Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
Lucy POV – October 7, 2075 - Night City.
The last few days passed almost in a blur; there was so much to do and at the same time, nothing. There were so many things to see, monitor, and work on that kept me busy for days, but none of it was really important.
I was specifically in charge of the New Global Network. With the fall of the Arasaka network, a huge hole was left in the network. The emergence of our Network kept all the netrunners in the world, or even anyone who knew anything minimal about Networks, extremely interested in our Network, and not just because of the Apollo archives, the Arasaka archives, or Zero Dawn, but genuinely interested in the Network in general.
They tried to find its limits, attacking every point they could, seeing how much freedom they could gain and how tightly they were bound. What anyone would do in a corporate network: the limits were always clear; there were places, things one couldn't do without attracting attention or provoking the wrath of the corporations that maintained those networks, and it always ended with the poor wretch's brain melting.
So our network was put to the test, exhaustively. And to the surprise of the rest of the world, they found there were no limits, or very few. The true freedom of a global network—Serena didn't care about the global network in any way, not even monitoring it, so she simply left it free for everyone to use, and they were all starting to use it.
Slowly, there was a massive migration process—of individuals, groups, and small corporations—first thousands, then tens of thousands, then hundreds of thousands. Today, even just a few days later, there is a constant, rapidly increasing number of people connected. Nobody wants to be under the watchful eye of a corporation, having their secrets and all their personal information instantly reviewed without permission by the owners of that network. This was happening; everyone knew it. So, a new, completely free network? It was something everyone would be taking advantage of.
And I took it upon myself to monitor that. Not in any invasive way, no, I simply… I liked seeing how the network was growing, how a new global network was transforming without the interference of a corporation, what it could truly be, how people were shaping it for themselves.
But I was also aware of all the news and much more.
The death of Saburo and the destruction of Arasaka obviously had major repercussions worldwide, many of which involved various corporations. Arasaka was the backbone of this world's hypercapitalist system; many believed it was the world's first megacorporation, and perhaps it was, but its destruction demonstrated that the system was not untouchable, leading to enormous changes in the global structure.
Many of the Corpo suffered severe blows to their foundations; those that were affiliated with, received support from, or simply obtained their things from Arasaka began to crumble. But on the other hand, some experienced equally strong growth, with many joining out of 'desperation' or 'protection' from the poor organization of Aperture Science.
The only thing I was truly proud of was that the world's overall quality of life hadn't declined drastically. There hadn't been a massive number of deaths or casualties reported anywhere; the supplies Sera created and distributed through Aperture's facilities were the countermeasure that kept Arasaka's fall at bay worldwide.
The only consequence was a massive wave of unemployment. Arasaka and its affiliated corporations employed hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of people, all of whom lost their jobs overnight.
The global economy had suffered a tremendous blow, certainly not on the scale of the 1994 stock market crash or the subsequent US collapse. Still, there was significant volatility in the world's currencies. The new yen, in particular, had practically collapsed.
With Arasaka controlling most of Japan and much of Asia, the economy collapsed, and in an instant, Japan went from an economic and military superpower to trying to stay afloat as best it could.
Our constant supplies kept Japan afloat—or at least we tried to. Arasaka, contrary to popular belief, wasn't entirely hated; in fact, it was quite well-regarded in Asian eyes, whether they turned a blind eye or simply didn't care about all the company's cruelty. But for Japan and neighboring countries, Arasaka was a symbol of power to be proud of.
So they were definitely resisting our attempts to help, even if they were drowning. Unfortunately, it wasn't something we could do; Serena was talking to the Japanese government, or rather, ignoring them as much as she could while trying to reach an agreement and not leave this world and abandon them to their fate.
Even now, I could feel her enormous boredom and annoyance through the mental link while she was in another meeting; the only reason she continued with these incessant boring talks was that I had asked her to, nothing more, nothing less.
I was the one who wanted to get rid of Arasaka, without caring about the consequences or how it would all end. Serena was the one now taking care of the consequences and making sure that this world did not burn down or drown.
I felt a warm sensation in my chest, that Sera was capable of going to such lengths just to please me, yes… I couldn't help but let a small smile escape my lips. I should reward her, shouldn't I? I ignored Rebecca's snort beside me and kept thinking about how to please Sera tonight while I worked on my current project.
The creation of new jobs. Actually, we didn't need any workers; Hephaestus and the Cauldrons were all that was needed to work automatically forever. But I had been working with Sera and GLaDOS to try to eliminate that. Yes, we didn't need workers, but people did need jobs.
Although there were some setbacks, everything was going well, slowly but steadily. While monitoring the new network, I began talking to the people monitoring the Zero Dawn system.
Project Zero Dawn remained completely independent; it was designed to work perfectly on its own. GLaDOS was the only one needed to oversee all the work, but even so, I got involved enough to stay on top of things. In fact, I was in charge of creating the complete simulation that transmitted real-time information about the planetary changes that the terraforming system was making.
