Chapter 13: Bodyguarding is Babysitting with extra steps.

[Cyberdemon POV]

Megan is a corporate genius, serving as a deadly beauty quite capable of lulling her opponents into a false sense of security before striking with surgical precision.

Following in the footsteps of her successful mother, she seemed to be a shoe in for eventually rising to the CEO position herself.

This carefully crafted image, was shattered by the scene in front of me.

My eyes took in the smoking coffee machine, the sparking toaster spitting out a burnt piece of toast, the overflowing dishwasher, the exploded security drone, finally coming to a rest on the sheepish young woman.

I couldn't tell if she was just clumsy, unlucky, or incompetent, but I suddenly understood the servant portion of the contract.

Directing her over to the nearby table, I make my way around the kitchen putting it back together. Eventually, we were sitting at the table with a plate of eggs, some coffee, and some imitation fruit I found in her fridge.

She seemed appreciative of how I didn't comment on her "attempt" at making breakfast this morning, and we sat quietly until it was time for her to go to work.

I quickly found myself wearing a very expensive looking suit as I opened the door of her car and she stepped in.

She read over some project documentation as I rested my hand's calmly in my lap, scanning the surroundings for threats.

I finally got around to opening the Cryptek data cache, and discovered some rather dangerous tools and toys that I was itching to use.

Thankfully, the advanced technology was quite easy to hide on my person as I secretly wished a motherfucker would.

Unfortunately, we made it to Militech corporate offices without incident.

Walking in the front doors, many heads turned to observe Ms. Myers as she made her way through the lobby.

Stepping through the security scanners without incident, I continued watching for threats as I was dragged from meeting to meeting as Megan exchanged pleasantries with hundreds of different aspects of the company trying to curry favor with her.

More avenues of awareness were required as she was offered various drinks, food, and other items that might be laced with a chemical cocktail.

It was only after detecting the fourth instance of such an attempt, that I had no choice but to resolve the issue.

Quite frankly, the man had no business attempting to "roofie" a woman half his age, so I simply lit him on fire.

To be specific, I doused him with the alcoholic drink he offered, and then lit him on fire.

You know what they say; Give a man a fire, and he will be warm for a day. But set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

People were awfully nervous when I was in close proximity after that.

I was more astounded by how quickly the company brushed the incident under the rug, but I was technically defending the daughter of a former CEO.

Maybe it was a tad excessive, but I was getting irritated.

It possibly led to why Megan had left to take an early lunch.

After lunch, she led the way into a boardroom, filled with other high-profile figures, each with their own guard contingents.

I stood alone, as several of these contingents numbered as large as twenty people.

Made me feel a tad self-conscious before I realized what this signified.

Megan preferred one overly competent guard verses a team of semi-competent individuals, as the salaries of one of these teams with equipment was possibly equivalent to my entire wage.

Sticking by her side, the corpo's exchanged pleasantries before the guards themselves were ushered from the rooms.

Leaning back against the wall, I seriously debate pulling out a book when I pick out a disturbance in the Militech network.

Many of the less cybernetically inclined guards were chatting and pulling out playing cards, but I spotted some of the corpo agents stiffening up.

Two floors below, a disgruntled lower-level manager was displaying overly hostile actions before unleashing his cyberware against his hapless intern crushing his throat before killing anything in his path.

He started making his way towards the elevator and I lock it down, several other corpo agents adding their netrunning skills to the lock down.

Alarms sounded throughout the building as the hall below was sealed off.

I watched the man head back to his office through the camera's, stepping over the corpse of the intern as he accessed a safe within the office.

[C-4] (Uncommon)

A common plastic explosive agent.

Wonderful.

"Target has explosives." I report, the other agents focusing on me for a moment before, drawing weapons and setting a perimeter around the door.

[Cyber Shot]

Activating the cyberware, the bow unfolds as I nock one of my alchemic arrows, hearing him blow the elevator doors below.

I was about to dig into his mind before I noticed several dozen explosions throughout the facility.

Multiple breaches, on multiple levels, as dozens of other low-level employee's mimicked the behavior of the first.

Subversion?

Militech had no shortage of enemies, so what was the purpose behind this one.

"Cyber, Status?" Megan's voice clipped into my ear.

"Multiple internal breaches across the facility. Closest threat is two floors down and closing." I report, hearing a sigh as she issues an order.

"Please exercise damage control and protect Militech employee's." she stated, as I nod grimly.

"Yes Ma'am. If you need me, just call." I reply, before vanishing from the hall.

Ports open on my arms as I unleash a swarm of nanomachines through the halls, slowly flooding the building as the opponents died in bursts of sickly green energy.

Hardly the most difficult opponents, but at least I got some free C-4 out of it.

People didn't quite realize what interfered as the clouds of machines vanished when they finished, leaving many bewildered employee's as they suddenly found a lack of attackers.

But it felt odd, as each opponent moved me further and further away from Ms. Myers.

Bringing my hunt to a temporary halt, I requested access to her optics which she silently granted, giving me insight to the missing pieces to the assault.

