just call me whenever you need work done, but count me out for joining the company, I can’t stand the routine clocking in..."
Eden shrugged: "But I can’t be partial; if you work with us without any pay, only taking prosthetics and chips, is that okay?"
"Will there be no issues with that?"
"Harbor Company’s formal employees get prosthetic maintenance and upgrades included in their labor contracts as a free benefit."
"Damn, that’s tempting."
"Fighting corporate lackeys is life-threatening." Eden knew John was only saying this; joining the team was out of the question now.
[Claim operational reward. (Not Achieved)]
Eden took him back to Harbor Company, through the hallways of the rebuilt main lobby, swiping through the elevator with alloy reliefs.
The electronic panel displayed - Comprehensive Training Center.
The last time John visited, he only saw the building’s exterior and the top-floor client lounge; below was the core area of Harbor.
Mid-range indoor shooting range, enclosed weapon storage, as well as gym-like recreational areas...
Eden led John directly to the prosthetic calibration center.
There, he met the team’s doctor, evidently an old military doctor according to the scanned information file.
Eden had intended for John to choose his prosthetics, but after reviewing John’s scan report, his brows furrowed, deciding to make a choice for him.
"First, go for an alloy arm to improve upper limb strength, then take a Suresh 7.5 version CQC chip."
Eden swiped on the terminal tablet, paused in thought, and spotted the single-molecule samurai sword John had brought along.
"Also fetch Raqi Industry’s ’Ranger.’"
The items were in the warehouse, quickly stocked.
Eden planned for John to undergo transformation at Harbor Company, then train in combat to adapt to the new chip.
The prosthetic calibration center had independent surgical rooms:
Clean, orderly rooms filled with the scent of Lysol mixed with alcohol, screens and robotic arms hung on all sides, and a bright shadowless lamp hovered over the lounge chair.
John hesitated for a moment before refusing.
Eden didn’t insist but asked, "Are you alright? Coming back from work looking like you’ve lost your soul."
"I... something’s off, damn it, that unlucky bastard who died was my former colleague, a driver at Tiebang Logistics, and out of nowhere, he was labeled a traitor to Plato."
"An undercover, corporate warfare, pretty standard—is the relationship close?"
"Not really."
John shared with Eden the circumstances of Geoffrey’s death; upon hearing this, he too frowned in contemplation.
He recalled Bismarck’s face, saying.
"I have this inexplicable sense of urgency."