Infinity, progressing from Arasaka

In Adam Hammer's words: "Baby, did you miss me?"

Undoubtedly, he is very familiar with military technology and the FIA.

The Lazarus mercenary group, aside from anything else, just the fact that its headquarters are in Washington, D.C. tells us about its composition.

Both parties knew each other very well; I could tell what you were going to do the moment you bent over.

This did not surprise Vera.

It would be strange if the military technology sector and Washington didn't engage in some underhanded tactics.

Although the discovery of this secret military-technical intelligence communication station, located in the 'death zone' of a minefield, was an accident.

Badlands, this chaotic and lawless land, is so vast that, generally speaking, the farther away from the city, the weaker the company's control.

Including the city government, the NCPD, and numerous companies, their influence extends primarily along interstate highways, railways, and border outposts, and perhaps also includes some military camps and garrisons located in the Badlands.

Performing tasks in such a vast, desolate wasteland, identifying and screening everything is extremely time-consuming and laborious.

It's not that it's impossible, but rather that the expenditures and gains are severely disproportionate.

Just like how companies generally ignore the plight of homeless people in badlands, unless it's necessary and profitable.

Otherwise, if the company goes to great lengths to target the forces in the Badlands, the money earned from the trip will likely not even cover the expenses.

Vera knew that military technology had outposts in Badlands, just as Washington knew that Arasaka would definitely set up mobs all over the West Coast and reclaim and activate the remnants of underground weapons research institutes and secret agent societies left over from the last corporate war.

The covert wars waged by both sides over these outposts and spies were countless.

As for this discovery, it stemmed from the "crackdown and rectification" campaign targeting the Lijiang scenic area, which was led by Vera.

After she leaked some of the New NAS's secret intelligence to Kurt Hansen, causing an internal investigation storm in Dogtown, quite a few NUSA agents who hadn't cleaned up their mess were indeed caught and killed by the Hounds.

Some also escaped Dogtown.

One of them fled from Pacific Island to Santo Domingo. Whether he was on a mission or not, he did not flee directly to the Badlands, but went to Haywood. Then, with the idea that "the most dangerous place is the safest place", he deliberately ran towards the Lishang area where Sheriff Arasaka patrolled.

In fact, he has already succeeded halfway.

Unfortunately, he sent the signal from an elevated rail train.

Because of her appointment as a member of the management board, Vera casually glanced at the administrative briefings of all departments of Night City Arasaka during the banquet at the Azure Mansion.

Among them, the report that numerous pickpockets had been found on the Haywood-San Domingo train line, and that a large number of company employees' communication chips and discrete chips had been stolen, including students from Arasaka Academy, made Vera pause for a moment.

Just then, Lady Wei decided to crack down on the construction of a 'model house' in the Lijiang scenic area, so she casually gave a hint.

That is, the "Report on Rampant Pickpocketing" was thrown to the Night City Security Department.

Upon receiving the order, the relevant management personnel of the security department attached great importance to it and immediately transferred a special assault team security group that was patrolling the streets, demonstrating Arasaka's approachable attitude and promoting security services, to be stationed on the train line.

then……

And that was it.

Having successfully boarded the train, the military technology agent evaded the Ghost Hound's inspectors, passed Sheriff Arasaka's check at the station, and crossed the river bridge into Haywood. In a moment of relaxation, he sent a signal to the encrypted channel using the established code while on the moving train.

Ironically, the encrypted message was captured by cyber hackers from the Arasaka Security Team, who were on the same train but in different carriages.

too close.

There was no need to decipher it at all; most of the video calls and phone calls on the entire train were identifiable. Suddenly, a message with an unusually high level of encryption appeared, and the train was moving. Based on the basic competence of the security personnel and the deterrent needs for completing the crackdown mission, the Arasaka security agents stationed on the train decided to take a look.

This level of encrypted communication is either from wealthy individuals or corporate professionals. Is it cyberpunk? Or is it from unsuspecting hackers? They're not sure.

Upon seeing the heavily armed Arasaka soldiers suddenly emerge from the aisle of the train carriage, the military technology agent misunderstood their intentions and subconsciously thought he had been exposed. He was fine as long as he didn't move, because as soon as he moved, he was locked on.

The veteran Arasaka Security agent immediately realized something was amiss!

A series of arrests and pursuits ensued.

When the military technology agent's biomimetic nano-camouflage suit and mask were destroyed, his identity as a secret agent was revealed.

They beat him half to death and then dragged him away.

Vera didn't need to know what methods the interrogator from Arasaka's intelligence department would use, even if it was extracting brain tissue to use the methods of creating Black Dream to obtain information, it didn't matter, because she had obtained the information anyway.

How did they get to Night City? From which direction did they come? What intelligence stations did they pass through?

Enter Night City from the old industrial area north of Watson, then infiltrate Dogtown via a transfer point, passing through an abandoned, remote town in the 'Death Zone' of the northern badlands minefield.

