When Netwatch closed down access to the Old NET, many Netrunners refused to let it be.

Their infiltration into the Old NET has yielded valuable data and several 'ghost' stories. There are tales of NET phantoms who became trapped in the system when it was closed and Netrunners who fell victim to R.A.B.I.D.s. The question then becomes, are these really ghosts or just data memory scans that exist in the NET but aren't sentient? Artificial Intelligence experts like Professor Killgrave Shaw suggests that, "In some sense these 'ghosts' are sentient because they feel the emotions that the Netrunner would have felt. This makes them living beings." Theologians like Reverend Phillip Longfellow argue that, "The memory ghost has no soul; therefore it is not alive. Are we to say that AIs are now soulful entities like humans? Doubtful. A program is just that, a program. It does what it was programmed to do, nothing more." While it may sound cold, the Reverend has a valid point. Of course, it also means that instead of losing loved ones in the future we could just download their memories and keep an AI version of them on our Agents. As for the 'ghosts' inside the Old NET, could they be retrieved or purged from the system? It's a possibility, but one Netwatch refuses to comment on. With Data Pool access becoming more common around Night City, it's possible that the Old NET could very well be dumped in lieu of a more local network system with global access linkage.

String of Missing Persons Claims Rocklin Augmentics Daughter

NCPD has reported that Lucy Rhinemeyer, 19-year-old daughter of Rocklin Augmentics Executive Engineer George Edward Rhinemeyer, has joined the growing number of missing young women in Night City. Over the last four weeks, seven women have been reported missing across the University District. Their whereabouts are a complete mystery to NCPD detectives, who still have no leads. Mr. Rhinemeyer has yet to be reached for comment.

Ongoing tensions in the suburbs began to boil over this week leading to a gang war between The Primetime Players and the Piranhas.

The shooting had only lasted one minute when guns on both sides proved to have one fatal flaw: they were 3D printed using very unreliable materials. Both gangs suffered massive casualties caused by these extremely cheaply printed guns exploding in user's hands. Within 24 hours of the incident, a teen going by the name Zip Print was found hanging from a lamp post with a bullet hole in his head and "cheap" carved in his chest. Underneath him was a pile of broken guns that he had sold to both gangs. While the murder of the teen is tragic, both gangs have declared a cease fire until they could buy more reliable guns.

Professor Kogan Akigo, head of Biotechnica's Project: Orchard and presumed dead was found alive last week in the northeast woods of the BosWash.

His current condition is unknown. Professor Akigo was hailed as an innovator in agricultural genetic engineering after his work with 'super crops.' It was his research that helped launch 'Reference Forests’ in an attempt to repopulate diminished forests due to disease, harmful insect life, and pollution. Professor Akigo and his staff were presumed killed in a tragic dam break that wiped out a community only a half mile from the prototype 'Orchard.' The incident set Biotechnica back six months in launching other Orchards. When asked for comment, Biotechnica offered this: "We are grateful to have Professor Akigo back with us. He’s currently recovering after his traumatic experience. He is looking forward to getting back in the labs once he is ready."

As Night City begins to rebuild, there’s a new arms race hitting the streets: Construction.

The sight of Zhirafa equipment is ubiquitous throughout the city as would-be architects and design engineers are scooping up high paying contracts to help rebuild. It’s not just manpower either. Scientists have been jumping on the bandwagon. Petrochem has been working with companies to make better use of energy consumption from heavy construction machinery while Militech has been working on a new form of blast-proof material. Even Biotechnica has been participating with their 'Reference Forest' project. Of course, it’s not all flowers. This mad rush for innovation and materials has led to an increase in construction site sabotage and theft which could jeopardize the progress being made in the Rebuilding Center. Director Bon Chaney, of the Night City Restoration Committee, put it this way: "Each theft, each delay, keep us from rebuilding residential blocks and helping get people back to some level of normalcy." With so many people displaced by the catastrophe and the amount of homeless occupying the suburbs, disease and famine are a serious concern. Director Chaney is calling for people to work together to rebuild, and points out there will be more than enough work for everyone. Will Night City have a new Golden Age? Only time will tell.