Vik also noticed Mercer had woken up.
"Don't rush. You woke up faster than I expected. Just this eye left... let me check the data, and I'll put it in."
Mercer held still, enduring the process as Vik placed the eyeball into his socket. A strange tingling sensation spread deep within the eye socket.
Vik operated the instruments for a while before saying, "Good, neural signals are connecting normally. Try moving your eyeball; excellent, no issues. Any unusual sensations? The anesthesia hasn't fully worn off yet, but you should be feeling something."
Mercer shifted slightly, focusing on the sensations: "Vision's a bit blurry, but it's adjusting. My wrist feels swollen and sore... probably because this monowire is too thick. I'll need to get used to it. Hmm... the neural link also feels a bit scorched, did you use a thermal connection for the surgery? Signal reception is normal, though. High-end gear really is something; the data latency has dropped significantly. My awareness of the cyberware has improved too, but my control over my body still feels awkward. It'll take some getting used to."
Vik asked gently, "Test it out. If your arm continues to feel swollen and sore often, you'll need further cyberware modifications. Sigh... I really hate to see you go down that path. Just think about it, you can't just install cyberware on the top half and leave the bottom half untouched, unless you want to become a roly-poly toy. So once you start, your arm muscles, leg muscles, chest, back, abs, you might end up needing Muscle Enhancement for all of them. And once your muscles are enhanced, your underdeveloped bones might not hold up, eventually requiring metal plating. Just imagine what you'd look like then: a kid's head on a bodybuilder's frame. Not to mention, all that cyberware would demand stronger internal organs to support it. It becomes an endless cycle. You know, Mercer, I've seen too many people lose their flesh and blood bit by bit this way. They keep adding cyberware to get stronger, then modify their bodies to adapt to it. In the end, every single one of them went mad from all these modifications."
Vik sighed sincerely and advised, "If it doesn't suit you, it's best to remove it. Wait a couple of years, train your body properly, and install it then, it won't be too late. This gear of yours will stay top-tier for the next decade; no worries about it becoming obsolete."
"Thanks, Vik. Keep an eye out for Muscle Enhancement for me... Not that I'm saying I'll install it, okay, never mind that. But do keep an eye out for Subdermal Armor and legs cyberware for me. Even if I can't beat others, I should at least be able to run fast, right? If I ever get taken out by a stray bullet, there won't be any future to talk about."
Mercer's words drew a deep sigh from Vik, who simply nodded. "We'll discuss the rest when you come next time. Take the unused items back with you for now."
"If it's convenient, maybe leave them here? You have professional equipment; we could also take the chance to study that cyberdeck." Mercer's words made Vik shake his head in disbelief. "Still not giving up, huh? This stuff isn't cheap, frankly, it costs more than my entire clinic. You really trust me enough to just leave it all here?"
"Of course. If I didn't trust you, I wouldn't have come to you in the first place."
Mercer laughed as Vik helped him to his feet. He steadied himself for a moment, then pulled out the monowire from his grip.
The black monowire was far more discreet compared to the usual red variants. Mercer didn't dare test it with an electrical charge, the cutting edge of this thing was no joke.
Next, Mercer tried out the new functions of his cybereye, particularly the 32-meter wallhack feature he'd been craving.
After a brief flicker of data in his vision, countless clear signals materialized before his eyes.
Even better, these eyes could not only detect networked devices within a 32-meter range but also outline faint silhouettes by analyzing signal fluctuations.
Of course, the silhouettes weren't stable; they only helped netrunners distinguish between humans and networked devices. At the same time, Mercer could perform remote hacks directly based on the signals he detected.
This meant Mercer now had the ability to perform Quickhacks on enemies within 32 meters in the real world, even through cover.
No longer did he need to rely on his cybereye to visually lock onto a target's signal before sending a Quickhack, as he had in the past.
Before, remote hacking required either a neural link to cameras to capture the target's exact network signal or infiltrating the target's subnet for remote access.
But now, as long as the target was within range and his cybereye's scan mode was active, Mercer could detect them through walls and hack them directly.
This was a significant upgrade to Mercer's safety in close-quarters combat.
Mercer then glanced at himself in the mirror. Damn, these blue cybereyes look slick. The pupils shimmered like drifting blue stardust. This high-end gear even saved him the cost of cosmetic lenses.
"Alright then. I don't know if you're like this with everyone."
Viktor watched him excitedly testing his cyberware and reluctantly agreed. "I'll look into it when I have time, and see if I can reduce the strain these implants put on you."
"No big deal. My brain's sharper than a server CPU."
"And just so you know, I don't trust just anyone. Have a little more confidence in yourself, Vik."
Mercer grinned and touched the back of his head. "You replaced the interface cover plate too? How much do I owe you this time, Vik?"
"The hardware was all yours. I'm just charging for the procedure... Call it 2,000 eddies. Mostly for meds and materials."
Vik's price made Panam, who had been watching Mercer with concern, click her tongue in admiration; this doc was seriously fair.
"This bottle is anti-inflammatory meds. Take it three times a day. You can inhale it or spray it directly on inflamed areas, it's also pretty effective for pain relief."