[Megan Myers POV]

Gerald Mathers smiled smugly from the other side of the table as screen's behind him displayed the carnage he implemented to force me into a corner.

I was aware that Mathers was actively trying to undermine my position within Militech through blackmail and bribery, managing to build up a significant number of assets.

His hunger for power often had him coming to me in attempts to transfer the few assets I controlled under him.

Despite rejecting his advances, he still persisted in attempting to coerce me into seeing things "his way".

It now appeared that he was reverting to strong arm tactics.

"Send your guard to deal with the mess. It wouldn't do for you to hoard all of your "security" during such an incident, now would it?" He stated, and I slowly ordered Cyberdemon to assist in the defense.

A part of me left with him as I realized how alone I was surrounded by executives and their guards.

"I feel like this show is rather unnecessary Mathers. What do you hope to gain from all this?" I ask calmly, watching Cyber appear and demolish several attackers.

"Oh, it's quite necessary my dear. You see, no matter who stands behind you, you needed to be taught a lesson on respecting your betters. And if you suffer mysterious injuries during an "employee uprising?" Well, all for the better isn't it?" he bragged, standing up and walking around the table towards me, a "gorilla fist" augment activating on his arm.

Cyber's request came through and I gave him a glimpse of Gerald grabbing ahold of my chin and raising a fist.

As his hand came down, the man suddenly collapsed, his body motionless as he blinked in confusion.

"What the -! I can't control my body! Whats going o-." the rest of his statement was cut off as chittering filled the room, and I noted two new entities revealing themselves on my personal network underneath the Cyberdemon's tag.

A sinewy metal creature faded into existence over the downed form of Mathers, its bug-like carapace held up by a long metal tail, its metal arms clacking together as its optic gleamed a baleful green.

[Canoptek Wraith]

A Canoptek Wraith is an automated robotic Necron construct that serves as the eyes and ears of the central operating system of any Tomb World, patrolling for intruders and inspecting the Necron sanctuary's ancient systems for signs of damage and decay. Its primary tool is its Phase Shifter, a Dimensional Destabilization Matrix that allows a Wraith to phase in and out of sync with the normal space-time continuum.

"Good thing I left these boy's behind, otherwise I imagine you'd be in a right pickle." Cyber's voice commented above me and I looked up to see him perched on the back of my chair like a light-footed cat.

"What did it do to him?" I ask, not questioning the sudden movement of my guard.

"I believe they severed his spinal cord at the base of his neck. Could be permanent if not healed soon." He replied, giving me the bargaining tools, I needed.

"Well Mather's, it appears that the tables have been flipped in my favor. What are you prepared to offer in exchange for the lives of you and your associates?" Megan offered, as one of his flunkies yelled in outrage.

"You can't do that! If a single one of us dies, the board will investigate your interference . . ." He raged before Megan interrupted him; "Cyber . . ."

A green scythe-like blade lashed out above her, scaring the floor as it rended the man into nothingness as he unleashed a final scream of terror.

The utter horror of the weapon permeated the room causing several of the residents to choke upon their own spit as the room regressed into a terrified silence.

Fortunately, the fear of the weapon reinforced my opportunity to push forward.

"So, what would you like to offer to get back into my good graces?" I demand, the imposing form of my guard causing them to fold like a house of cards.

[Ripper Tavish POV]

David still showed up for his shifts at "Tavish's Trinkets", but he also added on the workload of training to use the Sandevistan to full effect.

But a wrench was thrown into the works when a heist went south resulting in David getting kidnapped by Jimmy Kurosaki.

So two bodies laid on my operating table, one that of an unconscious David, the other being a dead Kurosaki.

Kurosaki was a rather high profile XBD artist, crafting some of the most exclusive XBD's including the one containing James Norris's cyberpsycho break.

I was passively interested in stripping away his knowledge regarding braindance from an archival and teaching perspective.

What if, you could retrieve information from someone brain, leaving behind emotion and consciousness?

Jimmy here would be my test subject for something bigger.

The Cyberdemon personal set the plan into motion by becoming a high profile merc and getting hired to guard a Militech VIP.

If I could create a device to extract the needed information, I could take corporate espionage to a whole new level.

And while it had the additional benefit of putting me in a position to keep an eye on Faraday, I was unwittingly put in a position where I had access to many of the minds that made decisions across North America, specifically the NUSA.

The Monk, served as an excellent distraction gaining a cult following and attracting most of the focus from corporate entities as they tried to understand the mystery that he presented.

And I, was finally able to initiate the forward development of Argent D'nur.

It would be the cradle of my Space Marine's development.

Flesh vats have been created and automated to create my vision of what the mighty super humans should be capable of.

I'll receive consistent updates about the development projects on that as well as my other worlds, finally allowing me to focus on my efforts here.

[Knowledge Stripper Mk. I (Patent pending)] (Unknown)

A device designed to strip knowledge from the human brain. It is developed as derivative technology from Arasaka's Relic. Tavish hasn't decided if he liked the name for this device yet.]

Slapping the device on Kurosaki's head, I start it up and let it do its work before switching to the unconscious David.

