Cyberpunk 2077 - The Ballad of Lost Souls

V suddenly wakes up on a bed inside an apartment. He is covered in sweat, with his arms handcuffed behind his backs. 

Johnny: V?! Thank God! Are you ok?

V: Mhm, No.

A middle aged man wearing a thick pair of glasses, a white shirt with some tools in his pocket and an old pair of jeans, is sitting on a chair, near V.

Stranger: You woke up, what a relief.

V starts looking around. The walls of the room are covered with pictures and posters. In one of them he can clearly recognize the woman that stabbed him.

Stranger: So… Who are you?

V: Could ask you the same question.

The man starts playing nervously with his glasses.

Stranger: I'm trying to put the pieces together here. You came to my house in Faith's van…with her ring. Got a little suspicious at first…Then I saw the cuts and bruises and I understood… Patched them all up, by the way.

V: What can I say? You're welcome?! The bitch beat me up real good.

The man adjusts his glasses, unnerved.

Stranger: She's my wife.

V smiles. 

V: Lovely lady.

Eric: So… Agent Deckard. Night City Netwatch. Quite out of your jurisdiction… Who are you really? Why are you looking for me?

V raises his head in the man's direction, arching his chest, while his arms are tied behind him.

V: FUCK YOU!

Eric quickly put a hand on V's mouth while getting out V's Malorian with the other hand.

Eric: Quiet or you'll wake everybody up. I'm asking you again. Who are you and why were you looking for me?

Johnny: Screw him, V. Don't tell him a thing.

Eric: Don't want to cooperate?! Fine. I'll see for myself.

Eric gets his terminal link out, ready to connect to V's neural interface.

Johnny: V! YOU MUST STOP HIM! FREE YOURSELF!

V: I'm tryin', you know…

V tries to free himself, but the handcuffs are too tight.

V: Ok. I'm tellin' you. The name is V.

Eric: V?! The Night City terrorist?! The one that raided the Arasaka tower with the nomads?

V: Terrorist, yeah. You drank all the propaganda like a big milkshake.

Eric: Do you know how many people died because of you?! The AI that you brought to Arasaka killed thousands. Night City is a no man's land because of you.

V: You don't know a damn thing, ok?! I WAS DYING! 

Eric: Go on. I want to know everything.

V: I was a mercenary. I had a job, steal an Arasaka biochip … and that's what I did. Turns out there was a personality construct on it, that slowly started taking over my brain. Thought I could find a cure inside the tower, but I was wrong. Everybody played me…Eventually I died.

Johnny: Yeah, go on. Confess everything to him… The fuck do you think you are?! In a church?!

Eric stands up putting both of his hands between his hairs, smiling.

Eric: No… It's just. No.

V: It's the truth. Believe it or not.

Eric: Had enough of your lies. Let's see what you are hiding.

Eric brings out a tablet and connects it to V's interface on the neck. A warning message prompt on V's interface.

Johnny: V! NO! DON'T LET HIM DO THAT!

Some information flashes rapidly in front of V's eyes. Eric looks at the screen and then back at him in a mix of disbelief and happiness.

Eric: You know how... ?! No… It…It can't be!

V: Glad you're happy.

Johnny: Had enough of this.

Johnny takes over and manages to free himself from the handcuffs, then proceeds to slam Eric through the door of the room, back in the dining room of the apartment. Eric slowly stands up, but Johnny starts strangling him.

V: JOHNNY, STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

Johnny: Had enough of it, V. Sanchez won't care if he's alive or dead.

V: NOOOO!

V is violently hit in the head and falls to the ground, standing behind him there is Faith with a big metal club.

Faith: WHY THE FUCK DID YOU BRING HIM HERE?!

Eric slowly stands up, coughing.

Eric: Faith you don't understand… He's the key to everything!

Faith: NO, HE'S DEAD!

Suddenly a door on the opposite side of the room opens, revealing a small pale boy on a wheelchair wearing a respirator. Faith quickly handcuffs V back to an old radiator, covering his hands with a towel.

Boy: Mom! What's happening?

Faith quickly leaves the club behind and runs to the boy.

Faith: Nothing honey. An old friend of mom and dad came over, but slept on the floor. He's really clumsy, that's all!

The boy starts looking into V's direction. His big blue eyes scrutinized him with curiosity and joy.

Boy: Hi Mister!

V slowly raises his left hand with a gesture that kinda reminds of a salute.

Faith: Now go back to your room, mom and dad have to talk

The boy slowly pushes himself back into his room, closing the sliding door behind. V is pale, a mix of sorrow and pain shakes his body.

V: I'm… I'm sorry.

Faith turns to V, looking with an expression full of anger.

