Jacqueline Broche looked in awe at the Titans sitting with her in the Pelican.
To the other scientist, working with Spartans was a common occurence. As a man born in a colony planet and working for UNSC Revenant for the past 5 years or so, he got used to these sci fi demigods quite quickly.
To someone that was a former Biotechnica scientist before being fired? These people were the epitome of what she wanted to do in Biotechnica - a perfectly modified soldier, shining example of Humanities' next step in evolution.
A dream that she thought was impossible to achieve.
So please, don't mind her grinning ear to ear like a fan-girl of Kerry Eurodyne meeting the singer in person.
"You guys got the defuser?" The leader of Fire team Titan: Spartan Abraham spoke through his Notus helmet.
"Of course we do, sir."
"Good. When I go down that water and grab a sea mine, I want you two-" Spartan Abraham pointed at Spartan Rod and Bush, two who were wearing EOD helmets. "- to come down with the defuser. We've already got info that this is a rogue AI controlled self-replicating mine. If we want them to stop popping up in our sea, the defuser is the key."
Spartan Rocke, the one wearing… the Rampart helmet, surprisingly, let out a gruff chuckle as he quipped.
"We get it, Dr Seuss. Let's hurry up and stop a bang from going off in the ocean."
Spartan Abraham let out a short snicker.
"… The assembly drones we have stocked up here will create a platform that will be Reds and Blues' new ocean operating lab once ALL the sea mines in our territory has been deactivated. The rest of you are going to be taking those deactivated mines and safely dismantling them on the platform, ok? This is an important job folks -"
"""But it's just another Tuesday in the end.""" They finished in unison.
The Pelican door opened, and Broche watched as Notus jumped into the ocean below.
Zipping down thanks to gravity acting on his massive weight, he caused a giant splash threatening to form a wave.
The other Spartans watched, waiting for their leader to surface back up.
There- one of the Spartans spoke as Notus came back up holding a sea mine
That was the signal as Rod and Bush jumped off the Pelican and into the waters.
Rod took out a defuser. It wasn't anything corporeal or physical, no. It was-
- a Dumb AI. RedWire, it was called.
Hilarious, I know. You can blame Khyl' for that joke, it was one of his attempts at practising human humour.
"Do it." Rod answered, as Bush opened up the sea mine panel to look at the interior at the same time.
This thing needed to be physically disabled if the AI was going to try the next step.
RedWire spoke as Abraham swore he could hear some sort of electronic scream resonate from inside the mine.
"RedWire, the hell was that?"
"Jesus, no wonder it screamed." Bush snarked as he dismantled a few circuits out.
"And… done. Charge won't be setting itself off anytime soon."
"Noted. RedWire, we can do a full scan of the software now."
Rod and Bush let out a chuckle. For a dumb AI, RedWire had quite the sadistic personality.
Simultaneously, the sound of mechanical screams were heard, but just as quickly drowned out by the sound of tides crashing into the water it was formed from.
It used to be programmed as Destroy enemy vessels, with a rogue logic causing it to go renegade and haywire.
Such is the painful and cruel fate for an AI when it decides to be disobedient: Lobotomised bit by bit, region by region, by the digital equivalent of their higher form.
And with that,
"Rocke! Tell them to make the Platform! We need you guys to help with picking up these bombs!"
The Ocean was theirs.
-oOo-
[Spartan Badger: This ad is sponsored by All Foods, one of our brand new partners that requested one of us in the Reds and Blues to talk about the ingredients that WE make that is now in THEIR product.
Spartan Badger & Announcer Voice: Let's roll
Spartan Badger: Round Meal? Oh man,
Spartan Heaven: Yeah
Spartan Badger: On the Round Meal, it says feeds THREE MEN.
Spartan Heaven: MEN
Spartan Badger: Like, SPECIFICALLY.
Spartan Heaven: WOMEN. CANNOT. EAT THIS.
Spartan Badger Off Screen: Hold on. HOL' UP
Spartan Badger now On screen, with Spartan Heaven now Off screen: round meal.
Spartan Badger, slowly corpsing as he reads the labels: MACARONI AND… BEEF. Serves three men. How to dohoo it… BOIL IN BA-HAHA-G. OP-HE-EN AND ENJO-HO-HO-Y!
Spartan Geuce off screen: Oh my god.
Spartan Heaven: I wanna… I wanna see… just like a line up of every motherfucker… who has ever purchased that-
Spartan Badger: PROTEIN-BLASTED.
Announcer: ROUND MEAL, BY ALL FOODS WITH THE HELP OF REDS AND BLUES. FEEDS THREE MEN. PROTEIN BLASTED. COMES WITH THREE DIFFERENT VERSIONS: MACARONI AND CHEESE, TACO AND GUACAMOLE, TERIYAKI BEEF.
AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL STORES RIGHT NOW.]
A remote flew into the screen, shattering the TV and cutting off the ad.
Amelio Loggagia stood in front of the giant TV screen mounted on his office wall.
His jaw was clenched and his veins were popping out from his forehead.
Fuming.
He was absolutely Fuming.
His late father Nicolo Loggagia was the founder of Biotechnica. And even when he had stepped down from the position of leader, he still drived the company into success with his colleagues in the board of directors.
Then the Konpeki Plaza mass disappearance hit, and Amelio was left with trusting his own guts.
