Cyberpunk 2077 - The Ballad of Lost Souls

Panam lies on the ground near V's body, with her back pressed against the elevator wall, while Faith sits in front of them, to the left of her son. Eric tries to heal the wound on her belly, while Max looks at his mother, worried and scared. 

Panam turns to V and looks at him with eyes full of tears, caressing his face.

Panam: Everything…Is…Going to be ok…Vincent…

Panam leans her head on V's chest, becoming increasingly pale, then grabs his hand.

Panam: This time… I'm… I'm…here. We… are going…hooommeee.

Faith looks at Panam, as Eric tries to sew her up. Eventually a tear comes down from her eye, splitting her cheek.

Faith: Eric, you have to do something…

Eric: I am.

Faith: NOT FOR ME, FOR HER!

Eric turns to Panam, then slowly turns to Faith again, adjusting his glasses, and begins stitching her up, again..

Eric: Sorry Faith. She is not part of the plan.

Faith suddenly grabs Eric by the neck, while Max leans out of his wheelchair trying to grab his parents.

Max: MOM! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

Faith: FUCK YOU AND YOUR FUCKING PLAN, ERIC! I SAID… SAVE…HER FUCKING…LIFE!

Faith throws Eric against the wall near Panam, Max looks at his mother, stunned.

Max: Mom…

Faith turns back to Max and looks at him in shock. She starts crying, then grabs him and pulls him out of his wheelchair, while he resists her. Faith eventually manages to pull Max to herself, holding him in her arms.

Faith: Max… Mom loves you so much… You have to be strong, just a little more, ok?! Everything is going to be alright…

Faith grabs Max's head with both hands. He looks back at her, shocked.

Faith: One day you… you will understand…

Eric kneels near Panam and touches her neck with two fingers, then becomes sad.

Eric: Fuck…

Eric slowly pulls a small orange container with a long syringe attached out of his pocket, then turns back to Faith, angry.

Eric: Do you realize that if the procedure goes wrong this is the only thing that could save Max?

Faith slowly raises her head and looks up at Eric, right into the eyes, still sobbing.

Faith: I TRUST YOU! You should do the same.

Eric adjusts his glasses, then turns back to Panam, touching her chest, making his way through the bandages. He suddenly lifts the needle in the air, as if he was about to stab her.

Eric: Hope It's worth it…

Eric violently stabs Panam with the needle in her chest, near the heart. She suddenly wakes up, opening her eyes wide, writhing and coughing up blood, trying to push Eric away with her arms.

Panam: AAAAAAHHHHHH! Gggghhhh…

Eric: IT'S ALL RIGHT PANAM, STOP!

Panam grabs Eric with his right hand, while he gently removes the syringe from her chest.

Eric: Here, Panam…It's adrenaline. You are going to be alright.

Panam lets Eric go, while he throws the syringe to the ground. They both turn to V, while she grabs his hand again.

Panam: V…Vincent…

Eric grabs V, opening his eyes wide, seeing a faint light at the bottom of his optics. He rests his ear near V's mouth, then he suddenly turns to Faith, panicking.

Eric: FAAAITH! HE'S SHUTTING DOWN!

Panam looks alternately at Vincent and Faith, with an expression full of terror, holding his hand even stronger.

Faith begins to stare at the elevator's push button, turning on her optics. The elevator begins to shake as metallic noises can be heard, then it begins to descend in free fall. Eric flies to the ground as the floors quickly slide on the small monitor near the door, like seconds on a stopwatch.

Eric: FUCK, FAITH! YOU ARE GOING TO KILL US ALL!

The elevator stops, just in time, before crashing to the ground. Suddenly the doors open, as the elevator plays a distorted melody. Eric gets up and helps Faith carry Max while holding the suitcase. Panam does the same with V.

Panam and the others find themselves in a huge silo that stretches almost endlessly into the bowels of the earth, in the center of which, towers a huge black monolith, connected to the walls by thick metal cables that feed it with electricity. A metal catwalk connects the elevator to a staircase that hugs the monolith all the way down into the deepness.

Panam looks around, disconcerted, as small spherical drones fly around her, only to return, attracted like bees, to the huge green ampoules that line both the silo walls and those of the monolith. Within the green liquid, there are glimpses of pale bodies, crouched in a fetal position. 

The whole room is shrouded in a clear fog, Panam leans out from the railings of the metal walkway, trying to see the end of the monolith, which is lost in a very strong red light. After a moment, she composed herself, pierced by the icy cold of the room that seeps into her bones.

Eric: Panam?! What are you doing?! Are you dazed?

Panam quickly runs toward Eric and the others, carrying V on his shoulder to the spiral staircase. They all descend down until they reach a catwalk with a huge monitor and keyboard.

Eric: Lay him there, Panam.

Panam lets V go, while Faith does the same with her son, laying him on the metal walkway. Eric pulls a cable from the monolith and raising V's head, connects it on the interface at the base of his neck.