Something that hundreds of thousands of people were constantly monitoring with such vehemence; since it was the Internet, people tried to deny or even hate on Zero Dawn, but they were quickly silenced by others corroborating the data shown in the simulation with that from real life in their own places.
Both people and Corpo corroborated everything at all times, and Sera was right: the opinion towards us was beginning to change, as the changes showed. It was only a matter of time.
So I used them and, with GLaDOS's help, created new facilities to hire staff who would monitor the entire Zero Dawn project live and verify the simulation data for the public, even if it was entirely in Inuit. GLaDOS was capable of doing that constantly on her own, but this way, people had jobs and a real-world, verifiable certainty that the planet was improving.
We still had much of Arasaka's wealth, but we needed income. A large part of it was obtained from the sale of resources, food, and essential items produced by Hephaestus, but even so, we needed income, so cyberware facilities were also created.
GLaDOS had left behind her own blueprints and creations, improved models of existing ones, so we had a production line to start with, but there was also another type of technology she wanted to implement. Specifically, the Focus devices from Horizon. They weren't... strictly necessary; with the most basic neural implant available, I was able to perform most of Focus's functions. But I could see how a non-invasive solution could be groundbreaking, especially if they were calibrated and connected to the global network and the Zero Dawn system.
There was still a lot to finish, but I stopped for a moment when I heard an alarm I had set. I quickly glanced at one of the cameras and saw Maine and the crew getting into the building's elevator. I grimaced before sighing.
"Are you ready?" I asked Rebecca as I stood up, disconnected the few wires around my body, and began to get dressed. Rebecca sighed wearily as she looked up from Sera's phone, which she had been playing with or watching otherworldly things on.
"Yes, we're going to see the crew," Rebecca said, looking particularly serious. I couldn't blame her, not much... she had changed since the last time we met, and we had only met to tell her that we would be accompanying Serena on an easy mission in another country, almost like an all-expenses-paid vacation.
Instead, we destroyed Arasaka, and we were both seen in public. Rebecca killing Smasher, and me killing Saburo. So yes, we had to talk to the crew; we owed them that much, at least.
We were both in Serena's room in the penthouse of the mega-building H8. We had changed the records and recordings to erase our identities completely, but we still kept the place rented for the rest of the month. The building owners won't notice until it's too late.
I heard the door slam, almost as if it were demanding to be opened. I simply walked over and opened it. Standing in front of the door was Maine, his face a hard, blank expression. I couldn't blame him. I just raised my head and looked him straight in the eyes.
We stared at each other for a few seconds before Rebecca clicked her tongue and pushed me aside.
"Get in there, gonks, let's finish this." Rebecca growled, grabbed my hand, and dragged me somewhere else. The room was eerily empty; where there had once been junk everywhere, there were now only a few stacked boxes, various cyberware, and tools scattered about. All of GLaDOS's work had been moved to another facility, where she was in charge of controlling Zero Dawn.
Maine finally walked in, clicking her tongue, followed by Dorio, Kiwi, Pilar, and, to my surprise, Gloria and David. I just glanced at them for a few seconds, ignoring David's almost adoring look and Gloria's frightened stare, and raised an eyebrow at Maine.
"You adopted two strays?" I asked dryly. I approached one of the sofas and let myself fall. Maine frowned and came closer. He stood in front of me, only separated by a small square table. He didn't even make any attempt to sit down; his hands seemed to be trembling, definitely not from psychosis, just anger or frustration.
"Where's Prince?" Maine spat out, almost a grunt. I took a cigarette from my pocket, one of Sera's creations, and placed it between my lips. Really, since magic drugs were unfair, they didn't compare at all to the processed nicotine I was used to smoking.
"She's not here, she's in Japan, negotiating with the Japanese government to get Aperture Science to provide aid to the citizens before they die of hunger, or lack of medicine, or cyberware, or all of the above." I said as I lit the cigarette and took a long drag.
" Yeah, good luck with that after destroying Arasaka." Kiwi said dryly. Rebecca snorted, came over with a case of beer, and slammed it down on the small table in front of me.
"It was fun," Rebecca said simply, sat down next to me, took my cigarette, and took a drag.
"Fun? Was it fun to take down one of the largest corporations in existence? A worldwide massacre? To Kill Smasher? To Kill Saburo?" Maine spat out furiously. I shrugged.
"It was necessary," I said without flinching, looking him straight in the eye. "You won't miss Arasaka in the slightest, Maine. Don't pretend you care, and don't pretend you didn't know that if the opportunity arose, I would make this decision. The only reason I hadn't attacked Arasaka alone was that I didn't have the capability. Serena gave me the resources and the opportunity, and I took both." I told him directly. Maine clicked his tongue.
