Нова Проспект / Nova Prospect: Shinigami (Адам)

Shinigami (Adam)

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 15:17

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Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 15:56

A three-dimensional image of two twisted spirals hovered above the black surface of the table. An ocean of information encoded in chains of nucleotides.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 15:56

"Have you ever seen anything like this?"

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 15:57

There was an almost religious reverence in Armitage's question. Technology had brought physical and mental illnesses that almost everyone but Taggart had kept silent about - the first augments had damaged biochemistry. The consequences ranged from mild crankiness to a completely blown-off roof. Armitage was not spared, judging by the biohorror-style interior.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 15:58

"A DNA helix?" Adam shrugged. "Of course, I saw it."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 15:59

However, he was not well enough versed in genetics to know exactly where to look.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:51

"The girl... Let's just say she's not quite human," Armitidge replied with a sense of slight superiority. "The number of chromosomes is the same, but there are chains that are not found in the genome of a normal human."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:51

Adam didn't like him calling Ciri a girl - she was at least twenty years old, dammit.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:52

The DNA fragment on the projection enlarged several times.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:53

"For example, this one," Armitidge highlighted the nucleotide chain with a red flash, "looks like a dormant HARE6 gene. It is involved in the formation of brain matter. In the girl, it's active."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:54

It didn't take a look at his personnel file to realize that Armitidge had been a former teacher. His mentor's tone gave him away. Adam glanced at the monitor as Ciri leaned over the bar with a look of desperate boredom.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:57

"Have you ever heard of Halberstam's theory? He wrote that the expulsion from Eden was merely a metaphor for a biological catastrophe, a metavirus that infected the human race and deprived..."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:58

He has no time for religion and speculation.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 19:59

"So what do you want in return?" Adam interrupted, shaking nonexistent dust off his cloak.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:00

Armitidge's artificial fingernails tapped irritably on the smooth surface of the armrest.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:01

Red Bank in China has become a household name, an urban legend like black helicopters. A repository of faces, fingerprints, and search terms. It is most likely just a fancy database - myths are just myths to embellish reality.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:02

"The smallest thing..." As far as Adam was concerned, no "small thing" had ever turned out to be a small thing. "Meeting with Wintermute in Geneva."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:04

Adam didn't associate Switzerland much with hackers. For a man who only needed a network, choosing a cheaper country made sense. Just one meeting - but why the hell?

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:05

Adam nodded. Anything could be promised. He'd make enough enemies by the end of this story - one more, one less - it didn't matter. Glossy, silicone-coated thin eyes drilled Adam.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:06

Ciri, meanwhile, was ordering a drink, tapping her foot impatiently on the bar.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:07

Armitidge erased the DNA image; the web of neon strands turned into a projection of a multi-level building. Someone had prepared well - Adam assumed an insider - too precise a scheme. The blue lines of the ventilation system intertwined with gray corridors, nodes indicating the location of surveillance cameras.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:07

Three floors, two of which are underground. On the lower levels, four nodes are illuminated red: quantum supermachines, protected by a dense layer of metal from electromagnetic interference. Weird. How did they get in there...?

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:27

"There's no entrance," Armitage guessed the reason for the surprise, "no exit, either. Only service tunnels for miniature drones. But walls are no barrier to a girl, is it?"

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 16:00

If she can teleport. Even if she does.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:27

"It's suicide," Adam shook his head. "Ciri couldn't differentiate a computer from a tin can, and you're suggesting we infiltrate a secure facility?"

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:28

The question was clearly expected; Armitage nodded to his assistant. The Japanese woman bowed respectfully and held out her hand to Adam. She held a small chip in her palm.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:32

"Three years," Armitidge said slowly, "we've been trying to destroy the Bank. It took three years for logistics, sabotage, and bribery, to develop the virus. All you have to do is push the fall one."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:33

Adam read the data and checked the coordinates. An unremarkable building in Yancheng, one of the many faceless creations of Communism. The Red Bank of the last red state had come to symbolize universal equality in front of Big Brother. Quite in the spirit of modern art.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:35

"And why? Even a backup has a backup. Yes, there will be losses, but they'll recover most of it. Unless the cyber defense is run by a complete idiot, of course."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:36

Something predatory flashed across Armitage's disfigured face.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:36

"It's personal."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:37

Espionage? Terrorist attack? Adam had enough headaches already to guess at his motives, though. As long as the security cameras lost sight of them, they had time to get to the nearest airfield. Malik will have to do the rest.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:39

There are about a hundred active drones and the same number of soldiers in the building; there are a couple dozen civilians. If Armitidge's plan was to be believed, once they were infected with the virus, all the electrical engineering should be on their side. If not... Adam checked the optical camouflage system; in response to a status query, it gave a critical error.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:39

"I need a mechanic."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:40

"There's a clinic nearby," said Armitidge, and he coughed hoarsely, another shot of neuroposin flowing through a long tube into his vein. "I'll let them know you're coming. You'll spend the night there."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:40

In the ghetto of Shanghai itself? That must be some illegal meat grinder.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:13

The bar was empty. In the poor resolution, you could barely make out a rhythmically twitching figure in the crowd. Shit, she found time to dance! Adam zoomed in closer: the absent smile was still on Ciri's face. He'd been in drug enforcement too long not to know what that looked like.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:41

What the hell?!

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:11

After a couple of seconds, the auditory module had to filter out the bass of the electro-techno-spidmix from the roaring speakers. The bright light coming from the stage diffused the semi-darkness, highlighting the faces of people immersed in dreams - or hallucinations.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:14

Adam elbowed the dancers, not very politely, as he made his way to the other end of the room. Ciri was moving to the beat of the music, unaware of her surroundings, and he had to shake her by the shoulder to snap her out of her blissful trance.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:14

Upon seeing him, Ciri blossomed into a smile and clung to his chest unequivocally. Wide-open green eyes glistened moistly. //"Have a fucking conscience. You're on a mission, she's in her early twenties, and she's high," Adam suppressed the non-work-related thoughts that flashed somewhere in the back of his mind.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:15

Trying to keep his distance, he gently grabbed the girl's wrist and pulled her toward the exit. The club erupted in black and white strobe flashes. Losing her balance, Ciri bowed awkwardly and collapsed against his arm. Adam quickly checked her pulse - rapid and uneven, but not critically so. Epilepsy? An allergic reaction?

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:16

The lights in the club faded, flashed, and faded again. The people parted, allowing him to lay Ciri on the neon-red couch. She was breathing convulsively. Her eyes rolled back, revealing whites reddened by burst vessels.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:11

"The Hour of Cold," the metallic voice sounded as if it had been run through a synthesizer. "Duettaeann aef cirran caerme glaeddyv. Winter's stillness. The world will die, plunged into darkness, and be reborn with a new sun."

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:10

The speakers gave out with an unpleasant pop. The silence was broken only by someone's swearing and Ciri's otherworldly voice. Some woman called for a doctor.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:09

"Destruction. Disintegration. Fracture," Ciri stamped in a quick staccato. It's horror-movie bullshit.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 21:08

Someone pulled out a cell phone; the flash illuminated the girl's pale face.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:43

"Okay, the show's over," Adam barked, lifting Ciri.

Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:43

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Camrad_RIP 14.03.24 в 20:42