New chapter!
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“I’ve taken down mercs and lived with a knife at my throat, and I wasn’t this nervous then.
Why am I this damn impatient now?”
Pilar paced around the living room, swinging his long arms.
He had not been chosen for the first-generation Source-series installation, but for some reason, he was still eager to see how powerful Rook’s Source Protocol really was.
“Quiet down, Pilar,” Dorio said.
“I’m not even rushing, so why are you?”
That was what she said, but her hands kept worrying at each other on the sofa.
The man inside was her lover, after all, and she was also one of the people scheduled for modification.
“Is this reliable?” Hare asked.
“Before this, I had never heard of Source-series cyberware.”
He was currently the newest member Jackie had recruited into the team.
His condition over the past two days had been stable, but he had not truly integrated with the group.
He was still afraid his cyberpsychosis might flare up and hurt these people who had treated him decently.
“Hey, choom, have a little faith in Rook, yeah?” Jackie said, outwardly the calmest person in the room.
“Don’t forget, all the materials for this Source Protocol stuff came out of his pocket.
We’re getting the good end of this.
What is there to complain about?”
He sat with one leg crossed over the other, bouncing it nonstop.
In truth, he was panicking inside.
After all, he was one of the people about to undergo the modification.
…
Inside the workshop, Maine felt as if he had dreamed for a very long time.
In the dream, he stood in a chrome-and-neon city much like Night City.
Cold metal armor wrapped his entire body.
A savage red energy glow pulsed from his chest, and he held a massive metal war trident in his hands.
He did not know whether he was guarding the city or defending it from unknown enemies.
In a daze, white light poured into the dream.
When he came back to himself, still foggy, he saw Rook’s familiar face waving a hand in front of him.
“Maine…”
“Maine?” Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
“Maine!”
His consciousness snapped back to reality.
He sat up hard and looked around.
The familiar workshop.
Rook’s back in a white lab coat.
And…
He looked down and saw a body wrapped in armor almost identical to what he had seen in the dream.
Instinctively, he raised his arm and turned his palm over.
“Mr.
Mercer,” Maine asked, confused, “is this the Juggernaut frame you mentioned?
Why don’t I feel its strength?”
Hearing him move, Rook finished washing his hands, turned, picked up a black metal rod from the wall, and tossed it to him.
At the same moment, a small chip appeared in Rook’s hand.
The instant Maine reached for the rod, Rook inserted the chip into the slot at the back of his neck.
The frame came alive with a low hum, like a body waking from sleep.
Then the dim metal frame lit with a grim red glow.
Metal extended upward from the back of Maine’s neck and enclosed his head, becoming exactly what he had seen in the dream.
Countless streams of data passed through his neural interface and into his brain.
The operating data, skill modules, and assessment reports for the entire Source Frame: Juggernaut displayed across his cybernetic eyes.
Maine rose from the operating table and swung the black rod in his hand.
The rod unfolded with a heavy thunk.
Both ends extended, becoming the same war trident he had held in the dream.
He closed his eyes, about to test whether the ability module was as strong as the report claimed.
Rook stopped him.
“Maine.
After we meet Gloria Martinez, we’re heading to the eastern Badlands.
You’ll have plenty of chances to test it then.”
…
“Uh, Mr.
Mercer,” Maine asked, scratching his head, “can’t this metal body be covered with synthetic skin?”
“Of course it can.
Your skill module has instructions. The source of this chapter is g.com.
The metal frame can contract and reshape into a human body profile.
However, I suggest you do not do that right now…”
Rook adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses as he explained, but halfway through, he shut his mouth.
Maine had already followed the skill module’s instructions and collapsed the metal frame back into a human shape.
“Why?”
Back in his own form, Maine looked confused.
Rook smiled and hummed.
“Because we did not buy any nanofiber skin tissue.
If you have to choose between plain metal skin with no aesthetic value and that overbearing armored form from a moment ago, the armored form is better.”
With that, Rook walked to the door and opened it.
“You can wait outside.
Also, send in your girlfriend, Dorio.”
…
A little later, Dorio appeared inside the workshop.
Rook heard her enter, but he did not look back.
He kept dismantling the second cyberware frame and gave the order while he worked.
“Take off your clothes and lie down on the operating table.”
Cloth rustled behind him.
When he finished preparing the frame, he put on gloves, picked up another anesthetic needle, and turned toward Dorio, who was already lying flat on the table.
His smile carried a hint of playfulness.
“Dorio, ready?
The frame I chose for you suits your style perfectly.”
“Mr.
Mercer, can I ask what it is?”
Dorio lay quietly with her hands clasped together, fingers shifting with nervous energy.
“Source Frame: Enforcer.”
“Enforcer?
Am I supposed to be a cop?”
“Think of it as a title.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter.