The Gonk and The Forge (Cyberpunk Edgerunners/2077)

Chapter 15 –

"Damn, you're the second person I know who desperately needs a dance chip in their life." Rebecca laughed as she plopped onto the bar.

I knew I couldn't dance if it were to save my life. I liked it that way. I think it's hilarious.

Also, chips that program skills into a person sounds… insanely versatile. Another thing I need to get my hands to examine somehow.

"Well… I guess you'd need a neuroport before the chip, so classes maybe?" She mused, as the bartended approached us "Do they have classes that teach how to hip grind?" She asked him.

"if you've got the eddies, sure. Can't say much for the quality though." The dark-haired man with dark grey Arasaka cybernetic optics smiled in amusement, and leaned toward us "So, what can I get you."

"Nothing for me, I've had enough for the night. I'll be driving back, and I don't want to get drunk." I responded as I joined Becca at the counter. The one shot of tequila I had with Susie a while ago was the limit tonight.

Rebecca shrugged, waving a hand at the bartended. "I've got a syn-liver for nights like this. Hit me with some Broseph, Mateo."

I sighed, resting my elbow on the counter. "Riiight. Do you need me to drive you home again?"

If she was too drunk to drive home safely, then I would drive her there again.

She grinned, stretching back in her seat as Mateo handed her the bottle. I tried to keep all traces of disgust off my face, as she chugged the shitty beer down. I don't want to add to her growing theory that I'm some runaway rich kid. "Nah, I'll crash with Kiwi tonight. She's a block away from here."

I nodded, satisfied enough with that answer. That was good.

I could get home and start working on the remaining weapons for my crew and then think on what sort of prep I need to do for all the nosy assholes like Wakako and Susie who wanted something from me.

I was just preparing to call it a night when a green-and-purple-haired woman slumped into the seat across the bar. Without hesitation, she knocked on the counter twice and ordered angrily, "Mateo! Hit me with whatever you've got that's strongest. Keep it coming."

"Judy!" A second later, a blue-haired woman with a sharp bob cut wearing an expensive looking dress rushed in after her, "Judy…. This isn't going to change what happened..."

Judy exhaled sharply, her fingers tightening around the edge of the counter. "Don't….You didn't see them." Her voice was rough, "How could Susie do that? We coulda done more to help… I thought…." She cut herself off, shaking her head.

Susie…?

Susie Q….?

I looked at Becca questioningly, to see if she had any inkling on who these two Mox girls were and what they were talking about, but she just shrugged.

The blue haired woman, Ev, leaned in toward her. "Hey... we did everything we could for them. Susie's done everything she can…"

Judy let out a hollow laugh, swirling the drink Matteo placed in front of her before knocking it back in one go.

"Don't give me that, Evelyn" Judy muttered, staring at the empty glass. "We could have… Susie could have…. We're letting em all down."

Evelyn sighed, rubbing her temple. "It's not like that. You know it's not. We.."

"It felt like that," Judy snapped, finally looking up, her dark eyes searching Evelyn's face. "They trusted us. And we're letting them down."

Evelyn reached out but hesitated, her fingers hovering over Judy's hand before withdrawing. "Judy... we don't have the power to change everything overnight. You know that."

Judy scoffed, looking away. "That's the problem. I know! Dammit, I know!"

A heavy silence stretched between them, filled by the lazerpop thumping through the club. Matteo refiled Judy's glass.

Judy stared at it for a long moment before exhaling, burying her face in her hand. "I just... need some space, Ev. Just for a bit."

I don't know if I should intrude…

Becca, it seemed was intrigued at the very least.

Well… another reason why I had agreed to come here was to figure out what the Mox were really like… I don't think I can find out everything about them in one visit, but this does seem like an opportunity to learn more about Susie at the very least.

I frowned, glancing between the two women. How do I approach this?

"Hey" I just went for it and interjected hoping that I wasn't being too forward. "Something wrong?"

Judy's head snapped toward me, her eyes sharp. "Butt out of it, dude. It's none of your biz."

Well. That was about the response I expected.

Becca immediately leaned forward, "Hey! No need to be rude!" she shot back. "We just want to see if we can help."

Judy scoffed, shaking her head as she reached for her drink drinking it in one go.

Evelyn let out a tired sigh, rubbing her temple. "Unless you can magically heal a bunch of people, fix their gonked out cyberware, and not have it cost a single eddie... I'm afraid you can't."

Well… I could do that… but I wasn't going to jump in to healing people out of the blue. Not without some experience in it, under some expert supervision preferably. Especially for random people I don't even know.

No matter how much the forge could guarantee my ability to build and repair Cyberware, or brew potions that magically healed injuries. People's lives should be treated with more care than reassurances from my invisible eldritch friend in the cosmos.

Becca hopped off her seat, standing beside me with her mismatched gorilla arms crossed. "What happened? Why can't they go to a ripper? Susie didn't hire a new guy after that old fart ran off?"

Evelyn exhaled, shaking her head. "She did… but…"

Judy cut in, her voice bitter. "But the implants cost too much. Even the cheapest ones. We can't just chip everyone." She tapped the empty glass against the counter, "We barely had enough meds, let alone chrome."

I frowned, my mind working through what they were saying. "I feel like I'm missing something here. What exactly happened?"

