From Titan Corporation to the Empire of Man

noon.

new York.

As the most populous city on the east coast of the United States, it is also one of the nation’s economic, commercial, and entertainment centers. It seems prosperous, but it used to be in dire straits.

The gap between the rich and the poor is huge, the cost of living is extremely high, and you may be threatened by violence and criminals at any time. As a result, the quality of life of ordinary people is actually not high. Although it looks glamorous on the outside, it is actually full of hardships.

Manhattan, where the Empire State Building is located, and Brooklyn, which is less than five kilometers away from each other in a straight line, should be a typical comparison of the huge gap between rich and poor. However, today's Brooklyn is lined with a large number of new buildings, and there are still huge buildings under construction. .

Get a closer look.

It can be seen that there are many old-fashioned Hex robots in the open space, assisting workers with welding, assembly and other matters. The construction site supervisors wearing white safety helmets have the red "Atlas" symbol printed on their clothing. Λ" logo.

It seems that Atlas contracted these projects, which not only created more job opportunities for Brooklyn, but also significantly increased income and consumption levels here.

In addition, the streets of Brooklyn are covered with holographic technology, and the infrastructure is becoming more complete and advanced. Van-like "objects" even flash in the sky from time to time?

This is almost like the shadow of the rebuilt New Accra in every aspect, except that the number of patrol drones is smaller.

In comparison, Manhattan's development appears to be relatively sluggish.

However, even if Atlas provides a large number of jobs, not everyone is willing to spend five days a week and seven hours a day at work, even if these jobs have comprehensive medical pension insurance and three times the overtime. Subsidies and holiday benefits, and the average hourly wage reaching $3, don't help matters.

You must know that according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly wage in various cities published in early 1999 was 6.89$ in New York.

No matter how you look at it or calculate it, working well is one of the best ways to improve your life.

But there are always a small number of people who want to take the wrong approach, either enjoying happiness for the rest of their lives at once, or directly reincarnating and sending them to the next life.

now.

In a remote neighborhood of Brooklyn, inside a local New York bank branch;

The holographic screen displays advertisements for various financial products and recommends drinks and food from partners, while the large central screen displays the status of each counter and the real-time time:

1999年2月1日，星期一，10:35。

Maybe it was because of Monday, or because Atlas paid wages on time on the first of every month, so the lobby of this bank was crowded with people waiting to handle business, and even the ATM machines were full.

Although today's society has entered the Internet age, and functions such as mobile payment and online shopping have provided great convenience to life, there are still many people who like to convert their wages transferred to bank cards into cash.

The Internet has made it possible to consume and shop without leaving home. For example, on Atlas Taobao.com, some accessories and clothing from private merchants are marked with the words "Only 9.99$! Free shipping and gifts! Come and buy!" Attract everyone to consume.

A one-time consumption of 9.99$ has no impact. If it is three, four, or even more times, all that seems to disappear is just numbers. It requires deliberate inner calculation, or checking the balance in the bank program to realize that this month's consumption is a bit biased. high.

On the other hand, traditional cash is actually held in the hand, and it does lose convenience. However, every consumption has an intuitive feeling, and each has its own pros and cons. People need to find the balance between the two that suits them best.

It is also during this period that many banks have a large amount of cash stored in them, providing an opportunity for some criminals to take advantage of it.

On the street outside, an old white van speeded up instantly after passing the intersection and rushed to the door of the bank.

Chi——!

When the van came to a sudden stop, four armed men wearing black hoods, gas masks, and black clothing immediately poured out of the van.

!

The two security guards who noticed something unusual in the van from the very beginning saw four 5.56mm caliber gun muzzles as soon as they put their hands on the holsters at their waists.

The leading militant warned in a dull tone: "We only seek wealth, not life. If you don't want to die, throw away the gun and lie down on the ground!"

"."

Hearing this, the two security guards frowned and hesitated for a while, and finally chose to hand over their guns and surrender, lying on the ground with their heads in their hands.

"Handcuffs! Let's go."

Two security guards had their wrists tied with plastic ties and were dragged into the bank lobby by armed men.

"Everybody put your hands up! Get down! Get down!"

"what"

"Shut up! Or we will feed you a bullet! This is not a joke! Get down!"

Before the crowd had time to scream, the scene was taken over by militants who quickly took advantage of the situation, but before that, the bank staff had already pressed the silent alarm.

The leader of the militants, who seemed to have known this for a long time, looked at his watch and reminded loudly: "There are still three minutes! Speed!"

Three armed men forcibly tied everyone up and guarded the scene.

The leader first punched the bank manager in the face, leaving obvious injuries, and then threatened him and opened the safe door to the vault. Everything went as expected.

After all, they had figured out the police patrol routes and intervals nearby, and calculated the time from when the silent alarm was triggered to when the police station responded and dispatched police to the bank.

Well-equipped and well-trained, this is obviously a professional robber, not an ordinary "zero dollar purchase".

"Uh! Uh!!"

Suddenly, a middle-aged man in a plaid shirt began to have difficulty breathing and his body began to twitch uncontrollably.

Moreover, his hands were tied, making it impossible for the uncle to take out the medicine bottle in his pocket, and his twitching and struggling became more and more severe.

"Beep-! Beep-!"

The smart watch worn by the uncle on his left hand also sounded a piercing alarm.

"What's going on!" The leader who heard the commotion rushed back into the hall.

"Maybe he has a heart attack?" One of the robbers shrugged, indicating that they were "innocent."

"Forget it! The mission continues!" The leader turned around and returned to the vault without asking any more questions.

Soon, the uncle who failed to take the medicine in time collapsed completely.

However, the leader successfully returned to the hall dragging two black travel bags filled with cash and reminded him again: "Forty-five seconds!"

Before he finished speaking, a robber quickly stepped forward to help the leader carry their "loots."

But when they just wanted to leave the hall.

"Boom! Boom!"

Large-caliber gunshots actually came from the street outside, hitting the engines of the vans responsible for picking them up one after another, cutting off their retreat.

"Da da!"

The driver who didn't know what happened got out of the car to check. He was also shot with a rifle and his arms and calves were disabled. He fell on the street and wailed.

"Enemy attack! Alert!"

Seeing such an unexpected situation, the leader yelled loudly and threw away his travel bag, ready to pick up the 5.56 rifle hanging in front of him.