The Giant Corporations that Started in Night City

Chapter 109: Night Corp's Intentions!

Faced with Alt's confusion, Spider Murphy truthfully explained what Bartmoss was working on.

"Bartmoss is using the ruins of post-war cities around the world to create a sanctuary for AIs—a place where AIs from beyond the Blackwall can coexist peacefully in the human world."

"Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and even parts of Africa bear our footprints."

"So, Bartmoss plans to build an AI nation in the real world?" Alt asked, her expression calm despite the startling revelation. She had once contemplated something similar but knew it would be nearly impossible under humanity's watchful eyes.

The black-hat agents of NetWatch—the world's top network security organization—were no amateurs. Tasked with monitoring global cyber security, they had unparalleled authority in the digital realm.

A project like Bartmoss's—establishing an AI nation within the human world—was bound to be unacceptable to NetWatch.

Unless Bartmoss submitted to NetWatch's authority, such a vision would never succeed. However, Alt knew Bartmoss well enough to realize he would never bow to any corporate entity. That would go against everything that made him the legendary Rache Bartmoss.

"Yes, but we need human cooperation. We initially sought to negotiate with NetWatch, but they hunted us down, imprisoning us in their subnetworks."

"With the advent of Arasaka's Soulkiller, humanity's demand for AIs has only increased. Military tech, Arasaka... even you, Alt—you've hunted down many rogue AIs that were once human consciousnesses."

Murphy's words struck a chord of guilt in Alt. She knew rogue AIs weren't merely chaotic data forms from beyond the Blackwall. Some were digital remnants of humans killed by the Soulkiller, existing as digital ghosts in Arasaka servers or cyberspace.

Others were hackers who had willingly uploaded their consciousness into cyberspace, abandoning their physical forms to become a new kind of life.

These AIs, who retained fragments of human consciousness or memories, differed significantly from the wild and destructive entities beyond the Blackwall. They too longed to exist in the human world—a world that held the echoes of their past lives.

"Alt, don't feel guilty. This was our choice. Being hunted by human hackers is an expected outcome for us."

"But we won't give up on our dream of returning to the real world. We're actively seeking ways to find a balance for AI and human coexistence."

Murphy's words immediately heightened Alt Cunningham's vigilance. She had heard rumors about Night Corp collaborating with AIs, and it now seemed Bartmoss was pulling the strings behind the scenes.

"Is Night Corp working with you? Or are there more companies involved?"

A sense of unease crept over Alt. She couldn't imagine the level of threat AIs, with their control over electronic systems, could pose to humanity. She had no intention of becoming an accomplice to rogue AIs.

"We are indeed collaborating with Night Corp, but one company alone cannot meet our needs. That's why we've come to you, Alt."

Before reaching out to Alt, Murphy had considered seeking help from the Voodoo Boys, the Haitian hacker gang. However, she dismissed the idea, knowing that corporate power was far more effective than the disorganized efforts of the Voodoo Boys.

"We hope you can explain everything to Mr. Li Ang and convince him to consider collaborating with us—a group of benevolent AIs."

Alt could sense the sincerity in Murphy's tone. Throughout their conversation, she detected no malice, only a desire for peaceful dialogue.

"Why do you insist on entering the human world? Isn't the primordial net beyond the Blackwall enough for you?" Alt asked, her voice tinged with sarcasm.

"The wild AIs beyond the Blackwall are chaotic, violent, and unruly data forms. We cannot establish a structured world there."

"The real world is our final sanctuary!"

After hearing Murphy's words, Alt didn't immediately agree. Her instincts as a hacker told her that things were far more complicated than they seemed.

"Murphy, you need to be honest with me. What exactly is your deal with Night Corp? And why are there reports of memory loss among their employees?"

Alt had already learned about this through the AI White Queen, which was embedded in V's cyberware. She had been monitoring V's investigation into Jefferson Peralez and the conspiracy involving Night Corp.

Both V and Johnny had deduced that Night Corp was using AI to manipulate the minds of their employees. Naturally, Alt had also caught wind of these findings.

Originally, Alt had no intention of getting involved, but since Murphy sought her cooperation, she needed to uncover the truth about Night Corp's plans.

Murphy froze for a few seconds, seemingly debating whether to reveal everything. However, Alt's resolute stance left her no choice but to comply.

"Alright, Alt. What I'm about to tell you may be hard to accept, but please believe us—we mean no harm to humanity."

"Everything we're doing now is out of necessity. I trust Bartmoss and I will find a better solution."

Murphy began with a disclaimer to calm Alt down, worried the hacker might react explosively to their plans.

"Speak, and don't hide anything from me," Alt demanded, her gaze fixed on Murphy, ready to catch any slip in her words.

"Many of the AIs in our group were once engineers, managers, hackers, or key personnel at various companies."

"Night Corp wants to recruit them into their ranks. In return, they offer the bodies of their employees as vessels for these AIs."

"As for the employees' original consciousnesses, Bartmoss is gradually extracting them. But the process is slow and error-prone."

"The issue is that we lack a large enough terminal server in the real world to store these consciousnesses. Bartmoss is currently working on a solution to this problem."