His guts was very mad at making decisions. And the company was taking the full brunt of his decisions.
Reds and Blues was a new company. Hell, with how fast they were building and growing they might as well be called a Megacorp.
No one suspected that a company selling top of the line cheap cars would suddenly take away pretty much all of Biotechnica's contracts.
All Food products made from Reds and Blue's agriculture was selling at all time high. Just recently they had released Round Meal, and if the last two food products made from the ingredients patented by Reds and Blues told Amelio anything, it was that this was going to be a sure fire hit as well.
At the cost of Biotechnica's stock and future, Amelio growled to himself.
The past few weeks had been hell. HELL. He was forced to run the company by himself (For the first time in his life), His biggest partnership with Petrochem went down the drain when Petrochem's CEO decided to jump ship and get a special deal with Reds and Blues (Amelio didn't even suspect that such chance may have arised in the first place thanks to him fucking Petrochem over by taking 20% of their patent deal and giving it to another company), and the other Food-production Megacorps were slowly dipping out one by one once they heard of a potentially better prospect with Reds and Blues and their higher quality crops.
To top it all off, Petrochem spies witnessed all these replacements be built in a single night, like they were 3D printed.
Reds and Blues forced Amelio to go for the drastic measure. The old company trick that always worked: Their signature artificial plague.
It did jack shit to Reds and Blues' products.
Amelio had been grinning ear to ear when he first ordered the plague to be deployed on the Algae farms that Reds and Blues set up for Petrochem. He waited for the news that the Algae completely shrivelled up and died off, never to be grown again.
Oh how he waited for Lars to crawl back to his office on all fours, begging to keep the CHOOH2 patent deal. Amelio was already planning on cutting the share down to 30%, making Lars suffer for his decision to double cross him.
Then the results came in.
'Sir, it didn't do anything.'
'… Run that by me again?'
'The plague… their algae farm wasn't affected by the plague. They… they're still growing, sir. They're not stopping, they're not slowing down.'
Amelio threw the file at the scientist in frustration. No, fucking that could have… that can't be happening.
That can't be happening!
The other crops the Reds and Blues had under their belt was the same. Crops grew whether or not Biotechnica deployed airborne plagues on them. Nothing haltered their growth, nothing haltered their progress.
And to make matters worse, the Night City division of Biotechnica reported that grasses and soil was popping up in the badlands.
Land was getting restored, land that was ruined by drought - ruined as an aftereffect of their plague.
What-why? How? HOW?
The next thing Biotechnica did when the plague failed its job, was to target Genjiro instead. They heard enough - the former Arasaka executive, former hobo, and now the executive of Reds and Blues in charge of establishing connections and getting contracts under the Megacorps' belt.
He was the main man that was shipping products left and right, stealing Biotechnica's seat when they were on a 'temporary' set back.
Yeah, temporary. Temporary. Amelio convinced himself. It was only a temporary setback. It should've been a temporary set back. It should've been. IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN.
They didn't know if they wanted to risk another corporate war this early, but that didn't matter. They just needed Genjiro dead, assassinated if possible.
They hired few of the best edgerunner crews they could find in Night City (For some reason, the gig never reached the Baba Yaga. If it did, Baba Yaga didn't answer) to go after Genjiro.
All Amelio got in return was an XVD distributed around the streets: Edgerunner crew, attempting to either snipe the salesman from afar or running in gung-ho.
There was always these… these full'borgs and these team of military troopers, ready to shield him in a blink of an eye. Some yellow energy particle causing the bullets to bounce of harmlessly.
Just like… just like those two videos of the Baba Yagas.
Those giants dressed similarly to the Baba Yagas too. Not exactly identical, but few of the Megacorps were catching on to similar details.
They were catching on to how strong both of them were too, punting a heavily chromed solo across the desert like he was some… football.
Shots fired back at the assailants way too accurately. Eerily so.
Those titans of armour had to be full'borgs, and those soldiers had to be chromed with military grade implants.
Jesus christ, Genjiro was guarded by a group of Adam Smashers. Where did Reds and Blues manage to find them?
Amelio had to watch as Reds and Blues slowly replaced their empire, and everything they had achieved.
And the people just loving it.
It only took a couple of weeks for Reds and Blues to extend their influence worldwide just by making deals with All foods and Akaromi Biocorps and Petrochem.
Solid. Deals. Not one time off contracts, full on partnerships that meant their product was being sold and distributed worldwide without them even lifting a finger.
They can't do that! Amelio had shouted in his office. DO THEY KNOW HOW MUCH THEY'VE SACRIFICED AND STABBED IN THE BACK FOR THIS POSITION?!
'They're saying that they'll be trying for fish ranches next. Akaromi Biocorps is already giving Reds and Blues their full support in exchange for being the first client to receive the products.'
No, No no no no no.
Amelio slammed his fist down on his desk.
There had to be a way to sabotage them, slow them down if now stop them.
Yeah, yes. Slow them down. If they were just slowed down on their rampage of conquest, then Biotechnica would have enough time to recover, take back the seats and defend it against the new company.
But how…
An idea flashed into the CEO's chromed brain.
He saw footages of former Biotechnica scientists meeting up with All Foods representatives.
The Reds and Blues were employing people that Megacorps were throwing onto the streets. Some sort of… recycling of assets that finished their uses.