There are many abandoned towns in the badlands surrounding Night City, numbering in the thousands, but in the north, specifically in the minefield 'death zone,' they are much easier to find.

Just then, Adam Hammer was newly equipped with a cybernetic body, and several cybernetic Tyrants were also fully tested. With the idea of ​​'let's see how they perform,' Vera issued the combat mission.

In hindsight, the results were quite good.

Boom——!

An exceptionally violent explosion shocked the scene, with miniature incendiary rockets leaving distorted trails, the gap in the basement being widened, and the damaged, upside-down machine gun turret twisted into a comical pose.

The chaotic underground space was already engulfed in flames, and the air was filled with black smoke and sparks from burnt components.

"You're just pieces of meat that I've fucked to pieces."

Amid Adam Hammer's manic laughter, hum—

Finally, a series of gunshots and explosions rang out, and under the gravitational field, the last few cybernetically modified cyborgs who resisted were crushed.

Blood blossomed, and the military-grade prosthetic body, which was incredibly popular in the civilian market, including the skin and flesh, from hair to skull, then to eyeballs and teeth, was instantly crushed into the ground like collapsing building blocks, becoming indistinguishable from one another.

Vera calmly watched as blood and gore splattered across the holographic screen.

The battle is over.

"Heavy hammer, retreat, mission complete."

"My eyes are sparkling with orange light," Vera said.

"Hmph, is it over?" On the video channel, Adam Hammer's face, which looked like a pale corpse, revealed a ferocious grin. "That was satisfying, really satisfying. Director Russell, if there's another cushy job like this next time, remember to call me."

"There will be a chance."

Vera stroked her chin, and her smile became much more meaningful.

"Take the Cyber ​​Tyrant troops and retreat to Arasaka Beach first. Remember, the faster the better, and you can appropriately show that you are unfamiliar with and not used to it... Cyber ​​Kong 1.2 still has quite a few problems that need to be improved."

"Oh? Trying to confuse and mislead...Understood, Director."

beep.

At this moment, the analyst who was in charge of tracking the battle situation reported to Vera, "Director, the personnel on site have confirmed that this abandoned town is one of the largest underground intelligence transportation stations of military technology and the new US FIA around Night City."

"Very good. Let me know as soon as the information is compiled and the analysis report is ready."

"Yes!"

Vera took a sip of black tea, picked up the PDA tablet on the table, and quickly glanced at the construction progress report of the new Arasaka Research Center.

"Demining in bad soil... This kind of physically demanding work is definitely best outsourced to homeless people, saving time and effort... The construction of the new border wall does require their help. But, it needs oversight."

As she pondered, she looked up at the holographic screen in front of her, her eyes reddening. The image of the abandoned town on the outskirts of the Badlands shrunk and slid to the side, revealing several overlapping images and text.

First, a graduate of the 2076 class of Night City Arasaka Academy.

"Graduates... Tanaka's son, oh, and that David too, for their internships, let's assign him as a 'foreman' for now..."

------

Chapter 103 is about Vera, the board member.

It all happened in an instant.

Under the blazing sun, the barren land takes on a scorching, sandy yellow hue.

In the distance, plumes of black smoke rose from some abandoned outlying town, resembling some kind of deformed mushroom.

With the howling wind and sand, the plumes of smoke rose irregularly into the sky, thick and dense—an effect that could never be produced by a small camp of wanderers and a few dilapidated huts.

"It seems the SIA has suffered heavy losses this time..."

A tall, imposing figure stood like a sculpture on the bare, wind-eroded rocky mountain, indifferently watching everything on the ground.

Through the gaps in the smoke, he could see the armored airships on the hill in the distance, as well as the swarm of heavy drones. He could make out a few octants and surveyors.

"The liaison officer...was intercepted by Arasaka's cops? They even raided and blew up the underground transportation station. What the hell are they doing in Washington...?"

With a low curse, the man turned around and looked at Watson, where construction was in full swing at the south end.

An airship cruised across the blue sky, trailing a long holographic advertisement that played announcements about the establishment of the new Arasaka Research Center district and footage of Vera Adelhead, Michiko Arasaka, and Wilton Horton sharing a land purchase agreement at the Konpaku Building.

Arakawa is recovering to his peak.

He sighed and walked toward the weathered, modified car parked beside the hill.

Opening and closing the car door, buzzing...

The moment the car window closed, the man's skin changed from white to black, and then from black to brown.

The originally dull clothes were transformed in an instant by the surface nanoparticles, turning into a flashy and trendy outfit, transforming the homeless into a street kid.

If an intelligence operative witnessed the entire process, they would probably blurt out: nano-camouflage clothing and shape-mimicry mask.

"Six years...six years...I hope I can wait until the day I am 'awakened'."

The man put on a baseball cap, drove off, and sped away.

His deep voice faded away with the wind and sand.

......