"This one is an injectable. Try to avoid using it unless absolutely necessary. It's mildly addictive. Unless the pain is unbearable, just tough it out." Primarily for alleviating post-operative neural pain, I recommend using it before bed to get a good night's sleep. Pay attention to the dosage, each press administers a single dose, so be careful not to overdo it. There's only enough medication for five uses inside.
All symptoms should begin to subside within three days.
Depending on your constitution, full recovery should take up to seven days at most. If it goes beyond that, contact me anytime to confirm your condition.
Oh, and about your monowire.
You're a netrunner, so you know more than I do. Your monowire has quickhack program slots.
Just connect it to your neural link yourself and use the program to transfer it into the monowire.
However, this monowire, codenamed "Neuromayfly," comes with a pre-installed virus program.
I didn't dare tamper with it, your skills in this area might be better than mine. You should research it yourself.
It occupies a significant neural load; the passively running program will continuously consume your brain's processing power.
I thought about adding a switch, but the nanotechnology inside is so advanced I was afraid shutting it down might kill the self-replicating nanite and render the program useless, so I left it as is.
If you feel this Neuromayfly program isn't useful to you right now, I recommend deleting it outright.
After all, if it breaks, it can't be repaired. The nanites inside are Arasaka's proprietary tech, it's impressive that they can attach to a monowire.
Alright, that's all.
Oh, and about the neural link.
Your current neural link is at least two versions more advanced than the previous one. You'll notice data reception is extremely fast. Be careful when directly connecting to the net, it's easy to fry your brain.
It's hard to imagine how powerful the matching cyberdeck must be.
These two things together aren't meant for ordinary netrunners at all. Once activated, the amount of data your brain receives will be terrifying!
You could say that without professional cooling, that cyberdeck simply can't be turned on.
Otherwise, even in standby mode, your body temperature would rise above 38 degrees Celsius within a minute.
Vik rambled on while Mercer listened quietly. Even though he already knew all this, he patiently heard him out.
"Don't mind my nagging, kid. If it weren't for your insistence... I never operate on children, whether they want it or their parents do. You made me break my rule."
Vik looked somewhat conflicted. "I don't know if what I did was right or wrong."
"Thanks, Vik. Whatever the future holds, that's my path to walk. You helped me, that's all. No matter what happens, I'll be grateful."
Mercer just patted his shoulder and then smiled. "Teach me how to box sometime. I quite enjoy watching boxing."
"Alright." Vik glanced at the transfer record popping up in his cybereye, then turned and pointed at the "dead man's cyberware" cold storage box he somewhat disliked. "You planning to sell what's inside?"
"Yeah." Mercer nodded, then added, "I'm also planning to sell the parts removed from me."
Vik thought for a moment and said, "The corporate-grade cyberware taken from you isn't hot, and since you haven't used it long, it's still quite new. I can take it off your hands directly, even those Mantis Blades I can buy. I just checked the Arasaka supplier's inventory list; that model might be labeled as a lab prototype, but it's actually mass-produced for high-level agents. I've got plenty of clients who'd be interested in it. But that Sandevistan, I can fix it for you, but I can't take it in as trade."
Mercer nodded readily. "That's perfect, Vik. If you can repair it, let's set the service fee at 10,000 eddies.
Don't argue, I've done the math. Just the cost of replacing those melted neural connectors is around 4,000, and that's using mid-to-low grade Biotechnica off-the-shelf parts.
It shouldn't be too much work, but it'll still take you an hour. You'd only be making a couple thousand profit. Any less, and I'd be the one feeling awkward."
"Deal," Vik had to accept gladly, then started tallying up the numbers.
"The monowire, I'll give you 100,000 for it. Arasaka monowire still holds its value, and you've already flashed the cyberware firmware, plug and play, no worries about backdoors.
The Mantis Blades, 150,000. These are pretty rare Thermal Mantis Blades; honestly they could go for even more.
But I can't offer higher than that. Most folks who come here for installs can't shell out over 200,000 at once for top-tier gear. If I kept these on hand, I'd have to actively find a buyer.
Hmm... other stuff, the cybereyes, 5,500 eddies. The rest of the bits and pieces, let's round it up to a neat total of 360,000 eddies."
Vik explained as he went, "Even though your cybereyes aren't cheap on the market—after all, they're high-end models with netrunner connectivity—in the cybereye world, everyone only recognizes Kiroshi as the premium brand. Everything else is considered off-brand.
Even the pair you're using now, I'd say overall performance is a notch below Kiroshi's high-end custom jobs."
"I get it, Vik. Your prices are fair. If you weren't so against stripping gear off corpses, I'd be tempted to go out and scavenge a batch for you whenever I had free time."
Mercer's words made Vik chuckle wryly. "Please don't start that... I never deal with Scavengers or their kind."
"Mhm, funny enough, I can't stand those scum either. Don't worry, I'm not some trigger-happy killer." Mercer stood up easily, glancing over at Panam. "Vik, I've gotta go. Heading to Misty's for a tarot reading, pick up some things. Got business tonight."
"Alright, take care on the road...
