Morning Star had clearly stated the risks of assaulting the moon. There were three main difficulties.
First, the moon's network was harder to penetrate than Earth's. She needed time to ascertain the situation at Arasaka's lunar base to pinpoint Saburo's location and plan an operational route for Mercer.
Second, being on the moon, a forceful intrusion would likely be detected before it even began, leading to an immediate counterattack. In space, even a small tear in one's equipment could be fatal.
Therefore, it was highly probable that Mercer would have to undertake a stealth operation without much equipment.
Third was the matter of how to delta.
If any risks or accidents occurred, the difficulty of escaping on the moon was far greater than on Earth. They would need an escape pod to return to Earth. If an immediate return wasn't possible, they would need to find a space station or lunar base to dock at temporarily and wait for a return flight.
Mercer was confident that Morning Star would find a way to solve the first problem. As long as the general location of the target was confirmed, he would personally complete the hack and infiltration.
With Morning Star's current computing power and software capabilities, there were probably only a handful of AIs and engrams in the world that could withstand her hacking, no, that could even detect her hacking in the first place.
But the remaining two problems were more troublesome.
Currently, only three organizations held any power on the moon.
One was the ESA, the only organization that, on paper, controlled the lunar orbital weapons and possessed a base on the moon. Their strength was beyond question.
But Mercer had no connection with them. From a purely interest-based perspective, killing Saburo would be beneficial to them, but what reason would they have to help Mercer escape?
Another party was Arasaka.
Logically, after killing Saburo, Yorinobu should have the authority to help Mercer and his team return via Arasaka's channels. Yet, Mercer didn't trust Yorinobu Arasaka in the slightest.
He had failed to send a warning as promised during Takemura's first attack. And now, upon returning with Silverhand's Relic biochip, he had changed his mind and demanded Mercer get it himself, all of this amply demonstrated that Yorinobu's credibility was not high.
The third power was Orbital Air.
However, having learned about Lilith beforehand, Mercer roughly understood that this company, seemingly controlled by a group of extraterrestrial space colonists, was now likely a pawn of the rogue AIs on the moon.
Counting on them for help? Considering he had handed over all the AIs from the Cynosure facility to Alt, Mercer was now more worried that if his plan leaked, that entity named Lilith might even jump out and attack him midway.
Thus, all three delta plans were risky, and Mercer himself currently lacked the ability to build his own rocket, it wasn't a matter of technology, but that building a manned spacecraft required not just tech, but industrial power.
If he had to rely on smuggling parts to build a rocket from scratch, Mercer estimated that Saburo Arasaka would have already completed his Edo Tensei by then.
What was particularly terrifying was that once Saburo Arasaka deemed the technology mature, the crazy old bastard might back up his consciousness code more than once, allowing himself to be resurrected at any time.
It would turn into a game of whack-a-mole, where knocking out one Saburo would just cause another to pop up... Alright, Mercer seriously suspected the old man might even choose not to resurrect at all after becoming an engram.
Look at Alt. Wasn't she quite content with her life as an engram now? Who knew what Saburo would think once he reached that stage?
Not to mention, once Mercer's identity was exposed, he had no doubt that Saburo would immediately use all means at his disposal, including nuclear weapons, to destroy any area Mercer might possibly be in.
If the war escalated to that point, Mercer thought he might just become the spark for the Fifth Corporate War...
Then what was all his hard work for? To accelerate the world's destruction? Ha, he might as well just give up and enjoy life now.
Mercer racked his brains, but for a short while, he couldn't figure out how to solve this third problem.
However, he did have a bit of a solution for the second problem.
Unable to carry individual combat armor or other conspicuous weapons for a stealth mission? Ha, wasn't this a return to Mercer's original combat style?
He could just use netrunning programs to deal with enemies, right?
What Mercer needed, then, was a simple and brutal large-scale destructive program. This program needed to have extremely strong destructive power, capable of forcibly hacking into various devices and inflicting devastating damage, regardless of equipment disparities.
And as it happened, he had something on hand that had been shelved for being too risky but was a veritable cyber-weapon of mass destruction.
That was the Blackwall Gateway protocol left behind by Militech in the Cynosure facility, along with the production components for its matching cyberdeck.