Eric pulls another cable out of the monolith, while Faith pulls BD glasses from her suit. Eric connects the cable to the glasses and hands them over to Faith. Eric then kneels near the briefcase and cautiously opens it, pulling out two Relic chips holding them, one in each hand.

Finally Eric approaches the monolith and inserts the two chips into small slots near the cables. The chips move back and forth inside the slot, together with two small orange lights flash near them.

Eric: C'mon…

The two orange lights keep flashing, faster and faster.

Eric: FUCK, COME ON!

Suddenly the chips stop moving and the two lights turn green.

Eric: YES!

Eric turns around and starts typing something on the keyboard behind him, excited.

Eric: All right…We have thirty two bodies compatible with V and twelve for Max, the other hundred do not seem to fit the genetic sequences…The remaining ones are destined for recycling.

Panam looks at Eric, puzzled.

Panam: Recycling?! What…What do you mean?

Eric: Well Panam…You know the "seventy percent real" synthetic meat? No one ever tells you where the other thirty percent comes from. Here we use the same logic as pork, Panam. Nothing is thrown away. 

Suddenly Panam's stomach begins to gurgle, she quickly covers her mouth with her right hand, doing her best not to vomit.

Eric: Are you ok?!

Panam nods, clutching his belly with his left arm. Eric runs to Faith and his son who lies on the ground. Eric begins to caress him, frightened.

Eric: Max, it will be alright. It will only last for a moment, okay?! Just a moment.

Max nods shakily, as Faith gently rests the glasses on his eyes. Both Eric and Faith begin to cry.

Eric: Mom and Dad love you, do you understand?!

Eric raises his head, and grabs Faith's arm, still moved, as she holds his son's hand.

Eric: Faith, you have to go down. Search for the container AZ-616…ok?!

Faith: NO! I... I... I WANT TO BE NEAR HIM! IF ANYTHING GOES WRONG... I…

Eric puts his hand on Faith's face. She stops looking at Max and slowly raises her head, looking at Eric with tear filled eyes.

Eric: Faith…When Max wakes up he will need his mom. I'll take it from here.

Suddenly, Eric hears a clanging sound. He slowly turns and sees Panam aiming the Malorian at them, trembling. He looks back at her, furious.

Eric: Vile whore…

Panam puts her finger on Malorian triggers as he stares at them.

Panam: Him first.

Faith looks at Panam, disconcerted.

Faith: Panam, what are you doing?!

Panam struggles to hold the gun, looking at Eric and Faith with a contrite expression, as if she were apologizing with her eyes.

Panam: I don't want to hurt you, I swear. But he goes first.

Faith suddenly stands up, furious, with her teeth out.

Faith: YOU FUCKING SLUT! WE SAVED YOUR LIFE!

Panam stares at them, with a watering eyes.

Panam: YOUR SON HAS ALL THE FUCKING TIME IN THE WORLD!

Panam turns back to V, lying on the floor, sobbing.

Panam: He has no more time left…

Faith: Your right, Panam.

Faith's optics light up as she looks at V lying on the floor.

Faith: He has no more time, indeed.

Eric turns to Faith, scared, as Panam quickly changes expression, becoming angry and aiming the gun straight at her. Suddenly a hand blocks Panam's gun, she quickly leaves it, holding V's head with both hands.

Panam: VINCENT!

V slowly opens his eyes, holding the gun and looking at Panam.

Eric took advantage of the moment, running to the keyboard and begins to type something. Suddenly, Max's glasses begin to glow, as he lets his head go to one side. Faith watches, opening her mouth wide.

Eric: FAITH, GO!

Faith slowly pulls away and starts running down the stairs behind them, while Eric runs toward V.

Panam: Vincent… Vincent…

Eric violently moves Panam away, grabbing V's head as she leans on the monolith behind them.

Eric: Get the fuck out of the way…

Eric pulls his tablet out of his pocket and starts fiddling with it.

Eric: Brain activity at seventy eight percent and rising. He's using the mainframe memory, very good.

Panam looks at Eric one last time, worried, as if she is waiting for an answer. Eric looks at her with a mocking smile.

Eric: He won't be up for the Nobel Prize any time soon, but at least he won't come back dumb as a potato.

Panam lights up with joy, drawing closer to V again.

Eric: Vincent, can you hear me?! Blink twice if you do!

V blinks twice as Panam looks at him, moved.

Eric: Good. Do you remember our little talk at the camp? You are not going directly to the new body, ok?!

Eric places his hand on the monolith.

Eric: You go here first, to solve that little matter, do you understand?!

V slowly blinks twice again, as Panam looks at Eric, puzzled. Suddenly he grabs both of V's hands.

Eric: Once you have finished, grab my right hand if you want to come back, left hand for Johnny or both for the other solution!

Panam begins to panic, grabbing V's head with her hands.

Panam: WHAT…WHAT THE FUCK DOES IT MEAN?! VINCENT?! VINCEEEENNTTT!

Eric and Panam's faces melt into a pile of blurred pixels, while Panam's scream is distorted into a metallic sound, as if she's screaming inside a pipe.