A case of green metallic substance ejected into a syringe, which was promptly injected at the base of David's neck.

[Mindshackle Scarab's] (Epic)

Mindshackle Scarabs are one of the Necrons' chief methods of controlling alien races. At the bearer's command, tiny scarabs bury into the victim's mind and bypass cerebral functions, turning the victim into little more than a puppet under the control of the scarabs' master.

Mind control, is something I really didn't dabble with, leaving this as the only technology available.

The reason is actually rather benign.

David had a rather unhealthy belief that he has a special resistance to cyberware, and assumes that he can install a lot more than normal people.

The scarab's can't exactly force a true mind control without burning up and killing the host, but they can definitely supply a suggestion or adjust a thought process slightly.

I would prefer if David's self-preservation was a tad stronger, otherwise he couldn't change his ending without some serious intervention.

Rebecca was already vastly improved by leaps and bounds thanks to Cyberdemon.

Her obsession with purchasing Smasher's arms and legs resulted in her coming to visit my ripper body for installation and customization.

And I hid so much cyberware in those arms. This was the equivalent of upgrading to her oversized cyberarms earlier. I retailored smasher's legs to fit her better.

Bottom line is, she could probably survive an impact from a truck and only have minor injuries.

The Corpo body that I set loose recently, has been relatively inactive as the connections he was building are taking a significant chunk of time to foster.

Currently, he has possession of an abandoned drone factory in Pacifica, and a two floor office in Watson.

Most of his energy seemed to be focused on a hotel of some sort. It left me quite curious as to what he was planning, but I didn't open up my connection to him to find out.

It was something extra-legal in nature, I was sure of that. When I built Horizon, I used a lot of the money I made from selling Purity and Unity to fund the initial venture.

Was he setting up a business of sorts for criminals?

Shaking myself out of my thoughts, the knowledge stripper dinged in completion.

Popping the device off his head, and allowing his body to be transported to the Skitarii production facility, I plug it into my computer and start extracting the information.

Maine walked in glancing at David while I typed away on the machine, discarding scrap bits of information as I sort the data into a cohesive whole.

"How is he?" He asked, as I read over the extracted information.

"Fine now. Kurosaki did a number on his mental state. I seriously debated on purging the event from his mind in order to undo the damage. His desire for chrome is significantly dialed back, and I'm going to drag him to a place I know to help him figure out the true consequences of chrome." I reply, hearing him shift behind me.

"What's wrong with a bit of chrome?" He asked, pulling up a nearby stool.

"The kid was exposed to the raw 'dance of James Norris's cyberpsychosis break. He views aug's as the be all, end all for merc's. You're probably getting pretty close yourself if I'm reading the correct number of implants." I comment blithely, awaiting his reaction.

If he accepts that he has a problem, I can help. If he does not, oh well.

He went quiet as I continued typing away.

It wasn't until a full ten minutes had passed that he surprised me by speaking up; "How could you tell?" He asked, as I gesture above the door.

"I have a bit of a sensor installed on my shop. The moment someone walks in, I know what I'm dealing with, the make and model of your chrome, last maintenance, and general integrity. I was reading a lot of damage in your neural interface." Replied, turning to face him.

He let out a low chuckle; "Crafty bastard. Fine. Take a look under my hood Doc." He said laying down on my recently vacated table.

"Chill mate, I can work miracles if given the chance." I reply vaguely, grabbing my instruments.

[Monk Tavish]

Tray and my first monks had departed on their first mission to spread the good word.

Each had the mission to convert one person, or help someone overcome a case of cyberpsychosis.

A very timely event considering what I was dealing with.

The corporations had found a loophole in how I copywrite my voice and appearance. While I had covered myself well, I was having to fend off parodies, and even using the appearance of my disciples to push their agenda's.

Pushing aside my correspondence with one of the lawyers I had hired, I picked up a meeting request.

Lizzy Wizzy.

This is the second time in a row she has sought me out in some form or another.

Once for a medical concern.

The second being for an ad campaign.

Some sort of tea brand wanted to advertise their new flavor "enlightenment". They sent me some samples of the flavor, and it was quite delicious, so I couldn't actually come up with a legit reason to refuse outside of one minor gripe.

They requested that she be equipped with the highest quality cybernetics of my monastery.

Cybernetics are awarded based on request and level of "enlightenment" to the Iris, leaving me in a bit of a pickle. I can imagine the resentment that would propagate among the initiates of my followers.

Thus, I found myself standing in front of the gates of her estate, ringing the doorbell.

I found that explaining my reasoning in person, would go over a lot better than a message through intermediaries.

What surprised me, was how quickly I was ushered in after my unannounced arrival.

I didn't even have enough time to settle into the waiting room I was shown before Lizzy herself hurried into the room.

[Lizzy Wizzy]

Lvl- 232

Class – Rockergirl

Thoughts – Awe struck, excitement.

The fuck?

"Mondatta! So wonderful for you to come and visit!" She said enthusiastically, as a man stumbled into the room, a shirt haphazardly on as he tries to make himself presentable.

