Josue lived and breathed tech, whether it be during his life as a Nomad or his time outside of it in Night City and beyond. If it uses tech, there's a high chance Josue can repair it, upgrade it, or even recreate it. He's fought, built, and done all he felt he could and finally moved on. Then, with his memories scrambled from the 'Lost Months', he steps into Terra.
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Neon Knight (Cyberpunk/Arknights Crossover)
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User Total 501aris/N0ct15 8
1.1 Neon Lights
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501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
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A/N: Hi, I'm 501aris, or Solaris... or Solar. Some of you might recognize me, some of you might not; that's fine. On Ao3 and FF, I write stuff, mostly normal stuff, but also NSFW when I'm feeling it, which I might post here. First off, though, I'm gonna be posting this slowly, since I write... a lot... like 10k long chapters, and I'm gonna be posting it here in smaller, more manageable bits. Regardless, welcome to my crossover of Arknights and Cyberpunk.
With that, let me give you some extra information:
With that, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
A man brought up a palm to his nose, stumbling out of an alleyway, snorting as a glob of blood fell on the floor while he groaned. "Ergh." He said in disgust, looking at the blood before shaking his head to get rid of the lingering dizziness as he spotted a set of stairs and stumbled towards them. With a sigh, he sat down on the stairs and brought out a handkerchief, cleaning up his right knuckle before moving to his nose.
His Biomonitor displayed its information on his right cybereye, Chyron displaying the results of his scan, his Skinwatch keeping time as he grunted. "Two days." He noted out loud, Chyron displaying his name on the report of his biometrics and general health.
Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon
Two days, nearly three, since his last gig in Night City. It has been two days since his final flourish against the cartel that killed his Nomad Family all those years ago because of his love for music. Well, there was also the rivalry they had with the Mongooses and the tech they stole from Arasaka, so maybe it was just a coincidence. Except he knew it wasn't.
His last gig was his and his ally's final attack against them, where he went in and killed the leader of the Calmecac and destroyed all operations within Night City and a few outside of it. He, a Nomad turned Tech with a love for music, managed to destroy a nearly century-old cartel. It was all so… absurd, in a way.
Regardless, he did what he had to, and he left. He got his revenge, and there wasn't anything left in Night City for him, so with a final flourish and concert while being chased by Arasaka forces, he left Night City proper.
Before promptly flashing away and appearing in an entirely new, but weirdly familiar, city. Or… at least that's what he thought; his memory was pretty fuzzy on that end, especially regarding time. He could feel the difference and called it the 'Lost Months'.
Not familiar as in recognizable, but that Lungmen was eerily similar to Night City, from all the neon lights, the large buildings, not to mention…
The sound of running footsteps made Josue sigh as he tucked the handkerchief into the pocket of his leather jacket, a light armorjack vest under it, and stood up, pulling the sleeves to the elbows, with a patch on the back of his jacket. The patch said 'Northern Tigers', denoting his Family before they all died. Even now, he wore it with pride in an entirely different world.
Correct. He was no longer in Night City on Earth; the evidence of such a thing appeared while Josue ran a diagnostic on his body.
His cyberlegs, which replaced both legs after Adam Smasher crushed them, are in good condition, reinforced to be unbreakable and with thickened myomar strands keeping them far stronger than normal. Same for his singular left cyberarm, outfitted with the same reinforced nature as his legs and the same strands that it's had since he found it in that fateful job all those years ago. His right arm's frame and Subdermal Grip were in good condition, with his cybereye still operational. His Skin Weave was fine at the moment, despite the nature of the residents of this place, whose voices made him turn.
Evidence one walked out, looking like an Exotic with cat ears before being followed by someone with dog ears as they looked around, "Where-! There you are, you-!" He didn't finish as Josue laid him out with one punch, using his right hand and a little bit too much force.
Back in Night City, when he was considered a Night City Legend before appearing in this new world, Josue was probably one of the strongest out there, capable of laying out even some of the most armored individuals with one punch with his meat arm. Even if it is outfitted with an internal frame for a certain weapon, it doesn't increase his strength, only dispersing the force and recoil of the weapon hidden in a shoulder holster under his jacket.
The man he punched tried to get up but was laid out again by a second before a third one finally knocked him out as he stepped back, arms up in a boxing stance, bobbing on the balls of his feet as he chuckled, "C'mon, wanna get back for your bitch of a leader?"
The Exotics glared as one of them spoke up, "You think you have any right to say that? You're a coward!"
"Wanna come closer?" Josue goaded, glancing around to ensure no one was going to blindside him, "I can show you how 'cowardly' I am directly." He said, raising his leg in the shin kick, he used to get the leader of these gangoons onto the floor and then beat him up with a few chairs in a bar he was playing at. Granted, they were harassing the lady serving drinks, so he thought the gangoon got off lightly.
His little gangoonlets didn't think so. "You coward!" One of them yelled as they tried to circle him as he lunged at them before stopping mid-lunge. The gangoon fell back as Josue burst into a bout of laughter, pointing at the cat Exotic as he leaned on his knees.
"Who's the coward now!?" Josue goaded as he hunched over, holding onto his knees while laughing uproariously. "You should've seen your face." He said while he straightened up and flinched, bringing both hands up, "Ah~! Hahaha!" He mocked, punctuating it with laughter as the gangoon's face flushed as he scrambled back to his feet.
"You won't be laughing once you're cut into pieces!" One of them yelled as they brandished knives, axes, and even a bow as Josue shook his head.
"Please." He said, reaching back and brandishing a bottle. "All I need is this bottle for you chumps."
"Give that back!" One of them yelled, dashing as Josue still couldn't believe how outclassed he'd have been once upon a time.
For a long while, Josue didn't like cyberware; he wasn't against it, he had a cybereye and his Interface Plugs after all, but he always prided himself on his skills and natural strength. Then Adam Smasher crushed his arm and legs, and a lot of things went out the window. He always tried to limit himself, relying more on his skill and strength for such things.
He leapt forward and stood on a hand, lashing his leg forward in a scorpion kick in a capoeira form. The axe-wielding exotic reeled before being swept off his feet by Josue's crouched form. Josue hopped up, spinning and landing a heel kick to the Exotic's chest, his cyberleg and his own strength causing them to cough as he spun off and backflipped onto his feet.
He was always a performer, even when he was a Nomad, going into dangerous areas for a copy of old music and playing it for his Family and whoever would pay him. It might have gotten him into trouble, but damn if he didn't love doing so. It was a good thing he learned capoeira, a dance-like style, but…
The other four gangoon surged forward, one of them let their arrow fly as it hit his shoulder, stabbing into the padded leather but not piercing. It was shot from a wooden bow with a wooden arrow; it's not very good, and the gangoon barely looked coherent enough to use it, probably boosted out of his mind at the moment. The other two didn't care; they just knew that he was shot with an arrow, and, usually, that hurts. A lot.
One of them swung a sword, and Josue stepped out of the way, using the base of the bottle to knock a second gangoon in the head before returning to the one who swung, shoving his shoulder against them before pushing them back. The third tried to swing at him, but he raised the bottle of alcohol in his hand the same way an exorcist would at a spirit or a Samurai fan their paraphernalia, warding off the spirit, women, and, in this case, the thug as he stops before he could break the bottle.
One of them circled their arm around Josue's neck, trying to choke him and stab him, while the first Exotic charged. Josue raised his legs, kicking with both feet at the first gangoon's chest and causing the one who was holding him to fall back as he rolled back and turned to the archer.
Ripping out the arrow from his jacket, he rolled, evading the next one and popping open the cork of the alcohol, before stabbing one of the gangoons in the stomach. He took a swig from the bottle, drinking some of it and keeping the rest in his mouth as he used his shoulder and his grip on the arrow stabbed into them, to maneuver his newest human- well, Exotic shield, and reached for his lighter.
His shield yelped as he used the bottle to knock him over the head, knocking them out while he let go of the arrow. Dashing the final stretch, he lit his lighter and spat out the alcohol in his mouth with the lighter in front of him. A burst of flames bloomed out and covered the archer, frantically trying to put it out as he turned to the others.
"A-Arts!" They yelled as Josue rolled his eyes, "Y-You-!"
He dashed once more, kicking the inside of their knee as they fell to the other before Josue sent a knee into their face, knocking them to the floor. Finally, he knocked out the last one with a swing of the bottle.
The archer in flames continued to yell as Josue went over and knocked them out, too, with a single well-placed punch to a pressure point. He nodded to himself, looking at the chaos he wrought as he got to his favorite part.
He patted down the archer, taking his arrows and his cash, Lungmen Dollars, or LMD, as he put them away, and moved to the others. Doing the same, he took all of their cash and sellable valuables as he slipped the cork of the alcohol he had after taking a drink.
It was pretty good, all things considered.
So, of course, it had to be ruined.
"LGD, get on the ground!" Someone yelled, drones lighting up his form, while Josue sighed as men and women moved. They pointed weapons at him as he put his arms up and followed the order of the lawman.
His hands were forced behind his back, forced on the pavement with the usual roughness he was used to back home, his cheek rubbing against the pavement. One of the officers placed a knee on his spine instead of ramming it, so it's somewhat better. He could feel their probing hand as they removed his weapons, the one in his shoulder holster confiscated, his belt unbuckled, removing it to show a knife and a revolver, a Colt 'Peacemaker' on it, before forcing his Fabrica De Armas M-2012 off his back.
Slowly, he was practically stripped as all the weapons he kept hidden were revealed and forced off him until he was forced to his feet to see who was arresting him this time.
As was usual in this world, she was beautiful, but unlike the first woman that arrested him, who was stern and unrelenting like a dragon, like the horns she had, or laidback but dangerous like the green-haired oni that arrested him on his second day, this tiger was beautiful, resembling a young lady of an Exec. She had a pair of tiger ears atop her head, one being hidden by a beret, her striped orange and black tail denoting it to be a tiger's, with her brown hair curled into a pair of drills, her green eyes lit up with pride and stern disapproval.
"So, you're the one causing the ruckus?" She noted while inspecting him.
"So, you must be the pussy bitch Ch'en talks about?" Josue asked, her eyes widening before they narrowed.
"That bitch!" She yelled as he internally laughed as he was forced to his feet and into a cruiser. The door closes as he's then driven to the LGD's office. At least the donuts are pretty good.
Josue Mondragon stared at the one-way glass, separating the officers from the interrogation room, looking at his reflection as he noted how bruised his face was.
He was Latino; as such, his features were Latino, light brown skin with wide brown eyes and short curly brown hair, EMP Threading reached from the corner of his eyes and met at the bridge of his nose as he looked at the handcuffs in his hands. He could easily break out, but it isn't the third day yet. They took away his vest and jacket, along with all his holsters, so his previous statement of being armed was now a lie as he sat in a white shirt and some jeans.
With a twist of his wrist, he checked his Skinwatch and nodded, deciding to wait and break his record of consecutive arrests with different officers. The last record was him being arrested twice in a row by different lawmen.
Slowly, he shifted his hand, revealing a paper clip, subtly unfurling it before huffing in amusement. This would probably be the last time, so he might as well be quick about it.
Meanwhile, Swire stomped through the office of the LGD, looking for the Chief as her ears and tail stuck out. When she found the room she was looking for, she burst in, "Ch'en, you bitch! What are you telling our suspects!?"
Inside, a woman with blue hair and horns atop her head peeked from behind her monitor, a derisive look on her face, "What are you talking about, Swire? Have the hardships of normal life finally gotten to your brain?"
"Afternoon, Missy." Hoshiguma, the green-haired oni, started acting as the mediator before it even started. "How was your patrol?"
"It was fine until the end." She grumbled, "A bar brawl that spilled out into an alley, someone was stabbed, the others have concussions, and they even used Arts, according to the one that woke up."
Ch'en and Hoshiguma paused as they looked up, "Arts?"
"Yeah, but he had some alcohol with him." Swire pointed out as she huffed, leaning beside Ch'en's desk. "I think he just spat some on them, and they didn't know alcohol was flammable."
"Huh," Hoshiguma said, something poking at the edge of her mind. "Is that it?"
"Well," Swire started, holding up a hand to her chin, "according to the officers, he kept complaining about the cruisers, calling them unwieldy hunks of junk, and his weapons were strange."
"Strange how?" Ch'en asked, a familiar feeling coursing through her as Swire continued.
"He had guns, but none of them had any Originium," Swire answered with a shrug, "we had one of our Sankta run a few tests on his revolver, and it wouldn't fire!" She said before rubbing her face, "Then, the other fired fine, but didn't leave any casings, and finally his last weapon smacked the Sankta in the face and sprained his wrist!"
Slowly, Ch'en's brows narrowed, and Hoshiguma chuckled as Swire tilted her head. "What's with those faces?"
"You-," Ch'en growled, getting to her feet and pointing at Hoshiguma. "Lock down everything! I don't want anyone leaving, even for their child's birth!"
"What!? Are you dumb?" Swire asked as Ch'en was already out of the office, and she followed despite being confused.
"Missy." Hoshiguma started, joining Swire, "The man you speak of has been arrested once for each day for the past two days, three now if you count today, and has escaped each time."
"Huh?" Swire asked, "That's impossible, my drone should be there in case he tries."
Hoshiguma shrugged, "Trust me, I'd know, he escaped mine and Ch'en's sights, we were the ones to arrest him the first two times, after all."
Swire blinked at that as Hoshiguma alerted the building, and she rushed into the room, just to make sure he was still there.
Ch'en was already there, tapping her forearms and huffing, while Swire noticed the officer who had been there previously wasn't there anymore. "You're here," Ch'en noted out loud while Swire noticed her drone still afloat. "I'll let you off with a warning this time since you didn't know, but look." She said, opening the door to the room as Swire peers in and pauses.
After all, the officer who was supposed to be on the other side of the one-way glass was unconscious, sitting in the chair Josue was supposed to be in, while Josue was nowhere to be found. "Hah?"
"Shit… C'mon, let's go to the evidence room and the garage." Ch'en said as Swire jerks up as she follows after Ch'en.
"I understand why he'd go to the evidence room," Swire started before asking, "but why the garage?" Various ideas went through her mind, none of them good.
"To modify them," Ch'en answered as Swire sent her an incredulous look. "Don't look at me like that. It's been two- no, three days since he's been brought in, and the cruisers he modified on that day still haven't been cleared for use again. None of the technicians can understand exactly what he did. Just that they're running smoother than before."
"Huh?" Swire asked while Ch'en grimaced.
"Get that stupid look off your face and call your drones already!" Ch'en yelled as she turned, "I'll head to the evidence room. He's probably already grabbed his weapons, but it'll let me circle into the garage. We'll encircle him, understand?"
"Right," Swire answered, the two separating as they made their way to their respective positions. Once there, Swire brandished her flail, her drones spreading out while her voice rang out. "Come out with your hands up, you're being arrested for tampering with government property, assault, and resisting arrest!"
"Hey, what are my rights!?" Someone yelled as Swire turned in the direction of one of the cruisers, and some of them had the hood open. "How do I know how I can fight these unlawful charges against me?"
Swire bristled before making her way over, "Just make your way out, and I can assure you, you'll be treated well."
"Fuck no!" He yelled, a certain amount of vitriol in his voice that even surprised Swire. "Last time I trusted someone who said that, I was beaten to an inch of my life." Despite the worrying words he said, Swire made her way through the garage and stood in front of the entrance to the building while her drones scanned the area.
She couldn't help but notice how dark the tints on the cruisers were, not that she didn't know they're usually pretty dark, but… they're way darker than before.
Then, a crack rang out, Swire recognizing the gunshot as the nearest car by her began to spew smoke in her direction as she leapt to the side. The smoke barely hit her as she brought a hand to her mouth.
The gunshot came from behind her as she turned, hearing the sound of footsteps as she got up. "Hey, stop right there!" She yelled while running, Josue peering out from a cruiser, a radio in hand, as he grinned.
"Well, there we go." He said, sitting back down inside the cruiser as he fiddled with the radio. Once he was done, the only thing the LGD would be able to hear if they tried to radio each other would be static. Satisfied, Josue exited the cruiser, closing the door as he opened the loading gate of his Peacemaker, removing the spent casing and loading another one before closing it. He made his way to the cruiser with the open hood while slipping the gun into its holster, closing it before making his way to the area where Swire ran out.
Since Ch'en was now on his trail, close shaves wouldn't cut it. He would either evade her completely or he would be found. So he had to leave then and there as he reached for his bag, stopping by a bathroom as he grabbed a pack of makeup and grabbed a uniform he swiped.
Not his biggest skill, admittedly, but hiding his notable EMP Threading was easy as he managed to make them disappear and made his skin tone lighter before slipping on some glasses. With that, he made his way out and headed towards the exit briskly, looking like a man with a bone to pick, so when Swire passed by, he performed a salute. "Miss Swire."
"At ease." She said, huffing, "I'm not Ch'en. Did you see anyone on your way here?"
"No." He continued, stiffly like an officer with a chip on his shoulder, "It's just been me, though…" he trailed off, embarrassed, "I might have had something bad for breakfast so..."
Swire nodded, "Then you're free to go to your station. Stop by the Medical Office for some stomach medicine. Ch'en wants everyone in their stations."
"Right. Thank you, Miss Swire." He said, walking off as Josue walked away, and Swire did the same, making his way to his 'position'.
He reached the reception's office, slipping off random clothes and slipping on others in the blind spots of the cameras until he resembled the civilian he was.
"You! What are you doing?" Someone asked, and Josue jumped, fidgeting.
"Er," he started, anxiously looking away as the officer seemed pissed, "I-I was here to pick something up that was stolen, and the officer leading me told me to come here."
"Detective, that's enough." One of the officers interjected, "Hoshiguma is calling you; he's a civilian, let him through."
The Detective paused before he relented with a nod. "Alright, you're right." He said before turning to Josue, while continuing. "Go ahead, or else you'll have to stay here longer."
"R-Right." Josue started, anxiously, as he made his way to the front desk and made his way out to freedom.
After cutting through the swath of Media, Josue slipped into an alley, removing the uniform before grinning. "Done." He said, looking at the things he reclaimed, as in all of his guns, his bag, the alcohol, and the knife, hidden under the uniform until he removed it. He changed into his normal uniform as he stretched.
Leather jacket back on with light armorjack vest, holsters in place, and assault rifle hidden and grenades in place, he slipped into the neon alleys of Lungmen, wondering what he'd do once he got home.
A/N: With that, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. If you'd like to read more, check this out if you're interested, which should offer links to my FF and AO3 to read the up-to-date Neon Knight, and to support me if you're interested.
Now, for some extra info:
With that, let me give you some extra information:
To explain, Cyberpunk RED has something called Role Abilities, which replace classes in the TTRPG. The Role Abilities that will be used are a Nomad's MOTO and a Tech's Maker ability since Josue is a Nomad and a Tech. In essence, a Nomad can use any vehicle in a Family's Motor Pool, depending on their Moto rank, the higher the rank, the better vehicles they have access to and even upgrades to those vehicles like making a car capable of flight or adding missiles. Meanwhile, A Tech's Maker ability is simple, giving them the ability to fabricate, replicate, or fix anything. Keep in mind, I'm oversimplifying things, but these will explain Josue's general abilities and his capabilities. I hope.
A man brought up a palm to his nose, stumbling out of an alleyway, snorting as a glob of blood fell on the floor while he groaned. "Ergh." He said in disgust, looking at the blood before shaking his head to get rid of the lingering dizziness as he spotted a set of stairs and stumbled towards them. With a sigh, he sat down on the stairs and brought out a handkerchief, cleaning up his right knuckle before moving to his nose.
His Biomonitor displayed its information on his right cybereye, Chyron displaying the results of his scan, his Skinwatch keeping time as he grunted. "Two days." He noted out loud, Chyron displaying his name on the report of his biometrics and general health.
Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon
Two days, nearly three, since his last gig in Night City. It has been two days since his final flourish against the cartel that killed his Nomad Family all those years ago because of his love for music. Well, there was also the rivalry they had with the Mongooses and the tech they stole from Arasaka, so maybe it was just a coincidence. Except he knew it wasn't.
His last gig was his and his ally's final attack against them, where he went in and killed the leader of the Calmecac and destroyed all operations within Night City and a few outside of it. He, a Nomad turned Tech with a love for music, managed to destroy a nearly century-old cartel. It was all so… absurd, in a way.
Regardless, he did what he had to, and he left. He got his revenge, and there wasn't anything left in Night City for him, so with a final flourish and concert while being chased by Arasaka forces, he left Night City proper.
Before promptly flashing away and appearing in an entirely new, but weirdly familiar, city. Or… at least that's what he thought; his memory was pretty fuzzy on that end, especially regarding time. He could feel the difference and called it the 'Lost Months'.
Not familiar as in recognizable, but that Lungmen was eerily similar to Night City, from all the neon lights, the large buildings, not to mention…
The sound of running footsteps made Josue sigh as he tucked the handkerchief into the pocket of his leather jacket, a light armorjack vest under it, and stood up, pulling the sleeves to the elbows, with a patch on the back of his jacket. The patch said 'Northern Tigers', denoting his Family before they all died. Even now, he wore it with pride in an entirely different world.
Correct. He was no longer in Night City on Earth; the evidence of such a thing appeared while Josue ran a diagnostic on his body.
His cyberlegs, which replaced both legs after Adam Smasher crushed them, are in good condition, reinforced to be unbreakable and with thickened myomar strands keeping them far stronger than normal. Same for his singular left cyberarm, outfitted with the same reinforced nature as his legs and the same strands that it's had since he found it in that fateful job all those years ago. His right arm's frame and Subdermal Grip were in good condition, with his cybereye still operational. His Skin Weave was fine at the moment, despite the nature of the residents of this place, whose voices made him turn.
Evidence one walked out, looking like an Exotic with cat ears before being followed by someone with dog ears as they looked around, "Where-! There you are, you-!" He didn't finish as Josue laid him out with one punch, using his right hand and a little bit too much force.
Back in Night City, when he was considered a Night City Legend before appearing in this new world, Josue was probably one of the strongest out there, capable of laying out even some of the most armored individuals with one punch with his meat arm. Even if it is outfitted with an internal frame for a certain weapon, it doesn't increase his strength, only dispersing the force and recoil of the weapon hidden in a shoulder holster under his jacket.
The man he punched tried to get up but was laid out again by a second before a third one finally knocked him out as he stepped back, arms up in a boxing stance, bobbing on the balls of his feet as he chuckled, "C'mon, wanna get back for your bitch of a leader?"
The Exotics glared as one of them spoke up, "You think you have any right to say that? You're a coward!"
"Wanna come closer?" Josue goaded, glancing around to ensure no one was going to blindside him, "I can show you how 'cowardly' I am directly." He said, raising his leg in the shin kick, he used to get the leader of these gangoons onto the floor and then beat him up with a few chairs in a bar he was playing at. Granted, they were harassing the lady serving drinks, so he thought the gangoon got off lightly.
His little gangoonlets didn't think so. "You coward!" One of them yelled as they tried to circle him as he lunged at them before stopping mid-lunge. The gangoon fell back as Josue burst into a bout of laughter, pointing at the cat Exotic as he leaned on his knees.
"Who's the coward now!?" Josue goaded as he hunched over, holding onto his knees while laughing uproariously. "You should've seen your face." He said while he straightened up and flinched, bringing both hands up, "Ah~! Hahaha!" He mocked, punctuating it with laughter as the gangoon's face flushed as he scrambled back to his feet.
"You won't be laughing once you're cut into pieces!" One of them yelled as they brandished knives, axes, and even a bow as Josue shook his head.
"Please." He said, reaching back and brandishing a bottle. "All I need is this bottle for you chumps."
"Give that back!" One of them yelled, dashing as Josue still couldn't believe how outclassed he'd have been once upon a time.
For a long while, Josue didn't like cyberware; he wasn't against it, he had a cybereye and his Interface Plugs after all, but he always prided himself on his skills and natural strength. Then Adam Smasher crushed his arm and legs, and a lot of things went out the window. He always tried to limit himself, relying more on his skill and strength for such things.
He leapt forward and stood on a hand, lashing his leg forward in a scorpion kick in a capoeira form. The axe-wielding exotic reeled before being swept off his feet by Josue's crouched form. Josue hopped up, spinning and landing a heel kick to the Exotic's chest, his cyberleg and his own strength causing them to cough as he spun off and backflipped onto his feet.
He was always a performer, even when he was a Nomad, going into dangerous areas for a copy of old music and playing it for his Family and whoever would pay him. It might have gotten him into trouble, but damn if he didn't love doing so. It was a good thing he learned capoeira, a dance-like style, but…
The other four gangoon surged forward, one of them let their arrow fly as it hit his shoulder, stabbing into the padded leather but not piercing. It was shot from a wooden bow with a wooden arrow; it's not very good, and the gangoon barely looked coherent enough to use it, probably boosted out of his mind at the moment. The other two didn't care; they just knew that he was shot with an arrow, and, usually, that hurts. A lot.
One of them swung a sword, and Josue stepped out of the way, using the base of the bottle to knock a second gangoon in the head before returning to the one who swung, shoving his shoulder against them before pushing them back. The third tried to swing at him, but he raised the bottle of alcohol in his hand the same way an exorcist would at a spirit or a Samurai fan their paraphernalia, warding off the spirit, women, and, in this case, the thug as he stops before he could break the bottle.
One of them circled their arm around Josue's neck, trying to choke him and stab him, while the first Exotic charged. Josue raised his legs, kicking with both feet at the first gangoon's chest and causing the one who was holding him to fall back as he rolled back and turned to the archer.
Ripping out the arrow from his jacket, he rolled, evading the next one and popping open the cork of the alcohol, before stabbing one of the gangoons in the stomach. He took a swig from the bottle, drinking some of it and keeping the rest in his mouth as he used his shoulder and his grip on the arrow stabbed into them, to maneuver his newest human- well, Exotic shield, and reached for his lighter.
His shield yelped as he used the bottle to knock him over the head, knocking them out while he let go of the arrow. Dashing the final stretch, he lit his lighter and spat out the alcohol in his mouth with the lighter in front of him. A burst of flames bloomed out and covered the archer, frantically trying to put it out as he turned to the others.
"A-Arts!" They yelled as Josue rolled his eyes, "Y-You-!"
He dashed once more, kicking the inside of their knee as they fell to the other before Josue sent a knee into their face, knocking them to the floor. Finally, he knocked out the last one with a swing of the bottle.
The archer in flames continued to yell as Josue went over and knocked them out, too, with a single well-placed punch to a pressure point. He nodded to himself, looking at the chaos he wrought as he got to his favorite part.
He patted down the archer, taking his arrows and his cash, Lungmen Dollars, or LMD, as he put them away, and moved to the others. Doing the same, he took all of their cash and sellable valuables as he slipped the cork of the alcohol he had after taking a drink.
It was pretty good, all things considered.
So, of course, it had to be ruined.
"LGD, get on the ground!" Someone yelled, drones lighting up his form, while Josue sighed as men and women moved. They pointed weapons at him as he put his arms up and followed the order of the lawman.
His hands were forced behind his back, forced on the pavement with the usual roughness he was used to back home, his cheek rubbing against the pavement. One of the officers placed a knee on his spine instead of ramming it, so it's somewhat better. He could feel their probing hand as they removed his weapons, the one in his shoulder holster confiscated, his belt unbuckled, removing it to show a knife and a revolver, a Colt 'Peacemaker' on it, before forcing his Fabrica De Armas M-2012 off his back.
Slowly, he was practically stripped as all the weapons he kept hidden were revealed and forced off him until he was forced to his feet to see who was arresting him this time.
As was usual in this world, she was beautiful, but unlike the first woman that arrested him, who was stern and unrelenting like a dragon, like the horns she had, or laidback but dangerous like the green-haired oni that arrested him on his second day, this tiger was beautiful, resembling a young lady of an Exec. She had a pair of tiger ears atop her head, one being hidden by a beret, her striped orange and black tail denoting it to be a tiger's, with her brown hair curled into a pair of drills, her green eyes lit up with pride and stern disapproval.
"So, you're the one causing the ruckus?" She noted while inspecting him.
"So, you must be the pussy bitch Ch'en talks about?" Josue asked, her eyes widening before they narrowed.
"That bitch!" She yelled as he internally laughed as he was forced to his feet and into a cruiser. The door closes as he's then driven to the LGD's office. At least the donuts are pretty good.
Josue Mondragon stared at the one-way glass, separating the officers from the interrogation room, looking at his reflection as he noted how bruised his face was.