If Biotechnica could contact one of them, offer them a deal they surely couldn't refuse, then they had themselves and inside man…
Someone that could… steal some of the blueprints of Reds and Blues' yet to be realised projects.
If Biotechnica could do them first, then they'll be on even playing fields.
Amelio rang up his holophone to his still surviving board of directors.
He had a plant that would surely work.
-oOo-
Broche was taking a boat back to the coastal region of Night City.
Sure, aircrafts always worked. But she wanted to feel the salty wind fly across her cheeks as she rode the wave.
Some of the other workers thought the same thing as her. They wanted to properly travel across the ocean - something that was near impossible once thanks to the shitty AI going haywire.
For people like her, there was a benefit to swearing loyalty to Reds and Blues; picking someone like her off the streets and showing them a wonderland full of Sci fi dreams come to life.
Showing them something that many would write off as impossible, delusional even.
And then giving someone like her a chance to touch those dreams and try to build them in reality. To teach her how.
Broche closed her eyes and felt the ocean wave carry the wind across her face.
She felt like she was a child again, going through the restoration centre run by Biotechnica.
When her later mother filled her with hopes and dreams that she thought no longer existed.
She wanted to cry. She regretted cursing her mother as she grew older. When she believed those hopes and dreams to be nothing more than lies fed to her.
No. No. It wasn't a lie.
With Reds and Blues, it never would be.
… Flowers. Broche muttered. Some flowers would be nice.
Her mother loved blue roses, right?
Could she ask Spartan Cell's team to engineer them?
A shameful request, maybe.
But if there was one thing she learnt during her stay in Reds and Blues, is that all of them were nice enough to listen to requests.
So it wasn't a bad idea to ask.
Broche felt her holophone buzz - while her implants were removed and upgraded, her old number was still kept. She rather have something that could keep her in contact with her family, after all.
Broche looked at the screen, and grimaced.
Biotechnica logo. The name of her former CEO buzzing up.
She didn't need to pick up the call to know this was going to be bad news.
It wasn't a call, just… a text message.
[Meet up at 174,164,44]
Short, simple. Coordinates and a demand.
Typical, Broche muttered. Too proud to even make it as a request.
Broche knew the current state of Biotechnica. Technologically staggering behind the newly up and rising Reds and Blues, and their questionable decisions to try and keep themselves afloat wasn't being any help.
Broche looked behind her, into the vast blue ocean.
The giant futuristic platform, filled with rigs and buildings that looked like majestic monoliths.
Broche had watched the entire process of those nanomachines form and print buildings in almost an instance.
Beautiful. And Scary at the same time. Broche was both was amazed and terrified of the mind that managed to realise such technology.
Broche pondered about the message for a moment, before she relented.
Yeah, sure. She can listen to them talk their mouth of for a bit. If there was any info she can get from them, she was sure to report it to her new CEO.
She walked there, straightening her uniform and making sure the pistol she was given as part of her equipment was secure and loaded.
If they were planning some funny business, she wasn't going to go down easy.
And Lo and Behold, an Aerodyne was parked at the location - a carpark of an apartment for the rich. A bodyguard was waiting outside, noticing Broche and opening the door with a nod.
"… Mister Loggagia. It's nice to see you again."
"And miss… Broche. It's good to see a familiar face. Please, step in. I insist."
A soulless courtesy was met with soulless courtesy. What Amelio tried to veil as an offer was clearly a demand.
She tried not to frown as much, as she put a foot on the entrance of the Aerodyne and went in, taking a seat opposite to Amelio.
"Now, please. Have a drink."
Broche complied reluctantly, grabbing a fancy wine dispensed by the car.
"So, do you know why I contacted you today?"
"No. I don't."
Amelio kept his calm facade up, tipping it off with a grin.
"Well, I'll be honest with you. Biotechnica isn't doing so well. You might have already heard this from whatever news outlet you're interested in."
"I do, I've saw it fall down first hand from my new company."
"And that's. Exactly. What. I'm… here to talk about."
Amelio caught himself on his outburst, he forced the smile back on his lips as he tried to sit back in his seat, which he had jumped out of at the mention of Reds and Blues.
No, no. He had to keep his composure to make this work.
"You see, we… recently had a falling out with our head scientist. The former one in charge had signed a resignation just a week ago."
Yeah, they did. Broche thought to herself. She herself and the rest of the team had seen the former head scientist of the Biotechnica waving their hand in front of the Graveyard, a tablet filled with data and their personal CV in hand.
There was some heavy interrogation and meeting with other staffs about the final decision.
Hell, they were still deciding on whether to hire the person or not. And of course, many staffs that were formerly associated with Biotechnica before getting thrown on the streets were vehement on disagreeing.
Be careful with how you treat someone, huh? Broche snickered, to which Amelio frowned only so quickly.
"Carry on, Mister Loggagia."
"…Yes… Yes, so we need a new head of research and development. And we've seen your records, Miss Broche. Excellent projects you were part of, a fine example of the next head of the R department, we had agreed on."
"I see."
"Oh come now, don't be like that. I'm sure such a position will be much more beneficial to you. Compared to just being some… grunt scientist. You used to be spearheading development projects, now you just a… one in a million. A dead end job, I assure you. I know how a Megacorp works, they'll never give you a time of the day."
Yeah, because they instead give me 6 days of the week. Broche snickered quietly.
