March 6, 2067
Alex Mitchell (Volkov) POV
Developing my power armor took far longer than I originally planned. What was supposed to be a one-month project had turned into something much bigger. The suit failed to meet far more of my design expectations than I'd anticipated, forcing me to upgrade nearly every component, piece by piece.
I even had to redesign the reactor. The previous version simply couldn't generate enough power to sustain the suit's weapons. Honestly, I never thought I'd run into that problem outside of theory, but apparently, that day had come.
To boost the reactor's output, I had to overhaul its entire structure, tweaking key components during assembly. That, of course, reignited an old issue — heat dissipation. I'd already solved it once before, but now, I had to tackle it all over again.
On top of that, I hadn't made much progress with nanomachines. But I knew it was only a matter of time before I cracked that mystery, too.
For now, though, the suit could at least fold down into something resembling a suitcase. It was compact enough for transport and even had a built-in anti-gravity module to reduce its weight. Not that I needed it — my strength alone was enough to carry the armor — but having the option was always better. You never know when things might go sideways.
Thankfully, I still had time. I'd already spent about six months designing and refining different iterations of Atlantis, but that wasn't nearly enough. Over the next year and a half, I planned to keep pushing forward, perfecting the suit until it reached its logical peak. Of course, I'd continue upgrading it in the future, but right now, I needed something capable of going toe-to-toe with the standing army of tomorrow.
Back in my previous world, my current prototype would have been overkill, capable of decimating any military force with ease thanks to its superior tech. But here? The armor could barely hold its own against a special forces unit — especially if they had air support in the form of AVs and Manticores.
"What a pain in the ass," I muttered, leaning back in my chair, drumming my fingers absentmindedly to the rhythm of a song that, in this world, didn't even exist yet.
"Still not working out?" Kiwi's voice came from behind me as she wrapped her arms around my shoulders.
"It's coming along… just not how I want it to," I admitted, savoring the way her fingers played with my hair.
"Maybe it's time for a break?" Kiwi suggested, her fingertips trailing down to my chest.
"Wow, you're bolder than usual. What's gotten into you?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at the blonde.
"Just in a good mood," Kiwi said with a smirk, leaning in for a kiss.
***
In the end, I had no choice but to take a short break to deal with more pressing matters. Midway through, Vega joined us — apparently, she'd been eavesdropping from the reception area this whole time. Honestly, if Kiwi hadn't called her out, she probably would've just kept standing there, unsure of what to do.
"So, any bright ideas in that head of yours?" Kiwi asked, lazily tracing a finger across my chest.
"I do have one," I said, nodding as I let the anticipation build for a moment. "We definitely need a bigger bed in here." I raised a finger for emphasis — only to receive a firm slap to the chest.
"Al, you're an idiot," Kiwi sighed in resignation.
"In all seriousness, I don't have any groundbreaking ideas. I'm already heading in the right direction — it's just that the execution takes time. Even though I've developed a portable storage unit for the suit, the more I think about it, the more I realize one major flaw: I need more built-in firepower. That's why Vega and I have decided to take a deeper dive into nanotechnology."
"And what's the issue you're running into?"
"The problem is predicting the behavior of the nanomachines, which isn't exactly a quick process. Essentially, I'm trying to develop a kind of technological symbiote — something that will act as the control hub for the nanomachine colony. But creating that core system requires an insane amount of time. Rushing it isn't an option, and without Vega's help, this would take me years." I pulled the mentioned blonde closer, burying my face in her hair. "And beyond the technical side of the project, there's also the biological factor. In some ways, that's even more important. If I screw up, my body could reject the nanomachines completely, and I'd have to start over from scratch."
"You really know how to give us all a headache," Kiwi muttered, pressing her face against my side.
"Maybe, but at least it forces us all to grow," I countered with a smirk. "Tell me, a year ago, would you have ever imagined being part of something like this?"
"I don't think I would've outright denied the possibility," she admitted, her tone a bit shy. "After all, I've had plenty of time to study you. Sometimes, it feels like there's nothing you can't do."
"And what about you, Vega?"
