Chapter 26

I woke up, who knows how long later. I was still drugged up but not as badly. I could feel it making everything seem sort of muffled or fluffy, but I wasn’t having conversations with my wrist anymore.

Probably for the best. I could feel my cheeks heating up a bit as I remembered that fact.

Then it died when I remembered what had happened.

The medical bay I was in was pretty small, a back room ripper office like I expected. The many many pieces of Tyger Claw stuff strewn around told me a lot.

I guess Jun had taken me to his Ripper.

I was still strapped down, I noticed as I looked around the little room. I slowly raised my arm, which wasn’t easy.

Yep. Still there. Still chrome. I felt a shiver down my spine.

It wasn’t right. The feeling it gave as I slowly managed to form a fist and then spread ‘my’ fingers.

So that was it. I had been planning on some chrome arms. It had been my plan. Probably a set of Mantis blades, or a cool Monowire, or gorilla arms for the utility there had been so many options I hadn’t decided.

I guess the decision had come and gone.

“Oh finally up are we?” The woman from before the Ripper asked as she entered. She was an older woman. Not quite graying, but probably close to that. Her face lined in a few wrinkles, but the shining chrome lines up and down her cheeks showed just how much chrome she had.

“Yeah… Jun?” I asked, looking around and not seeing him.

“I managed to convince him to sit in a chair outside about an hour ago. He passed out nearly instantly. Your brother doesn’t sleep much even when his little sister isn’t in my clinic.

I nodded at that. Jun being too stubborn to actually sleep when he needs to didn’t surprise me at all. “And me? How… How bad is it?” I asked as I raised my arm… I shivered as it didn’t feel ‘right’ It felt like I had four arms. Or more, the feeling of phantom limb meant even as I tried to move my arm it moved slower than my expectations leaving me with a feeling of my limb being in the wrong spot.

“Better than you would expect.” She answered simply as she sat down in a chair beside me. “Considering what they did to you, I expected you to be brain dead. But you managed to keep from having an aneurysm. I pulled the connections as fast as I could, which is why your arms feel off. I wasn’t exactly gentle. Speed was more important. But that will heal. Give it a few days and your kinesthesia should feel normal.”

“Yeah. It’s a little off.”

“Nerve damage or sorts. Those… Things they put on you were overloading your nervous system. It will be tender.” She shrugged at that. “You are alive and not brain dead. It’s more than most could hope for.”

“Yeah.” I muttered as I looked up at the unfamiliar ceiling.

That had been some shit. It was probably the drugs I was on leaving me feeling sort of fluffy, but I could feel it. The anxiety and nervousness bubbling up under it.

I would probably be a little frantic for a while. I really hadn’t been expecting a kidnapping attempt in the middle of the day right in front of my home.

“Fuckin’ Night City.”

“A phrase I hear often.” The Ripper chuckled, as she reached out and without a word started poking her tools into my shoulder I would have flinched if I wasn’t feeling so mellow from the drugs.

“What are you doing?”

“Checking on the connections. The Condor is a solid piece of chrome, but your circumstances make it complicated.”

“Militech Condor. That’s what it’s called right?” I asked as I scanned the other arm she wasn’t working on. I had no idea what a Militech Condor was. Or what it could do. Unfortunately my scan didn’t tell me the things I really wanted to know.

Was it a good arm? Was it garbage? Would I have to worry about it failing on me? Or breaking?

“Never heard of them before? Not much of a Chrome head are you?”

“No. I know some things, but not a lot about specific cyberware.”

“Alright, I’ll give you the rundown. The Condor is a few gens old. It was popular before the Unification War, but Militech came out with the Orion at the beginning of the war as a surprise for Arasaka. The Condor wasn’t able to compete so they got sold off as work pieces. Lot of factories in Watson bought up the stock after the war and started chippin’ them in.” The woman spoke in a quiet voice which I realized she was probably doing to distract me.

But I kinda wanted to know this anyway.

“They do just fine there, but as you would expect a lot of factories sell off stock, or lose people over the years. They may be a decade old, but there isn’t anything wrong with them. They just don’t quite compete with the later advancements. Don’t worry. You won’t have any issues with them. They are better than your old fleshware.” The woman offered and I blinked.

“Fleshware?”

“Yeah. You’ve got Cyberware. And Fleshware.” She said, chuckling as she pointed first at my arm. Then she poked me in the stomach. “Sorry. It’s a Ripper joke.” She added afterwards as I just kinda looked at her blankly.

“Right.”

“Well you won’t have any issues. They are rated for combat, so they won’t break the first time you have to punch some Strom lowlife.”

“Good to know.” I whispered quietly as I looked them over. They looked. Utilitarian. The metal was a sort of polished steel finish. They sort of reminded me of Johnny’s arm, at least in color. They were definitely more realistic than his arm though. A smooth contour between the digits on the fingers meant the whole thing looked more like a normal arm just dipped in metal and plastic.

I looked away. What else could I do? I wasn’t ready for this. At least not like this. I had wanted my first foray into Cyberware, into transhumanism, to be a momentous moment for me. Something that meant I took a huge plunge into the future. Into a dream I had since I was a kid.

Cyborgs were cool.

“I didn’t ask for this.” I whispered quietly. Yeah. I feel you Adam. I get it.