Proper food, only needing to work 6 hours a day. Overtime was a choice and a passion, not a compulsory task.
"So, if you want… we'd be happy to welcome you back in charge of our company's key products with open arms."
Broche decided to poke and prod, try and act like she took the bait.
"And what's the catch?"
Amelio smiled.
"Just something simple. We need… some files."
"Files? What sort?"
"Just files about the Reds and Blue's current projects that they haven't announced yet. Things that you're comfortable making at our lab, with double the salary that they are paying you."
Broche nodded. Swirling the wine still left in her glass.
Yeah, right.
"Alright. Just, files? Nothing more?"
"Nothing more. We need you alive, after all. And if you're going to stay alive, we decided that just shards would be excellent enough."
"… Ok, I'll see what I can do. I'll contact you once I have the shards."
Amelio's grin widened.
"Excellent. I'm so happy that you are a smart woman, Miss Broche. Though I expected you would be. That's why I called you over."
Broche saw the Aerodyne land on the Roof of Biotechnica.
"Have a good look around at the new place you will be running on your way down, would you? It's best if you familiarise yourself as soon as possible."
Broche wore a fake smile as she turned to look at her former employer, before leaving the Aerodyne and taking the elevator.
She had to act natural.
There were still eyes here.
-oOo-
"Alright, rewire the wrist section here. The motor's too strong. Remember, we want a reasonably strong wrist, not a goddamn arm of a Spartan on a normal civilian."
"Yes, sir."
"And how's the final testing of your newest product?"
"Soil restoration is at 85% in just 4 minutes, sir."
"Excellent. I'll finish up the blueprint on the newest beetle models and we can sell them in tandem."
"Oh, sir! President Cell, Sir!"
"Yes, Gary?"
"Could I present my… my version of the beetle blueprint, sir? As a proposal?"
One of the former Biotechnica scientists sheepishly raised his hand with a request.
If it was any other Megacorp, he would've been laughed off and ridiculed. A newly recruited low-class Scientist would've had better chances just shutting up and trying to complete the work in front of them by deadline. Heeding the orders of the chief scientist in charge.
But this Reds and Blues.
"Bring me the blueprint and your proposal. If they're good, I'll push it in."
Gary smiled as slowly, slowly, other ears started to perk up. Many of these people in the biotechnological department had been using the labs in their free time to try out some small projects of their own. The software housed in [HIGHCOM DRAUGR-1] was an absolutely godsend for them, the smart AIs and 3D holographic interface made simulations of genetic modification simple, clear, accurate, and easy to learn.
Each of them slowly readied to bring out their own personal files. Most of them part of the restoration of aquatic animals, now that they had a sizeable area of the ocean with their Company Name on it.
And Spartan Cell caught wind of it quickly.
"Alright, Ok. Any blueprint suggestions, just send them over to me."
"What if… we have it as a presentation… sir?"
"… Well, do you want to present it to just me, or to other people as well?"
"I… I guess just you?"
"Then just knock on my office in your free time. If I'm available, I'll listen to it."
Broche walked into see her colleagues fumbling through the 3D interfaces, opening up files to check that their own projects had no mistake, before sending it into their datapad.
"President Cell, do you have a moment… sir?"
"It's lunch break right now, so I should be. Why?"
"I have something to tell you. In private."
President Cell warily nodded his head.
"O…K…? We can both head to my office, then."
The click clack from Broche's shoes were synchronised with the thump-thump of Cell's metallic mjolnir boots. Synched so well that Broche's footstep was easily drowned out.
The door of Spartan Cell's office opened and closed, Spartan Cell bringing a chair for Broche to sit on as he checked his datapad.
"Is it ok if we just do a quick scan, sir? Just in case I caught something on my way here."
Spartan Cell picked up on Broche's tone.
Wariness. Caution.
Oh, so it's that kind of situation.
Spartan Cell stared at Broche, up and down. Spectral Nodes loaded with the Sangheili model Smart AI based on his friend's cloned brain.
"Coming up with nothing, scientist. You're safe."
Broche no longer had any reason to hesitate.
"Biotechnica contacted me today, sir."
"Of fucking course…"
Spartan Cell looked to the ceiling and shrugged.
"What did they want from you?"
"Data on Reds and Blues' unreleased projects, sir."
"And what did they offer?"
"A position as the head of the R department."
"That's a huge offer."
"It really is sir, I was surprised myself."
"They're desperate."
"What should we do, sir? I've told them I would contact them when I had the data. Should we… you know, try and counter with a cyber attack?"
Broche watched Cell tapped the datapad lightly on his head, before pressing the side of his helmet.
"Fireteam Smash. Could you report to my office?"
"…Sir?"
Broche was taken aback slightly at the mention of the spartans.
Was… was she in trouble?
Did she step out of line? Did she end up making herself suspicious to her new Megacorp?
"Cyber attack? No real need for that. I have a plan."
Spartan Cell tapped a few times on his data pad, and she saw a several files pop up, before they all compressed into one small, bright digital sphere of light.
"Now, what sort of output interface did shards have again? This shape?"
Broche looked back to Spartan Cell, who was presenting several data chips.
"They look… more like this, sir." Broche took a small shard out from her breast pocket on her coat.
The shard wasn't anything of high value to anyone but her.