He was Latino; as such, his features were Latino, light brown skin with wide brown eyes and short curly brown hair, EMP Threading reached from the corner of his eyes and met at the bridge of his nose as he looked at the handcuffs in his hands. He could easily break out, but it isn't the third day yet. They took away his vest and jacket, along with all his holsters, so his previous statement of being armed was now a lie as he sat in a white shirt and some jeans.
With a twist of his wrist, he checked his Skinwatch and nodded, deciding to wait and break his record of consecutive arrests with different officers. The last record was him being arrested twice in a row by different lawmen.
Slowly, he shifted his hand, revealing a paper clip, subtly unfurling it before huffing in amusement. This would probably be the last time, so he might as well be quick about it.
Meanwhile, Swire stomped through the office of the LGD, looking for the Chief as her ears and tail stuck out. When she found the room she was looking for, she burst in, "Ch'en, you bitch! What are you telling our suspects!?"
Inside, a woman with blue hair and horns atop her head peeked from behind her monitor, a derisive look on her face, "What are you talking about, Swire? Have the hardships of normal life finally gotten to your brain?"
"Afternoon, Missy." Hoshiguma, the green-haired oni, started acting as the mediator before it even started. "How was your patrol?"
"It was fine until the end." She grumbled, "A bar brawl that spilled out into an alley, someone was stabbed, the others have concussions, and they even used Arts, according to the one that woke up."
Ch'en and Hoshiguma paused as they looked up, "Arts?"
"Yeah, but he had some alcohol with him." Swire pointed out as she huffed, leaning beside Ch'en's desk. "I think he just spat some on them, and they didn't know alcohol was flammable."
"Huh," Hoshiguma said, something poking at the edge of her mind. "Is that it?"
"Well," Swire started, holding up a hand to her chin, "according to the officers, he kept complaining about the cruisers, calling them unwieldy hunks of junk, and his weapons were strange."
"Strange how?" Ch'en asked, a familiar feeling coursing through her as Swire continued.
"He had guns, but none of them had any Originium," Swire answered with a shrug, "we had one of our Sankta run a few tests on his revolver, and it wouldn't fire!" She said before rubbing her face, "Then, the other fired fine, but didn't leave any casings, and finally his last weapon smacked the Sankta in the face and sprained his wrist!"
Slowly, Ch'en's brows narrowed, and Hoshiguma chuckled as Swire tilted her head. "What's with those faces?"
"You-," Ch'en growled, getting to her feet and pointing at Hoshiguma. "Lock down everything! I don't want anyone leaving, even for their child's birth!"
"What!? Are you dumb?" Swire asked as Ch'en was already out of the office, and she followed despite being confused.
"Missy." Hoshiguma started, joining Swire, "The man you speak of has been arrested once for each day for the past two days, three now if you count today, and has escaped each time."
"Huh?" Swire asked, "That's impossible, my drone should be there in case he tries."
Hoshiguma shrugged, "Trust me, I'd know, he escaped mine and Ch'en's sights, we were the ones to arrest him the first two times, after all."
Swire blinked at that as Hoshiguma alerted the building, and she rushed into the room, just to make sure he was still there.
Ch'en was already there, tapping her forearms and huffing, while Swire noticed the officer who had been there previously wasn't there anymore. "You're here," Ch'en noted out loud while Swire noticed her drone still afloat. "I'll let you off with a warning this time since you didn't know, but look." She said, opening the door to the room as Swire peers in and pauses.
After all, the officer who was supposed to be on the other side of the one-way glass was unconscious, sitting in the chair Josue was supposed to be in, while Josue was nowhere to be found. "Hah?"
"Shit… C'mon, let's go to the evidence room and the garage." Ch'en said as Swire jerks up as she follows after Ch'en.
"I understand why he'd go to the evidence room," Swire started before asking, "but why the garage?" Various ideas went through her mind, none of them good.
"To modify them," Ch'en answered as Swire sent her an incredulous look. "Don't look at me like that. It's been two- no, three days since he's been brought in, and the cruisers he modified on that day still haven't been cleared for use again. None of the technicians can understand exactly what he did. Just that they're running smoother than before."
"Huh?" Swire asked while Ch'en grimaced.
"Get that stupid look off your face and call your drones already!" Ch'en yelled as she turned, "I'll head to the evidence room. He's probably already grabbed his weapons, but it'll let me circle into the garage. We'll encircle him, understand?"
"Right," Swire answered, the two separating as they made their way to their respective positions. Once there, Swire brandished her flail, her drones spreading out while her voice rang out. "Come out with your hands up, you're being arrested for tampering with government property, assault, and resisting arrest!"
"Hey, what are my rights!?" Someone yelled as Swire turned in the direction of one of the cruisers, and some of them had the hood open. "How do I know how I can fight these unlawful charges against me?"
Swire bristled before making her way over, "Just make your way out, and I can assure you, you'll be treated well."
"Fuck no!" He yelled, a certain amount of vitriol in his voice that even surprised Swire. "Last time I trusted someone who said that, I was beaten to an inch of my life." Despite the worrying words he said, Swire made her way through the garage and stood in front of the entrance to the building while her drones scanned the area.
She couldn't help but notice how dark the tints on the cruisers were, not that she didn't know they're usually pretty dark, but… they're way darker than before.
Then, a crack rang out, Swire recognizing the gunshot as the nearest car by her began to spew smoke in her direction as she leapt to the side. The smoke barely hit her as she brought a hand to her mouth.
The gunshot came from behind her as she turned, hearing the sound of footsteps as she got up. "Hey, stop right there!" She yelled while running, Josue peering out from a cruiser, a radio in hand, as he grinned.
"Well, there we go." He said, sitting back down inside the cruiser as he fiddled with the radio. Once he was done, the only thing the LGD would be able to hear if they tried to radio each other would be static. Satisfied, Josue exited the cruiser, closing the door as he opened the loading gate of his Peacemaker, removing the spent casing and loading another one before closing it. He made his way to the cruiser with the open hood while slipping the gun into its holster, closing it before making his way to the area where Swire ran out.
Since Ch'en was now on his trail, close shaves wouldn't cut it. He would either evade her completely or he would be found. So he had to leave then and there as he reached for his bag, stopping by a bathroom as he grabbed a pack of makeup and grabbed a uniform he swiped.
Not his biggest skill, admittedly, but hiding his notable EMP Threading was easy as he managed to make them disappear and made his skin tone lighter before slipping on some glasses. With that, he made his way out and headed towards the exit briskly, looking like a man with a bone to pick, so when Swire passed by, he performed a salute. "Miss Swire."
"At ease." She said, huffing, "I'm not Ch'en. Did you see anyone on your way here?"
"No." He continued, stiffly like an officer with a chip on his shoulder, "It's just been me, though…" he trailed off, embarrassed, "I might have had something bad for breakfast so..."
Swire nodded, "Then you're free to go to your station. Stop by the Medical Office for some stomach medicine. Ch'en wants everyone in their stations."
"Right. Thank you, Miss Swire." He said, walking off as Josue walked away, and Swire did the same, making his way to his 'position'.
He reached the reception's office, slipping off random clothes and slipping on others in the blind spots of the cameras until he resembled the civilian he was.
"You! What are you doing?" Someone asked, and Josue jumped, fidgeting.
"Er," he started, anxiously looking away as the officer seemed pissed, "I-I was here to pick something up that was stolen, and the officer leading me told me to come here."
"Detective, that's enough." One of the officers interjected, "Hoshiguma is calling you; he's a civilian, let him through."
The Detective paused before he relented with a nod. "Alright, you're right." He said before turning to Josue, while continuing. "Go ahead, or else you'll have to stay here longer."
"R-Right." Josue started, anxiously, as he made his way to the front desk and made his way out to freedom.
After cutting through the swath of Media, Josue slipped into an alley, removing the uniform before grinning. "Done." He said, looking at the things he reclaimed, as in all of his guns, his bag, the alcohol, and the knife, hidden under the uniform until he removed it. He changed into his normal uniform as he stretched.
Leather jacket back on with light armorjack vest, holsters in place, and assault rifle hidden and grenades in place, he slipped into the neon alleys of Lungmen, wondering what he'd do once he got home.
A/N: With that, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. If you'd like to read more, check this out if you're interested, which should offer links to my FF and AO3 to read the up-to-date Neon Knight, and to support me if you're interested.
Now, for some extra info:
Reinforced Cybereye(with Hardened Shielding on the right eye).
Internal Cyberdeck.
Skin Weave.
Synthskin*(Both arms, light up tattoos)
Skinwatch*
Reinforced Cyberarm(Left arm with Realskinn over Hardened Shielding and thickened myomar strands)
Reinforced Cyberlegs(Both with Realskinn over Hardened Shielding)
Internal linear frame(Right arm)
Subdermal Grip(Right hand)
Interface Plugs.
Enhanced Antibodies(Permanent, don't cause Humanity Loss)
*Fashionware doesn't cause Humanity Loss.
Internal Cyberdeck.
Skin Weave.
Synthskin*(Both arms, light up tattoos)
Skinwatch*
Reinforced Cyberarm(Left arm with Realskinn over Hardened Shielding and thickened myomar strands)
Reinforced Cyberlegs(Both with Realskinn over Hardened Shielding)
Internal linear frame(Right arm)
Subdermal Grip(Right hand)
Interface Plugs.
Enhanced Antibodies(Permanent, don't cause Humanity Loss)
*Fashionware doesn't cause Humanity Loss.
Last edited:
1.2 Neon Lights
New
501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2026
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- 41
A/N: I'll try to keep these little notes short, don't really like making them long.
Ch'en sat on her desk, pinching the space between her brows, as, for the third time, Josue Mondragon evaded capture once more, which should be impossible. This is their home turf. How did he slip out unnoticed?
What was more is that one of their uniforms went missing, so how he escaped should be obvious, but on her count, no one was wearing it, but parts of it were thrown in trash cans heading to the front desk. Then there was the gunshot that Swire heard, the only one that he's ever shot, and the empty canister of some… smoke grenade, which is impossible. Ballistics, filled with Sankta experts, couldn't identify the weapon used, other than it couldn't be the assault rifle, nor could the core be Originium. The weapon that broke the wrist of the Sankta and smacked them in the face was immediately out of the question.
The only one who was using any form of Arts in that room was Swire.
That thought scared her. Shaking her head, she returned to the reports of the officers, as some things stood out. First was Swire's interaction with an officer who, in her words, 'resembled her in bearing, standing, and attitude' and a Detective's interaction with a civilian coming to 'pick up something', which is strange since nothing was cleared to be returned to anyone.
She palmed her face and groaned, "That fucking dumbass."
At least a part of the problem had been solved, and then came the next one. How? How was he able to fool Swire? Where did he get a gun? Where did he get good enough to walk out of the police stations he's being arrested in without raising an alarm? Especially since he didn't have any form of identification on him.
The questions continued to pile up, and the answers weren't getting smaller. She would have to put out a warrant for his arrest. With the marks on his face, he wasn't exactly the most subtle, and with this whole debacle, she'll need to. It shouldn't be too hard; it's one man.
The sound of Wu-Tang Clan rang out within a vehicle, an unfamiliar sound to many in Terra, but one Josue was intimately familiar with via his actions as a Rockerboy.
Slowly, Josue sat on his bed in the main area of the kombi, his mind supplying the various instruments within. He stood at the tail end of the kombi, a small section cut off to act as a small bathroom and shower behind where he stood, leaving around twenty-five feet of extra room, around the size of a school bus. To his immediate right, there was a small kitchenette with a stove and a fridge of a similar size beside it. Further down, there were more tables where a Terminal rested along with the Communications Center, monitors behind the main terminal showing various angles outside, if it was turned on, among other details. There was also a different terminal for the sleeping Agent. His eyes landed on the floor, where he could see small indents on the floor where one would reach down and use them to reveal the chairs along with the mounts on the side, further beside the terminal.
To his left, on the other hand, he could see a table pulled down, hanging off the wall, revealing a multitude of tools and a workbench with other distinct things, a 3D Printer being one of them, mostly for ammunition and the like, whether it be caseless or cartridges. Beside that was his electric guitar and another heavy weapon mount, the weapons themselves hidden inside cases. Then, there was the Zonda Parallax in the middle, glinting under the light of the kombi as he ran his hand over it. He remembered working hard to get it.
He shook the thought away while inspecting other things, like the gun locker by his bed, the various cases he could instinctively point out as heavy weapons he'd collected, and he could spot the Malorian he took from Adam, the event being filmed by a Media as Eran found out and offered to make him a weapon. Josue was never good at coming up with a weapon, so he opted to get the Malorian modified to fit him instead of Johnny Silverhand. Something Malour seemed a bit disappointed at, so he asked for a bow instead and for the gun to be modified.
Well, he got both, the compound bow made in space used less strength, made virtually no sound, and had the power to pierce most armor. The Malorian 'Flyswatter', christened as such when he used it to shoot down a fly by accident. Its actual name was the Vortex, but everyone called it the Flyswatter.
Regardless, it was hung up at the moment, probably the most expensive decoration and most combat-capable weapon he had, as he stepped back and looked around more. There was something else, an extra 'gift' from Malour, but he left it in its case since it's never been his style.
Regardless, a sense of pride bloomed from within as a Nomad from his collection of weapons. Especially when it came to opening the compartments hidden within to reveal the bevy of old weapons he's found over the years and bought, practically a small armory for a small army with the ammunition to match.
He sat down on the worktable and returned to maintaining his weapons as he was before lying down on the bed. It was a calming thing, but it did get bothersome on occasion. He had been in Lungmen for three days, had been arrested three times, had played in two bars, and had mugged at least ten different people who tried to fight him first.
It was similar to Night City; there was always someone looking for a fight, especially since he's on the outskirts. Unlike Night City, where the closer one got to the center, the higher someone's chance was to, well, die.
The outskirts of Lungmen were part of the slums; no one had the good sense to come out here, and those who lived within had the 'good sense' to stay there, since most of them were 'Infected', but some just didn't have the money or the papers to go in. As such, criminals tended to converge in the area, Josue being one such person, as the actual 'slums' looked actually livable, even for the Infected.
That said-.
He jumped, someone, slamming their fist against the side of the vehicle, supposedly camouflaged, as a voice continued, "Hey~. Tiger~."
With a frustrated groan, he made his way over and opened the door used for his heavy weapons to see the grinning mercenary otherwise known as 'W'. Beside her-. "God-. W! What'd I tell ya about bringing corpses?"
The 'corpse' groaned, and Josue sighed, "I'm not a doctor, go to a hospital or something." He said, despite reaching inside for a bag full of medical supplies as he hopped down. Reaching under the kombi, he brought out a table. "Lay him on it." He ordered as she hummed.
"You say that, but you're always so willing." She noted, doing as he said while he glared at her. Her short gray hair swayed, and her red eyes glinted in amusement with the grenade launcher behind her and the gun behind her.
"I'm serious, W, I genuinely won't be able to treat anyone else like this any time soon." He said, pointing at the gashes on the man, looking like a sword made them, slipping out the Medscanner, and scanning the man.
"Well, what're you doing with the money I give you then?" She asked as he injected an anesthetic into the horned mercenary. She grinned, keeping her distance, "Let me guess, you've been visiting one of the bordellos?"
"I can't." Josue reminded her as he spread his hand at the abandoned warehouse where his kombi is located. "Forget an anesthetic, I won't be able to get alcohol to substitute as an anesthetic without an identity. As far as anyone in Lungmen cares, I'm an immigrant, and stealing from a hospital is a good way to get everyone and their mother on your ass." He pointed out, using scissors to cut off the mercenary's clothes. Opening it to see his injuries. "Clean, whoever did this was looking to kill and knew how. Good thing too."
While he slipped some surgical gloves and a mask, Josue began recalling his brief stint as a Paramedic, where, for some fucking reason, he was the only one who knew how to use most of the equipment within an ambulance. Most, not all, that came later with experience and actual Medtechs explaining things to him.
Regardless, he got to work, stitching injuries, monitoring their vitals, and making sure the patient was fine as he did so.
Soon, he was done, removing the gloves and throwing them in a biohazard can he keeps in case something like this happens. "He'll live." He said, bandaging the injuries as he adds, "He'll need time to recuperate the blood he lost-."
"Blah, blah, blah." W interrupted, "He's a Sarkaz-."
"And he'll die if he doesn't rest." Josue reminded her as he leaned against the opening of the kombi. "Look, W, you know I'm not the man for this. With how much you pay me, you can get anyone to patch your men up with better proficiency than I can. Go to them, private or not, anyone is better than I am."
W's eyes widened, slowly looking at him before bringing up a hand to her mouth and giggling, "Wow, I didn't know you were this naive."
Josue rolled his eyes and retorted, "And this naive dumbass is the only reason you and four other people aren't six feet under."
It was a whim, a feeling of wanting to help, that made him move to assist W, which ended up in their little situation, or the beginnings of one. Despite it being three days, W had seen him each day, the first when she woke up from her injuries, the second when she came to pay him, and today. Already, he's kind of regretting it.
"Yeah, yeah." She said, flashing a bundle of LMD at him. "Here. Your payment."
He grabbed the bundle and counted it before nodding. "Yup, all here. That's it, or are you looking for something else?"
"What are you, a merchant?" She asked, and Josue shrugged.
"Maybe. Depends on how I'm feeling." He responded, leaning against the opening of the vehicle. "So, what do you need?"
"Well~, if you're offering." She trailed off as she leaned in, trying to look into his kombi, only for a spark to remind her what happened last time she tried to pick her way into the kombi. "Got any explosives?"
"EMP, mines, grenades, flashbangs, smoke grenades," he listed off, turning back and showing them in his hands, "what do you need?"
Before she could answer, something hit the outside of the kombi as he cursed. "Fuck, W!"
"I thought we lost them, oh well~." She said, eyeing his explosives, almost excited. "Seems like we'll have to fight~."
"Yeah, no." He said, grabbing the mercenary and placing him inside away from the ensuing firefight, opening one of the compartments, and bringing out a Nomad 7.62 Bolt-Action rifle reminiscent of a Winchester M70. Pulling the bolt, he saw it was loaded before closing it. Grabbing some magazines, he closes the door behind him. W was beside him as she revealed an M4 rifle; she aimed and fired in bursts at the darkness.
Everything disappeared as he looked for a target, finding them and taking a deep breath as they stepped out, the crosshairs of the scope on his chest before it climbed up slightly.
The location of the warehouse he was in left a lot of buildings open to take potshots at him; it's an abandoned manufacturing plant with buildings around that allow a direct view of his warehouse. For some, being in such an area would be a horrible idea if the warehouse had any more holes. For Josue? Who's prone under his kombi with a sniper rifle and with only one way to enter or shoot in from?
A Solo he knew put it best, 'We're not surrounded, but in a target-rich environment'.
With the pull of a trigger, the man's head burst as he fell. Cycling the bolt, Josuee moved to the next target, looking through the roofs and the windows as the ones charging at him on foot paused. Josue let the bubble pop as he released a breath, and heard W laugh. "Nice shot, Tiger!"
"Thanks, your aim is shit," Josue noted as a spray of ammunition forced the rival mercenaries behind cover. He spotted another sniper and swerved and fired, their head bursting and falling. "So, who are they?"
"Well~," W started, no longer firing, the sound of a magazine being replaced ringing out, "they probably didn't appreciate their warehouse of contraband being blown up."
"I wouldn't either." He added, while the buttstock of the sniper rifle hit his shoulder and took out another sniper. "I don't see any more snipers."
"I think you took them out," W noted as she stepped forward. "I think they ran."
"They'll be back…" Josue trailed off as he removed the magazine, placing another one in and opening the kombi. "Fucking 'ell, shit's been stuffed." He grumbled, sitting at the entrance.
"Those were some good shots," W noted, same grin in place. "Good gun too, you take it off someone from Laterano?"
Laterano? "I'll leave that to your imagination." He answered, his cybereye flashing blue as it scanned the area and rested the rifle over his shoulder. "What now, because I'm not gonna lie, we have someone who's injured," he started, pointing to the man on his back, "you, and me. And I'm not sure that's enough to hold them off."
"Then, we won't," W said, as Josue turned to her in confusion. "We didn't just walk over here." She responded, extending her hand and waving them inward. Josue does so, gently picking the injured man up and depositing her in W's arms as she makes sure he's not gonna drop him. "We've got a ride. Don't worry," she said, winking at him, to his frustration, "this won't be the only time we see each other." She 'assured' him as she ran off, disappearing for a few seconds as Josue sighed.
After all, the people who attacked W were still there; they might think she's still there, so he needs to make his way around. He only had one other mode of transportation, though.
He glanced at his Parallax and sighed while replacing his Peacemaker with an M1911. It had been a while since he went on a joyride. With that thought, he got on it and revs the engine, the familiar hum of the engine calming him as it usually did.
The door opened thanks to Tlaloc, the Agent, suggesting a route as he decides to take it, after all, he'd been confined to a certain part of Lungmen due to his nature, despite being somewhat of a Rockerboy.
So, with a twist, the motorcycle flew out into the open, practically purring at a sedate pace of around fifty miles per hour, even if everything in Josue wanted to gun it to its complete three hundred miles per hour.
He weaved in and out of obstacles, slowing down to hear the enemies begin to try and get him as they call it in. To goad them, he aimed his M1911 back and fired, missing purposely as he tried to catch the casings, occasionally failing and occasionally successful as he drove off.
He could hear the hum of the cars driving after him as he waited for them to get closer before increasing the speed. Always right in front of them, never letting them catch him, not like they could.
Josue swerved into the main road of the city, taking in the sights of the neon city, not Night City, but its splendor far more… vicious, in a way. Night City is, at all times, radioactive, whereas in Lungmen, there's a chance you'll become infected and lose it all. Not to mention everything happening that Josue simply doesn't know.
Still, if he ever felt like it, he could just take to the Open Road, it's in his blood after all. For now? He'll just find out what this city has and enjoy it.
An arrow nearly hit him as Josue aimed and fired at the tires of the vehicle, their tires popping as they swerved to the side, and he cackled. A good ride always left him in a good mood, and W was a tiring woman to talk with on the best of days.
He continued looking around, enjoying the sights on a soft ride, something that the vehicles of Terra, as he's been told it's called, probably don't agree with. He could see the various buildings of Lungmen, the various places he could get in trouble with, and so much more.
He glanced back, and his heart skipped a beat at the sight behind him.
"This is the Lungmen Guard Department, pull over!" Someone in a cruiser yelled as someone on a motorcycle began closing the distance between them.
"Josue." Hoshiguma started as Josue nodded in a greeting.
"Hoshiguma, right? Good to see you again." Josue answered while leaning forward, forearms on the handles of his bike.
"The feeling is mutual, but I don't think Missy or Ch'en feels the same." Hoshiguma pointed out as Josue shrugged. "So, it'd be good if you could pull over."
"And what, get arrested?" He asked in disbelief. "I'm fine. Even if you did, I'd just come back in a few days after being exiled or whatever."
"Yeah," Hoshiguma admitted, "But Ch'en hasn't gotten a good night of sleep, and now Missy is looking to catch you."
"Really?" He asked, whistling, "Two beautiful women coming after me constantly? Sign me up." He said, revving the motorcycle.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Hoshiguma warned, patting her bike, "She can go pretty fast."
"That a challenge?" Josue asked, and Hoshiguma shook her head.
"More of a warning." She warned him as Josue shook his head.
Perfect.
While he chuckled inwardly, he began to speed up as Hoshiguma followed. The speedometer began to climb on both of the dashboards of their bikes, eighty, ninety, one hundred, as Hoshiguma followed easily. There was a slight smirk on her face as she chased after him.
It continued to climb, one hundred and ten, a hundred and twenty, a hundred and thirty. Hoshiguma was beginning to have trouble as the speedometer only continued to climb as he looked ahead.
One-forty.
One-fifty.
One-sixty.
One-eighty.
Two-hundred.
Hoshiguma desperately tried to stop him as the speedometer could go further, and Josue's blood was boiling for release.
So, he revved it, the speedometer climbing as he weaved in and out of traffic, the surroundings blurring as he pushed the bike to its utmost limit, and it purred in return. Almost as if it wished for him to go faster, to find that ceiling, break it, and continue going.
But fun couldn't last forever. He began to slow down, already having escaped the people after W and the Lungmen Guard Department. Slowly, he began to take in the cityscape once more at a more idle pace, driving through it as he spotted something he found interesting.
It was a scrapyard, it's fairly well-hidden too, and it's got a few cars he could see; some of them were in fairly good condition, but his interest was elsewhere. Mostly, the singular light turned on in the building as Josue led his motorcycle and turned it off, humming as he read the name. 'Scrappy's Scrap Yard'.
It was full of a bunch of interesting things, vehicles, and other appliances, while he made his way inside the gate. He ran a hand over the frame of the car, opening the hood as he noted that parts of the engine were missing, making it inoperable, but not incapable of being repaired. Closing it, he inspected inside the car and couldn't help the Nomad in him scoffing at how many good parts the Statics were wasting.
Still, he circled the car and began to realize something. He made his way to the hood and opened it again.
He could work with this. Yeah… Yeah!
Everything would have to be handmade, but Josue was a Tech for a reason. Making an engine from scratch was going to be easy, and if he could make a few rooftop gardens…
The ideas were spinning as he grinned.
Well, that was until someone put a sword to his spine. "Don't move."
Josue glanced at the glass of the windshield, spotting an old bull, a tall man with narrowed green eyes and graying hair, aging as he pointed a long sword at Josue's spine. A… Forte, if he remembered right.
Josue slowly put his hands up and asked, "So, you're Scrappy?"
The man didn't answer for a second before doing so, "Scarp. Scrappy isn't around anymore." He hissed as he lowered the sword. "So, are you looking to buy or sell?"
Slowly, Josue turned, watching the Forte in a pair of slacks and a button-up shirt, putting away the blade with ease. "Well, buy, mostly." Josue answered, looking at the car, "Though, I was wondering if we could talk inside, or wherever you'd like." He started, Josue's eyes almost glinting innocently in the night, as Scarp paused while looking at Josue for a long, long moment.
The silence stretched to uncomfortable lengths until, as Josue was about to break it, the man spoke. "Come, do you like tea or coffee?" He asked, turning and leading Josue while he thought about his answer.
"I'll have whatever you're having." He answered as Scarp nodded, leading him to the small building as he opened his home to Josue.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed. Check this out for more things, if you're interested.
Ch'en sat on her desk, pinching the space between her brows, as, for the third time, Josue Mondragon evaded capture once more, which should be impossible. This is their home turf. How did he slip out unnoticed?
What was more is that one of their uniforms went missing, so how he escaped should be obvious, but on her count, no one was wearing it, but parts of it were thrown in trash cans heading to the front desk. Then there was the gunshot that Swire heard, the only one that he's ever shot, and the empty canister of some… smoke grenade, which is impossible. Ballistics, filled with Sankta experts, couldn't identify the weapon used, other than it couldn't be the assault rifle, nor could the core be Originium. The weapon that broke the wrist of the Sankta and smacked them in the face was immediately out of the question.
The only one who was using any form of Arts in that room was Swire.
That thought scared her. Shaking her head, she returned to the reports of the officers, as some things stood out. First was Swire's interaction with an officer who, in her words, 'resembled her in bearing, standing, and attitude' and a Detective's interaction with a civilian coming to 'pick up something', which is strange since nothing was cleared to be returned to anyone.
She palmed her face and groaned, "That fucking dumbass."
At least a part of the problem had been solved, and then came the next one. How? How was he able to fool Swire? Where did he get a gun? Where did he get good enough to walk out of the police stations he's being arrested in without raising an alarm? Especially since he didn't have any form of identification on him.
The questions continued to pile up, and the answers weren't getting smaller. She would have to put out a warrant for his arrest. With the marks on his face, he wasn't exactly the most subtle, and with this whole debacle, she'll need to. It shouldn't be too hard; it's one man.
The sound of Wu-Tang Clan rang out within a vehicle, an unfamiliar sound to many in Terra, but one Josue was intimately familiar with via his actions as a Rockerboy.
Slowly, Josue sat on his bed in the main area of the kombi, his mind supplying the various instruments within. He stood at the tail end of the kombi, a small section cut off to act as a small bathroom and shower behind where he stood, leaving around twenty-five feet of extra room, around the size of a school bus. To his immediate right, there was a small kitchenette with a stove and a fridge of a similar size beside it. Further down, there were more tables where a Terminal rested along with the Communications Center, monitors behind the main terminal showing various angles outside, if it was turned on, among other details. There was also a different terminal for the sleeping Agent. His eyes landed on the floor, where he could see small indents on the floor where one would reach down and use them to reveal the chairs along with the mounts on the side, further beside the terminal.