The Blackwall Gateway protocol was a special program that could invoke the Blackwall. It could be simply understood as having mastered a vulnerability in the Blackwall's programming, allowing one to directly guide the Blackwall to attack while connected to the Net.
The reason there was also a set of matching cyberdeck production components was that the process of guiding the Blackwall was extremely damaging to the human body and demanded a very high level of skill from the netrunner. The slightest mistake could cause the Blackwall to lose control and attack indiscriminately.
So, in Militech's design, it was best to have an AI placed in a cyberdeck to be responsible for guiding the use of the Blackwall Protocol.
And this set of cyberdeck components, known as the Militech Canto Mk.6, was a special device that could house an AI and use it to launch attacks.
But to Mercer, this piece of equipment was essentially no different from the cyberdeck he had previously acquired from Arasaka. The only difference was the internal hardware, which was optimized for different programs.
The former had hardware adapted for the Soulkiller program, while the latter was optimized for the Blackwall.
With Mercer's current technical capabilities, this kind of hardware was the easy part. He could assemble one himself following the components left by NetWatch, or even design a new one without issue.
And his current set of cyberware, having been chromed from Arasaka's professional netrunner cyberware, was even stronger than before. Of course, the price was that his current level of being chromed was now in no way inferior to Songbird's.
The most difficult part was the software, the Blackwall Gateway.
Alt's attitude towards Mercer using the Blackwall was one of disapproval and non-support, with verbal objections, but that was all.
But Mercer was very worried. What if this thing goes on a killing spree and mistakes me for an AI... Was there such a possibility?
This was also why Mercer had held off on touching the Blackwall. But now, considering the difficulty of going to the moon, he had to start thinking about how to utilize the Blackwall's power to give himself a weapon of mass destruction that could be deployed at any time.
The hacking viruses in the ctOS, or rather the current Skynet system, were excellent at stripping away device permissions, but in terms of sheer destructive power, they were far inferior to the Blackwall.
And because Mercer had only fought in one-sided battles before, he really hadn't delved into purely offensive programs like the Blackwall or R.A.B.I.D.S.
But now, Mercer had to study it himself.
And the most suitable, most dangerous, and most powerful thing for him to study right now was, naturally, the Blackwall.
Thus, after his chat with Morning Star, Mercer added another important project to his already multi-tasking research schedule.
In a flash, another month passed quietly. The spring of 2076 arrived, and as Night City welcomed its first spring rain, Mercer also received an unexpected call for help.
The person asking for help was Songbird.
[Songbird: Mercer, listen to me, I really need your help. I'm about to die.]
[Mercer: What's going on?]
[Songbird: My body can't take it anymore. I'm coughing up blood, fainting, and I even lost control once... The Blackwall is driving me crazy!]
[Mercer: Why me?]
[Songbird: Only you can help me!]
[Mercer: Don't get excited. How about you explain the situation clearly?]
[Songbird: ...Do you remember Lilith, the one I told you about last time?]
[Mercer: I remember warning you to stay away from her. She's more dangerous than you think. Don't contact her, and don't respond.]
[Songbird: I know! But I have no choice! Mercer, I just want to live!]
[Mercer: So, Lilith promised to save you, but you have to do things for her? You've jumped from the wolf's den into the tiger's lair.]
[Songbird: But at least I can stay alive that way! Mercer, you have no idea what the NUSA is doing to me!]
Mercer's expression was somewhat cold. While pondering Songbird's situation, he remained in a deep dive state, his computing power boosted, simultaneously advancing multiple research projects.
[Songbird: Please, can you help me? We've known each other for a long time...]
[Mercer: You know this will drag me into big trouble, and there are many people behind me who depend on me to live. Do you understand?]
[Songbird: Listen to me, the thing I need might not be useful to you. I'll find a way to compensate you!]
[Mercer: Why don't you guess why that thing named Lilith has never dared to approach me, but hooked up with you instead?]
[Songbird: You mean... you've already cleared out the Cynosure facility!?]
[Mercer: It only sees you as a little pawn to scout the way, understand? Have you ever told it that you know me?]
[Songbird: Of course not! I'm not that stupid!]
[Mercer: Listen, if you're confident this conversation isn't being monitored by Lilith, let's meet in a deep dive at the old place.]