“Hmm?”
“Nothing important.” I responded quietly as I lowered my arm. I would just have to deal. Roll with the punches.

“Alright. This one looks good. The connections are healing well. Just make sure you take it very slow for at least a week.” She orders with a firm look as she spins around the ripper chair I was in, and she starts working on my other shoulder. Seeing her open up my shoulder the metal plates shifting letting her access the insides was… Weird.

I did my best to just ignore the feeling.

It was just another thing I would have to get used to… I guess.

The door suddenly opened, and I looked over expecting Jun.

Only that wasn’t Jun. The man and I used that term lightly that stepped inside, was more chrome than flesh. Legs, arms, chest, even his face was chromed out.

“So the kid lived.” He said his voice sounded robotic, and… lifeless.

“She did. Tougher than she looks.” The Ripper said as she rose up away from my shoulder instantly as he came in. “How can I assist you today Fujimura-Sama?” She asked with a bow after she stood before him.

“Leg is acting up again.” He stated simply, and the Ripper nodded gesturing for another chair in her little clinic that he swiftly settled into. As she instantly began opening up his right leg and checking things out.

She could have at least closed up my shoulder first…

The room was quiet for a while as I watched the Ripper work on the Borgs leg.

Suddenly the borg turned his head towards me. “Your brother used up a lot of favors to get you in here. Hope you appreciate that.” He suddenly spoke to me, his blazing eyes a swirl of color.

“Yeah. I’ll owe Jun a lot.”

“You owe the Tygers a lot. We take care of our own, but as much as we give, we expect just as much back.” He said his eyes locked to mine.

A promise, and a threat in one.

—–

Hours later, after the Ripper had checked over the borg who hadn’t said a word to me following his declaration, and after she had checked me over. Jun suddenly burst into the room.

“Motoko!”

“Present.” I responded as I looked away from the TV that the Ripper had kindly turned on for me. I would have just left, but she told me to stay resting. She didn’t want me walking around putting any pressure on the recovering nerves.

“I… Motoko. I…” Jun babbled a bit. The last time I had seen him he had been so cold, but now it was like all the frost had melted away.

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Just leaving the terrified teenager beneath. Poor Jun. I would just have to be a good little sister and help him recover.

“Thank you Jun. For saving me.” I told him with a smile and a twitch of my arm as I instinctively tried to give him a thumbs up.

“Motoko. I didn’t save you. I got you put there in the first place! I knew I shouldn’t have come to the apartment! Everyone warned me to stay away. That if I went back they could track me to you! I should have listened!” He cursed his fist clenching and looked like he was going to punch something.

“Nah that’s dumb.” I told him firmly, cutting right through everything. “Avoiding someone to try and protect them doesn’t really protect them. Like ever. You should have just told me. We could have figured something out… but I’m not going to berate you Jun. What happened wasn’t your fault. You didn’t kidnap me, or mean for it to happen.” I shook my head wiping away that irritation at Jun avoiding me like the plague to ‘protect’ me.

I knew that wasn’t the full truth. Jun had been… Cold the last time I saw him, I was still really worried about how he was handling all of his new chrome.

I was feeling it too. The different senses. The way everything wasn’t quite right. That niggling on your brain as something foreign pressed against it.

I could see how people lost their minds

“They wouldn’t have known you even existed if I hadn’t…”

“If I hadn’t bothered you so much and threatened to run out in the gang war to find you? It’s funny if they had jumped me about a minute earlier things would have been different. I had just packed all my guns in the car.” I told him with a chuckle as I imagined those borgs faces if they had been facing me with a carnage and a bit more equipment.

“When did you get a car? No, I mean how?” Jun asked looking confused but before I could answer he waved his own question off. “Never mind. That isn’t important right now. Imouto. Just rest. I promise. I’ll find the ones who did this to you. I’ll kill them. You will never have to worry about them again. I promise.” He said his voice turned to gravel as he growled out his promise.

“Denied.” I immediately cut in. Jun was hot headed if I didn’t immediately squish his vengeful rampage he would really go do it.

“What?” He asked kinda surprised, and I really wish I had control of my arms because I would be crossing them in an X right then.

“I’ve already got a blood vendetta against them. So until I cut off like all of their limbs no one else can kill them. Denied.” I answered simply with a nod. Yep. I was hunting those borg fucks once I recovered. Especially that spider motherfucker. Cut off my arms? I’ll cut off all eight of your legs and your arms.

Jun sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose in obvious irritation. “This isn’t… This isn’t a game Motoko. These men are dangerous. You should know that. You aren’t going to be able to just kill them.”

“Sure I will.” I told him, but it was then I realized.

Jun had no idea how much of an asskicker I was! I had done all these gigs, but Jun kept being Jun and not being around!

“I’m pretty cool, you know? I’ve done all sorts of cool stuff since you’ve been gone, I went on a gig for Wakako even!”

Jun blinked at that before wincing. “You bothered Wakako!? She hates Oka-san, Motoko! Why would you go to her?”
“Cause she was right around the corner… Really? She hates our mom? Weird. Do you know why?”

“It’s not important. Motoko. Imouto. I don’t care how many jobs you have done. We will talk about that later. But you aren’t going after the Maelstrom. They are dangerous!”