Evelyn sighed and turned to fully face me. "Last night, Rita came in with some thirty-something people, rescued from getting sold into the XBD biz." She glanced at me. "You must've heard about it on the news? That container yard that's practically covered in ice? Those people were being smuggled in them."

Becca and I exchanged glances.

Before she could say something, I jumped in. "Yeah… we did. Heard about it on the radio." I kept my tone casual, hoping Becca got the hint.

She did and didn't just say that it had been us who had rescued those people. Thankfully, it seemed that not everybody in the Mox knew about me just yet.

Evelyn continued. "Well, some of those people desperately needed medical attention… we did what we could but well… it wasn't enough."

Judy scoffed.

Evelyn ignored her "Susie called in Hugo, our ripper. Even got him to work pro bono, and waive his usual service fee."

"Yeah," Judy cut in, her voice quieter now, "for those that were once could be considered part of the Mox."

Evelyn sighed. "Judy…"

Judy shook her head, downing another glass. "She doesn't have to throw them out, Ev. I can… I can make edit more Virtus, give the gonks RealFeel. Eddies wouldn't have been a problem. We just need time! Or… or I could … fuck! I could've fixed their implants myself, I don't know… something!"

Evelyn let out a sharp breath, turning toward Judy. "You'd burn yourself out, you're good with tech, but you're not a ripper!" Her voice softened just slightly. "Let it go, Jude. Susie's right. We did what we could."

And Night City just keeps on giving. It's just one thing on top of another.

Those people don't deserve more trauma on top of what they'd already gone through. What to do though?

Take them to the Med Center here in Little China? No, this city hasn't proven itself too keen on caring for the downtrodden. I doubt they'd get accessible healthcare there easily.

Besides, that place was run by Trauma Team… they weren't known for the cheapest service around here. Even if we took them to the wing under REO, that still wouldn't solve the issue of getting replacement implants for them.

What else?

Leverage my negotiations with Susie for this? I shouldn't be hasty. I have other, far better options than that.

… I need to see these people and decide what I can do.

I cut in again, "Can I see them?"

Judy blinked, her brow furrowing. "What?" She gave me a once-over, skeptical. "Are you some sort of a ripper now?"

I shook my head. "No… I'm not. But I'm good with tech too. It doesn't hurt to see if I can help."

Evelyn let out a dry chuckle, crossing her arms. "Just like that? Out of the goodness of your heart?"

Becca snorted, stepping in with a smirk. "What, just cause we're edgerunners, you think we need some contract to give a damn?" She leaned an elbow on my shoulder, grinning at Evelyn. "Zain's not some gonk looking for a payout. If he says he can help, he can. Besides…if we were after eddies, we already know you're not rollin' in em."

…. I am not a merc, Becca… but I appreciate the back up.

Judy exhaled sharply through her nose, watching me for a moment before shrugging.

"Fuck it." She tipped back the rest of her beer and slammed the glass down. "What the hell. Doesn't hurt." She stood up, "Follow me. They're downstairs in my studio… if Susie hasn't forced 'em all out the back door already."

She turned without waiting, heading toward the private booths in the back.

Becca and I followed after Judy, weaving past the private booths. Evelyn trailed behind us.

As Judy led us through a vanity area for the workers, past the mirrors lining the walls with flickering LED strips, the tables cluttered wall makeup kits and half-empty drink glasses, Evelyn finally spoke up.

"So… who even are you two?" she asked, her tone skeptical. "Why do you care to help here? What do you get out of this?"

Judy didn't glance back, but I could tell she was listening.

As we descended a narrow staircase, the music from above muffled by thick walls, I answered, "My name is Zain Vargas, and this is Rebecca…" I glanced at Evelyn. "And I don't think someone has to have a vested interest in something to want to help now, do you?"

Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "Rebecca… Rebecca…. You're that merc who's made a name with that crew in the afterlife"

"Someone likes to keep up with the edgerunner circles." Becca stretched lazily as we descended a flight of stairs.

"I like to know everything about who's who in this city. Helps to keep your head where it's supposed to be," Evelyn replied.

At the bottom of the staircase, the air was chilly, the faint hum of electronics vibrating through the floor.

We were at a server room.

Massive cooling units humming from the ceiling as rows of sleek black racks blinked with activity.

If my senses were right, these were the servers handling everything for their BD outlet up top. Shared virtual environment management, sensory load balancing, storage for recorded experiences. An entire networked system, right at the heart of the Mox's operation.

A workbench cluttered with scattered BD cables, custom gear, and tools for fine-tuning sensory data. Manipulating acoustic and emotional output in BDs.

But that wasn't important, I could geek out over the tech later.

Opposite the server room was what I assumed to be Judy's studio.

But that wasn't what caught my attention.

Across the room, clustered together on what seemed to netrunning chairs, and other frantically assembled gurneys and stretchers, were some of the people we'd pulled out of that container yard.

Six of the thirty-two we had originally rescued, including a few of the youngest of the lot.

Some were bandaged, a few still hooked up to basic vitals monitor and whatever medtech the Mox could afford. All of them were sedated, and out of consciousness.

"You can drop 'em off over in Northside. That's the best I can do for 'em," Susie was saying as we stepped inside.