[Liam Northom]

Lvl – 122

Class – Fixer

Thoughts – irritation.

"Yes, yes, it's a pleasure to meet you, but why did you come by at this hour?" He gripped, causing Lizzy to glare at him.

"I did wait until 10:00. And somethings are better left explained in person . . ." I reply watching him adjust his trousers uncomfortably.

Quite frankly, I don't care if I cock-blocked him. It's their fault for rushing me in so quick. I was quite happy to wait an hour or two, but the security decided I needed to see them right now.

"So what brings you by?" Lizzy asked, and I pull out the contract she had sent me.

"The contract for that advertisement deal, I can accept most of its terms with one glairing exception." I inform gesturing to the section on augments.

"I can't in good consciousness give you cybernetics exclusive to my monastery. They are made available to those in my temple that achieve enlightenment, and it would be unfair of me to allow a relative outsider access just because they flash a few eddies." I finish causing Liam to sneer.

"So, its more money your after? Fine, how much do we have to pay you for access? He mocked, and I shook my head.

"Did you not just listen? It is not about money. Those cybernetics serve as a gift for those in my religion who devote their time to finding themselves in the Iris. A special award for recognizing the hard work that they put into advancing an understanding of themselves and the world at large."

"I am more than happy to help design an outfit for Lizzy for her commercial, but if I cheapen the cybernetics by allowing them to be bought, it will enforce a mindset of acquiring enlightenment with money." I state firmly.

As Lizzy looked lost in thought, Liam pulled out a check book and started scribbling out a lot of zero's.

"C'mon, I know your type. Just tell me when I get to a number you like." He said, obviously ignoring my words.

"What If I joined the monastery?" Lizzy asked, causing both me and Liam to blink.

"Then it would be a matter of you earning the cybernetics in question through your own merit." I replied, mulling over the idea as Liam sputtered.

"Lizzy, baby?! As your manager, I have to recommend against you joining any kooky religions for a commercial." He tried to talk her out of it.

"Well what if I make it a personal choice? I was considering doing this for awhile since I have a hard enough time getting a practicing Buddhist to come and see me. At least this guy doesn't have an aversion against chrome." She shot back turning to me.

"What do I need to start?" She questioned over the protests of her boyfriend.

"Come visit the temple whenever you are ready. I have an introductory scroll if you would like to read it over." I offer pulling the scroll from within my robes which she accepts gingerly.

"Thank you so much Abbot! I'll probably swing by sometime tomorrow." She said enthusiastically as I stood up.

"Wonderful, I will see you then." I reply, taking this as a subtle dismissal.

I hardly made it ten steps from the front door when I heard a shouting match explode inside the house.

Celebrities, they are a bunch of odd ducks.

Waving to the gate guard, I start making my way back towards town.

I had an appointment with a rather friendly Chinese man who was proficient in acupuncture.

Truthfully, I was curious about possibly expanding my medical repertoire with various natural treatments from around the world.

It was for a personal scientific study in regards to the effectiveness of certain treatments both with, and without magic.

I think Yu was just inviting me around for my help to convince his son not to join the Tyger Claws.

Personally, I think that was just bad business/life decision given how quickly I exterminated them last time around.

Ah well, time to go provide spiritual guidance to the disenfranchised youth!

[Cyberdemon POV]

Hefting the Necron warscythe, I examine it while I wait in Megan's office.

[Voidreaper] (Mythic)

Legend has it that on the day the C'tan Aza'gorod the Nightbringer was sundered into shards, the Warscythe that would later become known as Voidreaper appeared in the armory of the Nekthyst Dynasty's crownworld. Its blade is a sliver of the void; when swung, it cuts through more than just mere physical forms. Its victims drop to the ground as husks, their souls torn from their bodies like tattered shrouds before dissipating with final screams of horror.

The shit that I found locked away in the Cryptek data cache.

It explains why it took so long to crack the damn code securing it.

I might have to start a hobby of collecting C'tan shards if they were all as powerful as this one.

It probably would have been more worthwhile to test it out on a more powerful being than a corrupt corporate executive, but I was really getting bored.

And I wanted to prove a point that I wasn't just for show.

. . . .

Maybe I need to find Smasher and tear off his arms again?

The door slammed open, causing the warscythe to vanish, as Megan walked in collapsing into her chair.

I silently waited for her to speak, quietly flipping through my messages.

"You know, if I didn't know better. I'd say you're more trouble than your worth." Megan commented dryly, prompting me to raise an eyebrow.

"In the space of a day, you lit someone on fire, and killed several Militech executives. If it wasn't for the evidence you secured proving their guilt, it is highly likely that a corpo hit team would be chasing you." She continued, causing me to grin.

"But in that same token, you've proven to be a highly effective agent, and that deserves merit." She finished, producing a folder and handing it to me.

Reading it over, I read over a portfolio listed in my name.

"I happened to notice that you had nothing in the way of stock investment, so I took the liberty of transferring some of the assets seized, into your name." She said smugly, as I paged through it slowly.

