I'd already wrapped up everything I'd planned, so hanging around camp any longer wasn't exactly on my to-do list. Especially with a sandstorm rolling in. Getting caught in one of those nomad specials? Hard pass.
After saying our goodbyes to the Backers, Vega and I hit the road and made good time heading back to the city. Barely any cars out — guess most people checked the forecast and decided to bunker down instead of testing their luck on the open road. Smart move. Sandstorms out here weren't just inconvenient — they could kill you if you got stranded. California's been dealing with this crap for years. Just last summer, I saw city crews shoveling dunes off Night City streets. Real postcard material.
"Did the Backers take your offer?" Vega asked from the passenger seat, ditching her usual encrypted chatter for something more old-school.
"What choice did they have?" I kept my eyes on the endless dusty highway. The camp was almost 150 clicks from the city — still at least an hour out. "Nobody signs up for war because they want to. But with Militech drafting anyone they can under the new US constitution? Yeah… 'free will' won't exactly be part of the conversation."
"Human laws are... flexible," she said, more thoughtful than usual. "People twist them. Interpret them. Sooner or later, the truth gets bent out of shape."
"No one said life's fair," I shot back with half a smirk. "Same everywhere. Even the Soviet Union — with all its so-called 'advanced socialism' — breaks its own rules whenever it suits them. Loopholes are the real system. Always have been. Thing is, I want to fix the damn game. Close the cracks. Make sure everyone plays by the same rules for once."
Vega went quiet for a second, then nodded slowly. "I'm starting to see why you and Raich are so set on using synthminds."
"At first, they'll need teaching. A lot of it. Human logic isn't exactly plug-and-play. There'll be bugs, misunderstandings… plenty of cleanup. But eventually, they'll adapt. Once they've got enough experience, that's when things will really change. That's how we nudge society toward what it's supposed to be. Toward something better."
She looked at me — really looked — longer than usual. "So what makes you any different from everyone else who thinks they know what's best?"
"Nothing," I said without missing a beat. "Only difference is... they can't change shit. I can. At least a little."
"So you're saying it all comes down to luck?" Vega asked, genuinely curious.
"Luck's maybe twenty percent of success," I said, eyes still on the road. "You won't get far riding on it alone, but yeah... ignore luck and you're dead. More often than not, it decides more than anyone likes to admit."
"That variable bugs me," she said, her voice edged with frustration. "Its impact on the outcome feels... disproportionate. Irrational, even. I can't quite explain it, but it rubs me the wrong way."
"Yeah, but like it or not... it's part of the equation, right?"
"Annoyingly so," she muttered, pressing her lips together in a pout that actually caught me off guard — and pulled a real laugh out of me.
Vega. Always working overtime to be human. And you know what? It kind of suited her. She might've been one of us, once — before everything went sideways — but now? Now she had to start from scratch, and she wasn't wasting time doing it.
If I had to slap a label on her, "overgrown kid" felt about right. And like any kid, she needed someone to show her the ropes. Someone to care, to teach her the stuff no system update ever could.
That was just the way it was.
***
March 23, 2068
Beijing — Kang Tao Corporate Headquarters
"Yan Xiao. What's the latest on our little NUSA problem?"
Shiming Xu's eyes narrowed, sharp and cold as they locked onto his subordinate.
"We're on it, sir," Yan Xiao replied — short, tense, his words tumbling out like he was trying to outrun Xu's growing impatience. "We've found a few leads. After the Petrochem convoy got hijacked and our strike team went dark, we prioritized tracking down whoever's behind it. If you'll allow me, I'll show you what we've got so far."
"That's why we're here, Xiao." Xu's tone was flat, but heavy with warning. "Spare us the filler."
"Of course." Yan dipped his head briefly, then pulled up a large-scale holographic projection. Blurry, fragmented images flickered to life — chewed up before they even hit the screen.
"As you know," Yan began, gesturing at the static-laced visuals, "our satellites didn't catch much during the attack. Someone rolled out tech we've never seen before — advanced signal jammers, maybe — and it shredded the feeds. Cleaning them up with existing methods? Not happening. That's why I kicked off a special project to bypass the interference and ID the attackers."
He paused, either to catch his breath or let the tension hang in the room.
"Get to the point," Xu said coldly.
"Right." Yan straightened. "Six months later, our R&D came through with a prototype. It transmits data through an unconventional method — quantum linkage. Since this tech's barely in use, it gave us an edge. The results speak for themselves."
The hologram flickered again, revealing a blurred figure. Humanoid. That was about all you could make out.
"As you can see," Yan continued, "this individual's been spotted multiple times hitting our convoys. Problem is, that jamming tech messes with quantum too. This is the cleanest shot we could get."
Xu leaned in, eyes narrowing at the ghostly silhouette. "This is it?"
"Not exactly." A faint, controlled smile tugged at Yan's lips. "AI reconstruction and geometric modeling let us generate a full 3D projection."
As he spoke, the hologram shifted — building itself into a detailed image of a humanoid exosuit that wouldn't have looked out of place in a retro American comic.