She stood with her arms crossed, chrome fingers tapping lightly against her forearm, her stance radiating that same controlled authority she'd carried in our last conversation. A couple of Mox members stood with her, nodding along.

Then she spotted Judy.

"Judy!" she started, irritation flashing across her face. "I didn't think you'd be back…"

Then her eyes landed on me and she paused.

Slowly, she exhaled through her nose and pinched the bridge of it with her fingers. "Oh god..."

I stepped forward. "Nice to see you again, Susie."

She dropped her hand and with a sigh and muttered, "Yeah, of course… Of all the people Judy could've met, it would be you two."

Judy glanced between us, frowning. "Wait. You guys…."

Susie sighed, dropping her hand from her face and crossing her arms again. "Yeah, Judy. We've met."

Her infrared optics flicked toward me, scanning, calculating. Then, with a short breath, she shook her head.

"Look," she started, her tone smoother now, more controlled. "Before we go any further… Judy, I owe you an apology."

Judy narrowed her eyes, skeptical.

"I get why you're pissed," Susie continued, her voice even. "I know you wanted to do more for them. I know you don't agree with how I handled it. But I had to make a call."

Judy folded her arms. "A bad one."

Susie didn't rise to it. She just nodded slightly, acknowledging the anger. "Maybe. But I made the best one I could."

Then she turned to me, expression measured.

"And you, Vargas…" She let out a slow breath, tilting her head. "This is about the last place I expected to see you again. Especially so quickly tonight."

Her apology to Judy seems shallow to me. I had stumbled onto something she didn't want me to see… and she was covering up for herself. Does she place that much weight in the support of the corporation she thought to be behind me?

Either way…. This was something I could use. But I need to prod her for more.

I shrugged. "Funny. I kind of did expect this. I did want to see how the Mox conducted business after all. Tell me, what was it you were offering me again? Because from what I can see…"

Susie exhaled sharply, irritation creeping back into her voice. "I've done all I can. What more do you want, Vargas? I am not running not a charity here."

So, she's willing to admit that the Mox are out of their depth with a lot of things.

I kept my expression even. "No, you're not."

She gestured toward the people in the room, her chrome fingers flexing slightly. "We took them in. Stabilized them as best as we possibly can. These last remaining cases… our ripper had nothing for them. The scavs have done a really bad number on them, and he doesn't know if he can work them safely. He's got them stabilized as best he could…. But we can't keep them here forever. I have done all I can. I am not made of eddies here!"

She took a deep breath.

"So yeah, Vargas. I made a call. And I'll make the same one again if I have to. Because if I start making exceptions for every other gonk who needs help, then it's not just them that's gonna suffer…it's all of my boys and girls, and to me my people will always come first."

She tilted her head slightly. "Tell me, what would you have done differently?"

Dammit, I can see her perspective too.

It tracked remarkably well with the union analogy for fuck's sake. Unions help nonunion members in a limited capacity… seeing the people here, Susie had tried to help. Had gone far outside what she needed to do.

How many of the people we had rescued could be considered part of the Mox at some point in their lives?

Three? Four?

The scavs had been careful in choosing those people who would not be missed, or had no more protection from powerful people. The connection between these people and the Mox had been paper thin from the start.

She had helped all but six regardless, so I couldn't fault her for this….

I glanced at Becca. She was watching me, arms still crossed, but I could tell she was getting frustrated as well.

Judy, Evelyn and the three other Mox were watching as their boss laid out the truth for me.

We were forgetting who was truly important in all of this… I shouldn't be fighting with Susie here, that is not important.

There were six people who needed to be help.

I rolled my shoulders, exhaling. "You're right. I don't know what I would do in your place."

Susie arched a brow.

I met Susie's gaze evenly. "At least… you won't mind if I take a look at them, would you?"

Susie sighed sharply, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Ya know what? Knock yourself out." She replied. "I don't know what angle you're playing Vargas, but I'm done here. You will find that I am making the correct call, and I have not hidden a single thing about who the Mox are to you."

With that, she turned on her heel and strode out, the three Mox who she'd been talking to following after her. The door slid shut behind them with a quiet hiss.

That could have gone better…. But now I had a clearer picture of the Mox in general.

Judy let out a heavy breath, tension still clinging to her frame.

"Fucking hell," she muttered.

Becca let out a low whistle, rocking back on her heels. "That went well."

I glanced at her. "That's your definition of well?"

She grinned. "Hey, she didn't shoot you. That's a win in my book."

I shook my head before turning my attention to the room again.

The rescued group, what was left of them sat huddled together on what seemed like net running chairs to me, and operating tables that seemed to have been brought in just recently. Some looked wary, others just… tired. Too tired to care what happened next.

Judy crossed her arms, still watching the door as if expecting Susie to barge back in.

"She's wrong," she muttered under her breath.

Evelyn, who had been quiet up until now, finally spoke. "She's not wrong, Jude. Just practical."

Judy scoffed. "Yeah? Well, practical fucking sucks."

Evelyn sighed but didn't argue.

Becca leaned against the nearest table, arms crossed, watching me closely. "Alright, so what's the plan, Zain?"

I didn't answer right away as I stepped toward the nearest chair.

The young girl, barely in her late teens. Her body was still, but her fingers twitched, eyelids flickering in erratic movements. Her optics were connected to an older man's through a shortwave link.

