I woke up not in the apartment I shared with Panam.
But Panam was lying beside me, which meant everything was fine.
Inhale…
The scent of Panam’s hair was soothing.
A moment later, I remembered that yesterday I’d agreed to take a break from solo life and stay with Panam’s clan.
Judy had come with us, curious to experience life outside the city.
I wasn’t as interested in the nature aspect as I was in getting closer to Panam.
This world was stingy with nature, at least in this part of the country.
And most of the world outside the cities was just desert.
Surviving in the desert was no picnic.
I carefully got out of bed, threw on some sweats, and left the tent.
Looking around, I didn’t see anyone outside.
Not that it mattered.
I wasn’t here to admire the scenery.
I was here to test the synthetic muscles Vik had installed on my arms and legs.
The operations were serious, but with today’s tech, I could already run around the camp and do push-ups.
Just to see how the new muscles performed.
I could have gone the Animal route, started chugging chems.
Vik could have even picked the right stuff to keep my brain intact.
It wouldn’t have given me Animal-level results, but after a year of training, I’d have hit near-human peak.
That would have been fine if I weren’t living as a solo.
My last job showed how lucky I’d been before.
If I’d run into someone with a Sandevistan earlier, I could have died.
Because back when I started, I was fit, sure, but not fit enough to handle that kind of speed.
My body just wasn’t ready.
With those thoughts, I started running.
Not at full speed, but a steady pace toward the edge of camp.
On the other hand, synthetic muscles had limits.
You couldn’t train them to get stronger.
The only way to improve was to replace them entirely.
But the benefits were huge.
First, endurance.
Way beyond normal muscles.
Same with strength.
My arms and legs hadn’t gotten much bigger, maybe half a centimeter, but they were about four times stronger.
Not that I could use all that power yet.
I’d need a couple months of meds to strengthen my skeleton and ligaments so they could handle the strain.
Even with just twice my normal capacity, I’d be a lot safer.
I’d need to visit Vik again to replace the muscles he couldn’t swap out in one session.
That surgery was in two days.
For now, I could push a little.
I sped up, ran seven laps, and returned to the tent.
I grabbed a mat from the car, laid it on the sand, and started my workout routine.
Gradually, people emerged from their tents and looked at me strangely.
I didn’t care.
I was focused on my physical development.
I knew I’d eventually have synthetic muscles that didn’t need training or degrade.
But then I’d switch from physical training to reflex drills.
Right now, I was just figuring out the limits of my new gear.
I’d already developed the reflexes a solo needed.
“What are you doing?”
Panam stuck her head out of the tent and gave me a curious look.
“Testing the new muscles.
And also…”
I met her gaze with a smirk.
“…making the other women jealous.”
“Jealous?”
Judy appeared behind Panam and gave me a sleepy look.
“He’s been at it for two hours.
You should have seen the looks the clan women were giving him.
They were practically eating him alive.”
“Really?”
Panam blinked, confused.
“Looks like you and I are in for some private conversations about ‘our’ man.”
Judy smirked.
“David, you didn’t do this on purpose, did you?”
“Of course not.”
I finished my last set and stood up.
“I’m just testing my new muscles.
I need to know what I can do and get used to the upgrade.
So…”
“Right.”
Just then, Mitch walked up and clapped me on the back.
“Good work, kid!
Need a hand?”
“Thanks, but no.
Just testing my synthetic muscles.”
“Ah.”
He looked at me differently now.
“Then why are you so thin?”
“Because I’m not going into boxing.
My job is using the Sandevistan.
My natural muscles couldn’t keep up, and training them with chems would have taken at least a year.
My last job showed I didn’t have that kind of time.”
“Hm?”
“Emergency fixer job.
Ran into another Sandevistan user.
My kung fu was better, but I almost lost an arm.
Vik barely saved it.
So I decided to lose a couple weeks and get synthetic muscles that would outperform my natural ones.”
“Hm.
Why not chrome?”
“Mitch!”
Panam appeared behind him, glaring.
“Don’t teach my man bad habits!
I don’t need a boyfriend who’s a borg!
I barely tolerate him wanting to replace all his muscles.
At least that’s not ‘chrome’ in the way other people mean it.”