"It say's here that I own a whole percent of Militech stock. Isn't this a bit obscene for just doing what you hired me to do?" I ask as she scoffs.

"Your lack of greed astonishes me sometimes. Put it this way; if I gave you a whole percentage point of Militech stock, how much do you think I gained from this little incident?" She posed, and I chuckled, closing the folder.

"Point taken." I reply, as she pulls out another tablet and starts typing away.

"In the meantime, check in with the motorcade down stairs and add any personal requests to the vehicles I requested." She ordered, causing me to cock my head.

"Personal vehicles?"

"Yes. My level of protection needs to increase with my increase in assets. And since I acquired part of our Night City vehicle division, I requested several vehicles. Make sure they meet your specifications." She stated, as I ran my eyes over the vehicle designs.

"I have a person I'd like to forward the design request to. Would that be alright? I can have him sign an NDA as well." I offer, causing her to nod.

"Very well. Make sure to destroy any evidence of the vehicle from Militech systems when your done. And archive the design in the event of any issues that may arise." She added, starting to type at her computer.

[Corpo Tavish]

The fuck is this?

Cyberdemon is begging me to design a full fleet of cars for the corpo he's babysitting.

And he has a state-of-the-art facility for them to be built in?

Fuck . . . .

I never really delved too deeply into cars or ground vehicles. I kinda just admired them "as is" while occasionally enhancing trunk space.

And he want's me to design not only a car for him, and his passenger, he also requested an AV.

The AV is easy enough I have the Raven, I just need to plush it up a bit for corporate standards.

This would be an excellent one-off deal for the company.

I had set most of the corporate matters aside as I set myself up as an information broker.

Out of curiosity, I deployed the Tactical Hobo, and was pleasantly surprised.

The man introduced himself as Dave, and I gave him the order to collect information.

[Dave, King of Vagrants]

Lvl - ?

Class - Hobo

While vague, Dave went straight to work slowly building his band of vagrants.

I made sure that they received a cut of the profits, but the data started flowing in in unprecedented amounts.

People tended to avoid beggars and vagrants, and ignore them if they are nearby. This gave me a spy network that had access to every corner of the city and lower tier information for most corporations.

I could however tell that Dave was not quite human.

It was the twenty-foot standing jump that gave him away when he jumped into an airduct for an Arasaka office.

For some reason, everyone that worked under Dave, had the amazing ability to get in where they weren't supposed to, and get gently ushered out if they were caught.

One of the vagrants was caught sleeping on top of a Kang Tao server, and instead of taking a bullet to the head like standard procedure for trespassers, they were gently ushered out the door.

Did Dave grant them a perk that guides the actions of any security guards or humans that encounter them?

Oh well, as much as I'd like to explore the mysteries of Dave, I have projects to get to.

First off, I started a hotel chain to hide my "less legal" ventures while I was acquiring capital for my corporation.

It allowed me to set up a fixer-esq dealer service as I sourced employee's and materials.

Ripper Tavish was quietly put on the payroll with the associated paperwork so I could quietly compile the identities of the personas when the time came.

The Canoptek scarabs sped up my construction speed by a significant amount as they simply turned rubble and trash into energy with that energy is then converted into usable materials.

At this point I was just waiting on patent approval for a list of products I'm waiting to roll out.

The fresh food was expanded to include hydroponics facilities, the new manager I hired managing to shift around the increasing supply as I undercut standard market prices.

In the short term, I was hurting my "smuggling" of fresh produce for Dino, but that business wasn't as lucrative as I thought it would be.

Turns out, he set the entire venture to the side and only really used it when impressing some of his higher profile friends.

I had already received the call from Dino informing me that he "wouldn't be needing my services for fresh" anytime soon, and I simply redirected the stream of produce towards the more profitable venture.

And while I was a tad disappointed that Dino hadn't yielded the expected results, I didn't worry as I worked on getting my R&D division up and running.

And while the majority of the workers were tech-priests, I started to intermix regular humans into the innerworkings of my company.

It was a hell of a lot easier by offering Mindshackle Scarabs as part of the company supplied cyberware.

I debated with the ethics of "mind control" for a while, always reaching the same conclusion.

You can't trust humans.

So, the scarabs ran with several simple rules, which really don't take effect unless you try to steal shit.

I had several trigger within the first few weeks, leaving my HR division fairly busy as we tried to stand up.

Sasha was put to work scooping up land from Pacifica as soon as it was available, allowing me to slowly revitalize the area.

It always surprised me about how little land in Pacifica the corporations owned, leaving me plenty of room to expand and profit.

Horizon was effectively serving as a buffer zone between Pacifica's danger's and the rest of the city, slowly creating a trickle of tourist thrill seekers.

And when they were looking for a place to stay . . .

The Dawnstar would be ready to receive them, providing further camouflage to the information den.

I had already laid out an area for the Horizon Corporate offices, and I was in the process of construction its base level and subteranians facilities.

But I was getting off track, Cyber sent me the request for a reason.

And that was to get something from the gamer shop to modify for his use.

I debated buying some design's outright, but I didn't have the capital for that currently.

