Chapter 151: V Suspended
The heavy metal doors of the manufactorum slid slowly shut after David and Maine's crew departed, momentarily sealing off the noise of the outside world.
However, the processing core within Joric's massive chassis did not cease its operations just because of the superficial silence. His "indifference" to David's kidnapping was merely an external manifestation based on efficiency considerations.
In his logic, an apprentice-candidate who had not yet proven his worth, and a low-level conflict triggered by local internal corporate strife, were insufficient reasons to interrupt his deep analysis of Bartmoss's neural structural model.
But this did not mean he was ignorant of the events.
Quite the contrary. From the moment David stepped into the "Stillwater" Clinic and the monitoring sub-routine transmitted abnormal fluctuations in his bio-signals, Joric's attention had already spawned an independent thread. Like a silent ghost, it infiltrated the intricate digital veins of Night City.
He did not leave the console; his crimson optical lenses remained locked on the microscopic structural map of Bartmoss's cortex.
However, several slender mechadendrites had quietly jacked into the reinforced data ports within the workshop.
His consciousness—or rather, a part of his highly developed logic-processing core—had transformed into an invisible data stream, merging into the city's vast information network.
His "sight" first commandeered the municipal surveillance cameras around the clinic.
Pixelated footage was reassembled and optimized in his core, presenting clear, real-time images: David entering the clinic, Rebecca and Lucy waiting anxiously outside, the unmarked black van leaving via the rear exit...
This visual information cross-referenced with the physiological data from the sub-routine in David, rapidly constructing the event's basic outline—a precise corporate kidnapping.
Next, his sensory tendrils spread along the data cables.
He effortlessly bypassed the seemingly formidable cyber-defenses of Arasaka's Logistics Zone 7.
These firewalls, top-tier by local standards, were as fragile as paper before his data-processing protocols, which were thirty thousand years ahead of this era.
He "saw" the internal schematics of the underground lab and "heard" the encrypted comms between Tanaka and his subordinates regarding the "Cyberskeleton" project and David.
He even accessed the real-time surveillance inside the lab, watching David strapped to a medical table, connected to various monitoring devices.
When Maine's crew acted on their intel, intercepting Tanaka and engaging Arasaka security forces, Joric's monitoring net expanded accordingly.
He simultaneously accessed and controlled multiple surveillance nodes near the firefight zone, civilian comms towers, and even the passive sensor streams of several NCPD AVs patrolling nearby airspace.
In his consciousness-space, these multi-source data streams were efficiently integrated, forming a three-dimensional, near-real-time battlefield situation map.
He "saw" Maine's crew returning fire from cover, "saw" the tactical movements of Arasaka security, and "heard" the commands and shouts on both encrypted channels.
It was all like watching ants fight in a glass box; every detail was calmly recorded and analyzed.
When Jenkins accessed Maine's comms via the Fixer channel, Joric naturally "auditied" the entire process.
He was unsurprised by Jenkins' compromise.
Corporate logic was about maximizing gain and minimizing harm. After assessing the potential damage Maine's crew (or rather, the vague threat they represented) could cause versus the value of a Technical Director and a failing project, choosing the exchange was the option that maximized interest.
However, Joric's processing core deduced the likely chain reaction of Jenkins' move almost instantly.
He immediately allocated a portion of his computational power to intensify monitoring of Arasaka's internal encrypted comms channels, focusing on high-frequency data exchanges between the Japan HQ and the Night City branch.
Sure enough, shortly after the hostage exchange was completed, an encrypted data stream marked "Highest Priority / HQ Direct Order" arrived at the receiver atop Arasaka Tower in Night City.
Joric's intrusion program, like a phantom parasite, silently attached itself to this stream, decoding the information synchronously.
The packet contained not direct orders, but a series of severe interrogations: regarding the Night City branch's recent string of "weak" performances, Counter-Intelligence's "passivity" and "incompetence" in handling "external threats," and an assessment of Jenkins' personal leadership capabilities...
The wording was cold, filled with displeasure from a higher authority.
Joric calmly "watched" all of this.
He saw the reply messages Jenkins sent attempting to explain and salvage the situation, but they sank like stones in the ocean.
Following closely came another command from HQ—more concise, more lethal.
It ordered the immediate removal of Jenkins from all positions as Director of Arasaka Night City Counter-Intelligence, requiring his immediate return to Tokyo to report for duty and undergo internal review.
"Liquidation protocol initiated," Joric's synthesized voice whispered in the silent workshop, as if recording an objective fact.
His monitoring network captured the brief abnormal fluctuation from the bio-monitor in Jenkins' office when he was officially notified of his dismissal—the physiological reaction of fear and despair.
Subsequent developments played out like a fast-forwarded tape.
Joric "saw" Jenkins leave Arasaka Tower under the "escort" of several "Internal Auditors" dispatched from HQ.
His surveillance even tracked the unmarked luxury sedan carrying Jenkins as it drove toward the harbor.
Surveillance cameras along the route were temporarily jammed by some authority for several minutes, but when the signal was restored, Jenkins' bio-sign had permanently vanished from Joric's monitoring list.
Combining the vehicle's stopping location with the subsequent departure record of a small Arasaka-owned freighter, the conclusion was self-evident—Jenkins' body had been sunk to the bottom of Night City's cold sea.
Almost simultaneously, another liquidation order was issued, targeting Jenkins' capable lieutenant, Valerie (V).
Joric's monitoring network captured Valerie's flight arriving at the Night City spaceport.
The moment she cleared customs and stepped into the arrivals hall, her personal terminal screen suddenly turned red and locked; all her Arasaka clearances were forcibly revoked remotely.
In the surveillance feed, Valerie's steps faltered, her expression freezing for an instant.
She almost immediately regained her superficial composure, but Joric, through micro-expression analysis modules, captured the sudden contraction of her pupils and the slight acceleration of the pulse in her neck, revealing the storm within.
She failed to leave the arrivals hall.
Two corporate security agents disguised as airport greeters approached rapidly, blocking her path.
One of them spoke in a low voice, "Ms. Valerie. Corporate orders. Please cooperate with the handover."
Joric synchronously intercepted the command in their encrypted earpieces: "Target confirmed. Execute 'Termination of Employment' protocol. Disable all registered implants. Forcible extraction authorized. Neutralize if resistance encountered."
The moment her primary combat cyberware was remotely disconnected, Valerie, relying on the slight edge provided by unregistered backup implants and her rich combat experience, launched a sudden counterattack as the agent reached for her.
She drew a concealed compact taser from inside her trench coat with swift movement.
Combat erupted on the edge of the crowded hall, brief and lethal.
In the surveillance footage, figures crossed rapidly.
An abrupt gunshot drowned out the noise—one security agent had fired at close range.
The bullet struck Valerie's left arm with precision, the massive kinetic energy instantly shattering it.
Valerie grunted, her face turning pale, but she didn't stop.
Using the brief gap after the shot and the panic of the surrounding crowd, she fought through the agonizing pain, dropped the shooter with the taser, and shoved the other agent aside.
She didn't linger to fight. She immediately triggered a nearby manual fire alarm. Amidst the piercing siren, clutching her broken arm, she stumbled into the chaotic crowd, quickly slipping into an "Employees Only" maintenance corridor, vanishing from primary surveillance view.
(End of Chapter)