"He looks about to explode, but that's his problem." Mercer said nonchalantly, enthusiastically continuing, "Remember to tighten the armor on both arms; otherwise, my hand won't fit into the hand transmission."
"I'm just saying..." V stood at the door, looking at him with a bit of envy, "Why don't you just let me use this? You don't have much close combat experience. What if something goes wrong?"
Mercer laughed heartily, watching as Lucy and Qiwei armored him on either side, "Come on, you're just jealous."
"Screw you, I'm worried about you!" V rolled his eyes, "Do you even know how many crashes you've had trying to get the hang of this equipment these days?"
"No big deal, I can drift with this thing now." Mercer confidently stretched out his hand; his left hand covered in armor looked just like the oversized Gorilla Arm Rebecca used in anime.
The black exoskeleton armor stands two meters and twenty centimeters tall, with both massive arms drooping to knee-length, giving off an undeniable sense of power.
The gravity device in the palm further exudes a sci-fi sense of force. Not only V and Mercer have been eyeing it curiously, but even Kyoko and Lucy have frequently checked out the equipment.
Mercer concealed the load during the brain-computer connection; he's a mental Superman, so a ten-minute battle routine maxes out the load only making his brain feel somewhat 'cooked,' but it's not a big issue.
Until anything like cyber-psychosis crops up—Mercer doesn't feel it at all.
He truly feels nothing. As the neural load increases, he feels even calmer, his cognitive processes growing more efficient, akin to the state of brain-machine overclocking where his brain operates at full power incessantly.
He believes there's more chance he'll burn out his brain before losing sanity and going crazy.
In some sense, Mercer thinks perhaps he's better suited for full-body modification than V—let alone someone like Adam's Hammer.
Lucy patted his back, causing the armor to clink twice, "Sit down; time to install the leg armor."
Mercer obediently sat down as Pira and Rebecca cleared the battlefield, tossing equipment into the hacker vehicle, and then said, "We should hit the road!"
"V, you and Rebecca stay in the armored vehicle, and when the firepower coverage starts, I'll open the path. You then join Mann from behind, clearing out any stragglers." Mercer instructed.
V nodded, punching him in the chest; the black exterior armor emitted a crisp sound, "Okay, but once this mission's done, you gotta let me try it."
"No problem, no problem." Mercer replied with a grin.
The plan is to remove the overload parts and let her toy around with something akin to Centaur Armor.
To Mercer, the armor's design has some merits, especially with the four compressed propulsors at the back, allowing one to genuinely fly, fulfilling his fantasies of being an "armored warrior."
If it's upsized, it's like a Gundam; downsized, it resembles Iron Man. Mercer realizes there's a lot of potential for further development.
If everyone could wear customized armor, damn, who could possibly stand against them in Night City?
V gave him a glance without further comment, hurried back to the armored vehicle with Rebecca, while Pira returned to the hacker vehicle, stepping on the accelerator.
They must race against time, heading back to the predetermined ambush site on the outskirts of Night City.
Mercer sat in the vehicle as Lucy and Qiwei, despite practicing over and over, still took a solid five minutes to dress him in the armor.
He removed his mask and donned his helmet, which began displaying various parameters before his eyes. After a simple check, Mercer switched the machine to standby mode.
Now, dressed in the exoskeleton, he transformed into a black mech warrior, filling up most of the hacker vehicle even while seated.
"Have you checked?" Lucy asked, picking up a laptop, connecting cables into the exoskeleton armor, cautiously inspecting all details.
"Don't worry, it's fine." Mercer raised his hand, the mechanical hydraulic sound producing a 'whoosh-whoosh,' the brain-computer interface simultaneously controlling two bodies—Mercer skillfully managed this sense of dislocation.
He opened his palm; even with just fingers spread, it looked like he could engulf Lucy's head, "Look at this—frightening, isn't it?"
"Grow up... you're like a child." Lucy responded, unplugging the cables, sitting aside with concern in her eyes as she gazed at scenery displayed by the in-car camera.
Mercer extended his hand to lightly tap her on the head, "Why so tense?"
"How can I not be tense? You, a hacker..." Lucy sighed, "Forget it, we've gone over these things many times before."
"It's okay, trust him." Qiwei smiled, appearing composed, "We've prepared so much; with deliberate planning, the chances of failure are slim."
"...Mm." Lucy bit her lower lip.
The vehicle soon returned to the main road, accelerating along the highway.
Despite hurrying, they still reached the outskirts near Night City five minutes before the Biotechnica convoy's arrival.
This area is south of town, near the familiar Biotechnica protein farm.