I traced the link with my senses, already seeing the problem.

Their vision was being forced together, cross-connected through outdated firmware. The implants were barely even meant to function on their own.

But the scavs had forced them into a makeshift sync, their signals overlapping. If they were separated for too long, their brains wouldn't be able to process the missing data. It'd feel like having twice as much perception of reality. While the ever-shortening wavelength and increasing frequency would cause migraines of substantial proportions….

How do I fix this? I can fix their faulty optics on their own…. but the biological aspect of it, their connection to the brain…

I exhaled slowly, stepping away to the next.

It was a woman, her legs almost entirely replaced with a mismatched set of cyberlimbs, each from a different model series.

Her upper thighs had signs of muscle grafting, old organic-to-synthetic fusion scars from failed limb transplants. The servos in her knees weren't calibrated properly, locking in angles that made natural movement impossible.

Her feet had retractable claws, but the cyberware wasn't combat-grade. The filaments inside were misaligned. The moment she would try to use them, they'd likely tear through her tendons. On top of that, the implant wasn't taking too well to the rest of her softs and systems….

Genetic disparity.

Could my healing potions treat this? How would they even work with Cybernetic enhancements in play? With cross species bioware implanted?

Did the blanket 'healing' effect mean that it would return to the original human state? Or to whatever was best for whoever drank the potion? How did magic decide that?

I could brew a potion specifically to treat this… but I'd much rather know what I am working on exactly, biologically before I try any of my magic juju potions to treat them.

I forced myself to move to the next.

This one…. I could treat. Provided someone was willing to help me remove, and restitch both his spinal implants after I was done with them…

The man had two extra cybernetic arms attached to his back…. And both were of poor quality, and shoddily attached to the muscle tissue on his back.

I turned to the last two….the boy and the woman.

The moment I focused on them, I sensed it. There was a chip embedded deep in their neuroports, like a parasite pulsing in perfect rhythm. The frequency was shifting, slowly rising.

I focused harder… This wasn't just a link. It was a slow melding of minds….

The oscillation was merging their minds. Two bodies. One consciousness, spreading evenly between them. If this kept going…

They wouldn't be separate people anymore.

I swallowed hard.

I needed to stop this before it hit the threshold. But fucking hell, how?

I do not have the medical expertise to work on fucking brains, no matter how well I can make and fix individual neuroports myself….

Okay. Calm the fuck down.

First, I need help.

Like, seriously.

I can fix their individual implants, minus the bioware… well, at least not without treating them as test subjects and experimenting on them with my potions… but I can't remove and install the implants on my own, I cannot mess with their biology and I don't think the forge is going to conveniently drop that knowledge in my …. Right about now!

…. thought so.

So, I cannot do this on my own. I cannot risk these people's lives on the idea that my untested forge magical tech will work and save their lives. That's pure fantasy, and I am not stupid enough to believe in that.

Second, I need to somehow stop these last two people's brains from sending any signal at all without killing them…. I can do that. I can do that!

One thing at a time.

I turned to face Becca, Judy, and Evelyn, exhaling sharply. "I can fix their implants… but I'll need a ripper, stat, to work them in."

Judy opened her mouth, but Evelyn cut her off, and fixed me with a sharp glare. "How can you know that?" Her voice was edged with suspicion. "You don't even know what implants they have. I didn't see you ping any biomons. What the hell are you playing at?"

Shit.

I forgot medical prognosis is done through a person's biomonitor here in the future.

I tensed, ready to reach for some bullshit explanation, but Becca stepped in first.

She let out an irritated groan, throwing up her hands. "Oh my fucking god, choom! If he says he can fix their implants, means he can fix 'em!" She gestured wildly at the patients. "Sides', their shit's plain as day! Chooms with fucked-up eyes, choom with handy arms, choom with busted legs, and…" she hesitated, squinting at the last two before shrugging. "Okay, I dunno what's up with those two, but Zain does!"

She jabbed a thumb toward me as if that alone sealed the deal.

Evelyn blinked, then ran a hand over her face.

Judy finally exhaled. "Ev, it's better than nothing, at least. Hugo and Susie have already given up on them" She looked at me sternly "Fine. Say you can fix them. Who the hell do you have in mind to actually install them… and with what money?"

I glanced between them.

Who would be willing to operate on these people…? These people had perhaps a few days, at most if nothing was done.

The Mox ripper had thrown in the towel… Judy and Evelyn likely went to the same.

"Becca? Do you think your ripper would be willing to help?" I tried.

Evelyn scoffed, and muttered "Great… so he has no idea"

I ignored her, and Judy threw her a sharp glare.

"What? Chiyo?" Becca shook her head in frustration as she paced Judy's studio "She's Tyger Claw, choom. One of Wakako's. Even if she agreed, she'd want us to shill out heaps of eddies… if we had that, we wouldn't be in this mess in the first place."

Right…

"I'll see if I can dig up someone. I have some contacts who might help… Dunno if they'll come cheap though." Judy offered, as she rushed to her worktable and accessed her computer "Ev, you try as well."

"Ughhhh, fine!" Evelyn begrudgingly agreed, and joined her at the computer as well.

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out, just as Becca's eyes briefly turned blue.

