Mr. Blue Eyes did not expect anyone to catch it this quickly. The pop-up in front of him changed from a basic progress bar to a full, intelligent AI registration page.
He stared at it for a few seconds and chose not to register. He disconnected from the Ascension Network.
The secure line pinged.
"What happened?"
"They detected my identity. Ascension issued a warning and demanded AI registration," Mr. Blue Eyes said. He paused. "The warning source felt like a powerful, intelligent AI."
"An AI? Interesting. Can you identify it? Origin?"
"No. I have never seen her. She should not be from behind the Blackwall."
"Then stand down for now. Instruct our people not to touch the Ascension Network and risk exposure. The Ascension Network must be destroyed. We cannot lose control of the city's data pipe. Move Night Corp and our embedded assets. Squeeze Ascension from the outside and contain this."
Orders went out. Night Corp management pushed a stack of directives. Multiple lines of pressure came online.
…
Ascension Technology
Office
"Master, I have a notable signal," Lissandra said. "Among the users connecting to the Ascension Network, a small number of intelligent AIs attempted to disguise themselves as individual users."
"Details."
"This is one of them." Lissandra surfaced the trace. "The access point resolves to Night Corp."
Mr. Blue Eyes had prepared anti-tracking traps before logging on. In Night City, no one had ever traced him through the net. But he had entered Ascension's space and met Lissandra. The instant he connected, she saw through the mask and even flagged his hidden nature.
"Night Corp," Rocky said, surprised by the name.
Night Corp is one of Night City's cornerstone companies. It funds public works and subcontracted more than a few builds for Ascension in the early days, before the Marvin fleet scaled up. The industrial park's shell went up under a Night Corp team. Even Rocky's first small clinic used their renovation crew. The ties are there, but he did not expect Night Corp to surface this way.
"This is not a simple 'AI pretending to be human.' It reads like a human mind occupied by an AI connecting through human hardware," Lissandra added.
"That does track with Night Corp," Rocky said, recalling old mission notes. A document labeled Operation 'Life Is Short' suggested Night Corp had been testing an AI that could invade and steer a human host. If that occupied body tried to connect from a Night Corp node, it fits.
"Night Corp also bankrolls Ziggurat," Rocky continued. "They have leaned on Ziggurat to steer Night City's CitiNet. If they plan to use AI to control people, the network is their bridge. If Ascension's network rises, that bridge breaks. They will not let that happen. Watch Night Corp closely."
He tapped the desk and thought. Night City and Night Corp might be more complicated than they look. Some theories say Night Corp's AI tools and intrusion vectors are not homegrown. They might come from beyond the Blackwall, with roaming AIs using Night Corp as a node to infiltrate the city's government and key figures. If that is true, Night Corp is already compromised, and Ascension's no-rogue-AI policy makes them automatic enemies.
He did not have proof yet. But if the guesses are correct, they will move fast.
They did.
Ziggurat used its control over the city's data backbone to block Ascension's official address. Ordinary users suddenly could not reach Ascension's site or jump into the new space. Skilled netrunners could still route around it, but adoption slowed.
Across town, several Night City officials released statements attacking Ascension's network, calling it a danger to the city and "not a true technical upgrade," and urging citizens not to use it for now.