So I decided to buy a handful of blueprint packs and roll the dice.

[Blueprint pack opened!]

[Honda Civic] (Common)

[Go Cart] (Common)

[Delonghi 4-slicer] (Common)

[Whack-A-Mole Machine] (Common)

[Crossbow] (Common)

. . . .

This didn't bode well for my chances of finding what I need.

[Time Skip]

[Ripper Tavish]

I stood with David across from the crypt that the cremated remains of Maine and Dorio.

Maine insisted that their was no need to undergo any therapy for his worsening condition.

Several psychotic breaks later, and we were burying the both of them.

A key point of any recovery, be it mental or physical, is the desire to fix oneself.

Maine thought he knew best, and that is all there is to it.

David was fairly muted for the whole experience as he had spent the last few weeks taking care of a comatose Lucy.

The kid really didn't know how lucky he had it with Rebecca running defense for a lot of the shit he did.

Ah well, his love life really was none of my business.

David did start displaying a calculating side of him that I wasn't expecting, as he salvaged the remains of Maine's crew, and built new connections to various merc's and fixer's.

He even sent out a request to the Cyberdemon, which made me question what he might be planning.

With all this extra stuff going on, it was hard to actually pick out what his mental state was, so I did what made sense to me.

I invited him around for dinner.

The invitation was also extended to his mother, Lucy, and Rebecca. I would have invited more of the crew if I thought they were closer with David.

It was a quiet affair, but I managed to fish a few bits of information out of David.

He was torn about Maine's cyberware going to waste, but my initial warning stayed his hand from trying to reclaim the cyberarm in question.

Something that I was ecstatic about, as I was afraid that David would descend the same path as before.

While a fast rise to fame was definitely eye-catching, a slow climb that allows you to adjust to your cyberware would hopefully let him live longer.

Him and his Mother's living situation was improving now that they had several sources of income between the two of them, and Gloria was certainly looking healthier with her reduced hours.

Privately, she confided that she really wished David would go back to school, I pointed out that David was significantly happier as an Edgerunner.

Pretty sure she wasn't too thrilled hearing that her son preferred to risk life and limb rather than go to school, but it was the truth.

Either way, the familial interaction did him some good.

Speaking of family interaction, I taught Eleanor her first bit of Technomancy today.

She wasn't particularly interested in the discipline like I was, she tended to express more interest in Warlock esq magics, but this was a personal prerequisite before I allowed her to chip any cyberware.

I had a red and black nano hive sitting on my desk for when her proficiency was high enough to handle it.

This hive probably won't ever be as evolved as the one I possess, but it will give her a definite edge over most cybernetically enhanced individuals.

This came about when she expressed her interest in getting a tattoo.

Now, I'm all for letting my kid make her own decision, but quite a bit of body art is rather permanent. And while we are still exploring what she inherited from me, if she was immortal, I guarantee she'd probably regret getting that body art after the first century.

This way, she could at least change it or remove it entirely if she got bored with it.

While she messed about with that, I messed with the Byrne Invocation.

At its maximum setting, I could pass as a standard human without anything fancy or special.

It was pretty great, I was able to touch stuff without worrying about it breaking, I had to work a bit harder to accomplish things verses just waving my hand.

Gave me a real sense of accomplishment.

Up until I dislocated my wrist.

And the rest of my arm.

A subtle reminder on how much I had reinforced my body in order to use a storm bolter with one hand.

My pain aside, it was an educational experience and quite frankly a rather shocking experience to deal with my own mortality once more.

But this would serve as an excellent means to blend in with normal humans if I so choose.

However, normality is often overrated.

This "limiter" will probably only be used if I'm trying to conceal my actions, or if I'm trying to complete a world challenge.

Speaking of which . . .

[The Emperor Call's for intervention]

Quest added!

[Call of the 21st!]

The Emperor of Mankind has detected the threads of power for "The 21st Son" project that was created from the remains of the Void Dragon.

His psykic might is calling for the power to aid his imperium in its time of need

Objective 1: Aid in a significant battle.

?

?

?

?

Reward: ?

Countdown till automatic quest initiation: 2: 14: 45: 13

Perfectly vague . . . just how I like it . . .

I didn't particularly want to deal with this right now, but the forcible acceptance of the quest really was putting me in a bind.

David was going into a transitional period as he assumed control of the edgerunner group, and while I didn't have an issue leaving a clone to monitor him . . .

. . . I was afraid my armor wouldn't be done.

[Doom Sentinel Power Armor] (Mythic)

Specially crafted aegis terminator armor designed for the Primarch of the Night Sentinels.

Tavish has pulled from the fullest extent of his knowledge to incorporate his technology, while disguising his abilities to be better accepted by the factions of the Imperium of man.

Unfortunately, it falls short of God-tier armor due to the rush job.

I even attempted to construct the armor in a time dilation room, but it did little to slow the physical timer for the quest.

But still, this is a hell of an armor.

Standing head and shoulders over most humans, the designs of the Night Sentinels shone out from the Angled face plate of the space marine armor as I ran the required checks, its servo harness occasionally shifting and adjusting to various inputs.