Archie:

Yoko's done scoping the layout.

File's attached. check it when you can.

I need to rest to let the new upgrades take, so we're planning the op later tomorrow night.

I'll zip you the coords for our meetup later.

Right then… There's that thing to worry about too…

Fuck!

No. Calm. Down.

Archie had a ripper too… fuck it. Worth a shot.

I texted her a reply…

Me:

Hey, Archie… I need a trustworthy ripper asap. Could you share the contact your dad wanted me to visit?

Archie:

Finally wanna get chipped yourself? 😏

That's great! Charles'll chip you up in no time.

Me:

Uhh, sorry… no.

Not asking for myself.

There's a situation here. I need a ripperdoc.

Archie:

What's the sitch?

I hesitated, biting my lip.

Archie already had enough on her plate. Between her upgrades, the op tomorrow, and whatever else she had going on, did I really need to pull her into this?

But then again… I needed every lead I could get.

I tapped out a reply.

Me:

I'm at Lizzie's.

Some of the people we rescued are still here.

A couple botched implants need to be reworked, refitted. It's complicated.

The Mox ripper gave up. They don't have the eds to get better implants.

Need someone who'd work pro bono or cheap.

Archie:

Oof.

Yeah, Charles never works cheap. And pro bono? No shot.

If that's what you need, I don't think I can help. Sorry.

Shit.

I clenched my jaw, thinking. Now what?

Becca was still pacing, Judy and Evelyn were deep in their searches, muttering to each other as they scrolled through contacts.

I exhaled through my nose and typed again.

Me:

All good. I'll figure something out.

Thanks anyway.

We needed a ripper ASAP. Becca seemed to be texting her own friends, if her glowing eyes indicated anything.

Judy and Evelyn were also searching….

Who else?

…. The ripper I met today at the Gym with that big guy, Jackie? Vik?

Fuck it, we were running out of options…

I dialed the number.

The call rang twice before I heard a click, followed by the man's face coming clear on my holo projector.

"Hey… you're uh… the kid from the gym! Zain, right?" Vik's tone was warm, jovial. "How can I help you? I gotta say, when I shared my number, didn't think you'd call this quickly."

I didn't waste time. "Hey, Vik… this might seem a bit strange, but I'm in need of a ripper."

He let out a low chuckle. "I'd assume so. You did call a ripperdoc, after all." I could hear the grin in his voice before he continued. "Alright, jokes aside…. what do ya need? How can I help?"

I shook my head slightly, glancing at the unconscious patients. "Ah, no… not for me. See, there are these, uhm… six patients? They're in a complicated spot. I'll be upfront… they're not in a good situation, and they're tight on eddies. But they need a ripper, ASAP."

I took a breath and pushed forward. "Two of them have faulty optics, each sending visual signals to the other simultaneously, over shortwave frequencies that become… extremely painful with increased distance."

Vik hummed thoughtfully on the other end.

I pressed on. "Another has… genetic disparity between implant animal tissues and natural muscles, faulty nanites aren't letting them assimilate with the rest of the musculature. Another has two extra faulty limbs attached to his back… via very poorly integrated muscle and nervous tissue to the spine."

Vik let out a low whistle. "Sounds like some real scav work…"

I exhaled. "Yeah. And then there's the last two."

I ran a hand through my hair. "They've had their brain waves synched using some kind of oscillating frequency from an implant attached to their neuroports that's… slowly melding their minds into one."

Vik didn't speak for a long moment. I could almost hear the gears turning in his head.

Then, finally "Jesus fucking Christ, kid. Who are these people?"

I exhaled. "They're victims of a scav cell. They're all shit out of luck."

Vik sighed. "Right, right… Bring 'em over to my clinic, and I'll see what I can do."

I hesitated. "I don't know if I can get them all there… Don't you do house calls?"

There was a pause on the other end.

Then, he said flatly "You realize that sounds like you're trying to pull me into some kind of ambush, right?"

Shit.

I paused, scrambling for a response. It did sound like that. Asking a ripper to come to a shady basement with zero context? Yeah, that was how people ended up in shallow graves in Night City.

I clenched my jaw, thinking.

Could I get them to Vik's clinic? Could I get Susie to lend us her trucks?

Maybe…. If I pushed hard enough.

Before I could speak, Vik continued.

"Look, kid. You seemed sincere enough this morning, and my assistant says she gets good vibes off you… and I trust her. I want to trust you… so be honest with me. What's the real issue here?"

I sighed. "They're all sedated in a basement under Lizzie's Bar. A ripper already gave up on them…. Look, I know I can fix their implants! All I need is some help taking it out, and reinstalling it once I am done!"

Another long considering pause.

Then, finally he said "Lizzie's isn't far, and it's a known quantity… Alright, I'll trust you this once."

I let out a breath.

"Jackie and I are on our way. Be there in five."

I exhaled sharply and turned to the others. "Got a ripper. He's on his way."

Becca perked up immediately. "Who is it?"

"A ripper I met at the gym. He'll be here in five."

Judy let out a breath she'd been holding, her shoulders relaxing slightly. Then, just as quickly, worry crept back into her expression. "Are you sure you'll be able to fix their cyberware?" She glanced at the unconscious patients. "I've taken a look at it myself, and most of it is beyond me…"

I nodded, about to answer.

