Botched Op

"Heh, start the clock, my bet's on the gonk not lasting five minutes." Rebecca casually says as she and the rest of the crew watch in on the Med Center from a dozen or so hidden cameras.

A day ago they'd launched an operation to sabotage a piece of Cyberware the Arasaka Board Member Hoji Kamazaki was going to have installed. With the intel Yorinobu supplied them, it was laughably easy for Sasha to sneak into the supply centre and accesses it.

Usually there'd be a shit load of anti-theft and security seals, but with three Netrunners on hand, blueprints on the cargo, and instructions on how to operate them, it too was barely an afterthought.

"Were you expecting him to last? Even Ori would explode if he jacked that fuckin' thing in." Falco states.

"So you aren't betting?"

...

"A thousand Eds on thirty seconds." Falco adds.

"Quiet, it's happening." Sasha says, more anxious than anyone else due to her being primarily responsible for this.

-----------------------

In the hospital, the doctor had just numbed Hoji in preparation for the operation. He was required to be kept awake due to the Neuralware and the risk of accidentally touching something they shouldn't, brain surgery was tricky like that.

"This is quite the implant Mr Kamazaki, I was surprised the board gave you permission to have it installed." the doctor remarks, making small talk to keep the man's thoughts away from having the back of his skull opened up.

"Drastic times call for d-drastic measures..." Koji says, stuttering slightly as he feels the uncomfortable sensation of a breeze brushing across his brain... "T-the Emperor's death h-has required all of us to make s-sacrifices. This N-Neural enhancement will allow A-Arasaka to continue without p-problems."

The surgeon idly nods, "Access points have been made, we will begin the installation... Please inform us if you feel anything other than slight itchiness, Mr Kamazaki."

"J-Just do it already..." he grouses, irritated either from the surgery or the fact his head was trapped in a vice to keep it still.

...

"So I heard about the parade that will be held in Saburo Arasaka's honour, will you be in attendance? If so, is there any chance I could acquire a VIP card? My daughter has always looked up to-" the surgeon's voice trails off as he connects the Neuralware to Hoji's Interface. The chip had sparked slightly, causing Hoji's hands to jolt, not that the man himself seemed to notice... Had he blacked out for an instant?

"You want a VIP card? I hardlo thank goal tomato chocorate... Pony sauce bat car?" Hoji asks as the rest of the hospital staff shift uncomfortably. The Corpo just looks at them all oddly, as if asking if he'd said something odd. "Jakgh netuna loienilo pikachu fireduck? Kakarot?"

"M-Mr Hoji, if you understand what I'm saying please raise your left hand-"

-----------------

"HAHAHAHA! LOOK AT THAT FUCKIN' GONK! HAHAHAHA!!" Rebecca roars in laughter as the Corpo starts speaking in the lost language of retardation.

"Shit, that's the funniest fucking thing I've seen in my life!" Leo exclaims, joining her in the merriment.

Even the typically stoic Lucy was chuckling, the big bad Corpo that may have played a big role in her earlier life was not reduced to a bumbling wretch. She couldn't think of a more apt punishment... Not that it was over yet.

V, or Juno, was sitting at the back of the room with Johnny next to her, a digital bag of popcorn in his lap as he watches the screen like it was a bad chick flick. "I'm not sure how I feel about this..."

He sends an apathetic glance at her, "Why? Cause those doctors are gonna get vivisected for the botched op? Who cares, one dead Corpo, 'specially a high-up one is worth a thousand sacrifices."

V sighs, "Of course the terrorist would say that."

"Yeah, and? Not shut it, we're getting to the good part."

------------------

"Something's wrong, Mr Kamazaki's condition is rapidly deteriorating! Quick, remove the implant!"

"We can't! I-It's overloading! It's already begun to burn his upper temporal lobe! We need to cool it! Taking it out now would be like an impromptu lobotomy!"

"What do you want us to do then!? Spray him with a fire extinguisher!? The coolant was have isn't rated for soft essential organics!"

*SHHhhh!*

"AAGGHKKK!!!" Hoji lets out a hacking scream as smoke begins billowing from his mouth, the chain reaction of overloading Cyberware even affecting his synth-lungs, which had essentially turned into a furnace inside his chest.

*THWWOOM!*

His eyes finally burst, the Kiroshi Optics exploding like dropped frozen Christmas baubles. Spittles of flames exit from the now vacant eye-holes, and it only gets worse when things reach critical failure...

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRGGGHHHH!!!"

Hoji Arasaka's entire head bursts into flames, his arms flailing to put it out but proving to be ineffective as he was locked in a vice grip. The doctors and other nurses all cower at the sides of the room to escape from what was quickly beginning to look like some kind of self-detective sequence. Sure, they'd seen Netrunner attacks with similar results, but nothing so violent.

With a final yell the Corpo finally slumps in his seat, brain scorched and half melted, still on fire from his absolutely destroyed Cybernetics... An alarm pings, and the doctors are all forced to the floor as the Corpo's security entourage charges into the room.

"Client down! Take them into custody, someone's going down for this, and it ain't us!"

--------------------

Ori slips out of the room while the crew was having an impromptu celebration at a job well down. With Hoji marked the third Board Member they'd flatlined in two weeks, with the spree they'd need to slow it down a bit, which was fine given that Yorinobu had hired Sekaiheiwa to aid his security during the parade in Japantown...

Apparently Hanako was supposed to be there in his place but she'd refused for the reason of being 'too sick to attend'. Ori was sceptical, but Yorinobu had assured him that his sister knew nothing, and would do nothing.

Again, he was sceptical...