To his left, on the other hand, he could see a table pulled down, hanging off the wall, revealing a multitude of tools and a workbench with other distinct things, a 3D Printer being one of them, mostly for ammunition and the like, whether it be caseless or cartridges. Beside that was his electric guitar and another heavy weapon mount, the weapons themselves hidden inside cases. Then, there was the Zonda Parallax in the middle, glinting under the light of the kombi as he ran his hand over it. He remembered working hard to get it.
He shook the thought away while inspecting other things, like the gun locker by his bed, the various cases he could instinctively point out as heavy weapons he'd collected, and he could spot the Malorian he took from Adam, the event being filmed by a Media as Eran found out and offered to make him a weapon. Josue was never good at coming up with a weapon, so he opted to get the Malorian modified to fit him instead of Johnny Silverhand. Something Malour seemed a bit disappointed at, so he asked for a bow instead and for the gun to be modified.
Well, he got both, the compound bow made in space used less strength, made virtually no sound, and had the power to pierce most armor. The Malorian 'Flyswatter', christened as such when he used it to shoot down a fly by accident. Its actual name was the Vortex, but everyone called it the Flyswatter.
Regardless, it was hung up at the moment, probably the most expensive decoration and most combat-capable weapon he had, as he stepped back and looked around more. There was something else, an extra 'gift' from Malour, but he left it in its case since it's never been his style.
Regardless, a sense of pride bloomed from within as a Nomad from his collection of weapons. Especially when it came to opening the compartments hidden within to reveal the bevy of old weapons he's found over the years and bought, practically a small armory for a small army with the ammunition to match.
He sat down on the worktable and returned to maintaining his weapons as he was before lying down on the bed. It was a calming thing, but it did get bothersome on occasion. He had been in Lungmen for three days, had been arrested three times, had played in two bars, and had mugged at least ten different people who tried to fight him first.
It was similar to Night City; there was always someone looking for a fight, especially since he's on the outskirts. Unlike Night City, where the closer one got to the center, the higher someone's chance was to, well, die.
The outskirts of Lungmen were part of the slums; no one had the good sense to come out here, and those who lived within had the 'good sense' to stay there, since most of them were 'Infected', but some just didn't have the money or the papers to go in. As such, criminals tended to converge in the area, Josue being one such person, as the actual 'slums' looked actually livable, even for the Infected.
That said-.
He jumped, someone, slamming their fist against the side of the vehicle, supposedly camouflaged, as a voice continued, "Hey~. Tiger~."
With a frustrated groan, he made his way over and opened the door used for his heavy weapons to see the grinning mercenary otherwise known as 'W'. Beside her-. "God-. W! What'd I tell ya about bringing corpses?"
The 'corpse' groaned, and Josue sighed, "I'm not a doctor, go to a hospital or something." He said, despite reaching inside for a bag full of medical supplies as he hopped down. Reaching under the kombi, he brought out a table. "Lay him on it." He ordered as she hummed.
"You say that, but you're always so willing." She noted, doing as he said while he glared at her. Her short gray hair swayed, and her red eyes glinted in amusement with the grenade launcher behind her and the gun behind her.
"I'm serious, W, I genuinely won't be able to treat anyone else like this any time soon." He said, pointing at the gashes on the man, looking like a sword made them, slipping out the Medscanner, and scanning the man.
"Well, what're you doing with the money I give you then?" She asked as he injected an anesthetic into the horned mercenary. She grinned, keeping her distance, "Let me guess, you've been visiting one of the bordellos?"
"I can't." Josue reminded her as he spread his hand at the abandoned warehouse where his kombi is located. "Forget an anesthetic, I won't be able to get alcohol to substitute as an anesthetic without an identity. As far as anyone in Lungmen cares, I'm an immigrant, and stealing from a hospital is a good way to get everyone and their mother on your ass." He pointed out, using scissors to cut off the mercenary's clothes. Opening it to see his injuries. "Clean, whoever did this was looking to kill and knew how. Good thing too."
While he slipped some surgical gloves and a mask, Josue began recalling his brief stint as a Paramedic, where, for some fucking reason, he was the only one who knew how to use most of the equipment within an ambulance. Most, not all, that came later with experience and actual Medtechs explaining things to him.
Regardless, he got to work, stitching injuries, monitoring their vitals, and making sure the patient was fine as he did so.
Soon, he was done, removing the gloves and throwing them in a biohazard can he keeps in case something like this happens. "He'll live." He said, bandaging the injuries as he adds, "He'll need time to recuperate the blood he lost-."
"Blah, blah, blah." W interrupted, "He's a Sarkaz-."
"And he'll die if he doesn't rest." Josue reminded her as he leaned against the opening of the kombi. "Look, W, you know I'm not the man for this. With how much you pay me, you can get anyone to patch your men up with better proficiency than I can. Go to them, private or not, anyone is better than I am."
W's eyes widened, slowly looking at him before bringing up a hand to her mouth and giggling, "Wow, I didn't know you were this naive."
Josue rolled his eyes and retorted, "And this naive dumbass is the only reason you and four other people aren't six feet under."
It was a whim, a feeling of wanting to help, that made him move to assist W, which ended up in their little situation, or the beginnings of one. Despite it being three days, W had seen him each day, the first when she woke up from her injuries, the second when she came to pay him, and today. Already, he's kind of regretting it.
"Yeah, yeah." She said, flashing a bundle of LMD at him. "Here. Your payment."
He grabbed the bundle and counted it before nodding. "Yup, all here. That's it, or are you looking for something else?"
"What are you, a merchant?" She asked, and Josue shrugged.
"Maybe. Depends on how I'm feeling." He responded, leaning against the opening of the vehicle. "So, what do you need?"
"Well~, if you're offering." She trailed off as she leaned in, trying to look into his kombi, only for a spark to remind her what happened last time she tried to pick her way into the kombi. "Got any explosives?"
"EMP, mines, grenades, flashbangs, smoke grenades," he listed off, turning back and showing them in his hands, "what do you need?"
Before she could answer, something hit the outside of the kombi as he cursed. "Fuck, W!"
"I thought we lost them, oh well~." She said, eyeing his explosives, almost excited. "Seems like we'll have to fight~."
"Yeah, no." He said, grabbing the mercenary and placing him inside away from the ensuing firefight, opening one of the compartments, and bringing out a Nomad 7.62 Bolt-Action rifle reminiscent of a Winchester M70. Pulling the bolt, he saw it was loaded before closing it. Grabbing some magazines, he closes the door behind him. W was beside him as she revealed an M4 rifle; she aimed and fired in bursts at the darkness.
Everything disappeared as he looked for a target, finding them and taking a deep breath as they stepped out, the crosshairs of the scope on his chest before it climbed up slightly.
The location of the warehouse he was in left a lot of buildings open to take potshots at him; it's an abandoned manufacturing plant with buildings around that allow a direct view of his warehouse. For some, being in such an area would be a horrible idea if the warehouse had any more holes. For Josue? Who's prone under his kombi with a sniper rifle and with only one way to enter or shoot in from?
A Solo he knew put it best, 'We're not surrounded, but in a target-rich environment'.
With the pull of a trigger, the man's head burst as he fell. Cycling the bolt, Josuee moved to the next target, looking through the roofs and the windows as the ones charging at him on foot paused. Josue let the bubble pop as he released a breath, and heard W laugh. "Nice shot, Tiger!"
"Thanks, your aim is shit," Josue noted as a spray of ammunition forced the rival mercenaries behind cover. He spotted another sniper and swerved and fired, their head bursting and falling. "So, who are they?"
"Well~," W started, no longer firing, the sound of a magazine being replaced ringing out, "they probably didn't appreciate their warehouse of contraband being blown up."
"I wouldn't either." He added, while the buttstock of the sniper rifle hit his shoulder and took out another sniper. "I don't see any more snipers."
"I think you took them out," W noted as she stepped forward. "I think they ran."
"They'll be back…" Josue trailed off as he removed the magazine, placing another one in and opening the kombi. "Fucking 'ell, shit's been stuffed." He grumbled, sitting at the entrance.
"Those were some good shots," W noted, same grin in place. "Good gun too, you take it off someone from Laterano?"
Laterano? "I'll leave that to your imagination." He answered, his cybereye flashing blue as it scanned the area and rested the rifle over his shoulder. "What now, because I'm not gonna lie, we have someone who's injured," he started, pointing to the man on his back, "you, and me. And I'm not sure that's enough to hold them off."
"Then, we won't," W said, as Josue turned to her in confusion. "We didn't just walk over here." She responded, extending her hand and waving them inward. Josue does so, gently picking the injured man up and depositing her in W's arms as she makes sure he's not gonna drop him. "We've got a ride. Don't worry," she said, winking at him, to his frustration, "this won't be the only time we see each other." She 'assured' him as she ran off, disappearing for a few seconds as Josue sighed.
After all, the people who attacked W were still there; they might think she's still there, so he needs to make his way around. He only had one other mode of transportation, though.
He glanced at his Parallax and sighed while replacing his Peacemaker with an M1911. It had been a while since he went on a joyride. With that thought, he got on it and revs the engine, the familiar hum of the engine calming him as it usually did.
The door opened thanks to Tlaloc, the Agent, suggesting a route as he decides to take it, after all, he'd been confined to a certain part of Lungmen due to his nature, despite being somewhat of a Rockerboy.
So, with a twist, the motorcycle flew out into the open, practically purring at a sedate pace of around fifty miles per hour, even if everything in Josue wanted to gun it to its complete three hundred miles per hour.
He weaved in and out of obstacles, slowing down to hear the enemies begin to try and get him as they call it in. To goad them, he aimed his M1911 back and fired, missing purposely as he tried to catch the casings, occasionally failing and occasionally successful as he drove off.
He could hear the hum of the cars driving after him as he waited for them to get closer before increasing the speed. Always right in front of them, never letting them catch him, not like they could.
Josue swerved into the main road of the city, taking in the sights of the neon city, not Night City, but its splendor far more… vicious, in a way. Night City is, at all times, radioactive, whereas in Lungmen, there's a chance you'll become infected and lose it all. Not to mention everything happening that Josue simply doesn't know.
Still, if he ever felt like it, he could just take to the Open Road, it's in his blood after all. For now? He'll just find out what this city has and enjoy it.
An arrow nearly hit him as Josue aimed and fired at the tires of the vehicle, their tires popping as they swerved to the side, and he cackled. A good ride always left him in a good mood, and W was a tiring woman to talk with on the best of days.
He continued looking around, enjoying the sights on a soft ride, something that the vehicles of Terra, as he's been told it's called, probably don't agree with. He could see the various buildings of Lungmen, the various places he could get in trouble with, and so much more.
He glanced back, and his heart skipped a beat at the sight behind him.
"This is the Lungmen Guard Department, pull over!" Someone in a cruiser yelled as someone on a motorcycle began closing the distance between them.
"Josue." Hoshiguma started as Josue nodded in a greeting.
"Hoshiguma, right? Good to see you again." Josue answered while leaning forward, forearms on the handles of his bike.
"The feeling is mutual, but I don't think Missy or Ch'en feels the same." Hoshiguma pointed out as Josue shrugged. "So, it'd be good if you could pull over."
"And what, get arrested?" He asked in disbelief. "I'm fine. Even if you did, I'd just come back in a few days after being exiled or whatever."
"Yeah," Hoshiguma admitted, "But Ch'en hasn't gotten a good night of sleep, and now Missy is looking to catch you."
"Really?" He asked, whistling, "Two beautiful women coming after me constantly? Sign me up." He said, revving the motorcycle.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Hoshiguma warned, patting her bike, "She can go pretty fast."
"That a challenge?" Josue asked, and Hoshiguma shook her head.
"More of a warning." She warned him as Josue shook his head.
Perfect.
While he chuckled inwardly, he began to speed up as Hoshiguma followed. The speedometer began to climb on both of the dashboards of their bikes, eighty, ninety, one hundred, as Hoshiguma followed easily. There was a slight smirk on her face as she chased after him.
It continued to climb, one hundred and ten, a hundred and twenty, a hundred and thirty. Hoshiguma was beginning to have trouble as the speedometer only continued to climb as he looked ahead.
One-forty.
One-fifty.
One-sixty.
One-eighty.
Two-hundred.
Hoshiguma desperately tried to stop him as the speedometer could go further, and Josue's blood was boiling for release.
So, he revved it, the speedometer climbing as he weaved in and out of traffic, the surroundings blurring as he pushed the bike to its utmost limit, and it purred in return. Almost as if it wished for him to go faster, to find that ceiling, break it, and continue going.
But fun couldn't last forever. He began to slow down, already having escaped the people after W and the Lungmen Guard Department. Slowly, he began to take in the cityscape once more at a more idle pace, driving through it as he spotted something he found interesting.
It was a scrapyard, it's fairly well-hidden too, and it's got a few cars he could see; some of them were in fairly good condition, but his interest was elsewhere. Mostly, the singular light turned on in the building as Josue led his motorcycle and turned it off, humming as he read the name. 'Scrappy's Scrap Yard'.
It was full of a bunch of interesting things, vehicles, and other appliances, while he made his way inside the gate. He ran a hand over the frame of the car, opening the hood as he noted that parts of the engine were missing, making it inoperable, but not incapable of being repaired. Closing it, he inspected inside the car and couldn't help the Nomad in him scoffing at how many good parts the Statics were wasting.
Still, he circled the car and began to realize something. He made his way to the hood and opened it again.
He could work with this. Yeah… Yeah!
Everything would have to be handmade, but Josue was a Tech for a reason. Making an engine from scratch was going to be easy, and if he could make a few rooftop gardens…
The ideas were spinning as he grinned.
Well, that was until someone put a sword to his spine. "Don't move."
Josue glanced at the glass of the windshield, spotting an old bull, a tall man with narrowed green eyes and graying hair, aging as he pointed a long sword at Josue's spine. A… Forte, if he remembered right.
Josue slowly put his hands up and asked, "So, you're Scrappy?"
The man didn't answer for a second before doing so, "Scarp. Scrappy isn't around anymore." He hissed as he lowered the sword. "So, are you looking to buy or sell?"
Slowly, Josue turned, watching the Forte in a pair of slacks and a button-up shirt, putting away the blade with ease. "Well, buy, mostly." Josue answered, looking at the car, "Though, I was wondering if we could talk inside, or wherever you'd like." He started, Josue's eyes almost glinting innocently in the night, as Scarp paused while looking at Josue for a long, long moment.
The silence stretched to uncomfortable lengths until, as Josue was about to break it, the man spoke. "Come, do you like tea or coffee?" He asked, turning and leading Josue while he thought about his answer.
"I'll have whatever you're having." He answered as Scarp nodded, leading him to the small building as he opened his home to Josue.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed. Check this out for more things, if you're interested.
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1.3 Neon Lights
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501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
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A loud slurp rang out. Scarp ignored it while Josue paused, drinking at a more sedate and quieter pace before sighing, steam coming from his mouth and coalescing in the air before disappearing. He didn't answer for a long second, taking another sip as he seemed to practically meld with the couch he's on, to Scarp's vague confusion. The tea is supposed to make people more alert, which is something Josue has experience with, realizing that it usually does the opposite for him.
Still, Josue was at his best when relaxed, so he placed the cup on the coffee table and laid down his cards. "I wanna work as a mechanic for you and use some of the scrapped parts to make a car and its parts." He answered bluntly as the man paused, before looking at him.
"… That's all?"
"Well, beyond all the laws I might be breaking." Josue admitted honestly before nodding, "Yeah." He said as Scarp looked at him and realized something.
He was being honest. That… That was it?
Josue tilted his head, "Not to mention other… things I might need to… sell." He trailed off, unsure of what to do next despite his previous dealings. After all, if he was relaxed, he defaults to his usual personality, which is a lot more awkward than one would believe and a lot rougher, too.
Scarp looked at him, bringing a hand to his chin as he hummed. "Is that it?" He asked as Josue gave him a confused look. "You know…" He trailed off, a fond smile on his face, "I…" he trailed off, glancing to the side where he could spot a picture frame, showing him and someone else as he smiled. "I don't think I'd mind."
"Even…" He trailed off, "all the shady shit?"
"Yes." Scarp confirmed before bringing up a hand, "You know how I run this place, right?"
"Yeah." Josue answered, "It's a scrap yard, people bring in scrap, and you pay them, or they come to pick up scrap, and they pay you."
Scarp nodded, "You saw some of the buildings around here, correct? I own them and some other places around town, which means I know quite a few things." He answered as Josue nodded. "So, a small distance away, connected to this property, there's an auto shop you can set up in the morning. There are also a few… additions as well." He added as he stood up. "For now," he started, making his way up the stairs, "a new day will begin anew tomorrow. I'll have something for you then."
Josue watched him go and nodded, mostly to himself, as he looked at the couch and made himself comfortable on it. He can always go for his kombi later.
Now, Josue had a new opportunity, something to start anew, maybe this time, it'll go better than before. Still, he knows himself better than most, so he'll be fine until he's six feet under or decides to leave it all behind.
Well, whatever. He had a job to do now, and he needed sleep for it. So, with a tap from his Agent, Tlaloc drove the kombi and made his way through the outskirts to his location. Slowly, sleep comes easily as he lets it all pass by him.
Once more, Wei Yenwu was reading through a report, one submitted by the LGD, especially in one particular part. The vehicles. In his office, he brought older reports from the past three days, this time, from a team of mechanics and engineers.
Each one of them said many things, but it could all be summarized into one idea. The efficiency of the various systems of the cars was far more efficient after 'Josue' touched them with the skill that only experienced mechanics have. There was also his skill in general, skills you can't get being a soldier, varied skills usually needed in war zones.
Despite that, at no time had he ever displayed a racial feature. He acted differently, talked differently, and did things differently with different weapons, weapons that they've never been able to study correctly since he always escapes before he, or anyone else, can get hold of them.
If anything, there were a few curiosities that made him think. For one, he seemed to have a very charismatic bearing, but rarely used it, and from the fights he's seen, he tends to favor his right arm or his legs in the style he uses.
But Wei hadn't met him, and that's what has him hesitating for the first time. Because, for the first time, a piece fell onto the board, and he had no idea what to do about it. Investigating it would be best, but he's been elusive, as if he knows he's being watched. He's curious, but pushing too hard might push him away from the city, whether that's good or not is still up for debate.
For now, he'll wait, watching the world pass by and his own home along with Lungmen.
Like usual, Scarp's contacts came through, setting up Josue with identification as well as some things to test out his mettle and technological mastery. A few people around the block and the general area who need an appliance repaired or maintained, nothing too complicated.
He felt like he was back in his youth again, causing possible trouble, planning trouble with his friend… A friend he will never see again.
Scarp reached for a book, fixed his glasses as he read through it, philosophy, as he amused himself with it, until the feeling of guilt dissipates. Oh, how similar those two are. Shorter than he is, just as capable, and just as honest.
It was like a blast from the past as he looked to the ceiling. Many changes are going to happen, and he's going to be right in the middle of it.
A small smile lit up his soul.
How fun.
The next morning, Josue woke up in some shorts and a sleeveless shirt, yawning as his back popped and he listened to the sound of bachata as he could hear someone hum to the music he picked up a few days ago. Yawning, he sat up, bringing a hand and rubbing his eyes as someone placed a plate in front of him.
Instead of the woman he was expecting, he saw a Forte place it in front of him, some orange juice to the side as he joined him with his plate, to Josue's confusion. After all, chicken eggs and ham were generally luxury goods in Night Ci…
He wasn't in Night City anymore. He wasn't in the Open Road, where his mother was making him some eggs and ham in secret since it would get her in trouble with the Family. He wasn't in the Open Road of the NUSA, where one of the older members taught him how to make a mean brisket.
He wasn't in the Open Road, where things like these were open secrets, usually digging into the funds from the Family as a consequence. The Head of the Family, one of the members of the band Los Tigres Del Norte, at most kept up the illusion that he was keeping an eye out for their economic well-being and not doing the same thing on occasion.
Construction, which was their main job besides smuggling and escorting, took up a lot of energy.
Josue shook his head and grabbed a fork, pointing at the egg, "Is… it fine?"
"Yes," Scarp confirmed, digging into his food. "You do not seem like you've been eating well."
As a Nomad who sometimes worked with cattle, Josue was used to a lot more actual food rather than cloned or kibble. Night City reversed that simply because of how expensive genuine food was. As such, he got into the habit of not eating much; maybe it was him being spoiled, or the sheer difference between food, but…
He shook his head and grabbed a fork, popping the yolk of the egg as he cut off a part and stabbed a piece of ham before doing the same with the egg and eating it.
Josue knew it, knew the feeling of tears running down his cheek. He was simply grateful Scarp didn't comment on it, as the taste of his mother's cooking, of her exhausted look, unskilled hands in machinery, her deft hands in accounting, and observant eyes all landed on him.
For the first time, it hit him. Not just the realization, but it settled in.
He'll never see them again.
Not his Family, not his fellow Edgerunners, or the ones he liked anyway, nothing. He's good, but he doubts he can make a vehicle capable of crossing dimensions. Even if he could…
Would he want to?
Once more, he was a teenager, crying as his family died around him. Still, he continued to eat; it wasn't his mother cooking, but…
"… It's good." He managed through bites as he tried to keep his tears from landing on the ham and egg.
It was.
He wanted to curl up, but something else in him felt… liberated as he took a sip from his cup and began to wonder…
Why?
Why him?
Why was he here?
Sure, he was a Night City Legend, nearly had his drink become an order in the Afterlife a few times, but what makes him special?
Was it the machine he maintained when he first got here? The generator he fixed up that his Family stole from Arasaka all those years ago? It has to be, but he's seen the reports; anyone who tried didn't come back without becoming spaghetti, with the tomato sauce too. So, again, why?
"Hey, Scarp," Josue started, swallowing his food as he grabbed a napkin and blew his nose, clearing up his nose and voice, "mind if I ask you a question?"
"Go ahead." Scarp let him while he read the newspaper.
"Do you believe in fate?" Josue asked.
"I believe that there are choices to make, and the choices must be made." Scarp said, looking through his newspaper as if philosophical conversations were the norm, "Some might say that they are 'fated' for greatness or similar, and maybe they are." He noted, "But those who can look at atrocities and call it 'fate' look only for an escape. Maybe it's all predetermined, or maybe we're truly free. Maybe we're meant to be in groups, or maybe we're supposed to find our way through life alone. In the end, they are choices we make; to act otherwise is an insult."
There was a beat of silence as Scarp looked at Josue, "So, let me ask you this: do you believe in fate?"
For a second, Josue didn't say anything, eating steadily before taking a drink from his orange juice, "… No." He answered, he's a Nomad, after all. He chose what car he used, he chose where to go, he chose where to stay, he chose what to do, and who to kill; all of these are his choices. "I believe there's an Open Road, and I'm looking to go through it."
Scarp didn't answer, instead smiling softly. "Good." He said, "Once you're done, I'll show you around."
"M'kay." He answered, eating his fill.
Soon, the two made their way outside to the auto shop. "Here is where you will be working." He presents, revealing the large open area, various tools in various states of decay and disrepair, but still in working condition, before walking to the side. A set of stairs led upstairs to the second floor. Josue looked around, his head turning as he continued, "If you need anything else, tell me, but I think you'll find everything satisfactory here."
"Yeah…" He said, nodding as the two made their way to the top of the auto shop. Leaning on the railing, he looked over the floor, grinning. "I think I can make this work."
Josue nodded to himself, ready for whatever the world had in store.
A/N: Hello people, with this, Neon Knight's first chapter is over... here anyway. I hope all of you enjoyed it so far. I might not be uploading the first section of the next chapter tomorrow, might upload some smut instead, who knows. Anyway, if you have anything to say, I'd like to hear it, even if it's just that you enjoyed this first chapter.
Remember that I write in other places like AO3 and FF, where there are more chapters uploaded. If you're interested, check this out. Until then, Solar out.
Still, Josue was at his best when relaxed, so he placed the cup on the coffee table and laid down his cards. "I wanna work as a mechanic for you and use some of the scrapped parts to make a car and its parts." He answered bluntly as the man paused, before looking at him.
"… That's all?"
"Well, beyond all the laws I might be breaking." Josue admitted honestly before nodding, "Yeah." He said as Scarp looked at him and realized something.
He was being honest. That… That was it?
Josue tilted his head, "Not to mention other… things I might need to… sell." He trailed off, unsure of what to do next despite his previous dealings. After all, if he was relaxed, he defaults to his usual personality, which is a lot more awkward than one would believe and a lot rougher, too.
Scarp looked at him, bringing a hand to his chin as he hummed. "Is that it?" He asked as Josue gave him a confused look. "You know…" He trailed off, a fond smile on his face, "I…" he trailed off, glancing to the side where he could spot a picture frame, showing him and someone else as he smiled. "I don't think I'd mind."
"Even…" He trailed off, "all the shady shit?"
"Yes." Scarp confirmed before bringing up a hand, "You know how I run this place, right?"
"Yeah." Josue answered, "It's a scrap yard, people bring in scrap, and you pay them, or they come to pick up scrap, and they pay you."
Scarp nodded, "You saw some of the buildings around here, correct? I own them and some other places around town, which means I know quite a few things." He answered as Josue nodded. "So, a small distance away, connected to this property, there's an auto shop you can set up in the morning. There are also a few… additions as well." He added as he stood up. "For now," he started, making his way up the stairs, "a new day will begin anew tomorrow. I'll have something for you then."
Josue watched him go and nodded, mostly to himself, as he looked at the couch and made himself comfortable on it. He can always go for his kombi later.
Now, Josue had a new opportunity, something to start anew, maybe this time, it'll go better than before. Still, he knows himself better than most, so he'll be fine until he's six feet under or decides to leave it all behind.
Well, whatever. He had a job to do now, and he needed sleep for it. So, with a tap from his Agent, Tlaloc drove the kombi and made his way through the outskirts to his location. Slowly, sleep comes easily as he lets it all pass by him.
Once more, Wei Yenwu was reading through a report, one submitted by the LGD, especially in one particular part. The vehicles. In his office, he brought older reports from the past three days, this time, from a team of mechanics and engineers.
Each one of them said many things, but it could all be summarized into one idea. The efficiency of the various systems of the cars was far more efficient after 'Josue' touched them with the skill that only experienced mechanics have. There was also his skill in general, skills you can't get being a soldier, varied skills usually needed in war zones.
Despite that, at no time had he ever displayed a racial feature. He acted differently, talked differently, and did things differently with different weapons, weapons that they've never been able to study correctly since he always escapes before he, or anyone else, can get hold of them.
If anything, there were a few curiosities that made him think. For one, he seemed to have a very charismatic bearing, but rarely used it, and from the fights he's seen, he tends to favor his right arm or his legs in the style he uses.
But Wei hadn't met him, and that's what has him hesitating for the first time. Because, for the first time, a piece fell onto the board, and he had no idea what to do about it. Investigating it would be best, but he's been elusive, as if he knows he's being watched. He's curious, but pushing too hard might push him away from the city, whether that's good or not is still up for debate.
For now, he'll wait, watching the world pass by and his own home along with Lungmen.
Like usual, Scarp's contacts came through, setting up Josue with identification as well as some things to test out his mettle and technological mastery. A few people around the block and the general area who need an appliance repaired or maintained, nothing too complicated.
He felt like he was back in his youth again, causing possible trouble, planning trouble with his friend… A friend he will never see again.
Scarp reached for a book, fixed his glasses as he read through it, philosophy, as he amused himself with it, until the feeling of guilt dissipates. Oh, how similar those two are. Shorter than he is, just as capable, and just as honest.
It was like a blast from the past as he looked to the ceiling. Many changes are going to happen, and he's going to be right in the middle of it.
A small smile lit up his soul.
How fun.
The next morning, Josue woke up in some shorts and a sleeveless shirt, yawning as his back popped and he listened to the sound of bachata as he could hear someone hum to the music he picked up a few days ago. Yawning, he sat up, bringing a hand and rubbing his eyes as someone placed a plate in front of him.
Instead of the woman he was expecting, he saw a Forte place it in front of him, some orange juice to the side as he joined him with his plate, to Josue's confusion. After all, chicken eggs and ham were generally luxury goods in Night Ci…
He wasn't in Night City anymore. He wasn't in the Open Road, where his mother was making him some eggs and ham in secret since it would get her in trouble with the Family. He wasn't in the Open Road of the NUSA, where one of the older members taught him how to make a mean brisket.
He wasn't in the Open Road, where things like these were open secrets, usually digging into the funds from the Family as a consequence. The Head of the Family, one of the members of the band Los Tigres Del Norte, at most kept up the illusion that he was keeping an eye out for their economic well-being and not doing the same thing on occasion.