"We all heard that ripper hasn't agreed to anything yet, Judy." Evelyn cut in, arms crossed. "We don't even know if this guy's assessment is correct or not. Don't count your scop before it's processed."

Becca groaned in frustration. "At least Zain's trying, what the hell are you doing? If you wanna be useful, why don't you both go out and make sure the ripper actually gets down here in time?"

Evelyn narrowed her eyes, already ready to fire back.

"That's a great idea!" Judy interjected, a little too quickly. She turned to Evelyn, a tight but pointed smile on her face. "Ev, I think you need to calm down. We'll be back when the ripper gets here."

Evelyn looked like she really wanted to protest.

But after a tense second, she exhaled sharply through her nose and stomped off toward the exit. Judy lingered for a moment, giving me an apologetic smile before following after her.

The door slid shut behind them.

I let out a long breath and collapsed into Judy's emptied chair.

Today was unexpectedly exhausting… I was promising to fix some random people's Cyberware… because there was no other option. Unless forking over tens of thousands of eddies was an option worth considering to get it all replaced…

Honestly… the more that I think about it, I really do just want to solve this by throwing money at the problem. But no. No matter how much I considered myself to be virtually free of money problems… I still didn't have that amount backed up in my bank account.

If Ethan comes through soon, then it would be different matter.

Now… I would need to juggle crafting the weapons for the rest of my crew, fixing this shitty Cyberware for these people…. All the while working on prep to deal with Wakako, and the rest of NC with shit like Cybersecurity… somehow… and my own personal security; true bulletproofing, more weaponry for all kinds of situations and what not….

Goddamn… throwing money at this problem really does seem like an increasingly likeable idea….!

Becca let out a small huff before hopping onto the table in front of me, her legs swinging idly over the side.

She waited just long enough to make sure the others were actually gone before leaning forward slightly, a glint of curiosity in her eyes.

"Sooooo," she drawled, resting her gorilla arms elbows on her knees. "Wanna tell me how you actually rattled off all that about the chooms in here?"

Shit.

Now what do I tell Becca?

I wasn't about to admit to having enhanced senses because of my imaginary friend in the unknown cosmos. That would be insane.

But if I bullshitted her outright, she'd know. No way Becca wouldn't see through something blatant.

Stick as close to the truth as possible. Let her make her own assumptions.

I exhaled and leaned back slightly. "It's pretty easy if you have a sense for tech like I do…" I shrugged. "The obvious shit, like the legs and extra hands, aside. The optics and neural oscillations are easy to spot if you know what you're looking for."

Becca nodded, in acknowledgement.

Good.

And I did know what to look for. Not that I actually looked. I just relied on my sixth, seventh, whatever senses the Forge had granted me.

Becca tilted her head. "And what did you look for in these?"

I kept my tone casual. "Well, the optics were easy. Ethan pinged their biomon back at the container yard… I remembered him mentioning these two." I gestured toward the ones with the cross-linked vision.

She nodded again.

I pushed forward before she could question it. "As for the last two, the ones I think are linked by their brains? That was just the chip hooked into their neuroports." I let my words trail off….

Becca nodded deeply. I think she just made some kind of assumption.

God, I hope she doesn't ask me to validate her assumptions.

Thankfully, her curiosity seemed satisfied as she lounged lazily on the table, legs dangling.

Then a familiar weight settled at the back of my skull.

I quickly turned away from Becca, pretending to examine Judy's computer setup. Didn't need her noticing this.

My vision shifted.

A galaxy swirled at the edge of my sight, stars shifting, aligning.

One pulsed. Once. Twice.

Then as quickly as it had begun it faded….

I sighed.

Right. The Forge had already given me that resource generator a few hours ago, I should be happy with that.

I had far more important things to worry about than the forge failing to pop a star for me. Today had become very tiring all of a sudden… I had come here to relax, and hang out with Becca, with little expectations for anything taxing except a little prodding from the Mox…

I need to relax, and calm down….

We sat in companionable silence for a while.

The distant hum of servers filled the space, the occasional beep from Judy's workstation the only other sound.

Then Becca let out a loud groan, breaking the quiet.

"This sucks!" She slumped further, her arms flopping at her sides. "I wanted to cool off after a boring-ass gig… hang out with a choom, mire my new shotty… have a nova night, ya know?"

She threw up her hands dramatically. "And then life decides, noooo Becca! No nice night with a choom for you, Becca!"

I huffed a laugh. "Yeah. I know the feeling."

She grumbled something under her breath before continuing. "Then there's my crew… and David, and that Lucy…." She groaned louder, pressing her hands against her face. "Just one night, Night City! Let me have one fucking night!"

"You and me both, Becca." I agreed.

Another stretch of silence.

Then she couldn't take the waiting anymore "Hey, Zain."

I swiveled the chair toward her and hummed in response.

She glanced at me, expression unreadable for a moment, before asking "If you had the power to change one thing in this world… what would you change?"

I… didn't know.

I really do have the power to change the world… but I am just a guy from fucking San Jose California who, for some insane reason, some eldritch God decided would be fucking amazing to go into this dark abomination of a world with an ever growing list of abilities and powers.