Songbird unhesitatingly sent a 'No problem.'
Mercer briefly paused his other projects, then jumped IPs to meet at the address where he and Songbird occasionally had their "private meetings."
Songbird quickly came online, her entire icon appearing somewhat blurry at first. "I guarantee our conversation is secure."
"Good. It seems you might still be salvageable."
Mercer mocked her without reservation. "I know you yearn for freedom and want to live, but don't get desperate and turn to just anyone. And don't even think about selling me out. I don't have a good temper like Reed. My friends are terrifying too."
Songbird's face looked somewhat haggard. "Mercer, I know. That's why you were the first person I thought of after I made contact with Lilith..."
"Is that so?" Mercer gave a noncommittal laugh. "First, tell me what Lilith wants."
"Mercer... I need a Neural Matrix device left in the Cynosure facility..." Before Songbird could finish, Mercer cut her off bluntly. "She wants the AI inside it."
"Yes..." Songbird's expression turned desolate and urgent. She tried to approach Mercer but found that the distance between them remained fixed at a safe range, which meant Mercer had enabled IP hopping in his network defense.
His cautious action made Songbird's heart sink.
"That thing is not in my hands," Mercer said truthfully. "Someone else intercepted that rogue AI."
"How is that possible!? The Neural Matrix device is like a digital cage that's absolutely impossible to open from the inside... You let it go? No, that's not right. Lilith clearly doesn't know someone took that rogue AI..."
Songbird's words caught Mercer's attention.
Mercer asked directly, "Are you sure Lilith doesn't know? I was attacked by rogue AIs while exploring the base."
"If she knew, why would she still want me to go to the Cynosure facility? And promise to put me on an Orbital Air ship as long as I can get the Neural Matrix device from the Cynosure facility."
Lilith said in disbelief.
Mercer narrowed his eyes. "Does she want the device, or the AI?"
"She meant the rogue AI is in the device. As long as I get the device, I just need to breach it and release the AI..."
Songbird said, and Mercer fell into deep thought.
Seeing Mercer silent for a moment, Songbird also fell into contemplation. Her icon flickered, becoming blurry at times. Mercer glanced at her twice and said, "You do look terrible."
"It's beyond terrible. I originally thought that even as a tool, I'd at least get some time for maintenance and repairs when I couldn't hold on anymore."
Songbird said self-deprecatingly, "But now it seems that as long as my brain is still turning, I'll probably have to keep slaving away for them until I'm paralyzed in a hospital bed."
Mercer looked at her and asked, "Are you trying to leave because your body can't take it anymore, or because you truly want freedom?"
Mercer's question made Songbird fall silent for a moment, but in the end, she answered truthfully, "My body can still hold on for a while. At least the NUSA's medical technology can keep me going for a long time, but this kind of life... it's too hard to bear, Mercer. I really envy you, being your own master now, with your own territory, able to take care of a large group of people around you. And me? I have nothing left. No friends, no family, no lover. I'm just locked in a cage, ordered around like livestock, like a machine... I want to live freely, Mercer. We're both netrunners. No one understands the importance of that phrase 'to live freely' better than us, right?"
Songbird believed Mercer would definitely understand. The guy's track record showed he was practically a Bartmoss the Second.
He worked for Arasaka, then blew up an Arasaka base and ran. Later, he joined Dogtown, then zeroed Hansen and took over. No matter how you looked at it, he wasn't the type to just get by and take things as they come.
Mercer just nodded and continued to ponder. "How about this. You go back and tell her the AI inside is gone. See what she does."
Songbird remained silent, clenching her fists. "I was thinking... what if we just pretend the thing is still inside? As long as I get that device, I can..."
"Don't be stupid, girl." Mercer shattered her fantasy with a sigh, disabled his IP protection, walked to her side, and patted her on the shoulder. "That will only get you hurt."
Songbird lowered her head. After a long moment, she said, "What do you want in exchange for it?"
"You think I'm negotiating with you?" Mercer was so exasperated he laughed, rolled his eyes, and then said, "Fine. Then just do as I say. See how Lilith reacts. Remember to tell her you found all this out on your own. As long as you hide our connection... maybe we can help each other out one more time."
Songbird was torn. She looked at Mercer. To be honest, she couldn't trust him either. Or rather, she just wanted to live, and for that, she found it hard to trust anyone.
Mercer just looked at her calmly and said seriously, "I might have a use for Lilith. If I can use her once to help me accomplish what I need to do, providing you with a safe place to stay in return is not out of the question."
Songbird looked at Mercer. "What do you want to use me for?"
"I want to go to the moon. A round-trip ticket. I go, and I have to be brought back. If that can't be done... I'll have to think of another way."
Mercer sighed, but Songbird frowned. "Even though you have a warrant out for your arrest, if you really want to go, you just need a 200,000 eurodollar ticket to fly to the moon..."
"You know what I'm going to do definitely isn't something that can be done out in the open, right?" Mercer was unwilling to say more, just stating, "That's it. First, you help me figure out what Lilith really wants."
Songbird just looked at him pitifully. "But what if Lilith finds out there's a problem? What should I do?"
"You're not afraid of being used by Lilith, of being played for a fool by her promise of a life-saving trip to the moon, so why are you suddenly getting scared with me? My medical skills are pretty good too. Why don't you just come to me, and I'll cure you?"
Mercer wasn't kidding. While he might not be top-tier in other fields, when it came to neurology, his skills were truly among the best in the world.
Whether from the data level of engrams, or the technical experience accumulated from studying his own brain and cyberware operating systems, as well as his research on the Relic biochip, it was all enough to make Mercer confident in his neurological skills.
And in the world of cybernetics, other physical problems could be solved with a simple word: "replace." Bionic or mechanical bodies, take your pick.
A problem that Lilith could cure, and the NUSA could cure, Mercer felt he could probably fix for Songbird if he tried.
Her problem was nothing more than neurological damage from too much contact with the Blackwall. Mercer pushed his own nerves to their limits almost every day. On this issue, he was truly an authority.
Just by constantly observing how his own brain was slightly fried and then naturally repaired, Mercer could write dozens of megabytes of different medical papers.
"Mercer..." Songbird just said with a pessimistic look, "You know the NUSA won't let me go. If I go to you, it will only bring disaster upon us both."
"I know you're worried I can't protect you... Listen, as preem as the NUSA is, they're only so-so. I can send you to European NetWatch territory, to Hong Kong, to Arasaka territory. There's always a place where you can live in peace and anonymity. And if you don't plan on giving up your netrunning career, we might even have a way to help you pull a 'golden cicada sheds its shell' and start a new life... In short, for your predicament, it's not that I don't have a solution, but the premise is, you have to be worth me doing so."
Mercer's confident appearance swayed Songbird a little, but she still cautiously confirmed, "Are you serious about all this? Mercer, can you really do it?"
"First, help me ask Lilith about the situation and see what she really wants. After that, I'll discuss the details with you, okay? I promise, even in the worst-case scenario where Lilith can't help you, you still have me. I have ways to send you to a safe place."
Mercer spoke with great confidence, and Songbird could only agree tentatively. She had no other choice. "Okay, I promise. I'll contact you again after I hear from Lilith."
"By the way, since you're here, do me a favor."
Mercer stopped Songbird, who was about to log off.
Being the one asking for a favor, Songbird could only immediately stop logging off. "What is it? You actually need my help with something?"
"Uh-huh... I want to study this thing."
As Mercer's voice fell, the IP they were on began to jump. Then, Songbird's heart nearly stopped.
Intertwined lines of black and red separated heaven and earth, like a laser wall stretching to the ends of the Net.
"You want to study the Blackwall!?" she almost shrieked. She was trying to escape precisely because of this damn thing, yet Mercer had brought her back to the edge of the cursed Blackwall?
"Yes." Mercer said in a matter-of-fact tone, then, slightly correcting his wording, "Also, it's not really studying... but breaching."
"Breach the Blackwall? You must be insane! This thing shouldn't be touched by humans! Look what's become of me!?"
"Unfortunately, for certain reasons, I don't dare touch it. To draw out the Blackwall's attack programs and let me see the code characteristics and attack patterns clearly, I need a professional netrunner to help me guide the Blackwall to attack..."
"..."
Songbird held it in for a long time, but in the end, she still couldn't resist.
"Fuck!"