And that was because it had nothing but old photos and videos of her mother stored in it.
"Hmmm… alright then. So more like this?"
Spartan Cell muttered as he used his hands to shift and mould a 3d image into an imitation of a shard.
"The circuits had something more like this, sir."
"Ah, primitive. Typical."
"Umm, sir? You asked for us?"
"Oh, yeah. Wait a second."
"Okay…"
"Hey Anthony! Look what I found!"
"Aw, dude! Don't just pick something up and bring it here! That's disgusting!"
"Alright, we've got the chip, we've got the data and… here."
Spartan Cell popped over to his lab desk on the other side of a clear door, coming back in with a small shard.
"Alright, this is going to be Operation Prometheus."
"Operation…"
"…Prometheus?"
"Tomorrow, you contact them back. Tell them you have data."
"… Sir? Is that really fine?"
"Oh yeah. But here's the thing, they'll be sceptical at first. And I highly doubt they're willing to keep their end of the bargain. So what I'm going to do is have these two dumbasses waiting nearby until you give them a signal."
"Hey, we're not dumb!"
"Yeah, who are you calling a dumbass!"
"… So you give them a signal, and they'll respond by acting like they're here to arrest and detain you for leaking company intel."
"… Ok, sir?"
"They'll run, you'll be handcuffed and shoved into a truck. And then you'll be placed under witness protection for the time being."
"… What's a witness protection?"
"Oh my fucking god."
Spartan Cell breathed in deep, before clapping his hands and shaking them.
"Ok. So. Witness protection is what the law should be doing to people who testify. You testify, so you're a threat, so the authority puts them in a place where they'll be safe from harm until they're completely convicted. Sometimes they're placed under witness protection for a very long time. Sometimes relocated in a different area."
"…Oh…"
"So, you will be protected. That's the key here. Your job is to give them that shard, act like you're in trouble, and then lay low here. Ok?"
"I… I-I understand, sir."
"Ok, good. Let Operation Prometheus commence!"
-0O0-
Amelio was giddy already.
Holy shit, did he pick the right person. Data shard already? He knew that Broche bitch was greedy for a higher position. Who wouldn't be? It's Biotechnica for god sake.
Amelio waited in his car, Biotechnica military accompanying him.
Waiting, for Broche to arrive with the shard.
And lo and behold, turning at the corner into the alleyway here…
… was his newest lead scientist.
… or so she would want to hear, wouldn't she? Amelio thought to him self as he sneered.
The soldier next to him turned off the safety of his Arasaka Senkoh LX, an audible click resonating within the car.
Grab the shard, dispose of the body.
That was the plan.
"Miss Broche, it's so nice to see you."
"Yeah, Yeah. I have the shard."
"Good… now, before we continue, however, we just need to check for any daemons or viruses. Is that fine?"
Broche hesitated for a moment. Did Cell… Did cell put viruses on this?
He better not have…
She had no choice but to comply. Silently sending a message to the Spartans waiting just around the corners of one of the building.
She witnessed one of the soldiers plug the shard into himself, and quickly running a scan.
"… It seems clean, sir."
"… Excellent."
Amelio turned around, no longer even bothering to look at Broche.
The job was done, he had what he wanted.
Now, Broche was just a loose end to tie off.
And the moment the soldiers started to aim their gun on Broche -
"FREEZE!"
"THIS IS REDS AND BLUES, MILITARY POLICE!"
The Reds and Blues truck rushed in from the opposite end of the alleyway, Spartan Ian and Anthony jumping out from the back with an assault rifle and a pistol.
"Oh- SHIT!"
"Run! RUN!"
"GET THE SHARD! GET THE SHARD!"
"YEEE HAW!"
The sound of automatic rifle shots rang out into the night, as Spartan Anothny open fired into the sky without any care.
A more of a… theatrical display of an assault and arrest.
"BULLSHIT!"
Unfortunately, Spartan Ian was more intent on making this act believable. He unloaded his pistol at one of the soldiers firing at him and his buddy.
Spartan Ian switched his firing stance, from trained professionalism to wildly waving the hand holding his firearm back and forth, firing the weapon every time he pushed his arm out.
He then turned around, bent over, his arm coming out between his legs, and open fired once more.
Through all that sequence, the biotechnica soldier taking was hilariously still standing, constantly taking all the shot fired from Ian's pistol.
Almost comically so.
The Biotechnica military was returning fire at the Spartans, bullets bouncing off their energy shields as they stepped into the car and put pedal to the medal.
Amelio, amidst the panic and chaos, still saw Broche's fate through the rear mirror.
Forced to lie on the ground, getting her wrist handcuffed and hauled away.
Amelio laughed like mad as he saw the shard in his hands.
He didn't care. He got what he wanted.
In fact? Reds and Blues got rid of a pesky loose end.
It was two birds with one stone, for crying out loud!
As the car drived off, Broche handcuffed but unharmed, the Spartans got onto the Reds and Blues Cargo truck.
"… Do you think that tricked them?" Spartan Anthony asked cautiously as they watched the car disappear from sight.
"… Hell yeah!" Spartan Ian shouted.
Broche watched in slight disbelief as Spartan Anthony and Spartan Ian jumped out of their seats and into the air, high fiving each other while they were yet to fall down from the motion.
If this was some kind of comedy sketch, Broche was sure there would be a punchline flashing right below the two.
