Chapter 17 - Modification
Thanks but no thanks. I’m going to hold on to my data card for now. But I will accept 100 Crypt for wasting my time.
I grinned at Apache and dematerialized the Rare card. The tall man registered the briefest look of shock, then swung on me.
I flinched.
The sharp tips of his spiked knuckles hovered half an inch from my face, then slowly retracted. Apache let out a low chuckle.
“You’ve got spunk, rookie. I’ll give you that.”
Apache turned his back, then hesitated. He opened his menu and dragged something ephemeral through the air in my direction. As a reflex, I reached for it.
[You received 100 Crypt]
“Don’t spend it all in one place. Now get out of here before I beat your arse.”
Meanwhile, Camel had nearly dropped his empty glass in surprise. To be honest, I surprised myself. I was thankful not to be spitting out teeth just then.
“You got some bolshy balls to be teasing a top-tier hunter like that. Sorry. Figure of speech. What got into you?”
I don’t know. I just had a feeling that turning down the trade was the right thing to do. Call it an instinct.
Camel just shook his head.
The caged deathmatch over, this backroom of the Rathskeller had reverted to a den of shady deals. Volunteers were making swaps all over the place. I guess everything had a price and almost anything else could be considered a legitimate form of payment if you wanted it badly enough. Something about avoiding taxes or system oversight?
“Did you make a decision about stashing your pretty polly? What are you ittying to do?”
I’m ‘ittying’ to look into the body modification options you mentioned. Supply Depot, right? Getting a computer chip installed in my neck isn’t the most natural thing, but then again, literally nothing about this place seems natural.
“The starry slice and dice. Better you than me.”
Really? No surgery for you? No improving on Mother Nature?
Camel smiled that gap-toothed smile once more. The skin beneath the missing patches of scraggly beard shone under the black lights. His eyes swam in his head, unfocused, and he spread his scrawny arms wide in an awkward pose.
“You can’t improve on perfection!”
I took my bag of baubles and departed, passing through the hidden door and back through the Rathskeller proper. Drinking and dancing continued as ever under oppressively loud music. As I passed by the vacant Round Table in the center of the drinking hall, I wondered if I had or ever would have what it takes to join that vaunted few. Apache said the final step of the audition process was to challenge and defeat a member of your choice in mortal combat. I wondered what the first step was.
Outside amidst the dark streets once more, I hurried across town to the Supply Depot. Passing by the vicinity of the Bounty Boards, I remained vigilant for any sightings of the ‘cobras’ or ‘serpents’ - whoever they were. No signs of them. Good. I didn’t like the idea of having to watch my back for the rest of my second life. I needed to get stronger.
I ducked into the Supply Depot, eyeing the dazzling aisles of wares and a smattering of Volunteers I didn’t recognize. I nodded politely to the elderly woman sitting behind the counter. She smiled back at me, crescent earrings dangling from her lobes.
Any rain in the forecast?
She raised a wrinkled hand as if to test the air.
“Oh ho ho. Not yet, dear. You still have quite some time.”
I gestured to the spiral staircase leading down to the sublevel.
Body modification.
“You go right ahead.”
I descended onto the black slate floor and scanned my number under the red light sensor. I saw my avatar again displayed large, rotating lifelessly on the central screen, splayed like some cadaver about to be autopsied. I accessed the leftmost body modification panel. Curious, I began to scroll through the available options.
The more I searched, the more ways I saw in which I could alter my avatar, and preview the outcome on the central screen. Taller. Shorter. Thinner. Thicker. Eye color. Lip thickness. Jaw width. Chin depth. Voice. Genitals. All with a price, of course. The list went on and on. Finally, I came across a sub-menu called Advanced Body Modification.
There was a list of surgical procedures and associated artificial limbs, implants, biomechanical upgrades. Things I had never heard of before. Eye implants. Brain jacks. The list went on. I surmised that there were improvements I could make to my avatar through cold, hard Crypt that otherwise would require upgrades using Crystals. Different paths to self-improvement.
[Neural Integration Procedure - Axis Port Installation:
One-time surgical procedure to install a port in the back of the neck at the base of the skull for neural-interfacing chip access.
Cost: 1,000 Crypt]
Okay, that is what Camel had mentioned. And where would I acquire the chips to insert into said port? Ah, there they were. They started at 1,000 Crypt and skyrocketed from there.
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[B3-9S7-C10K
Neural-interfacing chip designed for minimal Crypt storage.
Storage: 10,000 Crypt
Cost: 1,000 Crypt
-
B3-9S7-C100K
Neural-interfacing chip designed for moderate Crypt storage.
Storage: 100,000 Crypt
Cost: 10,000 Crypt
Alert: You do not have the required minimum Protocol for this device.
-
B3-9S7-C1M
Neural-interfacing chip designed for advanced Crypt storage.
Storage: 1,000,000 Crypt
Cost: 100,000 Crypt
Alert: You do not have the required minimum Protocol for this device.]
The concept of having 1,000,000 Crypt at my disposal made me salivate ever so slightly. Maybe someday. For now, I could only afford the C10K model. Also, it was the only one that did not appear to have a minimum Protocol requirement. Protocol. Huh. I had barely put any thought into that Statistical category so far, except recalling that it improved my ability to craft materials at the Forge.