I was not some sort of marvel superhero, who has all the answers of the world like fucking Captain America. I am not special in any way, apart from whatever the forge decides it wants to give me.

So I didn't know.

"I don't know." I admitted.

Becca tilted her head, prodding. "C'mon, there's gotta be something."

I shrugged. "There's so much that could be better… I don't know what to really give my mind to, ya know? I could say something cliché …. get rid of poverty or hate or wars or whatever that would make me sound wise…"

I exhaled, shaking my head. "But if I really had the power to do it? I think I'd be stuck thinking what to choose, there's just so much to do..."

Becca nodded, like she got it.

Then, after a moment, she said "Well… I'd go with making it so that people just became kinder somehow. I think that'd be nice."

I thought about that. She had a point there…

"Yeah… I suppose it would." I gave her a small nod. "I'd like that too."

Silence settled again.

Then Becca let out another frustrated groan and flopped flat onto the table, arms spread wide.

"Ughhhhhh."

We didn't have to wait long.

Footsteps echoed down the staircase.

Then Jackie's booming voice rang through the stairway.

"Man, I've never been this far back inside Lizzie's! Can't wait to tell Misty!"

"Calm down, Jackie! We're here to see some of my clients… don't get too excited now." Vik's chided following behind him.

They appeared at the doorway, Judy and Evelyn close behind.

Jackie seemed to have recovered from all of his injuries… I didn't need to focus my senses to see that. Evidently Vik was capable of quality work, in a really fast time.

Vik was wearing a simple shirt with rolled over sleeves, on top of a pair of jeans. He was also carrying a suitcase… he really did seem like the stereotypical doctor in the moment.

Jackie spotted me first.

"Zain!" His face lit up. "I knew we had a connection! What did I tell ya? Not even a single night, and here we are!"

I couldn't help but snort as the lumbering man strode straight for me.

I got up from my seat… and was immediately engulfed in a bear hug.

Okay then… we were hugging, apparently.

Jackie finally pulled away, turning to Becca, only for her to whip out a pistol from her jacket and point it straight at him.

"You can hug a bullet if you want!" she threatened.

Jackie chuckled, raising his hands in mock surrender. "I wouldn't dream of it, hermana!"

Vik shook his head, clearing his throat as he turned to Jackie. "Jackie. The clients?"

Jackie blinked. "Oh, right. Right. Sorry, my bad."

Vik stepped past us, glancing at the six sedated people laid out across Judy's studio. "Well… at least it's not an ambush."

Jackie grinned. "'Course it isn't! Misty's intuitions are never wrong!"

Vik nodded, not arguing that.

"And it's Lizzie's." He exhaled, rolling up his sleeves. "Alright. Let's see what we're dealing with."

He popped open his suitcase and pulled out a large black device, almost phone-like in design, before latching it to his forearm and pulled out a long retractable cord from one of its ends…

Goddamn… that was a miniaturized complete diagnostic aid, capable of pinging accessible neuroports and biomons…

Another thing I need to add to my growing list of things to build…. Should I just buy it at this point?

I scoffed internally, I didn't even have the money from the gold, and I was already finding myself loose with the cash…

Vik attached the cord to the patients one by one, as he scanned through their diagnostics.

The device on his forearm pulsed faintly, flickering with data streams as it interfaced with their neuroports and biomons and flashed to his optical cybernetics.

Judy, Evelyn, and Becca watched in tense silence. I kept my arms crossed, waiting.

Finally, after finishing his scan on the last patient, Vik let out a long sigh.

Then, he turned to me, studying me for a moment before shaking his head in something close to amusement.

"Damn…" he muttered. "Your prognosis was spot on."

Judy's eyes lit up with hope.

"Then…can you help them?" she asked quickly, stepping forward.

Vik frowned, thinking it over.

"I can remove all their implants, yeah." He ran a hand through his hair. "Fitting new ones, though…"

"Is gonna cost us," Evelyn finished for him.

Vik gave a short nod.

"But I can fix those implants. And you can slot them back in, right?" I cut in before the mood could sink any further.

Vik hesitated, then nodded. "That… is possible, yes." Then, his expression darkened. "For everyone apart from the little boy…. Zeke Braumann, and the woman he is linked to Aisha Golam."

He pinged their SID chips through the neuroport link.

Vik let out a slow breath, rubbing the back of his neck.

"The neural oscillation synchronizer is moving too fast for me to properly manage. If I pull it out at the wrong moment, at the crest of a wave, their brains will be nothing but scrambled. And I can't take that risk. The wave's frequency is too high…"

I narrowed my eyes. "How much time do they have?"

Vik sighed. "Maybe a week. There's nothing I can do for them."

A week. That was enough time.

Long enough for me to brew a potion that could temporarily render them brain-dead for just long enough to safely remove the implant, then bring them back.

This… I can do.

I took a slow breath, steadying myself.

"I can help there," I said finally. "How much will you charge for just the procedure?"

Vik studied me for a long moment, eyes sharp.

"You're suggesting you have a solution for those two…?"

I nodded resolutely. "Yes. I'll let you know once I'm sure… but I think I can."

Vik exhaled, shaking his head.

"Kid… if you're willing to go that far for what I can tell are practically strangers…" He sighed. "I won't charge you a single eddie in service fees."

I blinked. That… was unexpected.