Maybe something along the lines of 'Oscar Nominated!'
-oOo-
Amelio looked at the shard one last time before throwing it to the counter intelligence department.
The shard looked clean, sharp, sleek.
Shiny.
Though by the looks of it, it was only just slightly better than a regular shard. Amelio saw military-grade shards of even higher quality pumped out by Arasaka and Militech.
No viruses were found.
Which meant that dumb bitch really did give them the real shard. And she got caught for it too.
Oh, Miss Broche. Amelio muttered. You're sacrifice will not be in vein.
The counter intelligence agent plugged the shard into the main server of Biotechnica.
And they let the Megacorp's Net runner take care of the rest.
"Look at this…"
"Holy shit…"
"It's beautiful."
The bright orb that stood in front of them.
It looked like a miniature sun,
In the palm of their hands.
The amount of information that would be in this single file…
It made the netrunners salivate.
"Come on! Open it!"
"I'm trying! Unzipping… now!"
"…"
"…"
The simple command of unzipping and opening the file was…
… Was doing nothing.
"Well? Open it already!"
"I am! It's not opening!"
"What?! It needed a password?!"
"No, it's just not opening!"
"The hell do you mean by that, move! I'll open it!"
One of the netrunner shoved the avatar of his colleague and stood in front of the small sun.
"…"
"…"
"… Well?"
It wasn't opening.
Great, he muttered.
"… Hey, Frank?"
"What. What?"
One of the netrunners pointed at a small part of the Biotechnica's data fortress.
"Wasn't the icon for that file their suppose to be constantly moving?"
It was a water wheel, made to spin for all eternity.
And the wheel was frozen in place, not even budging a single step.
That was… weird.
Then the netrunners started to note even more strange occurences.
The data stream, the lines and buzzling particles that formed the information of this particular megacorp net.
They weren't… they weren't moving.
None of them were moving.
They froze.
… Froze.
Frozen.
…
…
The Netrunners all looked back at the file they were trying to open.
And in a flash, the file expanded, expelling it's content.
Hundreds and millions of cars expended out in every direction, the 3D image going through and overlapping one another, growing to monstrous size.
Oh shit.
The Netrunners realised too late, and tried to run away too late.
The file was causing everything to freeze.
The data fortress
The Biotechnica's net was buffering.
"What the fuck!"
"RUN!"
Walls and floors were glitching as the cars started to multiply and grow further.
Like a cancerous… digital tumour, threatening to ever expand, ever replicate, without interference or resistance.
Many of the netrunners had their backs hit by the front bumper of a Black Mamba, being pushed to the digital wall or floor and crushed by it's rapidly expanding force and weight.
The intel in the real world was panicking. Amelio, was panicking.
They were all watching as the netrunner's physical bodies squirmed and wriggled, before cables fizzled out with a spark and their netrunners ended up braindead.
"Shut it down… Shut it down! TURN IT OFF!"
"We can't, sir!"
"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T?!"
"It's- the computers, their not responding!"
"WHAT?!"
"They're frozen! We can't- we can't input any commands in it sir!"
The server room temperature was shooting skyhigh, fans were slowly turning up as fast as they can before they too, started to buffer.
The motherboards, the memories, the CPU…
… they were…
They were melting under the heat the computers were generating from within.
-oOo-
"If… If I may, sir… What were in that shard?"
Spartan Cell looked up from his microscope, and turned to Broche. Who was also looking at a microscope.
Some of the beetle designs were quite innovative. Spartan Cell had whistled at the sight of them. They had the function he wanted, and while it wasn't as efficient as his own design, after some thinking he decided to take their ideas instead (Of course, with few modifications and improvements of his own).
Because when was life efficient? Evolution, was never efficient. It was never an immaculate calculated and crafted design like a Sports car was. It just rambled and cobbled together whatever it could get its grubby hands on and if it survived? It stuck.
That was evolution. Going somewhere, just… with no directions.
And by Spartan Cell's account, life should stay that way.
Because life-and by extension, evolution-was the very essence of chaos.
And it always found a way.
"Hmm? Oh, Operation Prometheus. It's data from our computer. You know, the heavily advanced quantum one? That's… connected wirelessly. Now, our computer can process data size that big, no problem! But it's hard for classical computers like theirs. More so when they've decided to take a step back in computer technology thanks to all those disasters happening."
"So what really was…"
"That? It was a 3D rotatable and detachable blueprint of the Black Mamba. Replicated and connected and overlaid and overlapped like… six hundred… and… forty times? And that was repeated 5 more times before being compressed down to 420 kilobytes."
"… S-so what you sent them was a…"
"… A 554.4 Yottabyte Zip Bomb. I know for sure that those motherfuckers struggle to even process a zettabyte. Hell, I'd be surprised if they have no problem processing gigabytes."
Broche stared in shock upon realisation.
"… Oh my god."
"Yeah. Sometimes, to break down a fortress, you don't need some elaborate schemes or long term espionage. You just need… a stone. Like, a really big stone. Really, REALLY, big stone."
"… Their computers."
Cell chuckled.
"Oh their computers are going to FUCKING melt and burn. Now, I believe these beetles are ready to be born. So, send these genetic blueprints to the team and have them modify the grub cells we extracted form the SCOP scraps we found in the trash hills. I have an announcement to make to Fireteam Badger."