Construction, which was their main job besides smuggling and escorting, took up a lot of energy.
Josue shook his head and grabbed a fork, pointing at the egg, "Is… it fine?"
"Yes," Scarp confirmed, digging into his food. "You do not seem like you've been eating well."
As a Nomad who sometimes worked with cattle, Josue was used to a lot more actual food rather than cloned or kibble. Night City reversed that simply because of how expensive genuine food was. As such, he got into the habit of not eating much; maybe it was him being spoiled, or the sheer difference between food, but…
He shook his head and grabbed a fork, popping the yolk of the egg as he cut off a part and stabbed a piece of ham before doing the same with the egg and eating it.
Josue knew it, knew the feeling of tears running down his cheek. He was simply grateful Scarp didn't comment on it, as the taste of his mother's cooking, of her exhausted look, unskilled hands in machinery, her deft hands in accounting, and observant eyes all landed on him.
For the first time, it hit him. Not just the realization, but it settled in.
He'll never see them again.
Not his Family, not his fellow Edgerunners, or the ones he liked anyway, nothing. He's good, but he doubts he can make a vehicle capable of crossing dimensions. Even if he could…
Would he want to?
Once more, he was a teenager, crying as his family died around him. Still, he continued to eat; it wasn't his mother cooking, but…
"… It's good." He managed through bites as he tried to keep his tears from landing on the ham and egg.
It was.
He wanted to curl up, but something else in him felt… liberated as he took a sip from his cup and began to wonder…
Why?
Why him?
Why was he here?
Sure, he was a Night City Legend, nearly had his drink become an order in the Afterlife a few times, but what makes him special?
Was it the machine he maintained when he first got here? The generator he fixed up that his Family stole from Arasaka all those years ago? It has to be, but he's seen the reports; anyone who tried didn't come back without becoming spaghetti, with the tomato sauce too. So, again, why?
"Hey, Scarp," Josue started, swallowing his food as he grabbed a napkin and blew his nose, clearing up his nose and voice, "mind if I ask you a question?"
"Go ahead." Scarp let him while he read the newspaper.
"Do you believe in fate?" Josue asked.
"I believe that there are choices to make, and the choices must be made." Scarp said, looking through his newspaper as if philosophical conversations were the norm, "Some might say that they are 'fated' for greatness or similar, and maybe they are." He noted, "But those who can look at atrocities and call it 'fate' look only for an escape. Maybe it's all predetermined, or maybe we're truly free. Maybe we're meant to be in groups, or maybe we're supposed to find our way through life alone. In the end, they are choices we make; to act otherwise is an insult."
There was a beat of silence as Scarp looked at Josue, "So, let me ask you this: do you believe in fate?"
For a second, Josue didn't say anything, eating steadily before taking a drink from his orange juice, "… No." He answered, he's a Nomad, after all. He chose what car he used, he chose where to go, he chose where to stay, he chose what to do, and who to kill; all of these are his choices. "I believe there's an Open Road, and I'm looking to go through it."
Scarp didn't answer, instead smiling softly. "Good." He said, "Once you're done, I'll show you around."
"M'kay." He answered, eating his fill.
Soon, the two made their way outside to the auto shop. "Here is where you will be working." He presents, revealing the large open area, various tools in various states of decay and disrepair, but still in working condition, before walking to the side. A set of stairs led upstairs to the second floor. Josue looked around, his head turning as he continued, "If you need anything else, tell me, but I think you'll find everything satisfactory here."
"Yeah…" He said, nodding as the two made their way to the top of the auto shop. Leaning on the railing, he looked over the floor, grinning. "I think I can make this work."
Josue nodded to himself, ready for whatever the world had in store.
A/N: Hello people, with this, Neon Knight's first chapter is over... here anyway. I hope all of you enjoyed it so far. I might not be uploading the first section of the next chapter tomorrow, might upload some smut instead, who knows. Anyway, if you have anything to say, I'd like to hear it, even if it's just that you enjoyed this first chapter.
Remember that I write in other places like AO3 and FF, where there are more chapters uploaded. If you're interested, check this out. Until then, Solar out.
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2.1 Welcome to Lungmen
New
501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2026
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A/N: Hello people, I'm back. Here's the chapter. I hope you enjoy it.
Musical Leitmotif: Welcome to Los Santos
As one would expect, the moment Josue got an identity and a solid address to live in, the police were on his ass faster than the IRS. It… was impressive, admittedly, and it means that they at least cared more than normal. Bad news: the police were at his door.
The good news is that no one looks at the roof. Or roofs from other buildings as he looks at the list of people who need the help of… someone. He knew why they needed him. According to Scarp, they needed appliances fixed and didn't have the money to hire someone reliable. So, he now has to blindly make his way through it just like he did back when he was in his Family. Unlike then, he doesn't have an unreliable uncle to teach him the ropes or throw random problems his way with little explanation.
So, with an M1911 on his hip, M-2012 on his back, and Malorian on his shoulder, Josue made his way down the list.
Ch'en stared down the old Forte as he sipped his tea. "Mr.-."
"Scarp," he interjected politely, Ch'en's brow twitching as she hissed. "We have a warrant for Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon's arrest. If you impede that process, we have every right to arrest you."
"What makes you think I'm lying?" Scarp asked, his green eyes looking at her as if they were the picture of innocence. "I'm simply an old man managing his business in the corpse of a long-forgotten dream. At no time did I spot anyone named 'Josue' or 'Tiger' in here." He looked behind her to see Swire. "I can see a tiger. That's about it."
Ch'en had to stop herself from sniping at Swire since they were on official business, in front of a 'civilian' they knew when they were younger, who was once attached to a certain rat she knew. "Regardless, we have evidence that Josue is in this building, or that you at least know where he is."
"Show it then." Scarp challenged them with a calm demeanor, bereft of the stereotypical image of a Forte, but one Ch'en is more familiar with. "Because then I feel like we'd have another problem because I was asleep all night, and if someone stepped out of this building looking like me? Well, I'd believe you're too obsessed with horror stories." He joked as Swire scoffed, also having to stop herself from sniping at Ch'en.
Thankfully, someone did interject before anyone said anything else: "Well, here I was, hoping I could get some parts for my bike." Hoshiguma noted, to Swire and Ch'en's confusion. Scarp raised his brow, recognizing the Oni for who she was, but not pointing her out.
"It's a scrapyard." Scarp pointed out, "Once upon a time, someone would be in the auto shop, using this crap, melting it down and turning it into something else. But he's not here anymore, so most of what's here isn't worth anything and will only worsen whatever you have."
"So…" Hoshiguma trailed off as Scarp raised a brow.
"I run a business, as long as you tell me what and pay, anything more is beyond my scope of understanding or care." He waved her off while Hoshiguma nodded with a small smile.
"Of course, thank you, Scarp," Hoshiguma said before she made her way outside. Ch'en and Swire followed her.
"Hoshiguma, what are you doing?" Ch'en asked, confused and a bit frustrated, while her partner looked through the various rusted or broken down vehicles and scrap within the yard. "We're on the clock."
"I know, I know." Hoshiguma assured Ch'en, "But if he was hiding Josue, Scarp, and many others won't say anything to the Guard Department. It's how it is around here. You know this." Hoshiguma noted, her eyes catching something as she crouched down. "We can find evidence, though." Hoshiguma said, dragging a finger over vague marks, "These look like the marks left by his bike."
"So he's sheltering him?" Swire pointed out.
"Or he's here, and Scarp doesn't know." Ch'en grimaced lightly, "And we can't exactly perform an inspection without a warrant."
"Which is gonna be hard." Hoshiguma pointed out. "Scarp is the private type, he'll let people see but never do more than that."
"Damn." Ch'en cursed with a grimace before sighing. "Nothing we can do about it, let's go home, set up some surveillance, and then-."
"What are these tracks?" Swire asked, pointing at the floor away from the area in front of the auto shop. "They don't look like any of the tracks of any of the cars here."
"No. Heavier." Hoshiguma noted. "Looks like a… semi-truck?" She said, a bit surprised, before leaning slightly and trying to get a good look inside the closed gates of the auto shop. "Can't see anything though."
"So he has a different vehicle," Ch'en noted, frowning, if he had a motorcycle that could outspeed Hoshiguma's, who knows what else he had? "What is he planning?"
Ch'en has met many people, but Josue's countenance was always one of calm amusement as if it's all expected and he's just laughing inwardly. However, his eyes always seemed to look straight through her, as if he were sizing her up before returning to being relaxed.
Maybe it was experience or the various times he escaped, but Ch'en felt that, under the relaxed stance, something was waiting to attack. Something that wouldn't hesitate to attack.
What could a person as dangerous as that be doing at the moment?
"Right, yeah, like that," Josue said, bobbing his head at the young man in front of him using sticks to hit his drum set, a steady rhythm as Josue bobbed his head. "That's a good rhythm. Preem."
"'Preem'?" Oscar asked, raising a brow, "The hell is that?"
"Premium." Josue elaborated, his hands deep in the guts of the machinery found inside an oven within Terra, belonging to the third person he was supposed to help, as their son let him in.
Oscar, a young Lupo with a father who worked in an office, and a mother who worked as a nurse, has black hair cut short and blue eyes, a small scar on one of his ears, while wearing a sweater over a black shirt, and ripped jeans. He's a smart kid with a rough tongue and a love for his drum set. If he weren't part of the slums, he might have been capable of enrolling in a pretty good school, but 'pretty good' doesn't justify offering scholarships to a kid from an area where Infected are seen.
"Thanks." He said, "Your advice was useful, old timer."
"Watch it." Josue warned, pointing a finger at him while he peered out of the oven, "I'm not much older than you are. You'll be an old timer too before you know it."
The Lupo rolled his blue eyes as he looked at his drum set. "You play an instrument?"
"Electric guitar, violin, harmonica, piano," he listed, "but why?"
"You…" he trailed off, almost anxiously, "you wouldn't happen to need a drummer, would you?"
"I don't play in nice places." Josue admitted, "Bars, and the like, or much at all, you still sure?"
"Yeah." He said confidently. "I-I need to start somewhere." He answered while Josue huffed, a bit of amusement in his voice, as he closed the oven.
"If you can find somewhere to play," he started, leaving a small paper on the table, "call me. We can practice there."
"Right," Oscar said, and Josue waved while going to the door.
"Your oven's done, see ya later." He said, finishing up his last errand for the day as he had nothing else to do, other than… well, not much, admittedly.
He moved through the apartments, which were maintained but not exactly to the best standard, similar to the Megabuildings constructed back in Night City. He should look for some bars, somewhere to perform, and make some cash on the side.
He walked through the roads of the border between the slums and the middle-class area of Lungmen. Unlike the rest of Lungmen, it was far calmer, more of an area for people to live in rather than the business-centered city it is. Each step left him to his thoughts as he brought a hand to his chin. He, admittedly, doesn't know much, so maybe he should check out the library. It'd be useful, if anything else, to learn the history of Terra in its entirety.
"Damn it." Someone grumbled inside an alley, to Josue's vague interest as he looked inside. Within the passage, a suited man inspected the engine of a car, the other scanned the area, his eyes landing on Josue, where they narrowed in suspicion.
Well, they locked eyes, so now Josue can't be an asshole and just walk away. "… Need some help?"
"N-No." The man said, extracting his hands from the engine to wipe the sweat off his forehead, "I-It's fine, just-."
"I think you rigged it to explode by accident," Josue noted, to the man's shock as he leaped away from the car.
"N-No way!" He squeaked out loud, the Perro paling visibly as his partner, a Zalak, edged away as Josue inspected the engine.
"Well, explosive in that the Originium you're using as fuel would spark and burst from within," he pointed out, inspecting the engine for a while longer, "which would mess up the AC that's still running inside and probably worsen the day of whoever's inside." He noted while he patted the car, "Hey, turn that off! I don't wanna lose a finger doing this."
There was no answer until the Perro moved, opening the door and ending the humming of the car, and Josue leaned on the hood. "Thank you." He thanked the man, after all, Josue realized what he had just done.
In Night City and the NUSA proper, there are three types of people you don't fuck with unless you have a good reason and a fully-armed team or a perfect plan. These are Fixers, Corpos, and Nomads.
At this exact moment, Josue is dealing with a-no, if the stares aimed at his back are any evidence, THE Fixer of either the area or all of Lungmen. Because he could feel it, eyes on his back as he looked at the engine and even more ahead.
Would he do it again even if he knew this beforehand? Yeah.
Inspecting the car further, he began to note a few things: "How old is this thing?" He asked while the Perro turned to him.
"We've had it for a year." The man said as Josue turned to them, face twisted in confusion.
"Who's been modifying this shitbox?" He asked, almost in disbelief. "Half of the parts don't even fit in a car like this. Hell, I think they welded some of the parts together." He noted, reaching in and wiggling a part as he could see some cables were cut. "Fuck, no wonder, didn't even tape it right." He noted, reaching for his bag and grabbing some tools, "He cut off some wires, probably looking to redirect energy to more necessary systems, but the wires are still connected, so the sparks are messing with it, headlights probably aren't as strong as before, going over speed bumps is probably a nightmare since the shocks aren't working right…" He trailed off, muttering as he found more and more problems.
"… If you can identify them, can you fix them?" The Perro asked as Josue raised a brow.
"I can perform maintenance, jury-rig a few things, and get it up and running how it should, but the guy who maintained this car needs to be replaced. I'd suggest either selling it for scrap or sending it back to the manufacturer, telling them to give you a new one." He admitted honestly. "But right now? No."
"That's fine." The Zalak interjected, "Just get it in working condition."
"Sure, but you'll have to pay." He said, returning to the car as he ignored any other words, and returned to his usual work. As usual, it was the simple thing of identifying parts of a car and connecting them in his mind, using his knowledge of Science, Tech, and more to connect the rest of the pieces.
The whole process took all of one hour, as he had to move around a bit as he shimmied out from under the car. "Right, go ahead, let's see if it works."
The Perro inserted the key and turned it; the car sputtered for a long while until the gentle hum of the engine came to life. "There it is."
The Zalak sighed, "Thank you, sir, we truly appreciate this."
"Hey, no problem, like I said, as long as you pay, it'll all be fine." Josue reminded them as the Zalak nodded before turning to the vehicle.
For a second, no one said anything before turning to Josue, "Please," he began, opening the door, his expression now blank and intense, "enter."
Josue hesitated for a second before doing so. After all, he does need a source of income besides his small gigs, even if he has no problem doing it for free on occasion, but that's not important. The stares on him were back; it'd be stupid beyond all belief to refuse.
Slowly, Josue made his way into the car, and he found himself face-to-face with a rat.
An honest-to-goodness rat wearing a suit and a nice white coat over it. "Nice coat." He pointed out, getting comfortable as the Zalak chuckles.
"Thank you, yours isn't too bad either." The rat acknowledged before continuing, "Where are my manners? Forgive me, my memory isn't what it used to be, Josue, my name escapes me at the moment."
"Yet, you know mine." Josue noted with a roll of his eyes, "If I wanted to enter a dick-measuring contest, I'd have become a politician or Exec. Sadly, I'm a Tech, a Nomad." Josue said bluntly, "I have very few skills normal people would be interested in, much less aware of."
There was a second as the Zalak and Josue stared each other down, neither side saying anything as the car smoothly continued on its way until the Zalak's face fell, to Josue's confusion. "Kids these days can't even let us old timers have our fun." He said, Josue, muffling a scoff at that while relaxing slightly. "Fine, within Lungmen, I'm known as the Rat King. Please, refer to me as such."
"Tiger." Josue responded, extending a hand, "Nomad, Tech, and merc. Do you need something that has to do with tech or vehicles? I'm your guy." He said, the Rat King extending his hand and grasping it around Josue's, tightening it as the two shook.
"Well met." The man, or rat, said while leaning back against the seat. "Scarp has informed me of your circumstances." He said, leaning on his cane, his eyes glinting. "It seems like you have gotten into a bit of trouble with the LGD."
Josue raised both hands, "It wasn't my fault." He said before shrugging, "Mostly."
The Rat King chuckled, leaning forward, "W also had a lot of good things to say about you." Josue's expression shifted into one of distaste as the Rat King raised a brow, "Not a fan of the Sarkaz?"
"More of W herself." He scoffed, leaning back, "Why? I work with tech, not people. Sure, I can patch people up and even help them, but if you are injured, take them to a clinic or something! It's the fucking principle!" Josue ranted before huffing. "No, nothing against Sarkaz, just W being stubborn for some reason."
The Rat King huffed, "That is what most people think of when they meet her. She also had a lot to say about your weapons."
Josue didn't answer for a second, their eyes locking as the Rat King had to hide the instinctive twitch of his hands at the malice and suspicion being sent his way from his look alone. His eyes were empty. Josue knew that if he drew his weapon to 'silence' him, he might not come out alive. Despite this, the Rat King can see him resolve himself.
"W," he started, cautiously, "is a merc. Her word is as good as the money given to her, but so are the consequences," he said, drawing the gun at his waist and pulling the slide, letting Rat King see the details of the gun and find himself unsure of its model as a bullet flew out of the gap in the gun as he catches it, "of her words." He finished, showing the round as Rat King couldn't recognize the style of the bullet or see any Originium as he nodded.
If something like this got out…
He removed the magazine, inserting the bullet back into the magazine before inserting the magazine and slipping the gun back into his holster. "My weapons are like anyone's. Meant to do its users' bidding." He answered as the Rat King nodded.
"Of course." The Rat King nodded, letting the subject drop as the atmosphere in the car eased greatly. "And what would you do with such weapons?"
"Dunno," Josue admitted, shrugging. "I'm a Tech, mostly." He said, to the Rat King's amusement. "I just like messing with vehicles, modifying them. Things like that."
"You wouldn't pick them up?" The Rat King asked as Josue raised a brow.
"The life of a mercenary isn't one you abandon completely." Josue pointed out, "Besides," he added with a small grin, "a bit of a workout never hurt anyone."
The Rat King chuckled while Josue eased, his grin becoming a simple upturn of his lips as the Rat King continued, "What about outside of jobs?"
"I'm no saint," Josue admitted openly, "but I've got skills I can use outside of combat." He continued, mind going back to his more charitable actions in Night City, "Ma didn't raise a bitch, and she sure as hell didn't raise a selfish bastard."
For a second, neither said anything before the Rat King huffed in amusement. He reaches for the folds of his suit and brings out a communicator. "Then, say I had a job for you, what would you say?" He asked as Josue glanced at the communicator and scoffed.
Reaching for his bag, he brought out a different phone and showed it to him. "Use this one." Josue insisted, "A burner, the only number on it is mine and impossible to track." He said, the Rat King holding it gently as he inspected it. Glancing at Josue, he makes a motion of his hand, flicking his hand outward along with his thumb. Mimicking the action, the Rat King unfurled the burner as Josue nodded, the screen displaying a single name. Tiger.
"Interesting…" The Rat King noted with interest. "You say you work with technology?"
"While we're here," Josue continued, "let's talk about the job." He said, leaning forward in interest. "Tell me the deets."
The Rat King sighed, shaking his head before divulging the details.
Seems like some anti-Infected civilians were getting a bit too close to the Slums, even attacking some of the citizens who live in them when they tried to leave. It's more than they were beating normal people rather than the Infected, but harming anyone in the slums is not something you do without repercussions.
"Do you want them dead?" Josue asked as the Rat King shook his head.
"It hasn't escalated to that point." The Rat King assured him before adding, "Yet."
"Right, rough 'em up?" He asked as the Rat King nodded, "Simple enough. Sure, I'll take it."
"Good." The Rat King nodded, "In return for fixing up this 'shitbox' as you call it, I'll get the LGD off your back this time."
"Think you can add in a few manuals of vehicles in Terra?" He asked as the Rat King nodded.
"Simple enough. Then I guess that means we're even?" The Rat King noted while Josue nodded.
"Don't see how we can't be. I'll call you once it's done. It's only one group, right?" He asked as the Rat King shook his head.
"It's many." The Rat King said as Josue had an idea pop up in his mind, humming as he brought a hand to his chin. "Three in particular."
"Where are they usually around?" Josue asked, and the Rat King gave him vague directions about where the attacks had taken place. "Right, hold off on clearing my name for now until after the job is done. Take some of my pay while you're at it if you need to."
"If you're sure." The Rat King conceded, a bit confused but slowly painting a picture, "But, why?"
"You'll see," Josue assured him while looking out the window. "Right here is fine." He noted. The Rat King told the driver to stop as he made his way out into a random corner of the Slums. "Thanks for the drive, I'll call once the job is done." He said, closing the door behind him. He went to an alleyway and grabbed a pipe, spinning it idly, and made his way in a random direction.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. By the time you should be reading this, the previous threadmarks and the first chapter on AO3 should have been edited. I should really start editing things before I post them.
If you're interested in other stuff I do, check out my carrd.
Musical Leitmotif: Welcome to Los Santos
As one would expect, the moment Josue got an identity and a solid address to live in, the police were on his ass faster than the IRS. It… was impressive, admittedly, and it means that they at least cared more than normal. Bad news: the police were at his door.
The good news is that no one looks at the roof. Or roofs from other buildings as he looks at the list of people who need the help of… someone. He knew why they needed him. According to Scarp, they needed appliances fixed and didn't have the money to hire someone reliable. So, he now has to blindly make his way through it just like he did back when he was in his Family. Unlike then, he doesn't have an unreliable uncle to teach him the ropes or throw random problems his way with little explanation.
So, with an M1911 on his hip, M-2012 on his back, and Malorian on his shoulder, Josue made his way down the list.
Ch'en stared down the old Forte as he sipped his tea. "Mr.-."
"Scarp," he interjected politely, Ch'en's brow twitching as she hissed. "We have a warrant for Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon's arrest. If you impede that process, we have every right to arrest you."
"What makes you think I'm lying?" Scarp asked, his green eyes looking at her as if they were the picture of innocence. "I'm simply an old man managing his business in the corpse of a long-forgotten dream. At no time did I spot anyone named 'Josue' or 'Tiger' in here." He looked behind her to see Swire. "I can see a tiger. That's about it."
Ch'en had to stop herself from sniping at Swire since they were on official business, in front of a 'civilian' they knew when they were younger, who was once attached to a certain rat she knew. "Regardless, we have evidence that Josue is in this building, or that you at least know where he is."
"Show it then." Scarp challenged them with a calm demeanor, bereft of the stereotypical image of a Forte, but one Ch'en is more familiar with. "Because then I feel like we'd have another problem because I was asleep all night, and if someone stepped out of this building looking like me? Well, I'd believe you're too obsessed with horror stories." He joked as Swire scoffed, also having to stop herself from sniping at Ch'en.
Thankfully, someone did interject before anyone said anything else: "Well, here I was, hoping I could get some parts for my bike." Hoshiguma noted, to Swire and Ch'en's confusion. Scarp raised his brow, recognizing the Oni for who she was, but not pointing her out.
"It's a scrapyard." Scarp pointed out, "Once upon a time, someone would be in the auto shop, using this crap, melting it down and turning it into something else. But he's not here anymore, so most of what's here isn't worth anything and will only worsen whatever you have."
"So…" Hoshiguma trailed off as Scarp raised a brow.
"I run a business, as long as you tell me what and pay, anything more is beyond my scope of understanding or care." He waved her off while Hoshiguma nodded with a small smile.
"Of course, thank you, Scarp," Hoshiguma said before she made her way outside. Ch'en and Swire followed her.
"Hoshiguma, what are you doing?" Ch'en asked, confused and a bit frustrated, while her partner looked through the various rusted or broken down vehicles and scrap within the yard. "We're on the clock."
"I know, I know." Hoshiguma assured Ch'en, "But if he was hiding Josue, Scarp, and many others won't say anything to the Guard Department. It's how it is around here. You know this." Hoshiguma noted, her eyes catching something as she crouched down. "We can find evidence, though." Hoshiguma said, dragging a finger over vague marks, "These look like the marks left by his bike."
"So he's sheltering him?" Swire pointed out.
"Or he's here, and Scarp doesn't know." Ch'en grimaced lightly, "And we can't exactly perform an inspection without a warrant."
"Which is gonna be hard." Hoshiguma pointed out. "Scarp is the private type, he'll let people see but never do more than that."
"Damn." Ch'en cursed with a grimace before sighing. "Nothing we can do about it, let's go home, set up some surveillance, and then-."
"What are these tracks?" Swire asked, pointing at the floor away from the area in front of the auto shop. "They don't look like any of the tracks of any of the cars here."
"No. Heavier." Hoshiguma noted. "Looks like a… semi-truck?" She said, a bit surprised, before leaning slightly and trying to get a good look inside the closed gates of the auto shop. "Can't see anything though."
"So he has a different vehicle," Ch'en noted, frowning, if he had a motorcycle that could outspeed Hoshiguma's, who knows what else he had? "What is he planning?"
Ch'en has met many people, but Josue's countenance was always one of calm amusement as if it's all expected and he's just laughing inwardly. However, his eyes always seemed to look straight through her, as if he were sizing her up before returning to being relaxed.
Maybe it was experience or the various times he escaped, but Ch'en felt that, under the relaxed stance, something was waiting to attack. Something that wouldn't hesitate to attack.
What could a person as dangerous as that be doing at the moment?
"Right, yeah, like that," Josue said, bobbing his head at the young man in front of him using sticks to hit his drum set, a steady rhythm as Josue bobbed his head. "That's a good rhythm. Preem."
"'Preem'?" Oscar asked, raising a brow, "The hell is that?"
"Premium." Josue elaborated, his hands deep in the guts of the machinery found inside an oven within Terra, belonging to the third person he was supposed to help, as their son let him in.
Oscar, a young Lupo with a father who worked in an office, and a mother who worked as a nurse, has black hair cut short and blue eyes, a small scar on one of his ears, while wearing a sweater over a black shirt, and ripped jeans. He's a smart kid with a rough tongue and a love for his drum set. If he weren't part of the slums, he might have been capable of enrolling in a pretty good school, but 'pretty good' doesn't justify offering scholarships to a kid from an area where Infected are seen.
"Thanks." He said, "Your advice was useful, old timer."
"Watch it." Josue warned, pointing a finger at him while he peered out of the oven, "I'm not much older than you are. You'll be an old timer too before you know it."
The Lupo rolled his blue eyes as he looked at his drum set. "You play an instrument?"
"Electric guitar, violin, harmonica, piano," he listed, "but why?"
"You…" he trailed off, almost anxiously, "you wouldn't happen to need a drummer, would you?"
"I don't play in nice places." Josue admitted, "Bars, and the like, or much at all, you still sure?"
"Yeah." He said confidently. "I-I need to start somewhere." He answered while Josue huffed, a bit of amusement in his voice, as he closed the oven.
"If you can find somewhere to play," he started, leaving a small paper on the table, "call me. We can practice there."
"Right," Oscar said, and Josue waved while going to the door.
"Your oven's done, see ya later." He said, finishing up his last errand for the day as he had nothing else to do, other than… well, not much, admittedly.
He moved through the apartments, which were maintained but not exactly to the best standard, similar to the Megabuildings constructed back in Night City. He should look for some bars, somewhere to perform, and make some cash on the side.
He walked through the roads of the border between the slums and the middle-class area of Lungmen. Unlike the rest of Lungmen, it was far calmer, more of an area for people to live in rather than the business-centered city it is. Each step left him to his thoughts as he brought a hand to his chin. He, admittedly, doesn't know much, so maybe he should check out the library. It'd be useful, if anything else, to learn the history of Terra in its entirety.
"Damn it." Someone grumbled inside an alley, to Josue's vague interest as he looked inside. Within the passage, a suited man inspected the engine of a car, the other scanned the area, his eyes landing on Josue, where they narrowed in suspicion.
Well, they locked eyes, so now Josue can't be an asshole and just walk away. "… Need some help?"
"N-No." The man said, extracting his hands from the engine to wipe the sweat off his forehead, "I-It's fine, just-."
"I think you rigged it to explode by accident," Josue noted, to the man's shock as he leaped away from the car.
"N-No way!" He squeaked out loud, the Perro paling visibly as his partner, a Zalak, edged away as Josue inspected the engine.
"Well, explosive in that the Originium you're using as fuel would spark and burst from within," he pointed out, inspecting the engine for a while longer, "which would mess up the AC that's still running inside and probably worsen the day of whoever's inside." He noted while he patted the car, "Hey, turn that off! I don't wanna lose a finger doing this."
There was no answer until the Perro moved, opening the door and ending the humming of the car, and Josue leaned on the hood. "Thank you." He thanked the man, after all, Josue realized what he had just done.