Faith: You're not even started to feel sorry, yet.

Eric gets near Faith holding her arm.

Eric: Faith that's enough. Sit down. I want to talk with you.

Eric proceeds to free V from the handcuffs.

Eric: Can you please… get out just for one minute? I want to talk to my wife.

V proceeds to get out of the apartment then leans on the worn wall, sliding down on the floor.

V: Johnny?

Johnny: …

V: Do you have something to say?! No punchline, no…nothing?

Johnny: What do you want me to say?

V slowly raises his head looking at a TV screen in the corridor.

TV: And for our latest news: Chaos ensues in Night City! The newly elected mayor Peralez admits that his task force is powerless to stop the rogue IA crisis, asking for the NUSA government help. Meanwhile the security perimeter around Night City stays in place, preventing anybody from leaving or entering the city. President Myers stated that the government is evaluating all the possibilities, including the nuclear option. As a result of these events and the terrorist attack of last October, the Arasaka stocks are in a complete free fall. Is it the end of the Japanese giant?

V: Johnny?

Johnny: What?!

V: Did it ever occur to you that maybe… We deserve all of this?

Johnny: C'mon, V…

V: We left them to die. In Night City.

Johnny: No. After we've finished here, we'll go back to NC to finish the job.

V: Yeah…

Johnny: V, you can't save everyone. It's not your fault.

V: You're right. It's OUR fault. I was so desperate to save my ass, that I've never ever once stopped to think. What a disastrous series of choices I made…

Johnny: You just described life with one sentence.

V smiles while the door of Eric's apartment suddenly opens back.

Eric: Oh! There you are! Could you please get it in? 

V stands up and gets back into the apartment. Faith is sitting on a chair with her legs on the table, smoking a cigarette, looking away from V.

Eric: Please V, sit down.

V slowly sits, looking straight at Eric.

Eric: I don't think we need introductions anymore but… I'm Eric Maxwell, nice to meet you. This is my wife Faith.

Faith keeps looking away from V.

V: I…

Eric: Please, V. Don't say anything. We're going to help you.

Johnny: WHAT?!

Eric: I've seen everything. But before that… We need a plan. The girl. Is she pretty?

V looks at Eric, with a serious expression.

Eric: Yeah, ok. I swear it matters.

V: You said you've seen everything, you tell me if she's pretty or not.

Eric: Can't. I'm married.

Faith looks at Eric with a knowing look, then she smiles.

Eric: Seriously. Is she chromed? Has she got any… Synthetic organs?

V: No. Not that I'm aware of.

Eric starts scratching his head.

Eric: What's her name?

V: Panam.

Eric stares at V, bewildered, having finally put all the pieces together.

Eric: Thought I had seen her before, the city is plastered with her face... Well, good news then, she may still be alive.

Faith takes a hit and starts looking at V.

Faith: Night Dancers.

Eric looks back at Faith, concerned

V: What?!

Faith: They are Nix's house speciality.

V: Go on.

Faith: The Locos take the girls from the streets, from the desert or wherever they can find them. They drug 'em so much, they forgot who they are or where they came from. Then they start selling them on the streets, until they are dead or aren't pretty anymore.

Faith puts out the cigarette, then starts talking again.

Faith: I'm afraid Santiago wants to make your Panam the city's main attraction.

V closes his fists in anger while his teeth start shaking. Faith looks aways from him.

Faith: I'm sorry.

Eric: Please excuse her…Here's what we're going to do: We'll help you with Sanchez. We are going to free Panam.

V: That's it?! What do you want in exchange?

Eric: I want to hire you. One last job. You are going to help me break inside the Biotechnica's facility near Nix.

Johnny: Shit, here we go again.

V: Why?! 

Faith: None of your fuckin' business. That's why.

Eric: If you are ok with that, I'll explain how we're going to save Panam. Deal?!

Johnny: V, you do know you wouldn't be able to honor your side of the deal, right?!

V: Who the fuck cares.

Eric slides the Malorian on the table, throwing it at V.

Eric: You'll need this.

Eric and V get out from the apartment ,to the corridor, while Eric starts going down the stairs. Faith suddenly gets closer to V.

Faith: I want to tell you something.

V: What?

Faith grabs V's coat. Eric stops and looks at them.

Faith: I swear to God, if something happens to my husband, there will be no hole in the planet or in the universe where you could hide. He told me you're dying…Well, I'll come faster than death, I swear.

Faith leaves V, pushing him away and hands him her knife.

Faith: Here, an old friend for you.

V: Why are you giving it to me?

Faith: Don't like it anymore. It missed the target.

Faith goes back inside the apartment and closes the door.

Johnny: Know what, V?! I wonder how that kind of girl ended up with that loser over there.