"But," he continued, "I can't do the operation to remove their implants here. I'll have to take them back to my clinic regardless. You can collect the implants from me tomorrow."

So, Vik's trip here was pointless. I should've just brought them to his clinic from the start.

I nodded. "I appreciate that… and I'm sure these guys will too."

Vik gave a short nod, then clapped his hands. "Right. Now, is there a way to get them out? Or do we have to carry 'em?"

Judy piped up, already moving toward the back. "There's an elevator… that leads to the back exit of the bar."

Jackie grinned, moving to get to the gurneys and stretchers. "Alright then, chica. Say no more. We'll get 'em out back in no time!"

Evelyn sighed, rubbing her temple. "I'll get a truck ready for these people. Finally, something normal today...!"

One by one, we wheeled the gurneys and chairs into the elevator, pushing them through the back entrance.

By the time we reached the alley, Evelyn had already convinced Susie to loan us a truck. Loading them up was quick work.

With the last of them secured, Vik and Jackie prepped to leave. But just before stepping into the driver's seat, Jackie turned to me.

His voice was lower now. Serious. "Hey, hermano."

I turned to him.

"Vik and I have trusted you. And you didn't break that faith." He paused, eyes searching mine. "I had this gut feeling about you—that we'd go places. But I'm also a cautious man."

I stayed silent.

"Vik's agreed to give you these chooms' implants. That's a lot of faith." He crossed his arms. "My girl's intuition has never been wrong, and I can put my life on the line trusting you… but I won't put other people's lives on the line too."

His voice dropped slightly. "Don't break the trust Vik's placing in you, hermano. It'll break my girl's heart… and then mine. And you won't like that."

I held his gaze.

…. This was a good man.

I didn't need to say much. "Don't worry, Jackie Welles. I give you my word."

For a moment, he simply stared at me. Then, his expression lightened.

A grin broke across his face, and he chuckled. "Sorry, had to get that out of the way, ya know? It's important in biz like this."

After a final check both he and Vik climbed into the truck alongside a Mox driver. The engine rumbled to life. And with a final nod, they drove off toward Vik's clinic.

Judy exhaled, watching as the truck disappeared into the night. She stood there for a beat, arms crossed, lips pressed together. Then, finally, she turned to me.

"I don't know why you stepped in, but… thanks." Her voice was sincere. "They would've been out of options otherwise."

I nodded at her in acknowledgement. "I don't think Susie would have left them defenseless. I just had better options available.."

Judy seemed to think on that for a moment, and sighed as her eyes glowed blue and my phone buzzed "Either way, I've flicked you my contact. Figured you might need it."

Another ping followed right after. I checked the details that had been shared. Judy Alvarez, and Evelyn Parker.

"Same here," Evelyn added, her gaze still lingering on me. "Might as well keep in touch, since you're apparently shaking things up around here."

"Not planning on making a habit of it," I said, tucking my holo phone away.

Evelyn raised a brow. "That so?"

Judy rolled her eyes. "Ev….!"

"What? Just saying." Evelyn shrugged, then crossed her arms. "Networking with well connected individuals is good for a career!"

Judy sighed, shaking her head before looking back at me. "Anyway, if you need anything, you got my number. And if…." She hesitated, then exhaled. "If you need any extra hands when you're working on their implants, I'm decent with tools."

"I'll keep that in mind," I said.

Judy gave a small nod before glancing toward the bar's entrance. "Right. I need a damn drink. C'mon, Ev."

Evelyn smirked slightly but didn't argue. With that, they headed back inside.

Becca stretched with a loud groan, cybernetic gorilla arms hissing softly as she rolled her shoulders.

"Damn, choom. That was a lot." She let her arms drop. "Didn't think my night'd turn into all that... Things aren't dull when you're around are they?"

I let out a short chuckle. "Apparently not."

She huffed a laugh, then let out a long sigh. "Shit, I need sleep. I was supposed to be cooling off, not hauling half-dead gonks into a truck."

She adjusted the strap of her bag, glancing toward the street. "I'm crashing at Kiwi's. Catch you later, yeah?"

I nodded at her, and she gave me a lazy two-finger salute before turning on her heel and striding off, disappearing around the corner.

I lingered for a moment, the never ending noise of Watson settling in now that the night's chaos had finally wound down.

Then, finally, I slid into my car. The engine rumbled to life, as I began driving back to my apartment.

It had been a long night. A productive night.

I hoped not all of my nights would be as tiring as this one.

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

(A/N)

The neural oscillating synchroniser is canon to Cyberpunk 2077. It's what led to the Esquerdo Certo brothers... or the one guy two bodies choom we fight in Beat the brat, Kabuki.

Also... Judy Alvarez! 

Oh, and Evelyn Parker! Whatever shall she learn about Zain?

This was necessary to paint a full picture of the Mox... from one lens. But whatever, biases always exist. 

I need a little feedback on Jackie and Vik's character... I was having difficulties nailing them correctly, so I would appreciate any feedback there. Also the pacing! By now, 1 day = 3 chapters is becoming too frequent I think... I will try to cut back a little, and let time flow. Unless everybody's fine with this pace? Let me know!

Zain started with 0 points, earned 300 points by time of roll. Tried connecting to a 600-point perk but failed.