Behind me, tech-priest's ran back and forth through the cauldron, equipping Skitarii, crafting weapons, making medicine, and pallets upon pallets of food.

A large tech priest approached my workshop area, several Titan's and battle automata falling in close behind.

"Creator, the mechanical divisions are ready for deployment. But I fear the Space Marine's will not be ready for this engagement." Secutor Markroth's voice boomed out over the din.

"Then this will have to do for now. What are our odds you reckon?" I ask, absentmindedly approving the manufacture of another hundred tons of ammunition.

"Unknown. The battleground will be completely foreign to our forces upon landfall, leaving us fumbling to find data, much less coordinating with any potential allies."

"Many contingencies have been made to counter Ork, Imperium, Necron, and Tyrranid forces. But without actual battle data, these plans may become irrelevant very quickly."

"Chaos, and the Eldar are the two big unknowns with very few plans in place that can most assuredly stop them"

"We simply do not have enough information." Markroth finished, causing me to hum.

"What about the Tau? Or the Votann?" I ask, seeing the Magos roll his mechanical optics.

"Tau technology is potentially fascinating, but something that I deem "inconsequential". Steal the tech and incorporate it, and move on. In the general universe, they are a small enough faction that I wouldn't worry."

"As for the Votann, I can see a very profitable business relationship, especially if we can distinguish ourselves from regular Mechanicus forces. Their ancestor core's are a point of significant intrigue. Many of their practices are similarly mimicked by yourself out side of your dipstick shenanigans." The Magos commented airily, as I threw a glare over my shoulder.

"And what does that supposed to mean?" I comment half-heartedly.

"Nothing at all, my primarch." He replied, cheekiness dripping from his tone.

The one downside to this venture, was I had no ships larger than a Thunderhawk that were capable of spaceflight.

I really should have invested more in space-capable ships, but it really wasn't a pressing need, even if the blueprints I had.

Glancing across the hanger at where the tech-priests were assembling a prototype Jackal, I muse at the odd little ship.

The origin universe for that particular vehicle, was "Infinite Warfare", and had left me hoping I could quickly replicate the tech.

It was a close enough proximity to 40k starfighter that I could have used it and claimed it was a "lost STC" of a starfighter.

I clench my fists as I watch the quest timer count down.

"Update the timer Markroth, and push everyone to their limit. If we come up too short, It could mean the difference wherever we may land." I state, the Magos bowing deeply.

[Monk Tavish POV]

I sat up at the front of the room as hundreds of people went through various movements and exercises that would help "center themselves".

Wandering through, I gently provided corrections when someone would perform an exercise wrong, or helped them adjust for their body.

Gently stepping past Lizzy, I observed her form before moving on to the next.

Her chrome was very much dialed down from her standard fair, her trademarked pink hair swapped out for a brunette.

The newest disciples were over the moon that such a famous celebrity was practicing at the monastery, but they were quickly corrected and weeded out as necessary.

It was a well-timed distraction to introduce the disciples to, allowing them to see past the layers that fame provides, and teaching them to actually communicate, verses idolize from afar.

This encouraged my disciples to start approaching me more of their own initiative.

Quite a pleasant surprise, as I'm sure many view my as a mythical figure in my own right.

Within the first month of Lizzy joining the temple, I've learned the names of more disciples than I ever anticipated.

I was quite used to exchanging pleasantries, and offering modicums of advice to the disciples as they found their own path.

Their was Ezikiel, a father of three, and he works for a shipping company.

Terri, a mother of one, and she ran messages for Kang Tao.

Cassey, a single man who works as a Joy-Toy on Jig-Jig Street.

And hundreds of others who were gradually attaching names to faces.

The NCPD poked around for a bit after my "incident" with the Voodoo Boys, but after forwarding my evidence of their constant attacks of my data fortress.

Personally, I think they wanted to push the whole incident behind them, as it had the unintentional side-effect of reducing a number of cyber-crimes in Night City.

I was curious if Netwatch was going to come knocking, but they seemed to be content to keep their heads down, which suited me just fine.

The biggest issue right now, came in the form of Lizzy's boyfriend/manager.

He didn't quite take to Lizzy's fascination with the religion, and was now looking for ways to actively undermine me.

After the first few weeks of Lizzy attending, she got in a very heated argument that involved him getting banned from the grounds.

Since then, I've received repeated calls from Diverse Media Systems from someone offering to buy or rent my likenesses that had shown on television along with being offered several contracts with ridiculous conditions.

He was clearly trying to entrap me somehow, but it just felt distasteful dealing with the idiot at this point.

I would so love to just make him "disappear", but I'm well aware that this practice is generally frowned upon for the head of the Shambali monastery.

So I just have to take it on the chin and keep pushing ahead.

Many non-Shambali monks had started congregating around the temple to try to dissuade or attract believers of their own with mixed success. But people always found a way to ride on the coat tails of success.

The religion has grown wickedly fast for the time I was here in Night City, well beyond what I had ever estimated.