"My answer would've been the same then as it is now — I wouldn't dismiss it outright. However, the estimated timeframe for achieving it would've been very different."
"Alex, have you heard?" Kiwi suddenly asked, tilting my face toward hers. "One of Biotechnica's directors was assassinated last night."
"I heard about it before anyone else," I replied, meeting her gaze. "In a way… you could say it was my doing."
"I knew it," she murmured, closing her eyes.
"You know, at some point, I realized something simple — I couldn't care less about that bastard Valentin," I said, my voice calm and measured. "I had plenty of ways to take him out, and some of them were… more elegant, more refined. But in the end — like it always goes in life — I went with the fastest and, in some ways, the most efficient option."
"You remember that Jeremy used to work for Biotechnica, right? He was their head of security," I continued, watching as Kiwi nodded in confirmation. "Well, that day, he wasn't on duty. His second-in-command was covering for him. After the incident, all the blame got dumped on Martinez, effectively destroying his career and making it impossible for him to land a decent job again. I won't go into all the details of what happened to him afterward, but let's just say his motivation for revenge was just as strong as mine."
"You hired him, didn't you?" Kiwi asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Exactly. But setting everything up wasn't as simple as pulling a trigger," I admitted. "First, I went to Michiko. Then, together, we decided to bring Wakako in. And before we knew it, we were sitting in front of the Queen of fixers herself — Rogue Amendiares. Through her, we hired the right people to track Valentin's movements, map out his routines. Just that part alone cost half a million eddies."
"So that's why you took so many contracts back then," Kiwi mused, piecing things together.
"Yeah. And aside from tracking his movements, we had to pay off a lot of people to keep it all under wraps. Cops, officials, corporate rats — we bought them all, top to bottom. In total, the hit cost me five million. But you know what? Worth every single eddie. I don't regret a damn thing," I said, exhaling slowly. "And Jeremy? I'm pretty sure he'd agree. He walked away with a hefty payday, too. In a way, this job was high-tier even by fixer standards."
"I didn't think you'd deal with him that easily," Kiwi admitted, shaking her head.
"Either way, I would've had to take that asshole out sooner or later," I said matter-of-factly. "I'm planning to buy a controlling stake in Biotechnica — or rather, we're planning to steal it. Script owned forty percent of the company's shares. The rest… well, let's just say I have a few tricks up my sleeve to secure them."
"You're planning to rob a corporation?" Kiwi's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"I wouldn't call it theft — more like a hostile takeover," I corrected, flashing a smirk. "Biotechnica is a goldmine, and I'd be a damn fool not to take advantage of it."
"Biotechnology is a highly valued market in the world of premium services," Vega mused, her tone analytical as she pieced everything together. "Alex, you're planning to use Biotechnica to push your developments — offering people an alternative to cyberware at an affordable price. Am I right?"
"You are," I admitted with a nod. "But it won't be a quick process. Augmentations are relatively easy to manufacture, and with our current level of technology, we're in no position to compete with them. To make this work, I first need to deal with the rogue AIs — and that's going to take a hell of a lot of effort. Right now, my priority is the upcoming war. But once that's handled, I'll have to start making bigger moves.
"European megacorps and Chinese industrial giants won't let me expand freely, but their influence on this continent is limited. If I play my cards right, I could push them off their pedestal in five to six years and finally start the process of what I'd call 're-educating' the population. It'll be slow, no doubt. But then again, who ever said this would be easy?"
"Hearing your plans for the future gives me chills," Kiwi teased, feigning horror.
"They're just plans," I shrugged. "How things actually play out? No one knows. I'm just laying out my goals."
"Probability of success: sixty percent," Vega commented offhandedly, shifting slightly beside me.
"Not bad odds," I said, pulling the android girl closer, my lips hovering near her ear. "And once I take control of Biotechnica, I'll finally be able to create a fully organic body for you."
"Stop teasing my little sister," Kiwi grumbled before roughly turning me toward her and crashing her lips against mine. "Now, let's go home already."
"Good point — it's getting late," I muttered, quickly pulling up my visor to check the time. "The girls are probably getting restless waiting for us. No point in making them worry..."
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