Oh, by the way, I renamed your cyberware and scrubbed the logos. Anyone scanning with cybereyes will only see it as a special lab model.
You can reprogram the names yourself, so anyone checking the data will see custom gear.
I've also dealt with the backdoors. You can fine-tune the rest slowly."
As Vik finished, his neural link pinged with a file transfer from Mercer.
"Sent you a program—my own 'Freelance Assassin V1.0 Official Edition.'
It can crack and wipe backdoors on ninety-nine percent of cyberware straight up. Install it on your system and use it.
The one you're using doesn't clean thoroughly; it affects cyberware performance.
Consider it a welcome gift. Oh, and this, is your brain up for it? Or should I send it to your computer?"
Mercer joked with a smile.
Vik shook his head. "Not keen on loading data directly into my head. Send it over; I'll download it on my computer."
"Sure."
Mercer winked. "Dedicated corporate ICE—ninety-nine out of a hundred netrunners would scratch their heads at it, and the remaining few would still find it tricky."
"Unless you're a top-tier netrunner like me, or someone jams a USB into your clinic's server, your place is absolutely secure."
"Thanks, Mercer."
Vik didn't stand on ceremony; this was just how connections between people were built.
"I'll head out then."
Mercer waved at Panam, who handed him his T-shirt. He glanced down at his somewhat scrawny frame, dissatisfied.
Logically, his muscle strength shouldn't be this lacking. Decent potential, must've been the poor diet on the road that did it.
Gotta eat more!
"Go on, kid. Reach out if you need anything," Vik said gently. "Find time to work out, it'll help with cyberware compatibility too."
"Mm, bye."
Mercer left with Panam.
—--
Once outside, Panam, who'd been holding back, finally burst out, "Holy shit, Mercer, that monowire in your arm is worth 100k? And those beat-up Mantis Blades, 150k?"
"We just casually hauled tens of thousands worth of gear over here? Jesus."
"Yep. Arasaka netrunner-specific monowire, mass-produced, but street price starts at 120k. Mine's the new version, goes for 150k."
"The Mantis Blades are pricier. Thermal Mantis Blades are borderline black tech, even Max-Tac doesn't get gear this good. If you want to buy from Arasaka, it's 300k minimum, and that's if you have connections."
Mercer spoke while watching Cassidy's bank account balance skyrocket, feeling utterly pleased.
"And that Sandevistan... I'm thinking of dumping it on the black market for 200k."
"Ugh, what a waste... If only I had a buyer who wouldn't expose me, that thing's easily worth 300–400k."
Then an idea struck him. But if I kept it for my own crew...
Maybe V could handle it?
But giving her top-tier gear like that, she'd probably think Mercer was trying to sugar daddy her.
That's enough to buy ten of her current lives.
Better hold onto it for now, see if I can work with the current V.
If she's willing to work for me, sell it to her on credit, let her pay it off—wouldn't that be a win-win?
Even at just 200k, it'd be like hiring V for 200k eddies. With her personality, she wouldn't just run off with the money. Way better than selling on the black market.
Less hassle too.
The more Mercer thought about it, the more he liked the idea.
"Don't go doing anything stupid," Panam rolled her eyes, leading him into Misty's esoterica shop across the alley. "You really not afraid of cyberpsychosis?"
"Not for me... Have you had a reading here? How'd it go?"
Mercer followed her into Misty's parlor, where Misty had been waiting.
The crystal ball was set aside on the table, a deck of tarot cards laid out, and two steaming cups of coffee prepared.
"Uh..." Panam looked conflicted. "Something about The Hermit, The High Priestess, Wheel of Fortune..."
"The Hermit reversed, The High Priestess reversed, and a rather intriguing Wheel of Fortune," Misty said with a gentle smile. "Please, have a seat. Basically, it says I was originally very unlucky, would lose my direction, leave my family, and fall into long-term confusion and wasted time. But suddenly, a Wheel of Fortune appeared and reversed all of this, meaning if I start thinking carefully now and make wise decisions, I can change my original fate and head down a different path. That's about it."
Panam seemed a bit skeptical about the fortune-telling result. If Mercer hadn't said Misty's readings were accurate, she would've thought Misty was about to try selling her some trinket to change her fate.
"Mhm, that's roughly it. But what I want to say is, this kind of fortune-telling result is very rare. Because the reversed High Priestess often represents a carefully considered outcome, while the reversed Hermit symbolizes a powerful, unchangeable reality. After these two cards, a Wheel of Fortune appeared. I've been doing readings for a long time, but this is the first time I've seen this kind of situation. It means Miss Panam has encountered a truly fortunate person, and it's this person who changed her fate."
Misty's smile and voice were gentle and ethereal. At this moment, her eyes fixed on Mercer, brimming with eagerness: "I think that fortunate person might be you. Would you like a reading? I'm very interested in your fate!"
"Sure."
Mercer felt a slight shock from the fortune-telling; it really was accurate! He watched as Misty shuffled the tarot cards and laid them out.
"Please choose three cards," she said.
Mercer carefully selected three cards, which Misty then arranged in order. After that, he looked at her with eager anticipation.
Come on! The moment to reveal fate has arrived!
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