Cyberpunk 2077 - The Ballad of Lost Souls

V parks his old car in front of a small bar, squeezed between an overpass and the city's tall buildings. The purple neon sign breaks the darkness of the night, reflecting on the car's windshield the words "Lizzie's".

V gets out of the car, walking briskly toward a woman who is standing in front of the entrance. V's confidence is suddenly shattered by the purple-haired woman who stops him, pointing a baseball bat at his chest while V's gaze falls on a large tattoo that reads "Moxes," which the woman has on her chest.

Bouncer: Lookin' a little put out there, input… Interest in a preem BD?

V: Whaddaya got?

The woman raises her metal arm toward V, smiling.

Bouncer: Auteur stuff… It'll grip your heart and blow your nerve right outta of your body.Pure bit based ecstasy… That's why people come here.

V: Clearly know how to sell it.

Bouncer: It's not a sales pitch. It's a warning. 

V: Sounds promising. Let me in.

V tries to enter, the woman blocks him again with her bat.

Bouncer: A couple of things first. Severe penalties for unauthorized recording… No drugs, no groping. Someone catches your eye, you find 'em in the catalog, ask for a BD and get a box.

The door to the bar behind the woman opens as she steps aside.

Bouncer: Have fun, input.

V moves the payette curtain that separates the bar door from a small entrance hall, drowned in blinding purple light. Behind the bar is another girl, with a closet full of clothes behind her. The girl briefly crosses V's gaze, winking at him as he heads toward another door, drawn by the muffled sound of music.

V finds himself in a huge dance floor with sofas on the side. All around him, a crowd dances to the music, drowning in rivers of alcohol. V makes his way through the people, sitting on a stool in front of the bartender in the back of the room. Exactly to the left of two women: one with green hair with her back to the counter and another with pixie hair and a long blue fur coat, smoking a cigarette.

A man in a blue shirt, opened on his chest, leans on the counter, squaring V. 

V: Hey.

Bartender: Get you somethin'?

V: Lookin' for Evelyn Parker. Is she here?

The woman sitting next to V gets up and walks away, while the woman in fur turns toward him, intrigued.

Bartender: Mmm. Who's askin'?

V: The name is V.

Stranger: It's allright Matteo, I was waiting for this one.

The woman in the fur coat gets up and sits next to V, placing her purse on the counter, while the barman pours them both two drinks. V looks back at her, intrigued by the beauty of her face. She does the same, looking at him with a welcoming smile.

Evelyn: Evelyn Parker. I knew it was you as soon as you walked in.

V sips the drink on the counter, then smiles.

V: Mmh. Centzon? Only tequila I drink… How would you know?

Evelyn: I like to know everything about the people I work with.

Evelyn sips her drink.

Evelyn: Either that or it's a lucky guess.

V: So, about the contract…

Evelyn: Mhm. Know a place where we can talk. 

Evelyn lays the drink on the table, then puts out the cigarette on the floor.

Evelyn: Will be in the lounge Matteo. Anyone ask, we are not here.

Evelyn grabs her purse and walks toward a sliding door that leads into a hallway, V follows her, seeing her leaning in front of a room with a small table and a sofa in the center. He sits, while Evelyn stands, lighting, again a cigarette. The door closes, separating the room from the deafening noise of the dance floor, while the music still tries to penetrate, muffled.

Evelyn: Dex had a lot to say about you. Called you a professional, effective…

Evelyn smokes the cigarette and after a pause, resumes talking.

Evelyn: And trustworthy. I hope he wasn't overselling.

V: You don't give a rat's dick about what Dex thinks. We both know that.

Evelyn: Do you have trouble accepting compliments?

V: No. Just flattery's beneath you. Am I wrong?

The woman smiles, then slowly walks near V and sits down.

Evelyn: Maybe Dex is beneath you. Have you known each other long?

V: Let's cut to the chase. Whattadaya got for me?

Evelyn smokes, again and then stares at V.

Evelyn: Your… Target… I trust you to know what it is.

V: Relic. "Secure Your Soul" trinket. Key tech in the program, actually… We're tangling with Arasaka, makin' this job one risky motherfucker.

Evelyn: Mhm. Arasaka poured billions into personal transfer technology. But me… I just want the data on this one.

Evelyn puts out the cigarette on the floor.

Evelyn: The chip is tucked away inside Konpeki plaza, the hotel. You ever been?

V: 'Saka seems to have quite the touch with that hotel chain, but I gotta say, Konpeki in Tokyo is still leagues above the rest.