In Night City and the NUSA proper, there are three types of people you don't fuck with unless you have a good reason and a fully-armed team or a perfect plan. These are Fixers, Corpos, and Nomads.
At this exact moment, Josue is dealing with a-no, if the stares aimed at his back are any evidence, THE Fixer of either the area or all of Lungmen. Because he could feel it, eyes on his back as he looked at the engine and even more ahead.
Would he do it again even if he knew this beforehand? Yeah.
Inspecting the car further, he began to note a few things: "How old is this thing?" He asked while the Perro turned to him.
"We've had it for a year." The man said as Josue turned to them, face twisted in confusion.
"Who's been modifying this shitbox?" He asked, almost in disbelief. "Half of the parts don't even fit in a car like this. Hell, I think they welded some of the parts together." He noted, reaching in and wiggling a part as he could see some cables were cut. "Fuck, no wonder, didn't even tape it right." He noted, reaching for his bag and grabbing some tools, "He cut off some wires, probably looking to redirect energy to more necessary systems, but the wires are still connected, so the sparks are messing with it, headlights probably aren't as strong as before, going over speed bumps is probably a nightmare since the shocks aren't working right…" He trailed off, muttering as he found more and more problems.
"… If you can identify them, can you fix them?" The Perro asked as Josue raised a brow.
"I can perform maintenance, jury-rig a few things, and get it up and running how it should, but the guy who maintained this car needs to be replaced. I'd suggest either selling it for scrap or sending it back to the manufacturer, telling them to give you a new one." He admitted honestly. "But right now? No."
"That's fine." The Zalak interjected, "Just get it in working condition."
"Sure, but you'll have to pay." He said, returning to the car as he ignored any other words, and returned to his usual work. As usual, it was the simple thing of identifying parts of a car and connecting them in his mind, using his knowledge of Science, Tech, and more to connect the rest of the pieces.
The whole process took all of one hour, as he had to move around a bit as he shimmied out from under the car. "Right, go ahead, let's see if it works."
The Perro inserted the key and turned it; the car sputtered for a long while until the gentle hum of the engine came to life. "There it is."
The Zalak sighed, "Thank you, sir, we truly appreciate this."
"Hey, no problem, like I said, as long as you pay, it'll all be fine." Josue reminded them as the Zalak nodded before turning to the vehicle.
For a second, no one said anything before turning to Josue, "Please," he began, opening the door, his expression now blank and intense, "enter."
Josue hesitated for a second before doing so. After all, he does need a source of income besides his small gigs, even if he has no problem doing it for free on occasion, but that's not important. The stares on him were back; it'd be stupid beyond all belief to refuse.
Slowly, Josue made his way into the car, and he found himself face-to-face with a rat.
An honest-to-goodness rat wearing a suit and a nice white coat over it. "Nice coat." He pointed out, getting comfortable as the Zalak chuckles.
"Thank you, yours isn't too bad either." The rat acknowledged before continuing, "Where are my manners? Forgive me, my memory isn't what it used to be, Josue, my name escapes me at the moment."
"Yet, you know mine." Josue noted with a roll of his eyes, "If I wanted to enter a dick-measuring contest, I'd have become a politician or Exec. Sadly, I'm a Tech, a Nomad." Josue said bluntly, "I have very few skills normal people would be interested in, much less aware of."
There was a second as the Zalak and Josue stared each other down, neither side saying anything as the car smoothly continued on its way until the Zalak's face fell, to Josue's confusion. "Kids these days can't even let us old timers have our fun." He said, Josue, muffling a scoff at that while relaxing slightly. "Fine, within Lungmen, I'm known as the Rat King. Please, refer to me as such."
"Tiger." Josue responded, extending a hand, "Nomad, Tech, and merc. Do you need something that has to do with tech or vehicles? I'm your guy." He said, the Rat King extending his hand and grasping it around Josue's, tightening it as the two shook.
"Well met." The man, or rat, said while leaning back against the seat. "Scarp has informed me of your circumstances." He said, leaning on his cane, his eyes glinting. "It seems like you have gotten into a bit of trouble with the LGD."
Josue raised both hands, "It wasn't my fault." He said before shrugging, "Mostly."
The Rat King chuckled, leaning forward, "W also had a lot of good things to say about you." Josue's expression shifted into one of distaste as the Rat King raised a brow, "Not a fan of the Sarkaz?"
"More of W herself." He scoffed, leaning back, "Why? I work with tech, not people. Sure, I can patch people up and even help them, but if you are injured, take them to a clinic or something! It's the fucking principle!" Josue ranted before huffing. "No, nothing against Sarkaz, just W being stubborn for some reason."
The Rat King huffed, "That is what most people think of when they meet her. She also had a lot to say about your weapons."
Josue didn't answer for a second, their eyes locking as the Rat King had to hide the instinctive twitch of his hands at the malice and suspicion being sent his way from his look alone. His eyes were empty. Josue knew that if he drew his weapon to 'silence' him, he might not come out alive. Despite this, the Rat King can see him resolve himself.
"W," he started, cautiously, "is a merc. Her word is as good as the money given to her, but so are the consequences," he said, drawing the gun at his waist and pulling the slide, letting Rat King see the details of the gun and find himself unsure of its model as a bullet flew out of the gap in the gun as he catches it, "of her words." He finished, showing the round as Rat King couldn't recognize the style of the bullet or see any Originium as he nodded.
If something like this got out…
He removed the magazine, inserting the bullet back into the magazine before inserting the magazine and slipping the gun back into his holster. "My weapons are like anyone's. Meant to do its users' bidding." He answered as the Rat King nodded.
"Of course." The Rat King nodded, letting the subject drop as the atmosphere in the car eased greatly. "And what would you do with such weapons?"
"Dunno," Josue admitted, shrugging. "I'm a Tech, mostly." He said, to the Rat King's amusement. "I just like messing with vehicles, modifying them. Things like that."
"You wouldn't pick them up?" The Rat King asked as Josue raised a brow.
"The life of a mercenary isn't one you abandon completely." Josue pointed out, "Besides," he added with a small grin, "a bit of a workout never hurt anyone."
The Rat King chuckled while Josue eased, his grin becoming a simple upturn of his lips as the Rat King continued, "What about outside of jobs?"
"I'm no saint," Josue admitted openly, "but I've got skills I can use outside of combat." He continued, mind going back to his more charitable actions in Night City, "Ma didn't raise a bitch, and she sure as hell didn't raise a selfish bastard."
For a second, neither said anything before the Rat King huffed in amusement. He reaches for the folds of his suit and brings out a communicator. "Then, say I had a job for you, what would you say?" He asked as Josue glanced at the communicator and scoffed.
Reaching for his bag, he brought out a different phone and showed it to him. "Use this one." Josue insisted, "A burner, the only number on it is mine and impossible to track." He said, the Rat King holding it gently as he inspected it. Glancing at Josue, he makes a motion of his hand, flicking his hand outward along with his thumb. Mimicking the action, the Rat King unfurled the burner as Josue nodded, the screen displaying a single name. Tiger.
"Interesting…" The Rat King noted with interest. "You say you work with technology?"
"While we're here," Josue continued, "let's talk about the job." He said, leaning forward in interest. "Tell me the deets."
The Rat King sighed, shaking his head before divulging the details.
Seems like some anti-Infected civilians were getting a bit too close to the Slums, even attacking some of the citizens who live in them when they tried to leave. It's more than they were beating normal people rather than the Infected, but harming anyone in the slums is not something you do without repercussions.
"Do you want them dead?" Josue asked as the Rat King shook his head.
"It hasn't escalated to that point." The Rat King assured him before adding, "Yet."
"Right, rough 'em up?" He asked as the Rat King nodded, "Simple enough. Sure, I'll take it."
"Good." The Rat King nodded, "In return for fixing up this 'shitbox' as you call it, I'll get the LGD off your back this time."
"Think you can add in a few manuals of vehicles in Terra?" He asked as the Rat King nodded.
"Simple enough. Then I guess that means we're even?" The Rat King noted while Josue nodded.
"Don't see how we can't be. I'll call you once it's done. It's only one group, right?" He asked as the Rat King shook his head.
"It's many." The Rat King said as Josue had an idea pop up in his mind, humming as he brought a hand to his chin. "Three in particular."
"Where are they usually around?" Josue asked, and the Rat King gave him vague directions about where the attacks had taken place. "Right, hold off on clearing my name for now until after the job is done. Take some of my pay while you're at it if you need to."
"If you're sure." The Rat King conceded, a bit confused but slowly painting a picture, "But, why?"
"You'll see," Josue assured him while looking out the window. "Right here is fine." He noted. The Rat King told the driver to stop as he made his way out into a random corner of the Slums. "Thanks for the drive, I'll call once the job is done." He said, closing the door behind him. He went to an alleyway and grabbed a pipe, spinning it idly, and made his way in a random direction.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. By the time you should be reading this, the previous threadmarks and the first chapter on AO3 should have been edited. I should really start editing things before I post them.
If you're interested in other stuff I do, check out my carrd.
Last edited:
2.2 Welcome to Lungmen
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501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
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A/N: ... It just hit me, I should've used a Sleeping Dogs OST for one of these Lungmen chapters...
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
The light of Lungmen died as the neon lined the streets, and the citizens made their way home or wherever they rest. Maybe it's home with a loving family waiting, and some find themselves within the alleyways of the city of commerce.
Others snickered, wielding bats, pipes, swords, and knives, looking to cause trouble. Josue watched from a building, right by the border that separates the slums from the lower-middle-class area. The area had already been cleared of people, Infected or otherwise, as he waited.
He'd been stalking the group for hours, but no one noticed as he made no sound, alternating constantly and using his limbs to make leaps easier. Leaps that the people of Terra would be able to do easily, but he had to have his legs replaced to even reach.
Thankfully, the people of the Slums were a lot more accepting of him, mostly. He was able to get some information from the people in return for fixing appliances. Getting names, appearances, vague routes, and more from them, as he used this information to trace them back to their origin. Coincidentally, it led to one of the higher-quality, but still seedy, bars, as he could hear them talking with the other groups as he went to track them down.
It took the rest of his day, but he knows who's where and with what as his plan continues to pan out.
It was familiar, neon lighting the streets, suspicious people being followed, and more as he removed his clothes.
Gone were the jeans, shirt, vest, and jacket; instead, they were replaced by a tank top and some jeans. Make it obvious that not only is he not Infected, but he's the one who did this, not the Infected.
He brandished a detonator and pressed it. Nearby, a car went up in smoke, doing no damage beyond smoke, interrupting the people's sleep, and destroying its innards. The group whirled around to look in the general direction as Josue lowered himself down the building, hanging off as he jumped off and landed on the back of one of them, grunting as the wind was knocked out of them, while Josue placed a pipe against the back of their neck. "Afternoon, gentlemen, what brings you here?"
"You-." One of them started, a mask on their face as he brandished a knife, "You're not Infected? What are you doing stopping us then?"
"I'm not." Josue confirmed, looking at all of them, derision on his face, "Must be easy to tell them apart, with how many you left injured. You and your cronies have been causing problems, and someone doesn't like that."
"The Rat King," one of the thugs said, scoffing, "what can he do? If he tries anything, the LGD will be on his ass!" They yelled, causing the others to nod and rally as Josue nodded.
"True, true," Josue admitted, wrenching the pipe deeper into his victim's back as they tried to get up. "But when did I say the Rat King would be displeased? Not that he isn't," Josue added as he stepped on the back of the man's head, wrenching it onto the pavement. "See, I don't like what you're doing." He noted while stepping away.
The man he was on tried to stand up before Josue swung the pipe straight into his leg, the man yelling and falling to his knees. The others surged back in surprise as he grabbed a phone and began calling a number.
"This is the Lungmen Guard Department," said a familiar voice, Swire, so most of the attendants were either doing something else or busy, and she was the only one who could answer, "Swire speaking, how may I help you?"
"This is Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon," Josue said, kicking the man holding his shin on the side, hard enough to send him flying a short distance and make an audible sound. "Send…" He paused, counting out the people audibly as he finished, and nodded, "Seven ambulances at these locations." He began listing off some streets, the first being recognizable to the thugs as the one they were on. "Thank you and goodbye." He says, hanging up as he turns to them.
Twirling the pipe, the men stumbled back as some pointed their weapons forward, "He's one guy, we can overwhelm him!"
"Whoa~!" Josue started, leaning back, "Watch whatcha say choom, I might get a bit," he paused, brandishing his M1911, cocking back the hammer as the people recognized the weapon, "scared." He finished, making dramatic jerks as his entire body shook, the thugs a lot more unwilling to move forward. At some point, he began to shake in a way that resembled dancing before laughing.
"Yeah, I'm fucking with ya." He admitted, throwing the gun to the side as it clattered on the ground. "I don't need that, one at a time or all at once, you can't call your buddies." He said, walking forward with the pipe in hand, their reluctance being replaced by outrage. "C'mon, you're man enough to beat up someone who can't fight back. You can gang up on one guy~." He mocked one of them, finally having had enough as he roared and charged forward.
He brought up his pipe, blocking the bat, redirecting it, and using the base to smack them in the mask, sending them stumbling back. Josue swung his pipe at his shoulder, the thug yelling as he held his arm before falling to his knees from a spinning back kick to his gut.
Two more charged as he weaved the swing of an axe and used his pipe to stop the charge of a thug with a knife, resting the end of the pipe against the solar plexus before grabbing a part of the other end and jerking it upward into his chin, sending him reeling back as Josue's anger flares.
In Night City, Nomads were seen as 'outsiders', usually discriminated against due to being too 'innocent' and taken advantage of. While the reason might be different, this entire event is sending a fire through Josue's body.
The man with the axe swung again, and Josue swung as well, hitting the ribs as the man grunted, the blade missing before Josue hit the shoulder and then the thigh as he fell, Josue kicking his face and knocking him out.
The man with the knife tried to step back, but Josue swung at his stomach before swinging at his shin, sending him to a knee before using an elbow to knock him out.
The last two tried to scamper back, but Josue threw the pipe, nailing one in the head as he used his Grapple Hand to latch onto the foot of the other before pulling him in as he tried to drag himself away. "Not so fun now, is it?" He hissed, pulling him in as Josue strides forward and grabs the back of his shirt, using it to pull him up, and then slamming his head on the floor.
A click rang out, one Josue was familiar with, as the man he knocked down first crawled to his gun and tried to shoot him with it, unaware that the safety was on. He tried pulling the trigger, his eyes widening at the ensuing click as Josue made his way over, wrenching the gun from his hand and slamming it down onto his head, the steel frame heavy and knocking him out as Josue scoffed.
"What a gonk."
With all of them down, Josue made his way into an alleyway as he made his way to the next group, the hum of an engine ringing out as he used a bike he 'requisitioned' from a 'generous donor' to make his way to the next location.
AKA, he klepped the thing from some corpo. He'll give it back, don't worry, it's a good bike, though.
However, he did make a stop to leave his gun with Scarp.
Beating up civilians wasn't a good way to get a reputation; any Nomad knows this, and not every Edgerunner subscribes to this, but there are exceptions.
Josue waited, having corralled the final group after they were called by the second group in the street. He asked for the ambulances to be in. It's been a while, and if he's right…
The familiar hum of an engine rang out as he sat on the motorcycle. Slightly bloody pipe by his side and lit a cigarette in between his lips as he waited, spotting some Medias following, some of them having already been recording as he gave an anonymous 'tip' to some.
A few seconds later, Hoshiguma cruised in, her motorcycle purring as her expression was a complicated one, "Tiger…"
"Josue." He corrected her, nodding at her, "How's the weather, Hoshiguma?"
"Could be better." She admitted, getting off her bike with a sigh and an almost regretful look. "Did you attack this group and the other ones?"
"All of 'em. Hope they got a concussion at least. I went easy on 'em though." He admitted as Hoshiguma made her way to him.
"Josue Mondragon, you're officially under arrest by the Lungmen Guard Department. Please drop all your weapons and submit yourself to our authority." She declared solidly, the sound of sirens following it, her large shield glinting under the light as his cigarette shifted from one side to the other.
For a beat, Josue didn't do anything; instead, he threw his pipe to the side. The sound broke the silence as he stepped away from the bike and spread his arms. "That's it, I'm unarmed."
Hoshiguma couldn't believe that, after all, he had three different firearms, a bevy of explosives, and a knife the last time he was in the Lungmen Guard Department building. Beyond that, there was something else…
Unbeknownst to many, everyone has a sort of… 'aura' to them, usually taking the form of a creature or other. It's more visible to the elites, people like Hoshiguma, and is easier to generate by people like, again, Hoshiguma.
So, she was surprised as, for a second, the lights of the neon streets seemed to light up behind him, showing a knight with twisted armor reflecting off his body, reminiscent of modern body armor with a mechanical nature to it. Its helmet, instead of a classic helmet, was a set of aviators with a featureless face except for a bandanna around its neck.
Slowly, he stepped forward, the vague image dissipating, or was she looking at him? Is she tired enough to imagine what she just saw?
Regardless, her skin crawled as she looked at the exposed skin of his left arm and legs, the feeling of wrongness coursing through her as he stopped in front of her. He extended both arms, a satisfied but savage grin in place. "Take me away, officer."
Slowly, Hoshiguma put him in handcuffs, waiting for the cruisers to come as she wondered why he did this. One option was the Rat King, but to make it such a public affair? To get arrested? Why?
Josue was painting the target on his back. He beat up all these people going after the Infected. He leaked their conversations online and to news outlets. He came out here and single-handedly stopped them from hurting other Infected.
The cameras were all aimed at his face as the cruisers began to appear, ambulances followed, and they began setting up a perimeter, and Josue feels like he's on top of the world. The Infected are feared, for a reason, too, if his conversations with some of the people he helped in the morning were any evidence, but they suffer for it, too.
He didn't care about tomorrow, about yesterday, or even right now. The world could die for all he cares; he has his problems to deal with. This world might end, but he was still alive, and while he won't mind dying, he's not looking to do so immediately.
Grinning, he winked at the camera, the officers at each side, stuffing him into a cruiser. Night City ground dreams and ideals into nothing; the world already does so, and Josue survived Night City; he escaped with his morals and his ideals mostly intact. He escaped as 'himself', a Night City Legend.
Changed, but unbroken.
This world? Let it grind him to dust. He'll do as he has, do what he wants, and live as he has.
Style over substance.
Attitude is everything.
Live on the Edge.
And finally, his personal favorite.
Break the rules.
Once more, he was in an interrogation room, hands still cuffed and connected to the table, with Ch'en glaring down at him as he hummed in boredom.
"So-."
"Yes," Josue interjected, rolling his eyes. "I plead guilty, I pummeled them because they were beating up the Infected, I got pissed, and decided to beat them up because I don't like other people getting hurt."
Ch'en's brow twitched as she slammed her hands on the table, glaring at him, "Quiet!"
"No." Josue retorted, to her visible frustration, "It was self-defense anyway. No one died. What more is there to learn? You know why I did it, send me to a holding cell, hang me, fucking strip me and parade me around the city, but at this point, it's just bothersome."
As much as Ch'en hated to admit it, he was right. He gave them everything: he admitted to attacking all three groups, calling the ambulances, and setting up the car bomb; he gave a motive, and they even have the weapon, a pipe. No guns.
What's more was the mercy he showed them, leaving them with bruises and pain, but not dead. Broken bones, but Ch'en wasn't satisfied.
It was… unsatisfying. He didn't lie; his only crime was protecting those that the city refuses to acknowledge as people. It was why Hoshiguma wasn't smiling when she escorted him in, it was why Swire, the first one to interrogate him, left with a sour frown.
Any more and it'll simply be a repetition of everyone else who entered behind her. She sighed, taking a deep breath and leaning away, about to do her job, before a knock rang out. Ch'en frowns and makes her way to the door, spotting Hoshiguma waiting outside. "Hoshiguma."
"Ch'en," she started, taking a deep breath as she continued, "the charges have been dropped, we've been told to let him go."
"What? Who-?" Ch'en interjected as the pieces began to connect, and Hoshiguma nodded.
"Yeah, he isn't exactly the type to let things like this slide easily," Hoshiguma says, though there's a bit of respect in her voice along with it. Something that brought Ch'en a short amount of headaches as she turned to Josue.
"So, I'm free to go? Preem." He said, removing his hands from the handcuffs and standing up, rubbing his wrist as he made his way over to them, to Ch'en's frustration.
"Yes… You are." She relented before sighing, "Please, follow us, we'll escort you out of here."
"Thanks." He said, following Ch'en as they made their way to the front of the building at the reception area.
"Here it is, now stay out of trouble, Josue." Ch'en reminded him as Josue gave her a look.
"As long as you're the one arresting me, oh, trouble's gonna have a hard time letting me go." He said with a coy grin, to Hoshiguma's amusement and Ch'en's frustration and slight embarrassment as she glared at the man.
"Go." She ordered as he brought up both hands and walked off.
As he was about to make his way outside, he snapped his fingers and turned to them, a regretful expression on his face. "I don't like Lawmen, but I hate bothering good people. So, for what it's worth," he said, shrugging, "sorry for being a pain in your ass for a long time." He finished before bringing up two fingers to his temple and flaring them out, "Catch ya later, drinks are on me if we see each other again."
The two watched him go, his clothes reminiscent of a thug, a cholo if Josue were there, but despite that, he walked with a certain bearing. Confident, relaxed, and, most of all, unbothered. Shaking her head, Ch'en makes her way back into the department.
"Come on, we still have work to do."
"Aye, Ch'en." Hoshiguma agreed, "Think we should try and figure out what bar he frequents?"
Ch'en scoffed, "Please," she started before sighing heavily, "he reminds me of someone I've known before."
"Oh?" Hoshiguma started, leaning forward in interest, aware of who she was talking about, "Do tell?"
"Let's just say there's a higher chance we'll see him in that same room before we see him at a bar." Ch'en started, chuckling as Hoshiguma's brow twitched before huffing in amusement.
It's fifty-fifty. "Wanna bet?"
"Sure." Ch'en said confidently, "Wanna try and guess what charge it'll be, too?"
While the two joked for a bit, Josue made his way around the city of Lungmen, looking around as he could see some snippets of news on the newspapers, screamsheets, or TVs, and bigger screens. While his face was blacked out, he was still wearing the same clothes.
As such…
Hoshiguma was in shambles. This wasn't how it was supposed to go!
The confident superior should be humbled; they'd go out to a bar, get a drink, have Josue wave them over, and then they'd get free drinks, and Hoshiguma would be a few LMD richer. She didn't expect…
"So, you were assaulted in broad daylight," Ch'en started, brandishing the voice recorder in her hand, "took a recording of the conversation, warned them, they continued, attacked you, and the only evidence we have is this voice recording because the cameras there are broken?"
Ch'en's amusement was palpable, especially after she saw how sheepish he looked while being escorted by an officer. "Eyewitnesses too…" He trailed off, vaguely capable of hearing Swire laughing her ass off in the other room as he joined her, and so did Ch'en.
"J-Just go." She said through her laughter, waving him off, "Four days…" She shook her head before muttering, "You were arrested six times in four days."
"By a different officer each time." He pointed out, Ch'en bringing a hand up and pointing at the door as he stood up, making his way out, coming face-to-face with an amused Hoshiguma and a crying Swire.
"Watch your mouth," he said, talking to Swire as she bent over, holding her stomach from her guffaws, "a fly might amble in." He said, making his way to the receptionist, already familiar with the way after his six escapes.
Well, it's gonna be an amusing story.
A/N: Here it is, admittedly, I'm unsure if I should've made it shorter or not, but I hope this much is fine.
Anyway, check out my carrd where my Patreon and Ko-fi are, where you can catch a look at early drafts of what I write and even some NSFW stuff before I post it. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed, Solar out.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
The light of Lungmen died as the neon lined the streets, and the citizens made their way home or wherever they rest. Maybe it's home with a loving family waiting, and some find themselves within the alleyways of the city of commerce.
Others snickered, wielding bats, pipes, swords, and knives, looking to cause trouble. Josue watched from a building, right by the border that separates the slums from the lower-middle-class area. The area had already been cleared of people, Infected or otherwise, as he waited.
He'd been stalking the group for hours, but no one noticed as he made no sound, alternating constantly and using his limbs to make leaps easier. Leaps that the people of Terra would be able to do easily, but he had to have his legs replaced to even reach.
Thankfully, the people of the Slums were a lot more accepting of him, mostly. He was able to get some information from the people in return for fixing appliances. Getting names, appearances, vague routes, and more from them, as he used this information to trace them back to their origin. Coincidentally, it led to one of the higher-quality, but still seedy, bars, as he could hear them talking with the other groups as he went to track them down.
It took the rest of his day, but he knows who's where and with what as his plan continues to pan out.
It was familiar, neon lighting the streets, suspicious people being followed, and more as he removed his clothes.
Gone were the jeans, shirt, vest, and jacket; instead, they were replaced by a tank top and some jeans. Make it obvious that not only is he not Infected, but he's the one who did this, not the Infected.
He brandished a detonator and pressed it. Nearby, a car went up in smoke, doing no damage beyond smoke, interrupting the people's sleep, and destroying its innards. The group whirled around to look in the general direction as Josue lowered himself down the building, hanging off as he jumped off and landed on the back of one of them, grunting as the wind was knocked out of them, while Josue placed a pipe against the back of their neck. "Afternoon, gentlemen, what brings you here?"
"You-." One of them started, a mask on their face as he brandished a knife, "You're not Infected? What are you doing stopping us then?"
"I'm not." Josue confirmed, looking at all of them, derision on his face, "Must be easy to tell them apart, with how many you left injured. You and your cronies have been causing problems, and someone doesn't like that."
"The Rat King," one of the thugs said, scoffing, "what can he do? If he tries anything, the LGD will be on his ass!" They yelled, causing the others to nod and rally as Josue nodded.
"True, true," Josue admitted, wrenching the pipe deeper into his victim's back as they tried to get up. "But when did I say the Rat King would be displeased? Not that he isn't," Josue added as he stepped on the back of the man's head, wrenching it onto the pavement. "See, I don't like what you're doing." He noted while stepping away.
The man he was on tried to stand up before Josue swung the pipe straight into his leg, the man yelling and falling to his knees. The others surged back in surprise as he grabbed a phone and began calling a number.
"This is the Lungmen Guard Department," said a familiar voice, Swire, so most of the attendants were either doing something else or busy, and she was the only one who could answer, "Swire speaking, how may I help you?"
"This is Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon," Josue said, kicking the man holding his shin on the side, hard enough to send him flying a short distance and make an audible sound. "Send…" He paused, counting out the people audibly as he finished, and nodded, "Seven ambulances at these locations." He began listing off some streets, the first being recognizable to the thugs as the one they were on. "Thank you and goodbye." He says, hanging up as he turns to them.
Twirling the pipe, the men stumbled back as some pointed their weapons forward, "He's one guy, we can overwhelm him!"
"Whoa~!" Josue started, leaning back, "Watch whatcha say choom, I might get a bit," he paused, brandishing his M1911, cocking back the hammer as the people recognized the weapon, "scared." He finished, making dramatic jerks as his entire body shook, the thugs a lot more unwilling to move forward. At some point, he began to shake in a way that resembled dancing before laughing.
"Yeah, I'm fucking with ya." He admitted, throwing the gun to the side as it clattered on the ground. "I don't need that, one at a time or all at once, you can't call your buddies." He said, walking forward with the pipe in hand, their reluctance being replaced by outrage. "C'mon, you're man enough to beat up someone who can't fight back. You can gang up on one guy~." He mocked one of them, finally having had enough as he roared and charged forward.
He brought up his pipe, blocking the bat, redirecting it, and using the base to smack them in the mask, sending them stumbling back. Josue swung his pipe at his shoulder, the thug yelling as he held his arm before falling to his knees from a spinning back kick to his gut.
Two more charged as he weaved the swing of an axe and used his pipe to stop the charge of a thug with a knife, resting the end of the pipe against the solar plexus before grabbing a part of the other end and jerking it upward into his chin, sending him reeling back as Josue's anger flares.
In Night City, Nomads were seen as 'outsiders', usually discriminated against due to being too 'innocent' and taken advantage of. While the reason might be different, this entire event is sending a fire through Josue's body.
The man with the axe swung again, and Josue swung as well, hitting the ribs as the man grunted, the blade missing before Josue hit the shoulder and then the thigh as he fell, Josue kicking his face and knocking him out.
The man with the knife tried to step back, but Josue swung at his stomach before swinging at his shin, sending him to a knee before using an elbow to knock him out.