I was now starting to see the potential appeal of using the Repository. If I kept chasing bigger bounties, I would eventually max out the chip’s storage space. Still, it was a one-time cost and portable. I wondered if I could have multiple ports installed, and carry multiple chips at a time. Would there be Protocol requirements for that as well? Maybe something to ask at the Information Kiosk or a Volunteer that spoke in language I could actually understand without some Metaverse slang dictionary.
I decided to bite the proverbial bullet and go for the bod mod surgery and the B3-9S7-C10K chip. Losing 2,000 Crypt would hurt, but I needed to make long term investments.
I soon found out that losing 2,000 Crypt would not hurt nearly as much as the operation.
[Neural Integration Procedure - Axis Port Installation) selected. Selection confirmed. Would you like to apply this change?]
Yes…?
Round apertures in the previously featureless black floor opened, and two narrow pedestals shot upwards. The top of each pedestal glowed white, indicating a spot to rest my hands. I carefully placed my bag on the ground and did so. My hands instantly clung tight to the bright surfaces.
Please remain still. The operation will begin shortly.
That cursed voice again. Saccharine and inauthentic.
There was no backing out now. I realized my hands were completely immobilized. Frozen on the white hot light of the pedestals. I squirmed as a mechanical noise sounded from above. Metal claw-like appendages drooped down from the ceiling, encircling my head. They made a terrible clacking noise.
I fought against the urge to duck my head, to try and escape. I had paid good money for this.
One of the appendages rotated into place directly behind my head, hovering with a needle-like point above the small of my neck. Soon, a bright red laser shot out from the tip, cutting directly into my flesh. I could see it illustrated on the central screen in front of me, magnified. A blinding pain erupted.
Frag, it hurts!
Anesthesia is available for an additional charge of 2,000 Crypt.
What?! You didn’t mention anything about that before!
Would you like to purchase anesthesia?
Yes! Yes!
I’m sorry. Anesthesia is not available once the operation has begun. Please try again next time.
Gaahhh!!!
The pain continued as the laser sliced and penetrated deep into my flesh, my nerves, the top of my spinal column. Meanwhile, a burning, queasy sensation spread from the palms of my hands, up through my arms, and permeated my entire body. As if my DNA were being melted down and rewritten, or the digital version of DNA. The code that governed my avatar.
My vision flickered and then everything was black.
Bit by bit, my vision returned. The sound of mechanical arms retracting into the ceiling and I was slumping against the two pedestals, my hands still suctioned into place. A hissing sound, and my hands were free. I knelt to the ground and quickly examined my palms for signs of damage. But there were none. My flesh was spotless. The pain receded into non-reality.
Operation successful. Neural-Interface Axis Port installed.
I carefully reached up to touch the back of my hairless neck. There it was. Something hard and alien. Something that should never be part of a human body. It felt roughly the shape of a card reader slot on an ATM, but smaller. Congratulations, I now had a new orifice. An extra metal slit.
I glared at the body modification and cosmetics panels, not that they did or could give a Shiva about me.
Tapping the screen as aggressively as I could, I grudgingly purchased the B3-9S7-C10K chip and watched it materialize in my hand. It was a black and sleek rectangle, but when I turned it in the light it gave off a bronze glimmer. When I concentrated on the object the details emerged before my eyes, but nothing much more than I had already gleaned. There did not appear to be an up or down, front or back - no standard orientation - just the short edges and long edges.
Here goes nothing.
I lined up one narrow edge of the card and slowly inserted it into the slot at the base of my skull, half expecting to feel it pushing into my squishy brain stem or spine or something. But oddly, it felt good. Satisfying. An emptiness was being filled. I pressed it all the way in until it clicked, resting within my reconfigured body.
A menu notification appeared before my eyes.
[B3-9S7-C10K chip detected. Would you like to automatically transfer your Crypt?]
Yes I would.
I felt an internal woosh as digital bits streamed from one hidden part of myself to this newer addition. And strangely it felt like I could breathe easier, as if the change in storage had somehow translated to feeling less encumbered. Lighter. I had not noticed that sensation before.
I untied my bag and quickly added my weapons back into my inventory, only keeping my 100 Crystals in the bag for now. I took a look at the top part of my Menu, then scrolled down to check my Economy and Memory submenus.
[DESIGNATION
* VOLUNTEER ID
* * 01001110 01101111 01100010 01101111 01100100 01111001
* COSMETICS
* * WAVY ASYMMETRICAL CROP (hair)
* * ALMOND (skin tone)
* MODS
* * NEURAL-INTERFACE AXIS PORT
* * * B3-9S7-C10K CHIP (10,000 Crypt storage)
ECONOMY
* CRYPT
* * 3,000 (stored on B3-9S7-C10K chip)
* CRYSTALS
MEMORY
* STORAGE
* * 208 / 230]
It appeared that the surgically-installed port created additional storage space that could only be filled by a neural-interface chip. In other words, the storage space of the port and the storage requirement of the chip canceled each other out, and did not impact my total available storage. What it did do was erase the storage impact of my remaining 3,000 Crypt.
Next up, I needed to do some shopping.