Evelyn: The two are identical to each other.

V shakes his head, sarcastic.

V: Japan's staff, the service can't be beat. Singapore, Paris, Washington… All the rest act like charity case cousins by comparison. 

Evelyn: Well, it's hard to argue with that, true.

V: So where's this chip hidin'?

Evelyn: In a suite on the top floor. The one occupied by Yorinobu Arasaka.

V: Yorinobu Arasaka… In Night City? Heh, guess the screamsheet wasn't lying this time.

Evelyn: It's on the lips of everyone in the city. Saburo's Arasaka only surviving son, heir apparent to the Arasaka empire in town? Please.

V: Could it be? Emperor's prepared to cede his throne after a hundred and fifty years? I doubt it.

Evelyn: Only a handful of people in Night City know what Arasaka's real plans are.

V: Telling me you are one of 'em.

Evelyn smiles.

V: Look, if you got any spare aces up your sleeves, now it's the time to show 'em.

Evelyn: Mhm. Yorinobu recently swiped the chip from an Arasaka laboratory. He's made a deal with Netwatch, aims to sell it to them… Have you spotted my ace yet or do I need to spell things out?

V: Fine. No security on the device because Yorinobu whisked it away in secret. Now where's he hidin' it?

Evelyn: Likely in a specialized container, one that mimics an organic neural environment. On the outside it looks like an ordinary briefcase.

V: And the case is?

Evelyn stands up and walks toward the door.

Evelyn: You'll see by yourself soon enough. Provided we are done gossiping about Arasakas. 

V stands up too and walks toward Evelyn.

V: Ok. What's next.

Evelyn: Now comes the fun part. Follow me.

The two begin to walk, avoiding some of the customers waiting their turn to enter the rooms that fill the corridor.

Evelyn: Got somethin' for you. Should help you plan. Braindance… from Konpeki.

V: How's BD goin' to help? Need facts, not trills.

Evelyn: Think BDs are only good for fondling virtual tits and jacking off in those boxes? No. They're good for analyzing details human perception doesn't grasp. Exactly what you need.

The two continue walking down the dark hallway shrouded in purple neon light. A man with a huge orange crest crosses, limping, V's brisk stride. He tries to avoid him as the man slumps on the wall, vomiting. V turns around in disgust as the man waves an apology to him.

V: What's on the tape?

Evelyn: Yorinobu's suite. In all of its glorious interiors. You'll need to locate the relic by yourself.

Finally the two arrive in a large dressing room, filled with mirrors. V squints to get used to the light in the room. He is met by three women putting on makeup.

V: Hold up… Mean to say you recorded this?

Evelyn: Mhm. BD rec implant. Why, you object?

The two continue going down, arriving in a damp basement, with a sliding door. Evelyn stands in front of it.

V: Supposed to be Yorinobu's pad on the tape. Means you were inside. You know each other?

Evelyn: How else could I get all this intel? I know him pretty well, actually. We have… an arrangement. Strictly business. Suits us both, I think.

V: Let's see this Brandance.

Evelyn: One more thing… This is important. Judy, she's always been there for me, always helped out. She's a Mox too, I trust her.

V: Ok, so?

Evelyn: So you'll be a good boy, tread lightly and keep that tongue on a leash.

V: Relax, believe it or not I'm no stranger to tact, in biz and private life.

The two walk through the door, finally arriving in the basement below the club. A barely lit room greets them, where a tattoo-covered woman with green hair is fiddling with a row of monitors, sitting on a chair.

Judy and V's eyes finally meet, he quickly puts the pieces together, recognizing her as the woman sitting at the counter next to Evelyn a few minutes earlier.

Evelyn: Ahem…

Judy: Hey, there you are!

Evelyn: This is. He's here for that BD roll. And V, this is Judy… Best braindance editor I know.

Judy: Enough already, you're gonna make me barf.

V: Impressive looking setup. Need all this to process BDs?

Judy: Mmh. Analyzers, sensory sig amps, acoustic and emotive wave monitors, facial expression translators…

Evelyn: Ahem, Judy…

Judy: Alright, alright. Compiled your BD, Eve.

Judy takes off her glasses, placing them on the table in front of her.

Evelyn: Good. V needs to get deep inside, that's most important.

Judy stands up from her chair, walking toward another large doctor's chair in the center of the room.

Judy: So let's calibrate, tune it to him.

Judy sits in front of a huge computer across the room. V follows her, along with Evelyn.