The last two tried to scamper back, but Josue threw the pipe, nailing one in the head as he used his Grapple Hand to latch onto the foot of the other before pulling him in as he tried to drag himself away. "Not so fun now, is it?" He hissed, pulling him in as Josue strides forward and grabs the back of his shirt, using it to pull him up, and then slamming his head on the floor.
A click rang out, one Josue was familiar with, as the man he knocked down first crawled to his gun and tried to shoot him with it, unaware that the safety was on. He tried pulling the trigger, his eyes widening at the ensuing click as Josue made his way over, wrenching the gun from his hand and slamming it down onto his head, the steel frame heavy and knocking him out as Josue scoffed.
"What a gonk."
With all of them down, Josue made his way into an alleyway as he made his way to the next group, the hum of an engine ringing out as he used a bike he 'requisitioned' from a 'generous donor' to make his way to the next location.
AKA, he klepped the thing from some corpo. He'll give it back, don't worry, it's a good bike, though.
However, he did make a stop to leave his gun with Scarp.
Beating up civilians wasn't a good way to get a reputation; any Nomad knows this, and not every Edgerunner subscribes to this, but there are exceptions.
Josue waited, having corralled the final group after they were called by the second group in the street. He asked for the ambulances to be in. It's been a while, and if he's right…
The familiar hum of an engine rang out as he sat on the motorcycle. Slightly bloody pipe by his side and lit a cigarette in between his lips as he waited, spotting some Medias following, some of them having already been recording as he gave an anonymous 'tip' to some.
A few seconds later, Hoshiguma cruised in, her motorcycle purring as her expression was a complicated one, "Tiger…"
"Josue." He corrected her, nodding at her, "How's the weather, Hoshiguma?"
"Could be better." She admitted, getting off her bike with a sigh and an almost regretful look. "Did you attack this group and the other ones?"
"All of 'em. Hope they got a concussion at least. I went easy on 'em though." He admitted as Hoshiguma made her way to him.
"Josue Mondragon, you're officially under arrest by the Lungmen Guard Department. Please drop all your weapons and submit yourself to our authority." She declared solidly, the sound of sirens following it, her large shield glinting under the light as his cigarette shifted from one side to the other.
For a beat, Josue didn't do anything; instead, he threw his pipe to the side. The sound broke the silence as he stepped away from the bike and spread his arms. "That's it, I'm unarmed."
Hoshiguma couldn't believe that, after all, he had three different firearms, a bevy of explosives, and a knife the last time he was in the Lungmen Guard Department building. Beyond that, there was something else…
Unbeknownst to many, everyone has a sort of… 'aura' to them, usually taking the form of a creature or other. It's more visible to the elites, people like Hoshiguma, and is easier to generate by people like, again, Hoshiguma.
So, she was surprised as, for a second, the lights of the neon streets seemed to light up behind him, showing a knight with twisted armor reflecting off his body, reminiscent of modern body armor with a mechanical nature to it. Its helmet, instead of a classic helmet, was a set of aviators with a featureless face except for a bandanna around its neck.
Slowly, he stepped forward, the vague image dissipating, or was she looking at him? Is she tired enough to imagine what she just saw?
Regardless, her skin crawled as she looked at the exposed skin of his left arm and legs, the feeling of wrongness coursing through her as he stopped in front of her. He extended both arms, a satisfied but savage grin in place. "Take me away, officer."
Slowly, Hoshiguma put him in handcuffs, waiting for the cruisers to come as she wondered why he did this. One option was the Rat King, but to make it such a public affair? To get arrested? Why?
Josue was painting the target on his back. He beat up all these people going after the Infected. He leaked their conversations online and to news outlets. He came out here and single-handedly stopped them from hurting other Infected.
The cameras were all aimed at his face as the cruisers began to appear, ambulances followed, and they began setting up a perimeter, and Josue feels like he's on top of the world. The Infected are feared, for a reason, too, if his conversations with some of the people he helped in the morning were any evidence, but they suffer for it, too.
He didn't care about tomorrow, about yesterday, or even right now. The world could die for all he cares; he has his problems to deal with. This world might end, but he was still alive, and while he won't mind dying, he's not looking to do so immediately.
Grinning, he winked at the camera, the officers at each side, stuffing him into a cruiser. Night City ground dreams and ideals into nothing; the world already does so, and Josue survived Night City; he escaped with his morals and his ideals mostly intact. He escaped as 'himself', a Night City Legend.
Changed, but unbroken.
This world? Let it grind him to dust. He'll do as he has, do what he wants, and live as he has.
Style over substance.
Attitude is everything.
Live on the Edge.
And finally, his personal favorite.
Break the rules.
Once more, he was in an interrogation room, hands still cuffed and connected to the table, with Ch'en glaring down at him as he hummed in boredom.
"So-."
"Yes," Josue interjected, rolling his eyes. "I plead guilty, I pummeled them because they were beating up the Infected, I got pissed, and decided to beat them up because I don't like other people getting hurt."
Ch'en's brow twitched as she slammed her hands on the table, glaring at him, "Quiet!"
"No." Josue retorted, to her visible frustration, "It was self-defense anyway. No one died. What more is there to learn? You know why I did it, send me to a holding cell, hang me, fucking strip me and parade me around the city, but at this point, it's just bothersome."
As much as Ch'en hated to admit it, he was right. He gave them everything: he admitted to attacking all three groups, calling the ambulances, and setting up the car bomb; he gave a motive, and they even have the weapon, a pipe. No guns.
What's more was the mercy he showed them, leaving them with bruises and pain, but not dead. Broken bones, but Ch'en wasn't satisfied.
It was… unsatisfying. He didn't lie; his only crime was protecting those that the city refuses to acknowledge as people. It was why Hoshiguma wasn't smiling when she escorted him in, it was why Swire, the first one to interrogate him, left with a sour frown.
Any more and it'll simply be a repetition of everyone else who entered behind her. She sighed, taking a deep breath and leaning away, about to do her job, before a knock rang out. Ch'en frowns and makes her way to the door, spotting Hoshiguma waiting outside. "Hoshiguma."
"Ch'en," she started, taking a deep breath as she continued, "the charges have been dropped, we've been told to let him go."
"What? Who-?" Ch'en interjected as the pieces began to connect, and Hoshiguma nodded.
"Yeah, he isn't exactly the type to let things like this slide easily," Hoshiguma says, though there's a bit of respect in her voice along with it. Something that brought Ch'en a short amount of headaches as she turned to Josue.
"So, I'm free to go? Preem." He said, removing his hands from the handcuffs and standing up, rubbing his wrist as he made his way over to them, to Ch'en's frustration.
"Yes… You are." She relented before sighing, "Please, follow us, we'll escort you out of here."
"Thanks." He said, following Ch'en as they made their way to the front of the building at the reception area.
"Here it is, now stay out of trouble, Josue." Ch'en reminded him as Josue gave her a look.
"As long as you're the one arresting me, oh, trouble's gonna have a hard time letting me go." He said with a coy grin, to Hoshiguma's amusement and Ch'en's frustration and slight embarrassment as she glared at the man.
"Go." She ordered as he brought up both hands and walked off.
As he was about to make his way outside, he snapped his fingers and turned to them, a regretful expression on his face. "I don't like Lawmen, but I hate bothering good people. So, for what it's worth," he said, shrugging, "sorry for being a pain in your ass for a long time." He finished before bringing up two fingers to his temple and flaring them out, "Catch ya later, drinks are on me if we see each other again."
The two watched him go, his clothes reminiscent of a thug, a cholo if Josue were there, but despite that, he walked with a certain bearing. Confident, relaxed, and, most of all, unbothered. Shaking her head, Ch'en makes her way back into the department.
"Come on, we still have work to do."
"Aye, Ch'en." Hoshiguma agreed, "Think we should try and figure out what bar he frequents?"
Ch'en scoffed, "Please," she started before sighing heavily, "he reminds me of someone I've known before."
"Oh?" Hoshiguma started, leaning forward in interest, aware of who she was talking about, "Do tell?"
"Let's just say there's a higher chance we'll see him in that same room before we see him at a bar." Ch'en started, chuckling as Hoshiguma's brow twitched before huffing in amusement.
It's fifty-fifty. "Wanna bet?"
"Sure." Ch'en said confidently, "Wanna try and guess what charge it'll be, too?"
While the two joked for a bit, Josue made his way around the city of Lungmen, looking around as he could see some snippets of news on the newspapers, screamsheets, or TVs, and bigger screens. While his face was blacked out, he was still wearing the same clothes.
As such…
Hoshiguma was in shambles. This wasn't how it was supposed to go!
The confident superior should be humbled; they'd go out to a bar, get a drink, have Josue wave them over, and then they'd get free drinks, and Hoshiguma would be a few LMD richer. She didn't expect…
"So, you were assaulted in broad daylight," Ch'en started, brandishing the voice recorder in her hand, "took a recording of the conversation, warned them, they continued, attacked you, and the only evidence we have is this voice recording because the cameras there are broken?"
Ch'en's amusement was palpable, especially after she saw how sheepish he looked while being escorted by an officer. "Eyewitnesses too…" He trailed off, vaguely capable of hearing Swire laughing her ass off in the other room as he joined her, and so did Ch'en.
"J-Just go." She said through her laughter, waving him off, "Four days…" She shook her head before muttering, "You were arrested six times in four days."
"By a different officer each time." He pointed out, Ch'en bringing a hand up and pointing at the door as he stood up, making his way out, coming face-to-face with an amused Hoshiguma and a crying Swire.
"Watch your mouth," he said, talking to Swire as she bent over, holding her stomach from her guffaws, "a fly might amble in." He said, making his way to the receptionist, already familiar with the way after his six escapes.
Well, it's gonna be an amusing story.
A/N: Here it is, admittedly, I'm unsure if I should've made it shorter or not, but I hope this much is fine.
Anyway, check out my carrd where my Patreon and Ko-fi are, where you can catch a look at early drafts of what I write and even some NSFW stuff before I post it. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed, Solar out.
Last edited:
2.3 Welcome to Lungmen
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501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
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"Pfff…" The Rat King sputtered, "You stepped out for ten minutes, got into a fight, and were arrested a few minutes after being assaulted again."
From the other end of the phone call, Josue rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, tragedy, whatever, whatnot. But yeah, now the people have something else to worry about if they want to go to the slums."
"That they do." The Rat King conceded, "Was that your plan all along? Becoming an integral part of the Lungmen slums and the people?"
"Not really," Josue said, seated at a ramen stand by Scarp's place, already changed into his normal clothing and using some of the cash the Rat King gave him to pay for the food, non-synthetic too. "See, if I did it all subtle-like, hid in the shadows and whatnot, they'd have had ammunition to blame the Infected or the people in the slums for attacking them. If I tried to hide my identity, it'd be way easier to accuse me of being Infected since, well, it's the Slums. Not many people care about it much," he added, dissatisfied before continuing, "so, if I went out in fairly light clothing and made sure they knew they had a target, they could see the consequences of messing with that target, non-lethally anyway."
For a second, the Rat King didn't say anything before huffing. "That is correct. Well done, with this, your job is done. I'll let you enjoy your food. Before I forget," he added, before continuing, "your identity has been set up, but do you want anything added in particular?"
"Just be honest." Josue said, leaning back, "I appeared a few days back and don't remember much."
There was a beat of silence as the Rat King seemed confused. "Amnesia?" He asked, and Josue snorted.
"No, I remember everything except for anything that happened four or five days ago and a few months or so ago," Josue admitted, which bothered him.
He remembered leaving Night City in his kombi, finding a place to set up shop, and a roof garden. He remembered getting customers, some interested in his time in Night City and some fellow Nomads, or as much as they saw him as a Nomad due to his time in Night City. He remembered going out on a short drive to get rid of the wanderlust in his body.
What happened after gets… blurry. He knows he fought for a stretch of that time and did some talking, but then, five days ago, he appeared in Lungmen.
"So…" The Rat King started, "no background, nothing, just that you...appeared in Lungmen?" The Rat King asked, Josue's hum was enough of a response as he sighed, chuckling softly, "Well, if you're sure. I'll make the changes."
"Thanks. If you've got any more jobs, send 'em my way, and I'll take care of them." He said, hanging up as he closed the burner he was using and stowed it away.
"Interesting conversation." Someone spoke gruffly as Josue sighed, a group of men circling him as he turned, about to tell the chef to pack up his food to go.
"Yeah, really interesting." Ch'en started, dipping in as the small group paused, followed by Hoshiguma and Swire.
"Hey, Boss." Hoshiguma started, "Bring out the good stuff, we're doing some drinking tonight!"
"On my dime." Josue reminded them with a sigh. "I knew I should've kept my mouth shut."
"Then you should stay out of trouble," Swire said, hers, Ch'en's, and Hoshiguma's eyes all whirling to the group as they stepped back. "You all should, too. It's getting late, and there are better things to do with one's time than to bother someone while they're trying to eat." Swire pointed out that Ch'en's expression was one of suspicion, and Hoshiguma just smiled.
"But, ma'am, he assaulted Lungmen citizens for-." He started, glancing at Josue as he shifted his jacket, causing them to freeze.
There, on his shoulder holster, was a gun, one eye glowing in the shadow cast by the light of the stand, as the EMP Threading around his eyes seemed to pop out in what little light was cast, giving him an inhuman look. "Violence is not the answer," he started, a click ringing out as their eyes went to the hand on his thigh, a different gun in his hand while he disengaged the safety, "but I'm more than willing to show you why it's the solution."
The group swallowed, slowly stepping back as they receded, letting Josue engage the safety, slipping the M1911 to his waist as he turned to the one manning the stall. "Sorry about that." He said, the man waving it away as he turned to the others.
"You should be careful waving that around." Ch'en pointed out, already having made her order, a beer in hand as she popped the tap. "I've heard of a few incidents where the gun went off without an order by some idiot with too much money. Which makes it a miracle that you haven't done so, Missy." She started, immediately whirling to Swire, seated on his other side.
The catgirl's veins twitched as she leaned against the counter to rant at Ch'en, "Please, like I'd be caught dead with that. Do you know how many hoops I'd have to go over to get one, much less how much it costs? I'm surprised someone like him has one without being a Sankta."
"Calling me broke?" He asked as Hoshigma laughed, a beer in hand.
"Let's just say Missy here is very capable." The Oni suggested with a wry grin, while Josue let the topic drop.
"Speaking of," Swire started, turning to him with a brow, "we got a report of the modifications you made to our vehicles. Somehow, they're running better than before. How'd you do that?" She asked, the other two turning at him with interest.
Josue grimaced, reaching for his can of beer and downing half of it.
If he was going to rant about the vehicles here, he's not gonna do it sober. Also, a new beer.
"It's a fucking mess is how." He practically growled, "Honestly, I'm not the picture of ethics, but c'mon! The material used for the car might as well be aluminum; the various systems all run off of one thing that has been proven to be dangerous, even the AC. If things break down, you're getting a faceful of that thing. Not to mention how redundant the systems are, it's like the designers wanted to make sure it works, but at the cost of being unreliable."
"How would that work?" Hoshiguma asked Ch'en in the middle of his rant.
"I don't know," Ch'en answered, not very interested in the subject, but just finding herself increasingly confused at some of the terms.
"It's simple logic." Josue explained, "Cars are meant to be a faster, cleaner, and safer alternative to fucking… horses or some shit." He elaborated, swinging an arm. "They should be able to crash and keep the passengers alive. If those pieces of shit crashed, it'd be like fucking… Carbon Plague 2.0 or some shit."
Swire tilts her head, "Don't you mean Oripathy?"
"No, completely different, gooification." He elaborated, taking a sip, the words sending shivers up the spines of those listening. "At least, that's what I've heard; some people say that they got powers from it. Which…" he trailed off as he looked away, his eyes blank as he nodded, "Suddenly, that makes sense."
"That?" Swire asked as he seemed to realize what he said before grimacing, bringing up a hand to make a 'so-so' gesture.
"It's nothing." Josue waved it off. He sipped his bottle before adding, "Just remembering my time as a Nomad. Where I learned all about cars and vehicles in general."
"'Nomad'?" Ch'en said, looking Josue over before scoffing, "I'm sorry, I-I just don't see you as someone who'd go around on a burdenbeast braving the land."
"Burdenbeast?" Josue asked, giving her a strange look. "Is that like a cow or something?" While the trio sent each other strange looks, Swire answered.
"Aren't you a Nomad? How can you not know what a burdenbeast is?" Swire pointed out, sipping from her bottle. "As a matter of fact, how does being a Nomad and the knowledge of a car fit together?"
Josue gave her a strange look. "It's how we traveled. We'd get some cars, drive off, upgrade them, and then just continue on the Open Road."
"What, did you connect them and turn them into small Nomadic Cities?" Hoshiguma joked, and Josue's head whirled to her.
"Wait, hold on," he started, his hands waving as he leaned on a knee, "You're telling me the city we're on is moving?"
Now the trio sent him strange looks. "Well, yeah," Swire said, like it was the most obvious thing. "How else would we evade Catastrophes?"
Josue's eyes widened, looking at the ground while his mind flinched at the revelation. "That explains so much."
Hoshiguma turned to him in interest, "Well, what did you do as a Nomad?"
"Well…" he trailed off, placing the edge of his beer against his lips and letting it rest, not taking a sip as he thought about the legality of it all. Well, they're not on duty, it's literally midnight, and they're drinking, a bad choice, but Ch'en's already finished her can while Swire is ordering a second round.
"Just so you know," Ch'en added, her stern countenance returning, "If it is connected to a crime, we will have to take you in… Again."
"Please don't." Hoshiguma started, chuckling airily, "I don't mind working late nights, but it'll be hard to keep a straight face in the interrogation."
"It doesn't, it doesn't." He assured them before shrugging. Well, it's a good story. "Right, so, I should tell you beforehand, I only remember what happened after Ch'en met me."
There was a beat of silence as he let them chew on his words. "Wait, so you have amnesia?" Swire asked before Josue shook his head.
"No, but, for some reason, there's a time, maybe a month or a few before I met Ch'en, where I just… don't remember what happened clearly, but anything before that? I remember it… well enough." He added, after all, he doesn't have photographic memory.
They nod along, understanding it, letting him tell his story. "So, during my time in Night City-."
"Wait," Swire interrupted, "Night City? Where is this city?"
"Well, it's on the East Coast of the NUSA." He said, furthering their confusion. "Irrelevant to the story-."
"No, this is pretty important." Ch'en said, narrowing her eyes, "Josue, Terra is the only landmass we know of, so for you to come out and say that you came from a different landmass is..."
"C'mon," Hoshiguma interrupts, an easy smile on her face, "let him tell his story. We'll have questions regardless, so we might as well leave the questions until he's done."
"Tomorrow," Swire interjected.
"Tomorrow. Or, in the morning." Hoshiguma agreed as Swire nodded, leaving Ch'en to sigh.
"Fine," she says, taking a slurp from her ramen as Josue does the same, "please, continue."
"Right, so, do you know who the Deepdowners are?"
Already, the trio was confused, something Josue noticed as he elaborated, "They're a sort of… people who work in domes at the bottom of the ocean, mining oil and other stuff for the corpos before the Corpo War, where they cut contact and only recently started interacting with Nomads for trade."
Corpo? War? Se-.
"Oh!" Hoshiguma said, smiling easily, "So you're an Aegir! No wonder you don't have any visible racial features."
Ch'en's eyes widened as she nodded, "Makes sense."
"No wonder you're so mysterious," Swire noted out loud before they were interrupted.
"I'm not." He pointed out, to their visible confusion as they looked at him. "I've seen people with gills, fins, horns, fur, teeth, and animal features, but none of them were born with them."
There was a beat of silence as his words registered in their minds. "You…" Ch'en couldn't find the words as he continued.
"Anyway." He continued, "By around 2045, probably later," Ch'en looked like she wanted to comment on that but managed to restrain herself, "most Deepdowns were already accounted for, participating in trade with the rest of the world with the help of the Drift Nations, all of them having disavowed the Corporations they originally belonged to, except for one."
"Wait, there were multiple of them? And what's a 'Drift Nation?" Swire asked this time, curious.
"Think of a floating country, and you've got the gist of it." He explained, but that didn't seem to satisfy Swire, her eyes looking out in the direction of the nearest body of water to imagine a floating landmass in the middle
"We were just off a small job, or a small series of jobs. Weirdly enough, each one had to do with underwater exploration, where I got my sea legs for the first time." He elaborated, "Ships, submarines, speedboats, all of them, and these jobs made me pretty good at it. The job before this one had me looking through possible locations for this Deepdown by the name of Suburbia. The thing is that Deepdowns? They're fucking hidden, having developed their cloaking technology to hide from the Corpos and their war. They also don't trust anybody, so it was a pain in the ass, but I had a way around it."
"The dome that is used as the Deepdown is hidden, but it also hides what's behind it at certain angles. Radio transmissions, people, anything to an extent. It's how I found Suburbia." He explained as they nodded. "So, I went, reported to the Fixer, got paid, and went home, a bit wobbly since being in a submarine is very different from being in a car."
"Duh," Swire noted before returning to the story.
"So, a few days ago, there was this huge cache of data that was up for auction. A local corporation got hold of some of it, I don't know what it was exactly, but it was important enough for three different Corporations to begin a race for it." He elaborated, his hand swinging as he paused to eat for a second, the others doing the same as they were embroiled in the story. "So, my Fixer called me up, said he wanted me on a job with an Exec, a representative of the local corporation. I accepted since the cash was pretty good, even if she did have a stick up her ass as we met in the Afterlife, a morgue turned bar as we were given the details of the gig."
"What was the job?" Ch'en asked as Josue rolled his eyes.
"What else? Gold, weapons, tech, and data." He pointed out, "Seems like Suburbia was part of a system of Deepdowns meant to simulate a 'living' environment. The Corporation that made them was called… Fuck, I can't remember the name, but I think it was DayTech? Back when they were still in business, they worked in appliances, tools, and more, things you'd find in a home or out in the garage. They're also some of the first to propose the idea of Deepdown, I've heard. Originally, they used it as a testing ground for experimental weapons using the materials they dug up. Once they began to fail, though, they moved all their assets, like gold and such, to this dome."
"That…" Ch'en started while holding a hand to her chin, "It makes a lot of sense." If Aegirs and their homes are similar, it can explain why they're so strong if they have access to things only found at the bottom of the ocean.
"Right, so, after they were actually given clearance to build it, they expanded, turning it into its own little city, building over the ones that were already made without authorization. Then, the Corpo War happened, and a lot of these were lost, but not all of them. That's what I found, one of the domes that wasn't crushed by its pressure or by the bombs. That was our target. Our job was simply to go in, find out what's happening, and leave for another day to plan better." He said, before sighing, the memory causing him to smile wryly. "As you can guess, it wasn't that simple."
"Was it the other Corporations?" Swire asked, already familiar as he nodded.
"Yup, we were lucky, our little corporation managed to decrypt the data they got at the auction pretty quickly, but it was unfinished, so a lot of details were left out. Like the fact that after Daytech went out of business, Nihil Industries, a subsidiary of Millitech, the biggest military corporation in the world, and the NUSA's army, bought it out before it went public and hushed up the fact that what was left was soon used to hold political prisoners, war criminals, people who should not see the light of day. Then," he continued, "one of those prisoners was the son of JayTon Industries, who's been missing for ten years. Now, remember how I said they sent assets to Suburbia?" They nodded, remembering as he continued, "Well, 'family' and 'workers' counted as assets." He added as Swire seemed disgusted and Ch'en glared while Hoshiguma frowned.
"Suburbia? It was the testing site for DayTech's secret weapon program, then, over it, was the original Deepdown dome as the net expanded until DayTech went under, where it became a treasure chest so the authorities couldn't get their assets, turning it into their little utopia. Then they began to send criminals, prisoners, to rot and well…" He trailed off, exhaustion in his eyes as he sighed. "We came along, as it all burst."
They listened with rapt attention as he began.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this. I don't know if I'll be posting tomorrow. Might relax tomorrow.
Check out my carrd where I post drafts of my non-requested work and the occasional NSFW way before posting it.
From the other end of the phone call, Josue rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, tragedy, whatever, whatnot. But yeah, now the people have something else to worry about if they want to go to the slums."
"That they do." The Rat King conceded, "Was that your plan all along? Becoming an integral part of the Lungmen slums and the people?"
"Not really," Josue said, seated at a ramen stand by Scarp's place, already changed into his normal clothing and using some of the cash the Rat King gave him to pay for the food, non-synthetic too. "See, if I did it all subtle-like, hid in the shadows and whatnot, they'd have had ammunition to blame the Infected or the people in the slums for attacking them. If I tried to hide my identity, it'd be way easier to accuse me of being Infected since, well, it's the Slums. Not many people care about it much," he added, dissatisfied before continuing, "so, if I went out in fairly light clothing and made sure they knew they had a target, they could see the consequences of messing with that target, non-lethally anyway."
For a second, the Rat King didn't say anything before huffing. "That is correct. Well done, with this, your job is done. I'll let you enjoy your food. Before I forget," he added, before continuing, "your identity has been set up, but do you want anything added in particular?"
"Just be honest." Josue said, leaning back, "I appeared a few days back and don't remember much."
There was a beat of silence as the Rat King seemed confused. "Amnesia?" He asked, and Josue snorted.
"No, I remember everything except for anything that happened four or five days ago and a few months or so ago," Josue admitted, which bothered him.
He remembered leaving Night City in his kombi, finding a place to set up shop, and a roof garden. He remembered getting customers, some interested in his time in Night City and some fellow Nomads, or as much as they saw him as a Nomad due to his time in Night City. He remembered going out on a short drive to get rid of the wanderlust in his body.
What happened after gets… blurry. He knows he fought for a stretch of that time and did some talking, but then, five days ago, he appeared in Lungmen.
"So…" The Rat King started, "no background, nothing, just that you...appeared in Lungmen?" The Rat King asked, Josue's hum was enough of a response as he sighed, chuckling softly, "Well, if you're sure. I'll make the changes."
"Thanks. If you've got any more jobs, send 'em my way, and I'll take care of them." He said, hanging up as he closed the burner he was using and stowed it away.
"Interesting conversation." Someone spoke gruffly as Josue sighed, a group of men circling him as he turned, about to tell the chef to pack up his food to go.
"Yeah, really interesting." Ch'en started, dipping in as the small group paused, followed by Hoshiguma and Swire.
"Hey, Boss." Hoshiguma started, "Bring out the good stuff, we're doing some drinking tonight!"
"On my dime." Josue reminded them with a sigh. "I knew I should've kept my mouth shut."
"Then you should stay out of trouble," Swire said, hers, Ch'en's, and Hoshiguma's eyes all whirling to the group as they stepped back. "You all should, too. It's getting late, and there are better things to do with one's time than to bother someone while they're trying to eat." Swire pointed out that Ch'en's expression was one of suspicion, and Hoshiguma just smiled.
"But, ma'am, he assaulted Lungmen citizens for-." He started, glancing at Josue as he shifted his jacket, causing them to freeze.
There, on his shoulder holster, was a gun, one eye glowing in the shadow cast by the light of the stand, as the EMP Threading around his eyes seemed to pop out in what little light was cast, giving him an inhuman look. "Violence is not the answer," he started, a click ringing out as their eyes went to the hand on his thigh, a different gun in his hand while he disengaged the safety, "but I'm more than willing to show you why it's the solution."
The group swallowed, slowly stepping back as they receded, letting Josue engage the safety, slipping the M1911 to his waist as he turned to the one manning the stall. "Sorry about that." He said, the man waving it away as he turned to the others.
"You should be careful waving that around." Ch'en pointed out, already having made her order, a beer in hand as she popped the tap. "I've heard of a few incidents where the gun went off without an order by some idiot with too much money. Which makes it a miracle that you haven't done so, Missy." She started, immediately whirling to Swire, seated on his other side.
The catgirl's veins twitched as she leaned against the counter to rant at Ch'en, "Please, like I'd be caught dead with that. Do you know how many hoops I'd have to go over to get one, much less how much it costs? I'm surprised someone like him has one without being a Sankta."
"Calling me broke?" He asked as Hoshigma laughed, a beer in hand.
"Let's just say Missy here is very capable." The Oni suggested with a wry grin, while Josue let the topic drop.
"Speaking of," Swire started, turning to him with a brow, "we got a report of the modifications you made to our vehicles. Somehow, they're running better than before. How'd you do that?" She asked, the other two turning at him with interest.
Josue grimaced, reaching for his can of beer and downing half of it.
If he was going to rant about the vehicles here, he's not gonna do it sober. Also, a new beer.