"Analysis shows it shares design cues with the 'Commando' battle platforms from the Fourth Corporate Wars. Not identical, but close enough. The design language screams American military."
Silence followed. The armored figure floated there, casting its own shadow across the room — leaving Xu and everyone else with the same, grim conclusion.
Whoever this was... they weren't amateurs.
"So, in other words... we're probably looking at Militech, right?" Xu laced his fingers together. His tone stayed calm, but his eyes were razor-sharp.
"For now, they're our top suspect," Yan Xiao said carefully. "Problem is, it's all circumstantial. Acting on gut instinct here? Could backfire, big time. They hit multiple decoy convoys across different zones, which strongly points to Militech field-testing more than just a few prototypes."
"So what, we're supposed to sit back and take the hit?"
The voice came from the far end of the room. Liu Fan, silent until now, leaned forward, clearly seething.
Xu's gaze snapped toward him — cold and cutting.
"Liu Fan. Know your place."
The words hit hard. The room went still.
"My apologies, sir," Liu muttered, dipping his head.
"I get it," Xu went on, his tone easing just a fraction. "You're pissed. Fine. But don't let anger override discipline. Sit down."
Liu bowed deeper and sank back into his seat, saying nothing more.
"Go ahead, Xiao."
"Yes, sir." Xiao gave a quick nod, eyes flicking to the holographic projection still hovering in the air. "SovOil has officially cut us off. After our intel teams failed multiple times, the Soviet Union walked. No renewed trade deal means no access to their resources. We've got reserves — but they'll only hold for six weeks, tops."
Xu exhaled slowly through his nose. "Guess we should've trained them better." He waved it off, not letting the moment linger. "Either way, we need a fix — fast. Start front companies in Malaysia. For now, buy what we need from the Europeans, even if they gouge us. Kan-Tao cannot afford a production slowdown."
His eyes shifted to another man across the table.
"Fa Ma. Your team's on cost-cutting. I want every non-essential expense gone. You've got two weeks."
"Understood, Mr. Xu," Fa Ma replied without hesitation.
"Yan Kai," Xu continued, turning to a sharp-eyed young man nearby, "you're on smoothing things over with the other corps. This tension is dangerous. If relations fracture any further, the whole economy's on the line. No exports means crisis."
"Leave it to me," Yan Kai said firmly, tapping his fist lightly against his palm in acknowledgment.
Xu pushed back from the table, standing slowly. His face was unreadable.
"That's it. If anyone's got concerns, now's the time."
Silence. Nobody moved.
Xu gave a small nod, then turned and left without another word — leaving the room heavy with unspoken tension, and everyone else quietly bracing for the storm they all knew was coming.
Back at his desk, Xu eyed the mountain of messages that had stacked up in his absence.
Running a megacorp came with perks — but every privilege had its price. And that price was work. A hell of a lot of it.
Xu, a former colonel who'd clawed his way up through the military ranks, knew pressure well. He'd thrived in chaos. Compared to that, this wasn't much. Still, he couldn't help but grimace as he scrolled through the endless stream of problems waiting to eat up his day.
"Call Dan Fei to my office," he said, tapping the comm built into his desk.
"Right away, sir," came his assistant's smooth, polite voice.
"And one more thing — from me personally. Lunch break's moving up today. Let the chef know I want it here in an hour."
"Of course, sir. I'll take care of it."
"Thanks, Dai Er." Xu leaned back and let out a slow breath, his eyes drifting shut for a second as a faint smile tugged at his lips.
"Still... the perks beat the headaches. No contest."
That thought lasted all of two minutes before the door slid open.
Dan Fei stepped in — dark-haired, mid-forties, face carved from stone. The kind of expression that came naturally after years of classified missions and orders that couldn't be questioned.
"You asked for me, sir?" Fei said, offering a small bow.
"Yeah. Got something that's right up your alley." Xu leaned forward and handed him a datachip. "Take a look."
Fei scanned the contents without a word. When he was done, his eyes locked on Xu — steady, ready.
"When do you want me wheels-up for Night City?"
"Within the week." Xu didn't miss a beat. "It's not gonna be easy. Long op. Messy. Gear and resources will be waiting at our American office. Any questions?"
"None, sir." Fei's answer came sharp and automatic — pure habit from years in uniform.
Xu gave him a rare nod of approval.
"Good. I'm counting on you."
"You can. I won't disappoint." Fei let a faint, confident smile slip through.
"One more thing." Xu reached under his desk, pulled out a second datachip, and slid it across. "Activate this when you're on-site. Secondary objective."
"Understood. Anything else?"
"You're dismissed." Xu waved him off, already mentally drifting back to the bigger picture.
As the door slid shut behind Fei, Xu's gaze wandered to the city skyline beyond his office, neon lights buzzing faintly in the distance.
"If he can't find who's behind this..." Xu mused quietly, "...at least he can take care of Sorge. That bastard's been a thorn in my side for way too long."
______________________________________________________
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to Patreøn.
[https://www.patreøn.com/amattsu]
The link is also in the synopsis.