Judy: Believe me, I've dealt with worse. Should see the Jig-Jig street porn we gotta contend with sometimes.

Evelyn: So we drop V inside? Let him look, let him rummage?

Judy: How about it, V? Raw braindance… Ever taken a dip before?

V: Look, I'm no BD virgin, but the raw stuff… uncharted territory.

Judy: Relax, sit down and we'll get you goin'.

V walks over to the chair in the center of the room and sits comfortably on it. Judy appears behind him as she places a pair of metal glasses with two blue sensors on the ends. Judy, then, winks at V as she returns to her seat.

Judy: Gotta create your sensory profile first.

V: Ok, hit me. Just promise It won't hurt.

Judy: It won't. Not this time. Now sit still, look at me. Gonna run the analysis soft. Should feel a slight tingling…

V's vision begins to become blurred, then quickly returns to normal.

Judy: All done. Need to test your profile first. Tossing a simple BD right now.

Evelyn appears in front of V, pacing nervously back and forth and overlapping between him and Judy.

Evelyn: Can't he use my recording? Why're we wasting time?

Judy: So we don't risk our necks. Besides, it won't take long. Everything ready.

V: Boot it up!

Judy: Be diving in three…two…one.

The room begins to blur around V, as the lights on his visor begin to flicker, enveloping him in a cold blue light. The last thing V can see is Judy's face, which disappears in a blinding light.

After a few minutes V returns to reality, screaming and holding his chest with both arms. Judy greets him, leaning on the arm of the chair, trying to calm him down.

 V: AAAAHHHH!

Judy: Slow deep breaths. Your cortisol and adrenaline spiked, but the soft activated your hormone blockers. Nothin' happened. You're alive and well.

 V: That flash of… intense shock. I can still feel it. I remember… Fuck, that last second… You could've warned me how much it hurts to die.

Judy: Trust me, real death hurts much, much more.

Judy walks back to her station.

Judy: Impressive, right? Too bad most of the BD we do here are only good for floggin' the log… Anyway, ready to do this?

V rubs his chest again, still panting.

V: Dunno. I need to take a break. Still feel like that kid when… Phew, yeah, think I'm done.

Evelyn: V, there is no time. Get it together, please.

V: Ok… Ok. Go ahead. Just need T-Bug to link in.

Judy: Whoa, whoa, whoa. Who?

V: Just a runner from a crew. Security specialist, she'll tell me what to look for while we analyze. No problem, I hope.

Judy stands up, crossing her arms.

Judy: Actually it is a problem, not what we agreed, Eve.

V: Ehy relax Judy, everything is goin' to be fine.

Judy quickly replies to V, this time raising her voice.

Judy: You don't quite grasp the risk I took letting you in here. What I'm riskin' poking around with this stuff.

V: We're all taking risks here. Either T-Bug patches in or I'm out.

Evelyn: Judy, please.

Judy sits back in the chair, defeated.

Judy: Fine. Call her.

V selects T-Bug's contact from his holo interface. After a couple of rings, the face of a black woman with a shaved head appears in the upper left corner of V's field of vision.

T-Bug(Holo): Hey, V. What's happenin'?

V(Holo): Bug, listen. Got some useful data from the Konpeki Plaza. It's a Braindance.

Judy: Konpeki. Ohhh…

T-Bug(Holo): Someone there with you?

V(Holo): Unimportant T-Bug, please focus. Need your help… Got no clue what I'm supposed to look for once I'm in.

T-Bug(Holo): Allright, see if I can walk you through. Jackin' into your tech now… Using a secure protocol on port 1779. Good. You should see my request now.

V(Holo): Got it. Are you ready?

T-Bug(Holo): Ok, connection confirmed. Now some quick temp ICE and we're clear. 

V: Fire her up, Judy.

V's sight blurs back to white. Suddenly V is inside Evelyn's body, immersed in the recording, surrounded by four metal walls and a button panel, probably in an elevator.

The doors suddenly open, revealing a huge metal cyborg more than two meters tall. Evelyn tries to ignore him, not meeting his gaze, continuing to walk. He stares at her, towering above her and entering the elevator.

Adam Smasher: You look like a piece of fuckable meat… Are you?

Evelyn walks toward a man, sitting on a white leather couch in the center of the room. In front of him there is a giant monitor where another man with blond hair is projected, speaking in a concerned tone.

V stops the recording, projecting himself into the room and observing the man sitting on the sofa. The man's glasses reflect his almond-shaped eyes while his blue linen shirt is neatly folded inside a pair of sleek blue pants. 

