#total immortal

Chapter 247: The instinct to fight

Goro meets Oda and his strike team.

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Chapter 248: We Are Nowhere And It's Now

Hanako is all mysterious, dragging the baby edgerunner off to Mikoshi. She's monologuing — well, dialoguing — like a proper villain, but it's all so cryptic that Johnny can't make heads or tails of 'em, other than 'bad news'.

It’s kinda ironic, that Johnny is the one to keep the wheels on course while the baby edgerunner is tangled up in his memories: she heads straight left towards the data port in the wall.

Saburo’s office hasn’t changed in the last fifty-something years. It features a desk big enough to land an AV, empty save for a bonsai, and three chairs. If Johnny doesn’t remember wrong, the room’s facing east; now, around sunset, all the lighting is indirect. Back then, the aesthetics had been lost on him — all he could think about was to upload Murphy’s virus before the payload went critical.

Part of him had always known that it was a one-way trip.

Chapter 245: Arrow's Flight

On the way to Arasaka Tower, Goro is witness to a different kind of strength in his thief.

The joy of battle has drained away from Vee, leaving her smaller than just a minute ago. She is moving gingerly, as if she was hiding pain. Goro waits next to the AV, bowing his head in deference to Hanako-sama while she takes place next to Hellman, then waits for his thief to climb inside as well. Only when she is safely ensconced in the vehicle’s padded seat does he follow.

The side hatch closes with a pneumatic hiss, and Goro settles down next to Vee while the shuttle takes off. She is sitting opposite of the engineer, who is reaching for a glass of sparkling wine — one of four. Apparently, his earlier statement had not been a joke.

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Chapter 246: A Path to Broken Stars

Vee is storming Arasaka Tower, corpo edition. And about time: the wheels are giving out.

Vee has been kicking ass in Yorinobu’s fancy estate earlier, and the moment she takes a breather, her legs turn into pudding.

Honestly, it’s a miracle she can still walk.

With gritted teeth, she holds on to the side of the AV, the room blurring in front of her optics. This place has a villainous flair, all black plasticrete and golden highlights, the lights in hues of red for extra doom and gloom. Goro’s white suit is making her eyes water, the halo around it blending neatly with Hanako’s equally white dress, and when Vee slumps against the side, she notices her outfit matching the evil overlord’s AV hangar. That some kinda statement?

“Just another day at the office,” Johnny drawls, then gestures past the apparition in white neon that’s the samurai and his boss. “Did you notice the wall art? Nice touch, very evil.”

AFI - "Totalimmortal"