"… Of course, sir."
-oOo-
[Spartan Badger: Hi, my name is Badger. Have you ever been fucked over by Biotechnica? Have your crops died to their plague? Their GMO plants overtaking your business? Did they force you to sell your lands to them and watch yourself get unemployed?
Well, we're here to fix that! Introducing the injecto-soil! All you have to do is just stab any sort of dirt with this bad boy like so, push down and let the fluid seep into the soil, and have it form biofilms 6 feet under. And then in just a day or two… boom! Poisoned soil is no more, say 'welcome back!' to the clean, nutrient rich soil for your crops to grow on without a care!
For only 2 eurodollars, you can get a dozen these sweet little toy in a small little box!
… Actually, you know what? Fuck it- Until the next month, For only 3 eurodollars you can get two dozens of the injecto-soil, some of our crops seeds in a small packet, a tree sapling, and some beetle eggs that will help with pollination, soil enrichment and protection! All of these, in one package!
Only 3 eurodollars? Did you hear me wrong? No, of fucking course not!
It really is 3 eurodollars and I shit you not, this works.
These are all bundled up in the celebration of Biotechnica finally fucking itself over!
Go to the local mall or online shopping sites and search the 'Get fucked, Biotechnica' package!
Yes, you heard me right. It's 'Get fucked, Biotechnica' package!
For only 3 eurodollars!
What are you waiting for, get the land you managed to take back from Biotechnica into the soil you want it to be!
Announcer: Reds and Blues - It's not about the money, it's about sending a message.]
Amelio looked at the tv monitor in disbelief.
The central headquarters of Biotechnica had fallen - all technology had seized to work.
Labs in other countries were completely cut off thanks to the main server shutting down.
Amelio was no longer in Italy.
He was sitting in the Night City Division of Biotechnica - in centre of the Corpo Plaza.
The window showed Militech and Arasaka tower. And when Amelio first bought this tower, he thought he could build something as tall as theirs.
Arrogance, in it's finest form.
And as they said- twice the pride, double the fall.
Majority of the cybersecurity team had either died, critically injured, or resigned.
Too much loss had hit Biotechnica. And the downfall of the Main server was the final straw.
The server… the fucking main server stored everything. Every blueprint that was tested and finalised, ready to be punched into real products.
They were all in their.
And now… and now it's gone.
It would take Biotechnica years to even stop it's fall, and even that's not accounting for all the damage they would have to climb back out of.
And Reds and Blues? They'd have taken over everything Biotechnica owned.
All the lands, all the technology.
All the market…
…
Even Amelio wasn't blind to the future.
There was no place Biotechnica in the world of tomorrow.
They stumbled and fell, and now they had to watch as Reds and Blues whizzed past them.
The sound of the elevator door opening echoed through the room. Heavy footsteps echoed outside of his office, and Amelio turned to see the hulking mass of metal and synthetic muscles walk in, it's four red eyes glowing menacingly.
Genjiro was walking right behind the titan. And Amelio knew who he was.
That was the CEO of Reds and Blues.
Amelio instinctively jumped out of his couch, stumbling back until he hit the window.
He just stared in shock and disbelief.
"… Yeah, so once the renovation is finished you can place whatever furniture you want here. I guess this will be your new office." Spartan Cell was busy turning to Genjiro and talking about something.
"Wh-what do you mean renovation? New office…? The hell do you mean new office?!"
Spartan Cell turned to Amelio, and let out a small 'oh'
"Yeah, we're here to buy this tower."
"… What?"
"Yeah, we'll be buying this from you, if you won't object."
Amelio stared at the giant.
And he felt the gears in his head turn slowly.
"You… you're here to buy… something from me?"
"Oh, yes. Surprise, surprise. Look, we were really looking forward to having a Night City division. And other Megacorps were too. While I do love the outskirts, apparently it has more appeal to the other CEOs if they can meet with Genjiro in a more… what did they say again?"
"A Corpo-lifestyle fashion, sir."
"Yeah the Corpo-lifestyle. Whatever the fuck that means. Anyway, how much do you want? Name it."
"Wait, wait… before we say anything else, how about… we negotiate."
Genjiro raised his eyebrow. If Spartan Cell's face was visible, he'd be doing it too.
"Negotiate?"
"Yeah, look. President… Cell? I've heard? President Cell, you and I both run a Megacorp specialising in genetic engineering. Bioengineering and science - that's what our companies have in heart!"
"Yeah. We just do it better."
Amelio grit his teeth and forced his smile to stay.
"I was told… that the man running Reds and Blue was very curious and ambitious man. A man of science… with a dream. I believe we are alike in that way."
"…"
"If you are, who I think you are… you should give me another chance."
Another chance.
That was another word for 'let's work together.'
Strike a partnership. I scratch your back, you scratch mine.
It was the only way for Biotechnica to survive.
Spartan Cell understood that. Genjiro understood that.
And for once in his life on Earth, Spartan Cell was slient.
Then in a calm voice, he answered Amelio.
"I don't think we are alike at all, Mister Laggagio."
"… Loggagia. It's Amelio, Loggagi-"
"You are not, a curious nor ambitious man at all, Mister Laggagio. Your ethic in business is left much to be desired, and your ethic in science even more so. But that's to be expected, you are not a man of science at all, Mister Laggagio. Your father might have been, but you are not."
