Cypher had the Sonic Screwdriver to work on a much deeper level than the eyes could see. And his tech understanding had heightened after building the thing. Fixing a broken cyberware arm was easy.
From that day, he received Vik's permission to use the back of his shop. Hell, the man didn't even ask him for rent. Just said that he had to repair his custor's broken or discarded cyberware. Not for free, of course. But for a pretty low price. In turn, Cypher could use the shop to sell.
Cypher didn't hide the source of cyberware he'd sell, however. Viktor didn't like it, but he was no stranger to the darkness of the Night City. He allowed it as long as the source wasn't Scavs, and it genuinely ca from dead bodies of natural sources, not ones 'harvested' for chro.
It was great for Cypher because inco from his BD collection had already dropped. And Viktor had a pretty big lineup of custors. Anyone who ca to get so chro fitted or repaired also saw Cypher.
Not just that, Cypher asked Viktor to buy whatever broken cyberware he could from his connections. Both of them could share the profits from the refurbished sales. It was a pretty sweet deal, and the market was big. Not everyone could afford new gear.
Still, all of that was just a face for Cypher. He used his role as a techie to feed himself and afford all the items needed to work on the 'itches' he got in his head. Three days had passed since he got that Quantum Condom knowledge. He'd made that, but the Leaper from before that was still in his head.
And that itch was starting to feel like a headache. He had to work on it to stop it. Or else, he knew it'd just keep getting worse. Moreover, he fully understood the whole thing. Every three days, his brain cos up with strange new ideas, blueprints, or so random invention. Where it ca from didn't matter. The level of tech was random. And each new idea gave him an itch in the brain, like an ever-present tumor that scread at him, 'Look, I'm here'.
To get rid of it, he had to make the thing. If he didn't make it, the itch would progressively get worse. All the while, he'd keep getting new ideas every three days, and they pile up if he doesn't make them. That ant he didn't have the luxury of waiting.
Also, that ant he couldn't give a fuck about ifs and buts. He had to make whatever appeared in his head, or he could swear his head would explode eventually.
It was the last day before he'd get the new 'itch' in his head. He had no idea what it would be, and he was too busy to care. He had started working on the Leaper, using all the materials he could get his hands on in Vik's shop. Gloria had also made her first delivery of cyberware. Nothing fancy, however. No sandevistans.
It was an experint, however. To make a Leaper, he needed a few things. Arc Allow was ti-consuming to make because it covered the entire body of the Leaper. The thing was also massive. That ant he needed a lot of it.
So he wondered what would happen if he made a miniature Leaper instead. It would require less ARC Alloy, Arc Flex Rubber, and Arc Performance Steel. The rest, however, the Leaper Pulse Unit and Advanced Arc Powercell, he made in normal size because it was already made as small as possible by whoever designed it.
Fabricating ARC Alloy wasn't too hard. It could be made using tal parts lying in the shop. And it was amazing. ARC Alloy had great armor capabilities against lower-calibre bullets. Then there was ARC Flex Rubber, which was nothing but rubber parts with a coating of ARC Alloy. Making ARC Performance Steel was also simple; it just required more tal parts.
Finally, he made an Advanced ARC Powercell. It was an entirely new thing, a brilliant energy storage invention. The best thing about it was its ability to instantly discharge a heavy burst of energy. It also fueled the Leaper's propulsion system that allowed the four-legged machine to leap far distances.
Making all those was possible because he had the Sonic Screwdriver. The most advanced part of it, the Leaper Pulse Unit, was impossible entirely without it. The Leaper Pulse Unit was an explosive in itself. If thrown like a grenade, it could create a small, violent singularity.
The last things needed to make it were the explosive compound and so chanical components. They were the easiest to make.
That night, he just finished building all the components. The plan was to connect the miniature Leaper's body with the Advanced ARC Powercell and Leaper Pulse Unit using wires. As long as the machine ca to life, he reckoned the aching itch would vanish.
But for now, he prepared himself for the new one that was just around the corner. It was just a few minutes left before midnight. Vik had gone ho. He'd also sent Misty ho, with whom he ate lunch daily and dinner regularly.
All alone, in the back of Vik's shop, he reclined on the chair, staring at the four computer screens; so ran materials related to cyberware he was fixing, others showed designs of the Leaper he'd worked on.