I expected that if given a timeline starting at the beginning of Edgerunners, to the end, I would have a hundred, maybe a hundred fifty people following the religion.

Yet here I was, half way through, and I had followers numbering in the thousands.

Pretty good for a pastime to complete a world challenge.

Ah well, I might try to push a more ridiculous religion next time around.

I could wear a colander on my head and profess the coming of the flying spaghetti monster, or I could bring the gift of chilling the fuck out to the masses.

Well, Pastafarians and Dudeism aside, I'm going to have to hold the fort down for the rest of the bodies.

I can only cross my finger's and hope that we're prepared enough for what comes next.

[Interlude: The Call]

[The Emperor's POV]

For the first time in centuries, I found my awareness centered around the golden throne.

It was an existence of pain, struggling, and perpetual exhaustion as my mind is stretched across the galaxy and into the warp itself as I continue to fight against the forces of Chaos, and the encroaching darkness over mankind.

The cesspit that my imperium became.

Religious fanatics perpetuation of the exact opposite that I professed in life, a dogma that has dugs its way even into the hearts of my Space marines.

It both strengthens my power in its current plight, while strengthening the darker forces of the Warp, leaving us in a never-ending arms race.

Unbeknownst to them however, I just armed the newest weapon in my arsenal.

My mind's eye focuses on the image of the red-haired man assembling the armor in his base.

The Seed of the Twenty-first.

If I was in my prime, I could retrieve him with no issue, but something was restricting me.

I could pull him towards certain points of time, and certain events, but I couldn't anchor him to this plane to help the imperium for extended periods.

But hopefully, I could extend it a little bit by increasing his presence here . . .

[3rd Person POV]

The Custodes guarding the throne jumped as the throne lit up, the entire palace shaking as the emperor's voice echoed out for the first time in centuries.

"My Primarchs stood as the beacon of hope for my Imperium. Until the great enemy tore them apart, and scattered their remnants across the universe."

"So I call upon the final Primarch. The twenty-first primarch."

"Let my subjects hear his name, and recognize his might to bring about a new golden age."

"Tavarius Machina! Answer the call of my dying people!"

"Stand taller than my Titan's!"

"Be the Anvil upon which we are forged anew!"

"Let your words rally the lost!"

"And build up the worlds so that they may never be lost again!"

The words reverberated across Terra, past Mars, and out into the galaxy, the overwhelming psykic presence causing navigators, psykers and warp sensitive beings across many worlds to recoil in shock at the sudden roar through the warp.

[Omake: Making some money]

[Trayzn POV]

Standing in an alley with a brief case under my arm, I calmly wait as Tavish fidgets with a rubix cube.

"Why are we here again?" Tavish complained, as I rolled my eyes.

"Because I need to make some more funds. Between you and Big E, you guys are eating me out of house and home with your "refined" pallets. I wish you'd just eat corpse starch and be done with it." I grumble and Tavish shakes his head hurriedly.

"No way dude, that stuff is made from people. Plus, most of your food bill is from Big E I can get my own food." He protested, and I fix a baleful eye on him.

"Regardless, I need to make this trade to tide him over until I can kick him out to get his own job. He really needs to start helping out. All he does is lay around, eat, and watch movies." I growl.

"Well, at least he's off the streets and not on drugs." Tavish replied sagely.

"Shut up, my contact is here." I muttered, as a large hooded figure emerged from the dark.

The silvered power armored visor of the gray knight made itself known, carrying a case of his own which he gently handed to the necron.

I quickly passed over the case without a word.

And just as quickly as the knight arrived, he vanished into the dark once more.

Opening the case, my eyes alight on the mounds of imperial bonds.

This should be enough funding to last the next couple of centuries at the very least.

"Wow! Why would the Imperium pay so much for a few shiny boxes?" I heard Tavish state, causing my central processor to halt.

I never told him what was in the case.

Slowly turning back to the enigmatic man, I saw him playing with a cube that was in no way a rubix cube.

"Tavish, put the Tesseract Labyrinth back . . ." I growl, watching him fumble the cube in surprise.

"So, I can't keep it as a souvenir?" He asked innocently.

[Oriax POV]

I wait until I'm back within my hidden base before finally relaxing.

Dealing with the likes of Trayzn was a necessary evil if the imperium had any hopes of permanently banishing warp entities.

Our supply of Tesseract Labyrinths was quite limited, and it was well worth it to deal with the supplier on occasion in order to someday, banish the warp in its entirety.

Setting the case on the table, I gently open the case to verify its contents.

One of the Tesseracts was a very odd design.

Multicolored with a three-by-three format, I started manipulating the cube to match the colors.

Scanning the cube for warp influences, I continue to slowly try and solve it, attempting to work out how to use this new Tesseract.

It wasn't until several hours later that Trayzn contacted me informing me of the mix-up and sent me a replacement cube, allowing me to keep the fascinating puzzle.

Though it was odd . . . it sounded like someone was voicing protest to the decision in the background.

Regardless, this was a puzzle that I'm sure my brothers would enjoy if given the chance.