"My name… President Cell, is Ameli-"
"I've ignored you the first time, because it does not matter what your name is. I cannot care less, and I cannot respect it at all. Your ethic towards a fellow being is poor, and I'd rather not waste my time trying to win a respect that isn't even worth anything. I do believe you cannot say the same for me. But that's something for you to ponder on, and me to dismiss.
You and your board is inefficient. Your apathy, your cruelty, your greed for power. It's inefficient. Among the many inefficiency I look upon in high regard, your sloth is… far from one of them."
Spartan Cell sat on the sofa, heard it creak under his weight.
"I am a man of science. I strive for excellency of research, and I enjoy the art of discovering the unknown or the forgotten. Do you know why?"
Amelio had too dry of a throat to speak.
So he instead shook his head.
"It's because I enjoy our advancement. The advancement of humanity. Do you know why we were so overjoyed on landing on the moon in 1969? Why should we? It was the scientists that launched the rocket, anything could be in that ship and land on the moon. It could have been a dog, a monkey, or a hamster. But we still rejoiced when mankind landed on the moon.
That is because it wasn't a body that stood on the surface of the sliver soil - no, it was the human will. If you realise that, you realise everything. That humanity had advanced it's willpower to the point where it can no longer be contained within Earth, and it even reached the moon.
Our willpower, grew.
… And that's why I loved science. For with each invention, we discovered new secrets of the quantum and atoms…. Of space, of reality. And with that knowledge, we strengthened the human spirit!
LOOK AT US, LOOK AT ME! WE WERE BORN TO INHERIT THE STARS! TO CHART THE VAST ABYSS WITH OUR DREAMS! TO GO BEYOND THE BOUNDARIES OF SPACE AND TIME! TO VENTURE, AND VENTURE! AND VENTURE!"
Amelio was taken aback, sticking deeper and deeper into the corner he back himself up into.
"TO FIGHT IF WE MUST, FOR WE HAVE PROVEN THAT WHILE WE WERE MADE TO BREAK, WE WERE NOT MADE TO BEND!
AND THROUGH SCIENCE! THROUGH DISCOVERY! THROUGH TECHNOLOGY, WE ADVANCE! ONE MAN STRIKES THE EUREKA, AND LEADS THE REST TO A HIGHER PLANE! TO SOW THE SEEDS THAT WILL LATER GROW FURTHER KNOWLEDGE THAT THE NEXT GENERATION, OR THE NEXT MAN THAT STEPS FOOT ON THAT SOIL TO PICK AND EAT! TO DISCOVER FURTHER, TO DISCOVER CLOSER! JUST LIKE HOW ARMSTRONG AND ALDRIN HAD STEPPED FOOT ON THE MOON, TO LEAVE THEIR SPIRIT ON THAT ASTEROID FOR THE REST OF US TO PICK UP AND CARRY AS WE PUSH INTO SPACE!
SCIENCE! IS TO DISCOVER ORDER WITHIN CHAOS, CHAOS WITHIN ORDER, SO THAT HUMANITY CAN WIELD IT IN IT'S PALMS LIKE A CHILD WITH A TOY AND CREATIVE IMAGINATION! TO PUSH UPON OUR LIMITS AND REALISE WE HAVE NONE! AND KNOW THAT WE ARE FREE IN THIS VAST UNIVERSE! I KNOW MY CRAFT, I KNOW MY PROFESSION AND I AM DAMN PROUD OF IT! I AM DAMN PROUD OF THE TIME I INVESTED, THE SACRIFICES I MADE! THE SWEAT AND TEARS AND BLOOD I SPILT FOR MY KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM! PROUD OF ALL THE EFFORT I PUT INTO MY DISCOVERIES!
THAT SCIENCE, IS FOR THE MAN! NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND!
AND YOU AND YOUR PETTY LITTLE GROUP YOU CALL MEGACORPS, THE ONES YOU CALL ARASAKA AND MILITECH… YOU DARE DESECRATE THAT IN FRONT OF ME?! YOU THINK WE ARE ALIKE?! YOUR SCIENCE ISN'T FOR THE PEOPLE, IT IS FOR YOU! AND YOU ONLY! YOUR GREED AND YOUR LAZINESS! YOUR MONEY TO FILL IN YOUR POCKETS! THAT'S WHAT YOUR SCIENCE IS FOR!"
Spartan Cell slammed his two fists down on the table, and Amelio watched as the metal slab caved in until the level of the surface of the table matched the surface of the floor.
Cell huffed. He huffed and puffed.
And then he stood up.
Amelio felt fear.
Visceral, primal instinct blaring in his head.
Amelio doubted even Adam Smasher could do this to him.
"… So that's why, we cannot work with you. We cannot… in your words, 'give you another chance'. Because quite frankly, there is no place for you. Not here, not ever again. So long as I live. And trust me, even amongst the zealous religious groups hellbent on the genocide of our entire race, led by - let me make it clear-power hungry fuckers like you... I survived. I fought, I lived, I won.
... So...
Stay out, of my territory."
Amelio slowly crept towards the elevator door, and once he had enough distance away from Cell- he bolted.
He went in and furiously pressed the button.
He was too scared to look at Cell and his four red spectral nodes.
For he doubted that he would survive staring into the eyes of a mad god.