Mercer chuckled and shook his head, "Just say what you need to, no need for all this... don't do it next time."
At this moment, in the apartment's room, Sasha was sitting on the sofa in the living room, while Dolio was busy in the kitchen. The dining table was filled with plenty of delicious food, like steak and pasta.
Dolio smiled at Mercer and greeted him, "You're here? Come in and sit down, everything is almost ready."
Sasha, however, looked preoccupied, merely casting a complex glance at Mercer, wanting to speak but hesitating.
Mercer nodded at Dolio, then lazily leaned back on the sofa and said, "Alright, spill it... what's this all about?"
Upon seeing the setup, along with Sasha's expression, he already guessed what was going on.
It must be that Sasha went through the data chip Mercer gave to Mann, who was supposed to pass it to Faraday.
Inside were not only the necessary immunization data for the mission given by Mann and the transport team's intelligence, but also some black information Mercer had thrown in, pretending it was bundled from the biotech server.
Among it was heavyweight experimental data recording the 'Safety Spirit side effects'.
He did it on purpose.
Although telling Sasha the truth felt a bit cruel, Mercer thought, the data would eventually be made public sooner or later, likely after taking down Diana Kuno, where he would immediately expose it and make a profit from the stock market.
Since Sasha would have to find out sooner or later, he might as well let her know in advance, which would further solidify the Mann Squad's determination to 'hit biotech hard'.
Mercer was prepared to receive a call from Sasha or Mann any time, but didn't expect... that even this broad-minded person understood the principle of eating at someone's table and wished to bring the matter to the dinner table.
With a family meal, if someone needed help, it would be hard for him to refuse.
Luckily, Mercer didn't plan on refusing anyway — favors are something that is built by helping one another.
"It's nothing really... just that Sasha wants to know more about the Safety Spirit drug, I thought you might know, and it's a personal matter for her, so they wanted to discuss it with you privately."
Mann smiled, eagerly handing him a can of cola.
Mercer heard this, and turned to Sasha, feigning ignorance: "Why are you curious about the Safety Spirit?"
"My mother died because of that drug." Sasha looked rather weary, lacking her usual clever and mischievous aura, her entire presence seemed somewhat gloomy.
After taking a deep breath to stabilize her emotions, she looked at Mercer and pleaded, "If you know more about the Safety Spirit, can you tell me?
Also... I kept a copy of the data, the one that exposes the fake side effects of Safety Spirit, I want to release it to the media, can I?"
"And then?" Mercer asked.
Sasha was a bit taken aback, "And then?"
"Even if I tell you more, what do you plan to do? I can tell you clearly, the developers of this drug are far away in Europe.
And those who pushed it to market without confirming the extent of the side effects were the project supervisors.
But ultimately, the tragedy was caused by the entire upper echelon of biotech.
Because within just a month of the drug hitting the market, they've received many reports of deaths caused by the drug's side effects, knowing early on that the side effect potential was greater than expected.
Yet they still chose to hide it for the market's and company's reputation."
After Mercer finished, he paused, speaking again, "I've told you everything, what do you plan to do now?"
"Report it to the media first..." Sasha didn't finish her sentence before Mercer interrupted her: "Which media outlet?"
"Channel 54 News." No sooner had Sasha spoken than Mercer laughed: "Nice choice, Channel 54 News is backed by Military Science, and right now Military Science is in a honeymoon phase with Biotech. Do you think the news will get out?"
"But aren't we trying to ruin their investment this time?" Sasha said, biting her lip, her emotions a bit stirred, "If not 54, then I'll find another media outlet, even an independent one!"
"Then the stock price fluctuates a bit, Biotech finds a few scapegoats to bow and apologize, and conveniently announces some 'new drug developments,' or a potential ethanol 2 crop decline next quarter, and the stock price goes back up."
As Mercer finished speaking, Sasha replied in a slightly trembling voice, "Then tell me what I should do! What should I do?"
He remained silent, slightly leaning forward, gazing into her eyes: "Don't ask me, ask yourself, what do you really want to do?"
"I want Biotech to pay! I want revenge! I want them out of Night City!" Sasha's raised voice led Mann and Dolio to exchange glances.
But at that moment, Mercer laughed.
Sasha felt a mix of sadness and anger, her first reaction was that he was ridiculing her.
But then, Mercer simply extended his hand.
She slightly hesitated.
"Good, now we're on the same page."
Mercer tilted his head, then laughed lightly: "Just a news release? How boring... if you're going for revenge, it has to really hurt them."
"Why?" Sasha asked, somewhat confused.
Did Biotech harm him too?
Mercer simply stated calmly, "Because I despise these profit-driven scums, not just Biotech, but all those like them, it's as simple as that.
If you just want a news story as a vengeance excuse to deceive yourself, I can help, but I'm not interested in just that.
But if you genuinely want revenge, want justice for your late relatives and others suffering under Biotech's hands...
Then we're comrades, Davarri."
Sasha stared at him blankly for a while, then suddenly extended her hand, grasping his firmly: "Da (Good)! As long as you're truly intent on making Biotech pay, I'm in."
"Hey!" Mann interrupted with a half-annoyed, half-amused tone: "A, haven't you got enough hackers at home? Now you're pulling in my last one."
"I'm not here for just one." Mercer said, releasing his grip and turning to Mann with a sincere tone: "You've heard everything I just said... Mann, after this commission, think about it seriously.
There are many things I want to do, but I don't have enough trusted people around me yet.
I'm not recruiting subordinates, but seeking like-minded comrades, family who care for each other."
Mann glanced at Dolio, and they both shared a helpless smile.
Oh well...
It seems Mercer is after the whole team.
A third time's a charm, this time Mann did not refuse but replied in a serious tone: "If everyone comes through this hurdle smoothly after this job... I'll join you."
Different from the collaborations agreed upon before, this time Mann also gave a firm response.
And Mercer, with a smile, released Sasha's hand, which was still somewhat gripping him excitedly, shrugging, "That's great! Now that it's come to this..."
Everyone watched him, eager to hear what else he had in mind.
"Let's eat first." Mercer said with a relaxed tone.
Then, looking at the expressions on their faces, he burst into laughter: "What, you don't think I'll drag you to blow up Biotech's building right this moment, do you?"
He turned to look at Sasha, voice full of amusement: "Look at you, like you haven't slept for days... Today, just eat your fill, get a good night's rest, I assure you, soon enough you'll have a chance to vent out your frustration.
The Safety Spirit issue will also be exposed soon, I promise you that."
"...Thank you!" Sasha said, eyes glistening, nodding vigorously in agreement.
Meanwhile, Mann glanced at Dolio, shaking his head, then shrugged relaxedly: "Looks like joining their past is inevitable."
"Isn't that great?"
Dolio simply smiled and handed him a piece of waffle: "Now you won't have to stress as much, no more complaining about not finding good jobs, worrying about everyone's future."
"Yeah, now it's A's turn to worry..." Mann said, turning his head but suddenly froze.
Mercer removed his mask, casually putting it aside, then slightly smirked at the three shocked individuals.
Hehe...
Time to give you all a little age shock.