"Judy? You mean that Judy Alvarez, the genius braindance creator?"
The next day, when Riku and V mentioned Judy to Jack Welles, Jack asked with a hint of surprise.
It was no wonder—Judy wasn't exactly a nobody in Night City. As the most dazzling braindance (burandansu) creator in the last couple of years, her name carried weight.
"We probably can't afford her. She's a big deal, you know."
V shrugged. Rumor had it that Judy-san had quite the personality, turning down offers from major production companies left and right.
"And why are you suddenly looking for her? Planning to switch careers and debut as a braindance star or something?"
V gave Riku a suspicious look, sizing him up before continuing with a grin, "You'd make a killer villain, though. The kind who could beat the shujinkō (protagonist) to a pulp. Totally sugoi (awesome)."
She gave him a thumbs-up, her skeptical expression morphing into approval.
"Get outta here. I just want to make some skill chips," Riku said, waving off V's teasing with a mock-annoyed gesture.
"Then you should be looking for a tech expert. Is Judy-san good at that too?" Jack asked, clearly puzzled. They didn't know much about Judy Alvarez beyond her reputation.
In truth, aside from being a prodigy at braindance editing, Judy was also a highly skilled tech expert (gijutsu senmonka). The combat chips she crafted could give even a doll decent fighting ability. If she sold them commercially, they'd probably rival the Kue Arm series in popularity.
"Tech expert, huh…" Riku muttered, his mind drifting to a pair of large hands. Didn't Pila from Mann's crew fit the bill as a tech expert?
Compared to the famous and headstrong Judy Alvarez, Pila—who they could connect with through Sasha—seemed like an easier contact.
"Let's install the Sandevistan first, then ask Sasha about it," Riku decided.
The trio joked and chatted as they made their way to Misty's Esoterica.
Jack stayed upstairs, chatting with Misty. Those two were getting closer by the day, their bond growing stronger.
Riku and V both knew Jack had just broken up with a girl not long ago—Camilla, was it? Mrs. Welles adored her, but she and Jack weren't a good match. They didn't last long.
Compared to Camilla, Misty—the girl who grew up on the same street as Jack—was the one who truly had a place in his heart.
Riku and V headed into Vik's ripperdoc clinic. Vik was already waiting, having been tipped off about their visit.
"It's fixed. Let's get started," Vik said, motioning for Riku to lie on the operating table, Sandevistan in hand, ready to install.
"You sure you're good, Vik? Don't break Riku, now," V teased from the side. This time, she didn't have to look away since Riku only had to take off his upper clothes.
"Don't worry. My hands are so steady, ten bulls couldn't pull 'em off course," Vik replied with a chuckle, getting to work without bothering to ask about anesthesia.
Riku lay on the table, his body secured. It had to be—replacing a spine wasn't exactly a casual procedure.
V watched for a bit but soon stepped out. She couldn't handle watching the process—it looked too painful. She couldn't imagine how Riku endured it.
She'd also booked a cyberware implant with Vik. The flesh was weak! She wanted to make herself stronger, or at least useful enough to keep up.
V's sense of inadequacy wasn't entirely fair to herself. Compared to most street kids, she already had solid skills and marksmanship. Those alone had let her scrape by in Night City, taking small gigs in Heywood.
But after working a job with Riku and Jack, the gigs she was getting now were on a whole different level. The small-time jobs paying a few hundred or a thousand eddies? She barely glanced at them anymore. Even jobs paying three or four grand were starting to feel beneath her—unless it was something like taking out scavs, she wouldn't bother.
As her horizons expanded and the difficulty of their jobs increased, so did the strength of their enemies. It was only natural that her current skills, weapons, and body were struggling to keep up.
This wasn't the kind of work she was supposed to be doing yet. She should've had a couple more years to grind and grow, but Riku's arrival had fast-tracked everything. Now, she was taking on challenges way above her level.
Back in the clinic, Vik finally stopped working and began cleaning up. He'd finished installing the Sandevistan.
On top of that, at Riku's request, he'd added a new feature to the subdermal armor at the back of his neck, allowing it to retract like the armor in his hands.
"How's it feel? Any issues?" Vik asked while wiping away blood, more out of habit than necessity. He knew there wouldn't be any problems.
Riku's body was absurdly adaptable—no cyberware rejection, no complications. It was almost incomprehensible.
"Feels sugoi," Riku said, moving his body to test it out. He activated the Sandevistan, and a strange sensation washed over him. Everything around him seemed to slow down.
It was like bullet time in The Matrix—the world played in slow motion before his eyes.
Physically, the Sandevistan was stimulating his cells and nerves, making him faster, stronger, and heightening his perception.
"No wonder regular people can't handle this thing," Riku remarked. "This kind of stimulation? A normal person's cells and nerves would burn out after a few uses."
He could tell it took a toll on the body. The stronger your constitution (taishitsu), the better you could handle the Sandevistan's effects.
As expected, Riku was confident that with the same Sandevistan, he'd outperform that black-clad ninja (kuroi shinobi) from before.
"You and this thing are practically made for each other," Vik said with a sigh. With Riku's cellular vitality, the Sandevistan's strain was negligible.
The only thing holding Riku back was the Sandevistan's own performance and durability. If overused, even the hardware could break!
While others worried about the Sandevistan wrecking their bodies, Riku had to worry about not wrecking the Sandevistan.
"Thanks, Vik," Riku said, giving him a thumbs-up. Without hesitation, he used his flesh-activation ability on the Sandevistan.
Worried about breaking it? If it got damaged, he'd just repair it with his flesh-regeneration powers. As long as it didn't exceed his regeneration limits, he was golden.
This was where constitution (taishitsu) really shone. Flesh bullets, repairing weapons, or fixing damage from the Sandevistan—it all depended on his physical resilience.
"Call V in," Vik said, waving a hand. Installing Riku's Sandevistan was free, aside from repair costs. V's implant was the big job.
Riku put his clothes back on and stepped outside to find V waiting.
"Done?" V asked, looking eager, like she was ready to embrace a new chapter.
"Yup, your turn," Riku said, tilting his head toward the clinic.
V didn't hesitate, striding in with an expression like she was about to start a new adventure (bōken).
"Neko-neko lady, what's up? Got time?" Riku chuckled, shaking his head as he walked out, messaging Sasha about consulting Pila on skill chips.
"Got time. What's up, Devil?" Sasha replied quickly, tossing in a curious emoji.
"Wanna talk to Pila about something. Can you hook me up?" Riku got straight to the point. If possible, he'd love to learn some tech expert (gijutsu senmonka) skills himself.
A skill chip for "tech expert" techniques would be even better. Riku didn't mind a shortcut—he had plenty of time to practice.
With those skills, even scavenging would be easier. Tech experts were pros at turning trash into treasure.
"No prob, I'll reach out to Pila!" Sasha shot back instantly, though she was a tad disappointed. She'd hoped he was messaging her for, well, her.
(End of Chapter)