V: Yorinobu.

Yorinubu gets up from the couch, turning off the monitor and continuing the conversation on the phone. V begins to scan the area, discovering a server behind the screen, connected to a security system and cameras, which monitor the entire room.

T-Bug: V, scan the conversation, could be important.

Stranger(Holo): Read the documentation, the Relic requires specific storage conditions…

T-Bug: Heard that? The Relic doc's should be around here. Find em'.

V sends the recording forward, searching the room for documents, finding them in a tablet resting on a small table next to a bed.

T-Bug: Manuals details a special-temp controlled container. Relics need to be kept real cool.

V: So, chip gotta stay in the freezer. 

T-Bug: Yep. Gonna deteriorate otherwise.

V pauses the recording again. After checking the area with the thermal view, his attention is caught by a heat source under a panel in the room.

T-Bug: Got a heat sign. Matches the specs in the docs.

V: Yorinubu got the case here. Guaranteed.

T-Bug: Mhm. We got it, good work. Quit outta of the editor

The room blurs to white all around him, V wakes up lying in his chair in the basement of Lizzie's Bar, where Judy and Evelyn await him.

Judy: Got everything you need?

V: Yep, that'll do. Thanks Judy. We got it, later T-Bug.

T-Bug(Holo): Nice work today, see ya soon.

T-Bug hangs up the phone, disappearing from V's sight.

Judy: Wiped your data from the cache. You're never been here.

Judy rises from her seat one last time. She then walks toward V, slipping off his glasses and handing them over to V.

Judy: Keep it. I'll put it on Eve's tab.

V: Thanks. It'll keep you out of harm's way. Clever.

Judy: Speekin' of harm's way. Know what I see lookin' at you? Walkin', talkin' corpses.

V: We needed that BD. Practically did the job for us. 

Judy: If Arasaka finds out you have it, you're dead. I'm dead.

Judy turns to Evelyn resting her hands on her hips.

Judy: You go that route, the city will always win. Be careful.

Evelyn: Course I will. Besides,we'll talk in a bit. 

V gets up from his chair and walks toward the double door at the end of the room, Evelyn stops him.

Evelyn: V, One sec. Let's walk.

V follows Evelyn near the staircase ramp leading out of the basement.

Evelyn: V… Do this job for me. I mean me alone. No splittin' the payment to anyone else. No middleman. No Dex.

V stares at her seriously, trying to fully understand Evelyn's intentions.

V: If I agree, there'll be hell to pay. For sure.

Evelyn: Whatever you decide. It stays with us. I can offer fifty percent, Eddies enough to do whatever you like.

V: Hum, let me think about it.

Evelyn: Mmh. If you need me, call. Here is my number.

A message with Evelyn's contact appears on V's interface. While Evelyn turns around.

Evelyn: Good luck.

V stares at her one last time as she begins to climb the stairs to the dark basement.

Suddenly Evelyn's optics begin to glow, signaling an incoming call. After a moment's hesitation, Evelyn responds in a resigned tone.

Evelyn(Holo): Hi.

Stranger(Holo): Did you meet him?

Evelyn(Holo): Yeah.

Stranger(Holo): So?

Evelyn(Holo): I think you're wrong.

Stranger(Holo): Explain.

Evelyn pulls a silver cigarette case from her jacket and lights one.

Evelyn(Holo): This guy is full of resources, he found the safe in no time. Sure he was helped, but I don't think the other would've been as capable.

Stranger(Holo): Sorry Eve, I have already made my choice. In order for the plan to work without any hiccups, we need somebody in the trade. We can't rely on the first comer. 

Evelyn lowers her gaze and closes her eyes, almost crying. 

Evelyn(Holo): Listen, I... I don't know if I want to do it anymore... 

Stranger(Holo): Eve, you can't back out now, you know? Everything is already in motion. You did great with the Vodoo Boys and now that we are so close to finally be free… You want to quit?!

Evelyn lets go of the cigarette on the floor, holding back her anger and nervousness.

Evelyn(Holo): Yes, you got it. You understand that what you're asking is too much, right?

Stranger(Holo): Everything you had to do, you did. Now it's up to me. From now, silence until the day of the hit. I'll be in touch.

Evelyn nods, wistfully.

Evelyn(Holo): Ok.

Stranger(Holo): Eve. I love you. I'll get you out of Night City. I promise.

Evelyn(Holo): Sure.

Evelyn hangs up the phone call, crossing her arms, as if protecting herself. Then she slowly starts walking back toward the room with Judy.