“Alright, alright!”
Mitch backed off, hands raised.
I turned and walked into the tent.
I needed to wipe off the sweat.
I’d have loved a real shower, but that wasn’t an option here.
Wiping down with damp towels wasn’t exactly comfortable…
Panam followed me in, and Judy came in behind her.
They’d apparently abandoned their conversation with Mitch.
I didn’t bother hiding my nakedness.
Judy gave me a few curious glances.
“Close your eyes!
He’s not yours!”
“Pfft.”
Judy just turned away.
Panam shot her a look, then shook her head.
“You’re falling for him.
And you said you were only into girls.”
“Well…
it’s hard not to.
He’s charming, caring, not ugly, not trying to become a borg, works quietly and carefully, so he might actually live to old age.
He’s a good, solid man.
And with a beautiful woman like you by his side…”
“And if you think about it a little longer, you might find you have to fight for his attention.”
Judy sighed.
“Yeah.”
“So, girls, let’s keep these topics to yourselves.”
“Really?”
Panam smirked at me.
“You’re the one who led us all here.
So deal with it.”
I took two steps, wrapped my arms around Panam’s waist, and kissed her gently.
Not passionate and hungry, but soft and loving.
It lasted about three minutes.
When I pulled back, I looked her in the eyes.
“Don’t be jealous.”
“Pfft.”
I let her go and stepped toward Judy, who was looking away but kept glancing back at us.
“And this is for you.”
A short, almost chaste kiss on her lips.
Judy froze for a second.
I just walked out of the tent and inhaled the dusty air.
It was cleaner than the city, at least.
There was something charming about this.
I just needed to figure out the shower situation.
I scanned the camp and spotted Mitch walking around a vehicle.
“Hey again.”
“Yeah, we just saw each other.”
I shrugged.
“Need a hand?”
“Got a car that won’t start.
Not sure where to begin.”
“Mind if I scan it first?”
“Hm?”
He hesitated, then nodded.
I activated my optics.
“Pop the hood.”
He did.
I scanned the engine, deactivated the scan, and looked at him.
“I know what the problem is.”
The repair took a couple hours.
We moved the car into a large tent that served as the clan’s garage, swapped out some sensors, and replaced a few parts.
“So…”
A familiar voice came from behind us.
I turned and recognized the speaker.
“Sol.”
“Sol.”
“David.
What are you doing here?”
“Right now?
Helping Mitch fix a car.”
“I meant, what are you doing in the Aldecaldo camp?”
I shrugged.
“I needed some time off.
Recovery after my last surgery, and I’ve got another one coming.
Panam suggested I stay here, away from temptation.
I agreed.
But I won’t be a freeloader.
I can work with guns and tech.”
Sol gave me a long, hard look.
“Just the two of you?”
“Five of us.
Four women and me.
Two of them might have to head back to Night City if their crew calls.”
“Tch.
Just don’t get in the way.
I’ve got a promising deal lined up, and I don’t want it ruined by outsiders like you.”
Sol turned and walked off.
I looked at Mitch.
“Promising deal?
Don’t get in the way?”
“Sol’s been obsessed with cozying up to Biotechnica lately.
Wants us to guard their fields.
Stable work.”
Mitch’s voice dripped with disgust.
I understood.
Partnering with a corp was always a game of Russian roulette.
They’d screw you over the moment it suited them.
Everyone knew it, but everyone thought they’d be the exception.
“Biotechnica?
Nomads guarding fields?”
I looked at Mitch with surprise.
I knew about this from the game, but seeing it in reality was something else.
“You heard me.
I’m practically glowing with pride over the work Sol found us.
But I’m not going to fight him on it.”
“I wasn’t asking you to.
Let’s get back to the car.
There are a few more things we could do to make it faster and more agile.
Scorpion will appreciate it.”
“Yeah.
Let’s do it.”
Mitch grinned, and we got back to work.
A couple more hours passed.
We stepped back from the car, satisfied.
“Call Scorpion.
Let him test it.”
“On it.
Hey, David.
Could you take a look at some of the other clan vehicles?”
“Sure.
No problem.”
I shrugged.
Looked like I’d have plenty to do during this vacation.