"It's a fucking mess is how." He practically growled, "Honestly, I'm not the picture of ethics, but c'mon! The material used for the car might as well be aluminum; the various systems all run off of one thing that has been proven to be dangerous, even the AC. If things break down, you're getting a faceful of that thing. Not to mention how redundant the systems are, it's like the designers wanted to make sure it works, but at the cost of being unreliable."
"How would that work?" Hoshiguma asked Ch'en in the middle of his rant.
"I don't know," Ch'en answered, not very interested in the subject, but just finding herself increasingly confused at some of the terms.
"It's simple logic." Josue explained, "Cars are meant to be a faster, cleaner, and safer alternative to fucking… horses or some shit." He elaborated, swinging an arm. "They should be able to crash and keep the passengers alive. If those pieces of shit crashed, it'd be like fucking… Carbon Plague 2.0 or some shit."
Swire tilts her head, "Don't you mean Oripathy?"
"No, completely different, gooification." He elaborated, taking a sip, the words sending shivers up the spines of those listening. "At least, that's what I've heard; some people say that they got powers from it. Which…" he trailed off as he looked away, his eyes blank as he nodded, "Suddenly, that makes sense."
"That?" Swire asked as he seemed to realize what he said before grimacing, bringing up a hand to make a 'so-so' gesture.
"It's nothing." Josue waved it off. He sipped his bottle before adding, "Just remembering my time as a Nomad. Where I learned all about cars and vehicles in general."
"'Nomad'?" Ch'en said, looking Josue over before scoffing, "I'm sorry, I-I just don't see you as someone who'd go around on a burdenbeast braving the land."
"Burdenbeast?" Josue asked, giving her a strange look. "Is that like a cow or something?" While the trio sent each other strange looks, Swire answered.
"Aren't you a Nomad? How can you not know what a burdenbeast is?" Swire pointed out, sipping from her bottle. "As a matter of fact, how does being a Nomad and the knowledge of a car fit together?"
Josue gave her a strange look. "It's how we traveled. We'd get some cars, drive off, upgrade them, and then just continue on the Open Road."
"What, did you connect them and turn them into small Nomadic Cities?" Hoshiguma joked, and Josue's head whirled to her.
"Wait, hold on," he started, his hands waving as he leaned on a knee, "You're telling me the city we're on is moving?"
Now the trio sent him strange looks. "Well, yeah," Swire said, like it was the most obvious thing. "How else would we evade Catastrophes?"
Josue's eyes widened, looking at the ground while his mind flinched at the revelation. "That explains so much."
Hoshiguma turned to him in interest, "Well, what did you do as a Nomad?"
"Well…" he trailed off, placing the edge of his beer against his lips and letting it rest, not taking a sip as he thought about the legality of it all. Well, they're not on duty, it's literally midnight, and they're drinking, a bad choice, but Ch'en's already finished her can while Swire is ordering a second round.
"Just so you know," Ch'en added, her stern countenance returning, "If it is connected to a crime, we will have to take you in… Again."
"Please don't." Hoshiguma started, chuckling airily, "I don't mind working late nights, but it'll be hard to keep a straight face in the interrogation."
"It doesn't, it doesn't." He assured them before shrugging. Well, it's a good story. "Right, so, I should tell you beforehand, I only remember what happened after Ch'en met me."
There was a beat of silence as he let them chew on his words. "Wait, so you have amnesia?" Swire asked before Josue shook his head.
"No, but, for some reason, there's a time, maybe a month or a few before I met Ch'en, where I just… don't remember what happened clearly, but anything before that? I remember it… well enough." He added, after all, he doesn't have photographic memory.
They nod along, understanding it, letting him tell his story. "So, during my time in Night City-."
"Wait," Swire interrupted, "Night City? Where is this city?"
"Well, it's on the East Coast of the NUSA." He said, furthering their confusion. "Irrelevant to the story-."
"No, this is pretty important." Ch'en said, narrowing her eyes, "Josue, Terra is the only landmass we know of, so for you to come out and say that you came from a different landmass is..."
"C'mon," Hoshiguma interrupts, an easy smile on her face, "let him tell his story. We'll have questions regardless, so we might as well leave the questions until he's done."
"Tomorrow," Swire interjected.
"Tomorrow. Or, in the morning." Hoshiguma agreed as Swire nodded, leaving Ch'en to sigh.
"Fine," she says, taking a slurp from her ramen as Josue does the same, "please, continue."
"Right, so, do you know who the Deepdowners are?"
Already, the trio was confused, something Josue noticed as he elaborated, "They're a sort of… people who work in domes at the bottom of the ocean, mining oil and other stuff for the corpos before the Corpo War, where they cut contact and only recently started interacting with Nomads for trade."
Corpo? War? Se-.
"Oh!" Hoshiguma said, smiling easily, "So you're an Aegir! No wonder you don't have any visible racial features."
Ch'en's eyes widened as she nodded, "Makes sense."
"No wonder you're so mysterious," Swire noted out loud before they were interrupted.
"I'm not." He pointed out, to their visible confusion as they looked at him. "I've seen people with gills, fins, horns, fur, teeth, and animal features, but none of them were born with them."
There was a beat of silence as his words registered in their minds. "You…" Ch'en couldn't find the words as he continued.
"Anyway." He continued, "By around 2045, probably later," Ch'en looked like she wanted to comment on that but managed to restrain herself, "most Deepdowns were already accounted for, participating in trade with the rest of the world with the help of the Drift Nations, all of them having disavowed the Corporations they originally belonged to, except for one."
"Wait, there were multiple of them? And what's a 'Drift Nation?" Swire asked this time, curious.
"Think of a floating country, and you've got the gist of it." He explained, but that didn't seem to satisfy Swire, her eyes looking out in the direction of the nearest body of water to imagine a floating landmass in the middle
"We were just off a small job, or a small series of jobs. Weirdly enough, each one had to do with underwater exploration, where I got my sea legs for the first time." He elaborated, "Ships, submarines, speedboats, all of them, and these jobs made me pretty good at it. The job before this one had me looking through possible locations for this Deepdown by the name of Suburbia. The thing is that Deepdowns? They're fucking hidden, having developed their cloaking technology to hide from the Corpos and their war. They also don't trust anybody, so it was a pain in the ass, but I had a way around it."
"The dome that is used as the Deepdown is hidden, but it also hides what's behind it at certain angles. Radio transmissions, people, anything to an extent. It's how I found Suburbia." He explained as they nodded. "So, I went, reported to the Fixer, got paid, and went home, a bit wobbly since being in a submarine is very different from being in a car."
"Duh," Swire noted before returning to the story.
"So, a few days ago, there was this huge cache of data that was up for auction. A local corporation got hold of some of it, I don't know what it was exactly, but it was important enough for three different Corporations to begin a race for it." He elaborated, his hand swinging as he paused to eat for a second, the others doing the same as they were embroiled in the story. "So, my Fixer called me up, said he wanted me on a job with an Exec, a representative of the local corporation. I accepted since the cash was pretty good, even if she did have a stick up her ass as we met in the Afterlife, a morgue turned bar as we were given the details of the gig."
"What was the job?" Ch'en asked as Josue rolled his eyes.
"What else? Gold, weapons, tech, and data." He pointed out, "Seems like Suburbia was part of a system of Deepdowns meant to simulate a 'living' environment. The Corporation that made them was called… Fuck, I can't remember the name, but I think it was DayTech? Back when they were still in business, they worked in appliances, tools, and more, things you'd find in a home or out in the garage. They're also some of the first to propose the idea of Deepdown, I've heard. Originally, they used it as a testing ground for experimental weapons using the materials they dug up. Once they began to fail, though, they moved all their assets, like gold and such, to this dome."
"That…" Ch'en started while holding a hand to her chin, "It makes a lot of sense." If Aegirs and their homes are similar, it can explain why they're so strong if they have access to things only found at the bottom of the ocean.
"Right, so, after they were actually given clearance to build it, they expanded, turning it into its own little city, building over the ones that were already made without authorization. Then, the Corpo War happened, and a lot of these were lost, but not all of them. That's what I found, one of the domes that wasn't crushed by its pressure or by the bombs. That was our target. Our job was simply to go in, find out what's happening, and leave for another day to plan better." He said, before sighing, the memory causing him to smile wryly. "As you can guess, it wasn't that simple."
"Was it the other Corporations?" Swire asked, already familiar as he nodded.
"Yup, we were lucky, our little corporation managed to decrypt the data they got at the auction pretty quickly, but it was unfinished, so a lot of details were left out. Like the fact that after Daytech went out of business, Nihil Industries, a subsidiary of Millitech, the biggest military corporation in the world, and the NUSA's army, bought it out before it went public and hushed up the fact that what was left was soon used to hold political prisoners, war criminals, people who should not see the light of day. Then," he continued, "one of those prisoners was the son of JayTon Industries, who's been missing for ten years. Now, remember how I said they sent assets to Suburbia?" They nodded, remembering as he continued, "Well, 'family' and 'workers' counted as assets." He added as Swire seemed disgusted and Ch'en glared while Hoshiguma frowned.
"Suburbia? It was the testing site for DayTech's secret weapon program, then, over it, was the original Deepdown dome as the net expanded until DayTech went under, where it became a treasure chest so the authorities couldn't get their assets, turning it into their little utopia. Then they began to send criminals, prisoners, to rot and well…" He trailed off, exhaustion in his eyes as he sighed. "We came along, as it all burst."
They listened with rapt attention as he began.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this. I don't know if I'll be posting tomorrow. Might relax tomorrow.
Check out my carrd where I post drafts of my non-requested work and the occasional NSFW way before posting it.
3.1 Break My Stride
New
501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
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- Feb 1, 2026
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A/N: Hello everyone, and welcome to the first look into Josue's past and some of the jobs he's taken. This job is important to the story, for reasons that might be obvious in future chapters, but here, I hope this little story will also give people a look into the Cyberpunk world outside of 2077, since this is based mostly on the TTRPG. Speaking of, Talsorian Games, the publishers of the Cyberpunk RED TTRPG, have a website with DLC and stuff, which I use for this story, among the other source books that I have and the game. You should check it out. This story was based on something I found there.
Anyway, I'll be posting this chapter and then... well, focusing on other stuff. I'll be back regularly since this is one of my longest works at the moment, and the one I'm most proud of generally, so yeah. Expect things to be a bit more sporadic.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Musical Leitmotif: Break My Stride by Matthew Wilder
The Agent's ringing interrupted Josue's slumber, his singular meat eye opening as his cybereye followed. A pair of meat arms, even if one was implanted with a frame, reached up and rubbed his eyes, a familiar smell coursing through the room that was definitely not his.
Minor aches and pains coursed through his body, most of them having already been healed from his Enhanced Antibodies, while memories of last night flowed through his mind.
On both sides of him, a pair of idols slept, beautiful, attractive, and very naked, a feature he shared at the moment. What started as a small gig managing sound equipment ended with him pleasing the twins that would be singing in Night City, a pair of sensations charging through the world. In more ways than one. Slinking his way out of their bed, he made his way to where he dropped his pants during their romp and grabbed them, grabbing his underwear after he found it, and began to slip them on quietly to not wake the sleeping twins or attract attention. His pants were halfway up while he reached for his leather jacket, and the door to the room opened.
Josue, midway to putting on his pants, stared at the wall of a man and his scrawnier partner, the bodyguard, and the manager of the twins behind him, respectively. Considering the situation, the smell, and the stains, it didn't take a genius to figure out what happened.
So, slipping his jacket over his shirtless form and pulling his pants up, while the Japanese Idols were stirring, he decided before the city could completely wake up or the manager could tell the brick of a bodyguard to do something.
Run.
"Josue?" Ch'en asked, waving her hand in front of the man who hadn't said anything for a minute or two with an amused grin on his face. Once she did so, Josue shook it off as he looked at her.
"Yeah?" He asked while Swire raised a brow.
"Weren't you gonna tell us a story?" She noted as he perked up and nodded.
"Right, right. Sorry, got distracted." He admitted, catching Hoshiguma sending him a knowing look before he continued.
Once he was back home and away from an angry Agency, he checked the message he had received from his Agent. It was from his Fixer, 'Trixster'.
The last time he spoke to him was at least a week ago, when he loaned him a submarine to find a Deepdown. Now, he wondered what kind of job he would have next.
He answered the message and waited, which wasn't too long. It had a location and a single term, a 'gig'. Long one. It also had instructions to bring extra clothes and pack light on weapons, except for him. Bring as much as he could reasonably carry.
After packing up as much as he could, Josue went to the Afterlife, a bar in Night City for Legends. It wasn't his goal—revenge was his goal—but he was there for a job. To perform revenge, you need money and information.
So, Trixster, their Fixer, was a bit of a nut-case, Chemskin all over his body of varying colors, making him resemble a clown with a third eye on his forehead, and a pair of 'horns', or antennas in this case, rested atop his head. "Well, well, look what the cat dragged in, or cats. Heard about your little… dance routine with the twins. Well done."
Josue threw his carryall with his tools and extra clothes on the floor and sat down. "If you're expecting a play-by-play guide on how I did it, you're talking to the wrong choom."
"Old-fashioned as ever, but I might have to." Trixster started airily as usual.
"Why's that?" Josue asked, ordering a Johnny Silverhand and drinking it.
"You're in luck, I need you," Trixster said, looking at the young Nomad, his eyes glowing blue while Josue's right eye did as well, Chyron displaying something that made him stiffen slightly. "This is how much I was gonna be paid for your location, though," he shrugged before adding, "I don't think they'd be a big problem for you, Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon, the last of the ferocious Northern Tigers. You don't have the chrome, but you can still fight with those who do. Know some tech better than the creators and can drive any vehicle or maintain it. A hand steadier than some of the best Solos and the accuracy to outmatch more."
Josue scrunched his face, returning to his drink while he continued, "I'm guessing you took care of it."
"Count your lucky stars, I don't know a better driver who has as much free time as you do, choom." Trixster reminded him, "Managed to wipe it off the Net before any curious Runners could get a hand on it. Though," he added, relaxing before he flicked his finger and Josue's eye flashed before both of his eyes widened and he nearly spat out his drink, "the girls told me you were the best they've had in a while. Give 'em a call before they leave, eh? They do get awfully lonely."
"Who does? Our charming Tiger managed to snag some more women?" The Medtech asked, leaning over the couch they were using, Josue unconsciously, and consciously, hooking his arms around her neck and twisting her, a blush on her face at the distance while he put her in a headlock, tussling her short blonde hair and forcing her blue eyes closed. "Uncle, uncle!"
"Shut it, Mad." He hissed, a light blush on his face. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"With you, we don't need a Rockerboy." Another voice started, sitting beside Trixster. Stern and strong, he had white hair and red eyes, albinism, a Sandevistan on his spine, and various other cyberware on him. He was their Solo, Alvino.
A screen appeared, and a woman entered, short with a shaved head that Josue had slapped on more than one occasion, and would then have some data leak on 'accident' in retaliation. Her eyes lit up an artificial blue while an artificial voice rang out. "Good morning." It started as the others returned the greeting, and she sat down while Josue wrestled Mad to the ground. The two acted like children rather than the young adults they were. They at least had the presence of mind not to bother the people passing by while they wrestled.
Soon, they were done, joining the others in the seat as Alvino was the first one to speak, "So, funny it might be to needle Tiger on his tastes in women and his ability to charm many of them," Josue glared at him, "Who's this client and what's the job?"
"Well," Trixster started, looking around, "there are a few too many ears around, but we can't exactly go talk about it just yet. So, I'll let Josue say the results of his last job."
"The dome at the floor of the ocean, right?" He asked, getting the interest of everyone else, but only slightly.
"All Deepdowns have been accounted for." Set, their Netrunner, started, using the artificial voice of her Agent. "It's nothing special, it's a wonder you weren't shot."
"I could have been shot?" Josue asked, eyes wide, and turned to Trixster while the Fixer shrugged as if he didn't leave that tidbit of information out.
"A troupe of idiots and their ringmaster." Someone spoke harshly, and everyone in the Crew turned to a woman in a dress, a man behind her, a bodyguard, probably, as he looked around. "I didn't expect much, but for not even my lowest expectations to be met…"
Before Josue could open his mouth, Mad and Set clamped their hand over his mouth before Alvino kicked him in the stomach, and he curled up, all of them aware of Josue's attitude and the jobs it's cost them with, admittedly, dickish clients. Sadly, they need this job in the same way that this Exec needs them quickly. They could hire anyone, but they went for Trixster, a Fixer notorious for finding good help quickly. Sadly, because he's known as such, he doesn't get to flex his connections much to make an amazing team come together for a gig without a long time.
"I don't believe I'm very welcome." She noted while glancing at Trixster. "Where's our ride?"
Trixster turned to the only one with a vehicle, Josue, as he stiffened and slumped, Set and Mad releasing their grip around his mouth, and Alvino prepared another kick in case he began to say something stupid. "It's outside." He said as the woman nodded.
"Nomad?"
"Or Tech," Josue added while she nodded, looking him up and down.
"Northern Tigers…" She noted before turning, "Let's go then."
"This is Grid, the Exec that will be joining you," Trixster said, standing up as everyone in the Crew made their way to the outside of the Afterlife and filed into Josue's kombi. All of them are aware of the rules as they pull up the seats, the bodyguard doing so for Grid, as all of them sit down, and Josue sets himself in the driver's seat.
"Tlaloc, jam any communications coming in or out. Where are we headed, Trix?" Josue asked. A second later, his Agent received the information, and he began to drive the kombi.
"Are you sure no one can listen in?" Grid asked, and Josue scoffed.
"I am," he confirmed while turning on the radio and lowering the music. "So, you want to tell us the deets?"
"Of course. Just making sure everyone's here." Trixster confirmed as he placed a small cube on the table. "So, let's start with introductions. Grid is our client, and so is her corporation. A few days ago, she and her corporation, Iskar Industries, participated in an auction." The lights of the kombi dimmed, Josue jacked into the car, idling the kombi as he turned over to the hologram that popped up. "They managed to snag a bit of data, which was then run through their Netrunner, where they came across some information."
The image changed into a paper laid flat, filled with information as Josue recognized it. "A shipping manifest by Daytech?"
"You know them?" Mad asked while Josue nodded.
"Yeah, you ask any Nomad, and they'll tell you that half of what they have was from Daytech originally. A general appliances corporation that manufactured things like beds, tools, and other things made for, well, things to be used during the day. Still…" He started, narrowing his eyes, "Are you sure this isn't forged?"
"Why's that?" Grid asked as Josue hummed.
"Don't quote me on this, but DayTech filed for bankruptcy way before the dates on this." Josue noted as he continued reading, "Not to mention… well…"
"Well, what?" Alvino asked, and Mad interjected.
"Medicine, drugs, food, appliances, and even clothes?" She noted, "You'd think they were looking to supply a supply store."
"I don't know," Josue said, touching his chin. "Appliances are pretty useful for smuggling."
Those words caused silence to come over them as Josue turned, making sure he was going the right way, as Trixster nodded. "Exactly. And check the weight. Way over what normal appliances, and from what I was able to pull out, the ship carrying DayTech's assets from before they went bankrupt? Disappeared. They searched but couldn't find it, trust me, they had a bunch of overseas assets, gold, silver, supplies for their more luxurious appliances."
"Not to mention power tools and, probably, weapons," Josue noted out loud.
"But, where would it be?" Alvino asked, realizing something. "Wait, but… aren't they…?"
"All Deepdowns have been accounted for." Set pointed out.
"One of them hasn't," Grid interjected, the image switching to something else, emails, and the like. "While many files were corrupted, we did manage to find mention of something called 'Suburbia'. The references start way before Deepdowns were a thing."
There was silence once more as they nodded. "So," Trixster started with an easy-going smile, "here's your gig. You will be taking a boat to a Drift Nation, making contact, and commandeering a speedboat. I will set up a communication relay there, and we will work from there. Your first job will be going and scoping out the situation, finding a way inside, and seeing what you can find. I will start making some connections, digging up some old ones, and supplying you with what you need. From there, find a way in, secure a way out, and we'll go slow. Expand our search to the different areas until we find Suburbia and what we need. Once that's done, we'll get what we need, leave it with Grid, get paid by Iskar-."
"In cash, right?" Alvino asked wryly while Set nodded.
"Stocks are good, and all, but cold-hard Eddies are best." Set agreed, and Grid frowned.
"Yes, you will be remunerated with eurodollars." She started as they sent her a strange look. "Only eurodollars unless you want a pick of the technology found."
"Reasonable," Josue noted as he looked ahead.
"Wait," Swire began, confused, "why not stocks?"
"Because the Corporations that offered those that were small-time." Josue groaned, putting his face in his hands. "Jesus, the memory of the amount of times I was swindled into doing a job for free because it was 'in my best interests' fucking makes me sick."
Hoshiguma comforted him while she laughed, "Still, Grid reminds me of Ch'en a bit."
"Hey."
"In the corporate world, Ch'ens are a dime a dozen," Josue noted, ignoring Ch'en's glare. "Anyway, to skip-."
"Wait, but it was getting interesting!" Swire said while Josue sighed.
"It's literally just me and the Crew getting used to the Drift Nation. Found some old friends of the Northern Tigers who let me keep a speedboat I fixed." He said before shaking his head.
The waters of the Pacific have seen better days, but even so, with the suits they were wearing and Josue's waterproof bag, they were all ready. Everyone had a pistol, except Josue, who had a few explosives with him, as their wetsuits were operational. "Ready?" Alvino asked as everyone nodded, and he fell in, all of them following along.
Making their way through the depths, they had to pause for the occasional problem as Trixster rang out in their ears. "Right, all of you should be near the area where Tiger spotted the dome. You see anything?"
While their Agents answered, noting that they didn't see anything, Grid grabbed Josue's arm and pointed down. "Beneath us." Her Agent said while Josue looked down.
"That's a… tunnel?" Josue's Agent noted a tunnel under the ocean floor, and the others stopped and began making their way there. "Seems like it was used to transport materials to a different dome."
"There was a Deepdown that was hit nearby." Grid's Agent noted before they reached the gap and made their way inside. They reached a door, a red light on it, as Josue swam forward and looked around. Reasonably, there's nothing he can do; they'll all be shocked if he tries doing something with electricity, so maybe he can use his radio to send an override signal?
Bringing out a radio, stuffed in a plastic bag with tape on the end, he began fiddling with it. Set placed a hand on it, her eyes glowing while she used the signal to find the right signal before placing it on the door.
The door opened after lighting green, creating a vacuum, shoving them inside, where they stumbled once the doors closed behind them.
"Ah, fuck." Josue was the first to groan, getting to his feet as he looked around. Set was out of the Net Space, so he helped her up before doing the same with the others. "Well, we have an entrance, not so sure about an exit."
"Water would just push us out," Grid noted while looking at the water at their feet, lowering. "Huh. Useful."
"Tiger, help me out here," Alvino said, looking around while Josue went to the panel by the side, taking out some tools and fiddling with a few things as Mad gave everyone a checkup.
It took a second, but Josue managed to get the door open with a bit of a push from Alvino. All of them stepped out and pointed their weapons out, though they had their opinions on weapons, the fact that Josue had an M1911 was something that they couldn't help but tease him about. Except for Grid. She'd be shot if she did.
It was dark, something Josue rectified as he turned on a flashlight. Once there was some light, they spotted a bunch of things lying around, so Mad moved a few things to a corner, laying down a strip of glow-in-the-dark tape. "Here, let's mark our entrance. We can use it as an exit if we're that desperate."
"So, got anywhere to jack in?" Josue asked while he lowered his wetsuit, letting it hang around his waist, revealing his chest, while Alvino did the same.
"No," Set said, disappointed.
"Let's keep going. Maybe find some way to leave without being crushed or an energy source." He noted, making his way through the empty hallway with his gun pointed forward.
For a long while, no one said anything until Set whirled around. "What was that?"
No one else heard it, but that's probably because she has sensitive hearing. Crouching down, Alvino placed a hand against the floor and hummed. "No vibrations…"
"Echoes?" Josue offered, and Mad shivered.
"Don't say something so scary so easily," Mad said as they tried again to look around. Josue was the least chromed individual there, so he had to be happy being able to see something with his flashlight.
"This…" Grid noted out loud, "It doesn't make sense." She finished, "If Set truly heard something, then wouldn't that mean there is something out there?"
"Grid, I-."
"No, she's right." Alvino interjected, "Humans can't survive for long without food or potable water. If this place were abandoned, there wouldn't be any sounds."
"So, Tiger was correct." Mad started before pausing. "But… how?" She realized, looking around, that their steps sped up. "As Alvino said, people can't survive long without food or potable water."
"Why was the tunnel underground?" Josue realized, turning to Grid. "Grid, which Deepdown was hit? Did it belong to Daytech?"
"No." Grid confirmed, "No, it didn't."
"Tiger," Alvino started, "you can't be for real. That's…"
Insane. Ludicrous. And so many more words coursed through their minds before Set answered. "I've been able to find a few ports to jack into, but their signals are completely different. One is older than the other. The older one is usually a level below the newer one."
"Think they built this level, the subterranean one, before the 'dome'?" Josue asked, the idea giving them pause before their communicators came to life.
"Shit!" Trixster yelled, his voice loud in their communicators. "Fuck! We're stuffed! Totally fucking stuffed, you need-." Their hearts dropped when his voice was cut off.
"Contacts!" Alvino yelled, firing as he tried to find cover, but a dart hit his shoulder, his body audibly hitting the floor while he groaned.
"Al-." Set couldn't say anything before she was next, her eyes closing as she fell. Grid's bodyguard shot into the darkness, forcing whoever was firing at them behind cover.
"Fuck." Josue cursed, turning behind him and swerving his flashlight around. With each movement, he could catch the barest glimpses of more, shooting at them to ward them off while gunfire rang. "We're trapped!"
"Set off the explosives!" Grid insisted with the full knowledge that Josue was the one with the bombs and setting them off would blow him up. Meanwhile, she was a distance away, being protected by her bodyguard.
"What?!" Ch'en said in outrage.
"Yup," Josue confirmed, taking a sip from his drink.
"And she knew-," Swire said, now a bit tipsy due to the alcohol.
"Knew that I had them. Bitch was expecting me to become a suicide bomber for her." Josue noted as Hoshiguma grunted.
"What a bitch."
Josue continued his story.
"Are you insa-!" Josue started before the bodyguard landed a punch on his stomach, probably hoping to take him down easily, but Josue was nothing if not stubborn. Fumbling, he took in as much air as he could and landed a kick right in between the bodyguard's legs, the taller man grunting and stumbling while Josue pulled him and rested his M1911 against the bottom of his jaw.
He fired thrice, the third one going through his Subdermal Armor and straight into his head as the life left his eyes, and he aimed for Grid, her pistol boring down on him.
Neither could pull the trigger, darts landing on their necks, where she fell unconscious first, and he tried to fight through it.
Aiming his M1911, a single shot rang out, the slide racking back, clicking with the next pull, signaling its status as empty, before he heard the group clamor followed by a body hitting the floor. He fell immediately after, his flashlight clattering to the floor and pointing in the direction of the enemies while he used his left arm, the one with the Interface Plug, to cover his right eye, his cybereye, before using his right arm, the one implanted with a frame and a Subdermal Grip, to cover that hand with his pistol, leaving his meat eye to catch something distinctive about the man boring down on him.
"That's something weird to point out," Hoshiguma noted while Josue grabbed his weapons and passed his M1911 to Ch'en.
"Here, feel this." He said, pointing the handle at her while she slowly grabbed the handle, taking note of its heavy frame.
"Steel." She noted before passing it to Hoshiguma, then to Swire.
"Now, feel this." He said, brandishing the M-2012 while Swire frowned.
"Not steel, but… something else." She noted aloud.
"It's an important detail, trust me." He suggested that before continuing with his story.
Birthmark, almost scar-like, over his jaw on Josue's right, so on the man's left. It stood out, for some reason.
The man crouched down and scanned him with a machine, the others doing the same as he tried to speak, but it all felt so goddamn hard. Finally, the man seemed satisfied before standing up and stomping Josue's lights out, finally letting him pass out.
When he woke up, he groaned, reaching up and patting his face where he was curb-stomped and then on the mattress…
Wait… Why was he in pajamas?
He patted himself down, the cotton pajamas worth a fortune back in Night City being worn like it's nothing, which brought up one question. "Where the fuck am I?"
There was a sun. Why was there a sun? Sunlight?
He moved to the window of the room and opened it as he looked at the street of the ideal suburbs of the Americas. If he looked down the street, he could spot some stores down the street, but he could see why this place is referred to as 'Suburbia'.