"Creating a robotic tyranny? Hundreds of thousands of robots on par with Adam Smasher, tanks, and the most terrifying netrunners in existence as her personal army? Call me suspicious if I don't think Prince will replace Arasaka. Better the devil you know than the devil you don't." Maine scoffed, but finally sat down.
"You're being ridiculous," I said, rolling my eyes. "But I doubt I can convince you of that, so I'll let it go." I shrugged. "So, what about Gloria and the kid?" I asked curtly. Gloria jumped slightly, while Maine just gave me a blank stare.
"Well, after a certain group stormed Arasaka Tower, where the academy the boy attended is located, and killed everyone, she was afraid of suffering retaliation by association for working with you, so we're on bodyguard duty with both of you," Maine said, shrugging.
"Uh... I guess I'm sorry." I said in Gloria's direction; she just frowned slightly.
"Don't apologize! It was all so preem! The live was amazing! The ascent to Arasaka Tower, the fight against Adam Smasher, and the defeat of Saburo! It was so preem! It's a shame there's no BD." David sighed as he looked at Rebecca and me, his eyes shining.
"David!" Gloria scolded, almost horrified, while Rebecca just started laughing.
"You bet, choom! It was as amazing as it looked!" Rebecca said happily, and I rolled my eyes.
"Putting that aside, you don't need to worry, we'll be leaving Night City." I finally said, and Maine and the crew fell silent.
"Wait... you're leaving? For how long?" Maine asked, frowning.
"Forever," Rebecca said casually.
"What?! Forever?! It can't last forever! I forbid it!" Pilar shouted in surprise. Rebecca snorted.
"You can't forbid me from doing anything, gonk!" Rebecca growled. "Besides, we're kind of... wanted criminals?" Rebecca snorted, and I nodded.
"Yes, right now no one is going to retaliate, but the remaining corporations definitely have us in their sights, even though they're keeping it a secret." I said, honestly and with a thought, "I passed the papers around to everyone present." I could hear more than one person swear.
"Is that why you erased all traces of yourselves?" Kiwi asked flatly. Maine turned to look at her. "I didn't realize it until after the attack on Arasaka Tower, but all your information and identities were carefully erased from all of Night City's data systems. It's as if none of you ever existed," Kiwi said.
"And you didn't tell us!?" Maine asked forcefully, and Kiwi shrugged.
"It wouldn't have done any good. You'd just start asking other people questions, questions that would put us on the Corp's radar. It was better to keep our heads down. People can talk, say they know Rebecca, but as long as they have nothing to back it up, it's useless," Kiwi said easily. I nodded.
"Yes... unfortunately, yes," I said easily. Maine wrinkled her nose, and I sighed. "We... we didn't want to just disappear like that, that's why we called. You... you're the first family I ever had, you're important to me. I didn't want to leave without any explanation," she said honestly, looking down.
"Me too," Rebecca said, sounding more serious. "You are my crew, my family, our family. We're not leaving permanently. We can still talk and come to Night City from time to time, but we won't be together like before. None of us wanted to be separated from the crew just by text." Rebecca said gently.
"Girls," Dorio said, sounding moved and sad. Everyone fell silent. Maine was staring at the ground, and I could see Pilar biting her tongue.
"Will Prince take care of you?" Maine asked sharply, my eyes widening slightly before I chuckled softly.
"Yes, she will, don't worry," I said with a smile.
"Where will you go?" Pilar asked, frowning. Rebecca laughed happily and pointed to the sky.
"We'll only go up!" Rebecca said cheerfully, Kiwi's eyes opened, and she looked at me.
"The moon?" Kiwi asked as if she already knew the answer. I smiled mysteriously.
"Why stop at the Moon?" I said playfully, which made them freeze and stare at me incredulously. "You know, while Project Zero Dawn was created to restore this planet, it's designed to work on completely barren and uninhabitable planets. Who says Earth is the only one capable of being restored?" I asked with a broad smile.
"No way, you've got to be kidding me," Pilar said incredulously. "Are you... are you going to terraform other planets? Are you going to go into damn space like everyone expects, not just the damn Moon?" Pilar asked, completely incredulous. I smiled at him mysteriously.
"Who knows?" I said mysteriously before winking at them. "Just stay alive long enough, and maybe you'll find out." I said playfully, and Rebecca laughed happily. Really, space travel was the least of our worries. With GLaDOS having the ship she got from Rebecca as a Guardian, she'd be able to replicate the old spacecraft with ease, so there wouldn't be any problem diving into outer space.
"You... can't say that and-"
"Great! We have presents!" Rebecca said cheerfully, interrupting a disbelieving Maine. "Sasha! Come here!" Rebecca called, heading toward one of the rooms. The crew froze once more. The door opened awkwardly, and a head popped out. Sasha Yokelevna was smiling nervously.
" Hey, Maine? I think it's been a while," Sasha said shyly. The entire crew froze in place.