16 David Martinez

Afternoon inside the Cyber Dogs' hideout.

"Finally, it took me weeks to get the Focus to 60%."

The Focus, from Horizon Forbidden West, has all the functions, like scanning, sensing, and restoring corrupted data, though at a reduced capacity compared to the original. It'll take months to recover all the corrupted data, and now it needs to adapt to the programs and environment in this world.

"If it weren't for the BD helping me revisit my memories, it would have taken even longer to recreate the Focus."

Woof

"Just a minute, Lola. Let me put this on your head."

I attached the Focus to Lola's head, scratching behind her ears and neck as I did.

"Okay, what did you say?"

Woof [I'm hungry] Woof [I want meat].

I smiled, hearing this.

"Looks like you're able to speak more clearly. Sure, what kind of meat do you want?"

Woof [Steak] Woof [Big and juicy] Woof [With BBQ, please].

"Now I'm hungry. Come on, let's go to the kitchen."

We headed up the stairs to the ground floor.

"Do you want me to cook it, or should I pull out an already-prepared steak from the system?"

Woof [Your cooking] Woof [I want it extra crispy].

Time passed, and after we'd had our fill, we headed to the sofa to rest.

Bing

"Huh? What?"

I opened my eyes and saw a quest notification pop up.

How long was I asleep?

I checked the time and saw we'd only napped for about half an hour. I tried to stand up, but Lola was sprawled on top of me. Not wanting to disturb her, I stayed where I was and squinted at the map, looking for where this quest was pointing. Its name showed a bunch of question marks, and the description simply said, "Something interesting is happening."

I studied the map for a minute and then noticed the marker was set on someone I had tagged. When I looked at the name, my eyes went wide.

David Martinez

My mind raced.

"Shit, damn it, fuck."

Without hesitation, I activated Sandevistan to stop time.

"Lola, we're leaving."

Woof [Okay].

I used the map to fast-travel, thanks to a mod that lets me warp to any location. I can even leave custom fast-travel markers, though not on people.

I chose a drop point nearest to David. The environment blurred, and we were in a different place. Everyone around was frozen in time, but I didn't care. We ran and jumped through the city toward David's location.

But we were late. I saw a car crash, one car blown up and another flipped upside down. Lying on the street was a woman with red hair wearing a yellow jacket. I moved closer—Gloria Martinez. She was badly injured. I glanced at the overturned car and saw David, his face frozen in a look of desperation and panic.

I quickly pulled out a healing item that could instantly heal injuries and positioned Gloria on her back. Her face was marked with dark circles. I remembered she'd died in the original story, even though the surgery was successful. Her body had been exhausted, overworked. Now, with the shock of this crash, she was in rough shape—likely overwhelmed with stress and anxiety.

"I'll take her to Vik," I decided. "Lola, I'm going to resume time, and I want you to get the kid out of the car."

Woof [Got it].

I deactivated Sandevistan.

"MOM!" David screamed.

"Hey, who the hell are you? What are you doing with my mom?"

Lola had already ripped open the car door on David's side with her tentacles, carefully helping him out of the car.

"What the—wait, is that a dog?"

While Lola helped David, I called Vik.

"Hey, kid, what's going on?"

"Vik, I have someone who's critically injured. I'm heading to your clinic now."

"Wait, what? Kid, what's going on?"

"No time to explain. I'll be there in a second."

I carried Gloria as Lola brought David.

"Who are you?" David asked.

I didn't respond. Instead, I used the map to fast-travel us to Vik's clinic, landing in the back alley just outside.

"What the hell? How did we get here?"

Without wasting time, we went inside.

"Vik, I need help—she's in critical condition."

"Put her on the chair. And who's this kid?"

"She's his mom. Lola, take him to Misty."

"No! I'm staying with her!"

Without hesitation, Lola gently but firmly pulled David aside as he shouted to let him go.

"Vik, I have a healing item that can instantly cure injuries, but she's exhausted and stressed out."

"If what you say is true, I strongly advise against using that item. Forcing rapid healing on an exhausted person will kill them."

"Damn. Okay, Plan B."

I quickly retrieved some artificial organs I had prepared for emergencies.

Hours later, it was nighttime. I called Misty to bring David back in.

"MOM!"

He rushed to her side, gripping her hand, his eyes welling up.

"Is she going to be okay?" he asked.

Vik sighed. "The surgery was a success, but right now she's in a coma."

"She'll be alright… right?"

"I don't know, kid. Her body's weak, from stress and lack of sleep. Honestly, there's a high chance she won't make it through the coma."

David held his mother's hand tighter, tears brimming in his eyes.

"There is a way to make sure she doesn't die in her coma," I offered.

David looked up at me, desperate.

I gave him a quick explanation of the function of a modified chair I'd built, which could use controlled shock therapy to prevent coma-related death.

"She won't die in her coma, but her recovery will be up to her. The decision is yours if you want me to try."

"Please… save her. I'll pay anything."

"No need for payment. We'll leave now."

We thanked Vik and Misty for their help, and I called for my sports car. I gently placed Gloria in the back seat with Lola, while David sat up front. As we drove, I decided to break the silence.

"What's your name, kid?"

"Huh? David. David Martinez."

"How are you holding up? I'm guessing Lola gave you some healing items. You looked pretty banged up back there. Did you get shot?"

"No, I'm okay. Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

"Why are you helping us?"

"Because I want to."

I wasn't lying. I genuinely wanted to help David, knowing what fate awaited him otherwise.

"Sorry, it's just… hard to believe you. Everyone here is only out for themselves."

"Then I'm not like everyone else. Small groups of people are kind-hearted, like your mother. Most parents here don't give a damn about their kids—they'd let them die or sell them off. Just look at her. She's worn out, working herself to exhaustion so you can graduate from Arasaka and have a better life."

"How do you know that?"

"Kid, you're wearing an Arasaka uniform, and your car didn't look like something a rich person would drive. Plus, with that haircut, you look like a street kid."

"Oh… I have another question. How did we get to the clinic so fast after the crash?"

"You want the long explanation on manipulating time and space, or the short version?"

"I'll take the short version."

"Magic."

We arrived at the Cyber Dogs' hideout, and David looked around, awestruck.

"Come on, David. Follow me."

We headed straight to the modified chair, where I placed the helmet on Gloria. The monitor displayed a 3D image of her brain, with several sections highlighted in red.

"David, it's not looking great. I'll need to perform the shock therapy manually for a while. Go take a shower and eat something. Lola will guide you."

"Oh… okay, but—"

"Also, many areas here are off-limits, but you won't be able to access them anyway. The doors only open to our group. And Lola placed your mom's things on the table."

"But I need to stay with her…"

"There's nothing you can do right now."

"Just go, and take a rest while you can."

Woof [Follow me].

After David left, I messaged Jackie and V to update them and let them know I'd be at the hideout all night.

"I hope you pull through, Gloria… for your son's sake."

End of Chapter.