Leaper's pretty weak against fire.
He thought about the four-legged thing. On paper, it was amazing as it could jump far and chase enemies. But its offensive capabilities were limited. Other than stomping, it could only release kinetic energy. Its joints and eye were also weaknesses.
Staring at the thing's design, he thought of so ideas.
What if I put a DL-18 blaster in its eye?
That idea made the most sense to him. Since he'd already programd the thing, he knew that the Leaper had an insanely good enemy spotting and tracking system. It could leap great distances once it tracked soone. So, shooting energy blasters would only make it better, more dangerous.
Should try that when I make the full-sized real deal.
Beep! Beep!
That marked the alarm for midnight. He closed his eyes and felt it with the full intent of learning sothing about this strange knowledge inflow.
Uh… What the hell is this now? AI?
Unlike anything before, this ti the inflow of information was just so vast. It wasn't just blueprints but also codes and languages he was sure didn't belong to any place on Earth. The script was weird, and… the AI was so powerful that the only word to describe its scope was… cosmic.
It lasted so long. He could feel his brain inflate with knowledge, and he tried to trace the source of it all. It was clearly coming from sowhere because he could feel it. The source was outside his head.
Who the fuck is giving all this?
AI Ethics verification stack. AI Architecture. The shell of the AI. It was too fucking advanced, even from the Sonic Screwdriver's level. He could feel it, its scale. It was beyond any AI that he knew existed in the Cyberpunk world. Alt Cunningham was going to be its bitch if he made it.
"Uhh… too much."
Oh, the itch was severe this ti. Not just a tumor, no, it was a top-tier cancer. It made the effects of the unfinished Leaper worse, as that was old and still occupying the space where he stored all that information in his head.
If I make this… It'll… dominate everything.
There was fear, awe, and excitent. This AI could simulate the entire universe. All the rogue AIs behind the Blackwall wouldn't an anything to whatever this was. The only na he could find in this new itch was 'Mind'. And it wasn't the na of the AI but the classification of it.
Can I even make this thing?
It was so complex. So unique to him that even figuring out where to start was annoying. Sure, he had the recipe in his head, but he'd still need to co up with ingredients, and so of them weren't even possible.
Hyperspace? Warp Unit?
The information said that the computational and mory components of the AI were dense and located in hyperspace. He already knew he could make the mory components with the Sonic Screwdriver. But what the hell was hyperspace? It said it was the fourth-dinsional space of ta-space, which was a multi-dinsional space that contained eleven dinsions.
What the fuck even was that? Eleven dinsions? Even understanding beyond the third was unimaginable, and as far as he knew Cyberpunk universe, nobody had done it, be it Arasaka or Militech. This level of science was beyond anything he even considered science.
And sohow, soone or sothing out there was feeding all this to him.
But I still gotta make it. Can't afford not to.
Thud!
"Hm?"
Lost in thought, he suddenly jolted awake by a sound nearby. He turned his chair around to look, but already, a gun's muzzle aid flat at his forehead, an outstretched arm holding it.
"Why did you kill Nash?"
Panam? This one's unexpected.
There was no way he could forget that face. It was just too morable. Her tanned skin and the high dreaded braid bun with ssy locks falling over the sides. Her sharp eyes aid at him. That green leotard, the blue jeans with straps clung to her curves, and that red and blue jacket. She was too recognisable for him.
But he wasn't expecting to see her anyti soon, not at all. Absolutely not because of killing Nash. Still, from the looks of it, it seed she didn't know Nash's background.
"Wait, you need a real reason to kill a Wraith? Hold on, don't tell you were sweet on that bastard? Ugh, trust , you can do so much better."
As expected, he saw confusion written on her face.
"What? Wraith?"
Gotcha!
______________________
Note: The AI is called Mind from The Culture Series.
Check out Cypher X Panam, Cypher X Misty, Cypher X Gloria NSFW ART, and advance chapters at [email protected]/MrPlotThickens Or Subscribestar.adult/mrplotthickens
Advance chapters on [PATREON] are in long-form format. I have 6 long chapters of this story on P@treon. That's equal to 24-26 Webnovel chapters.
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