Also…
The cameras… There were so many, all of them scanning the area. Now, there was a problem when he reached up and felt his chipware socket. He paused at the feeling of a chip he did not slot in. He tried to display his biomon, but it couldn't be displayed on Chyron, so he checked his arm where the biomon displayed his result, except…
Nothing's there.
"Morning, neighbor!" Someone called out to him, and he saw a woman smiling brightly at him, "You new in town?"
Josue nodded slowly, "Uh… yeah." He answered. "Just… finished packing up last night."
"Oh, so your wife was the one who left in the morning?" She asked, smiling, "She was beautiful, so kind."
Woman, beautiful, kind. So… Mad? If he's still alive, are all of them? Well, not the bodyguard, he was a corpse.
He needed to figure this out. "Yeah, well, have a good morning." He said, slowly making his way back into his room. He opened the closet, hoping there were some clothes he could change into, and there were, consisting of coveralls. "… Tiger?" He muttered, reading the tag on the coveralls while he experimented quickly. His cybereye came to life while he rubbed it to hide his eye before deactivating it, leaving him confused, more than he already was anyway. "What? If they were able to disable my biomon…"
He couldn't say more; he was being watched, damn it.
Whatever, it seemed like he was a mechanic. He needed to… get to work, and see what happens, that's what Pre-Four Americans did, right?
He made his way down the room as a woman sat down, sipping on some coffee while looking out the window. "Finally, you're-." She began while turning to him.
Josue spotted Grid, and she stiffened.
A/N: Here, I thought about making it shorter, but decided against it. I hope you enjoyed it.
Check out my carrd if you're interested in what I write and want to, occasionally, see what else I write.
Anyway, I'll be posting this chapter and then... well, focusing on other stuff. I'll be back regularly since this is one of my longest works at the moment, and the one I'm most proud of generally, so yeah. Expect things to be a bit more sporadic.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Musical Leitmotif: Break My Stride by Matthew Wilder
The Agent's ringing interrupted Josue's slumber, his singular meat eye opening as his cybereye followed. A pair of meat arms, even if one was implanted with a frame, reached up and rubbed his eyes, a familiar smell coursing through the room that was definitely not his.
Minor aches and pains coursed through his body, most of them having already been healed from his Enhanced Antibodies, while memories of last night flowed through his mind.
On both sides of him, a pair of idols slept, beautiful, attractive, and very naked, a feature he shared at the moment. What started as a small gig managing sound equipment ended with him pleasing the twins that would be singing in Night City, a pair of sensations charging through the world. In more ways than one. Slinking his way out of their bed, he made his way to where he dropped his pants during their romp and grabbed them, grabbing his underwear after he found it, and began to slip them on quietly to not wake the sleeping twins or attract attention. His pants were halfway up while he reached for his leather jacket, and the door to the room opened.
Josue, midway to putting on his pants, stared at the wall of a man and his scrawnier partner, the bodyguard, and the manager of the twins behind him, respectively. Considering the situation, the smell, and the stains, it didn't take a genius to figure out what happened.
So, slipping his jacket over his shirtless form and pulling his pants up, while the Japanese Idols were stirring, he decided before the city could completely wake up or the manager could tell the brick of a bodyguard to do something.
Run.
"Josue?" Ch'en asked, waving her hand in front of the man who hadn't said anything for a minute or two with an amused grin on his face. Once she did so, Josue shook it off as he looked at her.
"Yeah?" He asked while Swire raised a brow.
"Weren't you gonna tell us a story?" She noted as he perked up and nodded.
"Right, right. Sorry, got distracted." He admitted, catching Hoshiguma sending him a knowing look before he continued.
Once he was back home and away from an angry Agency, he checked the message he had received from his Agent. It was from his Fixer, 'Trixster'.
The last time he spoke to him was at least a week ago, when he loaned him a submarine to find a Deepdown. Now, he wondered what kind of job he would have next.
He answered the message and waited, which wasn't too long. It had a location and a single term, a 'gig'. Long one. It also had instructions to bring extra clothes and pack light on weapons, except for him. Bring as much as he could reasonably carry.
After packing up as much as he could, Josue went to the Afterlife, a bar in Night City for Legends. It wasn't his goal—revenge was his goal—but he was there for a job. To perform revenge, you need money and information.
So, Trixster, their Fixer, was a bit of a nut-case, Chemskin all over his body of varying colors, making him resemble a clown with a third eye on his forehead, and a pair of 'horns', or antennas in this case, rested atop his head. "Well, well, look what the cat dragged in, or cats. Heard about your little… dance routine with the twins. Well done."
Josue threw his carryall with his tools and extra clothes on the floor and sat down. "If you're expecting a play-by-play guide on how I did it, you're talking to the wrong choom."
"Old-fashioned as ever, but I might have to." Trixster started airily as usual.
"Why's that?" Josue asked, ordering a Johnny Silverhand and drinking it.
"You're in luck, I need you," Trixster said, looking at the young Nomad, his eyes glowing blue while Josue's right eye did as well, Chyron displaying something that made him stiffen slightly. "This is how much I was gonna be paid for your location, though," he shrugged before adding, "I don't think they'd be a big problem for you, Josue 'Tiger' Mondragon, the last of the ferocious Northern Tigers. You don't have the chrome, but you can still fight with those who do. Know some tech better than the creators and can drive any vehicle or maintain it. A hand steadier than some of the best Solos and the accuracy to outmatch more."
Josue scrunched his face, returning to his drink while he continued, "I'm guessing you took care of it."
"Count your lucky stars, I don't know a better driver who has as much free time as you do, choom." Trixster reminded him, "Managed to wipe it off the Net before any curious Runners could get a hand on it. Though," he added, relaxing before he flicked his finger and Josue's eye flashed before both of his eyes widened and he nearly spat out his drink, "the girls told me you were the best they've had in a while. Give 'em a call before they leave, eh? They do get awfully lonely."
"Who does? Our charming Tiger managed to snag some more women?" The Medtech asked, leaning over the couch they were using, Josue unconsciously, and consciously, hooking his arms around her neck and twisting her, a blush on her face at the distance while he put her in a headlock, tussling her short blonde hair and forcing her blue eyes closed. "Uncle, uncle!"
"Shut it, Mad." He hissed, a light blush on his face. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"With you, we don't need a Rockerboy." Another voice started, sitting beside Trixster. Stern and strong, he had white hair and red eyes, albinism, a Sandevistan on his spine, and various other cyberware on him. He was their Solo, Alvino.
A screen appeared, and a woman entered, short with a shaved head that Josue had slapped on more than one occasion, and would then have some data leak on 'accident' in retaliation. Her eyes lit up an artificial blue while an artificial voice rang out. "Good morning." It started as the others returned the greeting, and she sat down while Josue wrestled Mad to the ground. The two acted like children rather than the young adults they were. They at least had the presence of mind not to bother the people passing by while they wrestled.
Soon, they were done, joining the others in the seat as Alvino was the first one to speak, "So, funny it might be to needle Tiger on his tastes in women and his ability to charm many of them," Josue glared at him, "Who's this client and what's the job?"
"Well," Trixster started, looking around, "there are a few too many ears around, but we can't exactly go talk about it just yet. So, I'll let Josue say the results of his last job."
"The dome at the floor of the ocean, right?" He asked, getting the interest of everyone else, but only slightly.
"All Deepdowns have been accounted for." Set, their Netrunner, started, using the artificial voice of her Agent. "It's nothing special, it's a wonder you weren't shot."
"I could have been shot?" Josue asked, eyes wide, and turned to Trixster while the Fixer shrugged as if he didn't leave that tidbit of information out.
"A troupe of idiots and their ringmaster." Someone spoke harshly, and everyone in the Crew turned to a woman in a dress, a man behind her, a bodyguard, probably, as he looked around. "I didn't expect much, but for not even my lowest expectations to be met…"
Before Josue could open his mouth, Mad and Set clamped their hand over his mouth before Alvino kicked him in the stomach, and he curled up, all of them aware of Josue's attitude and the jobs it's cost them with, admittedly, dickish clients. Sadly, they need this job in the same way that this Exec needs them quickly. They could hire anyone, but they went for Trixster, a Fixer notorious for finding good help quickly. Sadly, because he's known as such, he doesn't get to flex his connections much to make an amazing team come together for a gig without a long time.
"I don't believe I'm very welcome." She noted while glancing at Trixster. "Where's our ride?"
Trixster turned to the only one with a vehicle, Josue, as he stiffened and slumped, Set and Mad releasing their grip around his mouth, and Alvino prepared another kick in case he began to say something stupid. "It's outside." He said as the woman nodded.
"Nomad?"
"Or Tech," Josue added while she nodded, looking him up and down.
"Northern Tigers…" She noted before turning, "Let's go then."
"This is Grid, the Exec that will be joining you," Trixster said, standing up as everyone in the Crew made their way to the outside of the Afterlife and filed into Josue's kombi. All of them are aware of the rules as they pull up the seats, the bodyguard doing so for Grid, as all of them sit down, and Josue sets himself in the driver's seat.
"Tlaloc, jam any communications coming in or out. Where are we headed, Trix?" Josue asked. A second later, his Agent received the information, and he began to drive the kombi.
"Are you sure no one can listen in?" Grid asked, and Josue scoffed.
"I am," he confirmed while turning on the radio and lowering the music. "So, you want to tell us the deets?"
"Of course. Just making sure everyone's here." Trixster confirmed as he placed a small cube on the table. "So, let's start with introductions. Grid is our client, and so is her corporation. A few days ago, she and her corporation, Iskar Industries, participated in an auction." The lights of the kombi dimmed, Josue jacked into the car, idling the kombi as he turned over to the hologram that popped up. "They managed to snag a bit of data, which was then run through their Netrunner, where they came across some information."
The image changed into a paper laid flat, filled with information as Josue recognized it. "A shipping manifest by Daytech?"
"You know them?" Mad asked while Josue nodded.
"Yeah, you ask any Nomad, and they'll tell you that half of what they have was from Daytech originally. A general appliances corporation that manufactured things like beds, tools, and other things made for, well, things to be used during the day. Still…" He started, narrowing his eyes, "Are you sure this isn't forged?"
"Why's that?" Grid asked as Josue hummed.
"Don't quote me on this, but DayTech filed for bankruptcy way before the dates on this." Josue noted as he continued reading, "Not to mention… well…"
"Well, what?" Alvino asked, and Mad interjected.
"Medicine, drugs, food, appliances, and even clothes?" She noted, "You'd think they were looking to supply a supply store."
"I don't know," Josue said, touching his chin. "Appliances are pretty useful for smuggling."
Those words caused silence to come over them as Josue turned, making sure he was going the right way, as Trixster nodded. "Exactly. And check the weight. Way over what normal appliances, and from what I was able to pull out, the ship carrying DayTech's assets from before they went bankrupt? Disappeared. They searched but couldn't find it, trust me, they had a bunch of overseas assets, gold, silver, supplies for their more luxurious appliances."
"Not to mention power tools and, probably, weapons," Josue noted out loud.
"But, where would it be?" Alvino asked, realizing something. "Wait, but… aren't they…?"
"All Deepdowns have been accounted for." Set pointed out.
"One of them hasn't," Grid interjected, the image switching to something else, emails, and the like. "While many files were corrupted, we did manage to find mention of something called 'Suburbia'. The references start way before Deepdowns were a thing."
There was silence once more as they nodded. "So," Trixster started with an easy-going smile, "here's your gig. You will be taking a boat to a Drift Nation, making contact, and commandeering a speedboat. I will set up a communication relay there, and we will work from there. Your first job will be going and scoping out the situation, finding a way inside, and seeing what you can find. I will start making some connections, digging up some old ones, and supplying you with what you need. From there, find a way in, secure a way out, and we'll go slow. Expand our search to the different areas until we find Suburbia and what we need. Once that's done, we'll get what we need, leave it with Grid, get paid by Iskar-."
"In cash, right?" Alvino asked wryly while Set nodded.
"Stocks are good, and all, but cold-hard Eddies are best." Set agreed, and Grid frowned.
"Yes, you will be remunerated with eurodollars." She started as they sent her a strange look. "Only eurodollars unless you want a pick of the technology found."
"Reasonable," Josue noted as he looked ahead.
"Wait," Swire began, confused, "why not stocks?"
"Because the Corporations that offered those that were small-time." Josue groaned, putting his face in his hands. "Jesus, the memory of the amount of times I was swindled into doing a job for free because it was 'in my best interests' fucking makes me sick."
Hoshiguma comforted him while she laughed, "Still, Grid reminds me of Ch'en a bit."
"Hey."
"In the corporate world, Ch'ens are a dime a dozen," Josue noted, ignoring Ch'en's glare. "Anyway, to skip-."
"Wait, but it was getting interesting!" Swire said while Josue sighed.
"It's literally just me and the Crew getting used to the Drift Nation. Found some old friends of the Northern Tigers who let me keep a speedboat I fixed." He said before shaking his head.
The waters of the Pacific have seen better days, but even so, with the suits they were wearing and Josue's waterproof bag, they were all ready. Everyone had a pistol, except Josue, who had a few explosives with him, as their wetsuits were operational. "Ready?" Alvino asked as everyone nodded, and he fell in, all of them following along.
Making their way through the depths, they had to pause for the occasional problem as Trixster rang out in their ears. "Right, all of you should be near the area where Tiger spotted the dome. You see anything?"
While their Agents answered, noting that they didn't see anything, Grid grabbed Josue's arm and pointed down. "Beneath us." Her Agent said while Josue looked down.
"That's a… tunnel?" Josue's Agent noted a tunnel under the ocean floor, and the others stopped and began making their way there. "Seems like it was used to transport materials to a different dome."
"There was a Deepdown that was hit nearby." Grid's Agent noted before they reached the gap and made their way inside. They reached a door, a red light on it, as Josue swam forward and looked around. Reasonably, there's nothing he can do; they'll all be shocked if he tries doing something with electricity, so maybe he can use his radio to send an override signal?
Bringing out a radio, stuffed in a plastic bag with tape on the end, he began fiddling with it. Set placed a hand on it, her eyes glowing while she used the signal to find the right signal before placing it on the door.
The door opened after lighting green, creating a vacuum, shoving them inside, where they stumbled once the doors closed behind them.
"Ah, fuck." Josue was the first to groan, getting to his feet as he looked around. Set was out of the Net Space, so he helped her up before doing the same with the others. "Well, we have an entrance, not so sure about an exit."
"Water would just push us out," Grid noted while looking at the water at their feet, lowering. "Huh. Useful."
"Tiger, help me out here," Alvino said, looking around while Josue went to the panel by the side, taking out some tools and fiddling with a few things as Mad gave everyone a checkup.
It took a second, but Josue managed to get the door open with a bit of a push from Alvino. All of them stepped out and pointed their weapons out, though they had their opinions on weapons, the fact that Josue had an M1911 was something that they couldn't help but tease him about. Except for Grid. She'd be shot if she did.
It was dark, something Josue rectified as he turned on a flashlight. Once there was some light, they spotted a bunch of things lying around, so Mad moved a few things to a corner, laying down a strip of glow-in-the-dark tape. "Here, let's mark our entrance. We can use it as an exit if we're that desperate."
"So, got anywhere to jack in?" Josue asked while he lowered his wetsuit, letting it hang around his waist, revealing his chest, while Alvino did the same.
"No," Set said, disappointed.
"Let's keep going. Maybe find some way to leave without being crushed or an energy source." He noted, making his way through the empty hallway with his gun pointed forward.
For a long while, no one said anything until Set whirled around. "What was that?"
No one else heard it, but that's probably because she has sensitive hearing. Crouching down, Alvino placed a hand against the floor and hummed. "No vibrations…"
"Echoes?" Josue offered, and Mad shivered.
"Don't say something so scary so easily," Mad said as they tried again to look around. Josue was the least chromed individual there, so he had to be happy being able to see something with his flashlight.
"This…" Grid noted out loud, "It doesn't make sense." She finished, "If Set truly heard something, then wouldn't that mean there is something out there?"
"Grid, I-."
"No, she's right." Alvino interjected, "Humans can't survive for long without food or potable water. If this place were abandoned, there wouldn't be any sounds."
"So, Tiger was correct." Mad started before pausing. "But… how?" She realized, looking around, that their steps sped up. "As Alvino said, people can't survive long without food or potable water."
"Why was the tunnel underground?" Josue realized, turning to Grid. "Grid, which Deepdown was hit? Did it belong to Daytech?"
"No." Grid confirmed, "No, it didn't."
"Tiger," Alvino started, "you can't be for real. That's…"
Insane. Ludicrous. And so many more words coursed through their minds before Set answered. "I've been able to find a few ports to jack into, but their signals are completely different. One is older than the other. The older one is usually a level below the newer one."
"Think they built this level, the subterranean one, before the 'dome'?" Josue asked, the idea giving them pause before their communicators came to life.
"Shit!" Trixster yelled, his voice loud in their communicators. "Fuck! We're stuffed! Totally fucking stuffed, you need-." Their hearts dropped when his voice was cut off.
"Contacts!" Alvino yelled, firing as he tried to find cover, but a dart hit his shoulder, his body audibly hitting the floor while he groaned.
"Al-." Set couldn't say anything before she was next, her eyes closing as she fell. Grid's bodyguard shot into the darkness, forcing whoever was firing at them behind cover.
"Fuck." Josue cursed, turning behind him and swerving his flashlight around. With each movement, he could catch the barest glimpses of more, shooting at them to ward them off while gunfire rang. "We're trapped!"
"Set off the explosives!" Grid insisted with the full knowledge that Josue was the one with the bombs and setting them off would blow him up. Meanwhile, she was a distance away, being protected by her bodyguard.
"What?!" Ch'en said in outrage.
"Yup," Josue confirmed, taking a sip from his drink.
"And she knew-," Swire said, now a bit tipsy due to the alcohol.
"Knew that I had them. Bitch was expecting me to become a suicide bomber for her." Josue noted as Hoshiguma grunted.
"What a bitch."
Josue continued his story.
"Are you insa-!" Josue started before the bodyguard landed a punch on his stomach, probably hoping to take him down easily, but Josue was nothing if not stubborn. Fumbling, he took in as much air as he could and landed a kick right in between the bodyguard's legs, the taller man grunting and stumbling while Josue pulled him and rested his M1911 against the bottom of his jaw.
He fired thrice, the third one going through his Subdermal Armor and straight into his head as the life left his eyes, and he aimed for Grid, her pistol boring down on him.
Neither could pull the trigger, darts landing on their necks, where she fell unconscious first, and he tried to fight through it.
Aiming his M1911, a single shot rang out, the slide racking back, clicking with the next pull, signaling its status as empty, before he heard the group clamor followed by a body hitting the floor. He fell immediately after, his flashlight clattering to the floor and pointing in the direction of the enemies while he used his left arm, the one with the Interface Plug, to cover his right eye, his cybereye, before using his right arm, the one implanted with a frame and a Subdermal Grip, to cover that hand with his pistol, leaving his meat eye to catch something distinctive about the man boring down on him.
"That's something weird to point out," Hoshiguma noted while Josue grabbed his weapons and passed his M1911 to Ch'en.
"Here, feel this." He said, pointing the handle at her while she slowly grabbed the handle, taking note of its heavy frame.
"Steel." She noted before passing it to Hoshiguma, then to Swire.
"Now, feel this." He said, brandishing the M-2012 while Swire frowned.
"Not steel, but… something else." She noted aloud.
"It's an important detail, trust me." He suggested that before continuing with his story.
Birthmark, almost scar-like, over his jaw on Josue's right, so on the man's left. It stood out, for some reason.
The man crouched down and scanned him with a machine, the others doing the same as he tried to speak, but it all felt so goddamn hard. Finally, the man seemed satisfied before standing up and stomping Josue's lights out, finally letting him pass out.
When he woke up, he groaned, reaching up and patting his face where he was curb-stomped and then on the mattress…
Wait… Why was he in pajamas?
He patted himself down, the cotton pajamas worth a fortune back in Night City being worn like it's nothing, which brought up one question. "Where the fuck am I?"
There was a sun. Why was there a sun? Sunlight?
He moved to the window of the room and opened it as he looked at the street of the ideal suburbs of the Americas. If he looked down the street, he could spot some stores down the street, but he could see why this place is referred to as 'Suburbia'.
Also…
The cameras… There were so many, all of them scanning the area. Now, there was a problem when he reached up and felt his chipware socket. He paused at the feeling of a chip he did not slot in. He tried to display his biomon, but it couldn't be displayed on Chyron, so he checked his arm where the biomon displayed his result, except…
Nothing's there.
"Morning, neighbor!" Someone called out to him, and he saw a woman smiling brightly at him, "You new in town?"
Josue nodded slowly, "Uh… yeah." He answered. "Just… finished packing up last night."
"Oh, so your wife was the one who left in the morning?" She asked, smiling, "She was beautiful, so kind."
Woman, beautiful, kind. So… Mad? If he's still alive, are all of them? Well, not the bodyguard, he was a corpse.
He needed to figure this out. "Yeah, well, have a good morning." He said, slowly making his way back into his room. He opened the closet, hoping there were some clothes he could change into, and there were, consisting of coveralls. "… Tiger?" He muttered, reading the tag on the coveralls while he experimented quickly. His cybereye came to life while he rubbed it to hide his eye before deactivating it, leaving him confused, more than he already was anyway. "What? If they were able to disable my biomon…"
He couldn't say more; he was being watched, damn it.
Whatever, it seemed like he was a mechanic. He needed to… get to work, and see what happens, that's what Pre-Four Americans did, right?
He made his way down the room as a woman sat down, sipping on some coffee while looking out the window. "Finally, you're-." She began while turning to him.
Josue spotted Grid, and she stiffened.
A/N: Here, I thought about making it shorter, but decided against it. I hope you enjoyed it.
Check out my carrd if you're interested in what I write and want to, occasionally, see what else I write.
CereysKerrigan
Getting out there.
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MORE! I NEED MORE! CHOOM, THIS IS NOVA AND YOUR MY ONLY FIXER ERE'!
501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
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I'm glad you're enjoying it, wait for tomorrow, sadly.
3.2 Break My Stride
New
501aris/N0ct15
Getting some practice in, huh?
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A/N: This is probably gonna be one of the few chapters split into two sections. Hope you enjoy it.
"That's it for tonight." Josue finished, Swire now shit-faced, Ch'en a close second, and Hoshiguma barely looks drunk.
"What!?" Swire complained, swirling to him as she tried to stand and scold him, "Y-You can't just end it there!?"
"The rich bitch is right!" Ch'en cheered, a blush on her face, "Continue, continue!"
"It was getting pretty good." Hoshiguma agreed while Josue sighed.
"Look, it's a story that spans weeks. I'm not getting it done in one night." He grumbled, not exactly the picture of sobriety, but he's had worse nights. Turning to the chef, he asked. "So, how much do I owe ya, add in their share too."
The man told him a number, and Josue frowned, raising a brow, "That's a lot less than I thought."
"Well, the story was really interesting." The man admitted with a shrug, "But it's probably not something I should spread. If you come here to continue the story, I'll give you a discount and keep my mouth shut."
"Well, here," Josue said, leaving a bundle of cash, enough to pay for their food and then some extra. "For your silence. Good food too." He added, which, while not a difficult hurdle to overtake due to Josue being used to artificial food like Kibble, MREs, or snack bars, did mean a lot since good food is good food.
The trio of Lawmen were already outside, with Ch'en and Swire already arguing and Hoshiguma trying to act as the mediator, "So, you girls fine going home?"
"Ch'en and I live in the same building." Hoshiguma confirmed, "As for Missy here…"
"Exec's got her own Beaverville conapt, huh?" He muttered under his breath, Hoshiguma giving him a strange look while Ch'en and Swire continued arguing. "Well, I'll drive her over there."
"You will?" Hoshiguma asked, raising a brow as Josue shrugged.
"Sure," he said, "I'll get her on my bike, drive her over, leave her to whoever's there, then come back."
"Well, if you're sure." Hoshiguma relented, making her way to Ch'en and grabbing her, "Just be careful. I don't think I need to say what happens if you try anything."
"She'll kick my ass?" Josue asked, calling his Parallax while Hoshiguma scoffed.
"That and more. Well, see ya." Hoshiguma said, waving as Ch'en turned to her and they began to talk.
"Tch." Swire clicked her tongue, "That bitch was spouting bullshit."
"Well," Josue started, but didn't say anything, "yeah, let's go with that. Whoa." He noted, placing a hand on her back and helping the drunk cat find her balance. "You're alright? I don't think anyone drank that much."
"I-I'm fine." She insisted, pushing him off as she found her balance. "Just a bit dizzy is all."
"Well, I'll be driving you home." He noted before jerking his head, "Come on, my ride's this way." He said while she followed after him with the occasional swaying, her eyes glancing at Josue from time to time.
"Something on my face?" He asked, checking his face for anything before she blinked.
"N-No." She started, "I was just wondering, why do you act like Night City is real?" Swire noted, bringing a hand to her chin. "It makes no sense, I've never heard of Night City from anywhere, and it can't be real. Not to mention a 'Deepdown', it has to be a coastal city, but-."
"Probably because it might not even be the same world," Josue answered while she gave him a strange, almost shocked look. "After all, I've seen people like Ch'en before, but I've never seen Lungmen before."
"That's impossible!" She practically yelled, getting some attention before waving them away. "It sounds like fiction."
"Hmmm." He trailed off, bringing a hand to his chin, "You know, I might just do that one day. Publish an anthology of my jobs." Josue said before shrugging. "Still, it is real. I lived through it after all."
"Fine." She harrumphed before pointing at him, "I'll hire you. You were complaining about cars, as it turns out, I have my own. I'll pay for the materials, so all you need to do is modify it to your liking. If you can make it better, then I'll believe you."
"You sure?" Josue asked, raising a brow, "You're kinda drunk at the moment." He noted out loud, to her offense.
"I'm fine!" She retorted, and Josue shook his head.
"Look, we're at my bike," he motioned to his Parallax, "I'll get you back home, and you can call me in the morning if you still want my help."
"Fine then!" She proclaimed while she sat down on the seat behind him. After giving him her address, he started it and made his way through the sparse streets of Lungmen. Her grip on his stomach wasn't bothering him, but the way she seemed interested in his bike was also interesting.
"Wh-Are your arms glowing!?" She asked, realizing that his Synthskin was activated. An upgrade from Chemskin and something he used rarely in performances or when working at night.
On his right arm was a green and red rose bush crawling up his arm, while his left, his cyberarm, had blue circuit-like marks going up it. Visible considering the sleeves of his jackets were rolled up.
"Yeah." He confirmed with a nod while taking a turn, and the motorcycle smoothly turned. "They absorb light and can light up the area." With a few 'presses' of a mental button, the light of the skin changes to white, lighting up a good area. "Pretty useful for performing maintenance at night."
"Whoa ~." Swire started before he stopped in front of the building that was Swire's home.
"We're here." He warned her while she began to get off, "I'll let you have a good night's rest."
"You better!" She said with a pout. "You had us working late nights!"
"Well," he said with a huff, "I was raised a clerk, I know a bit about paperwork. Call me, and I could probably help." Josue chuckled at the joke and waved at her. "Anyway, night."
Once he made sure the heiress was fine, he made his way to the scrapyard and entered his auto shop, his kombi hidden from most, while he spotted a pile of books on one of the tables in the auto shop. Josue made his way over and checked the titles out of curiosity.
Manuals atop manuals of the sparse vehicles made by the various companies in Terra were piled on the table. "Thanks." He noted, grabbing them and putting them in his kombi before falling asleep, some extra cash in his account, and prepared himself for another day.
The next morning, Josue got up and freshened up before making his way through the city and into a corner store. He bought some cleaning supplies and made his way back to the auto shop as he got down to cleaning.
After doing so until midday, Josue sat down and got to reading the various manuals of the vehicles, leaving notes as his thoughts were only reinforced. The vehicles are not well-made compared to what he knows. Everything runs off of Originium; it's efficient, but it's also stupid to constantly rely on one thing to run a vehicle.
Vehicles were meant to be reliable; constantly being in danger of blasting yourself with what is possibly a biological sickness is not reliable. There's also the fact that there are no forms of alternative energy, almost like they only focused on Originium and ignored all the other resources. It… left Josue feeling conflicted that while this world won't experience what oil did, they have Originium instead.
Josue took it as a challenge, making his way to the scrapyard as he looked for what he needed and found it. The frame of a car with most of its innards removed. The parts were rusted beyond belief as he made some measurements, noting them down internally.
Replacements, or take it apart and make his own thing? Hmmm.
"Morning," Scarp said, stepping outside, a cup of tea in his hand as he looked at what Josue was working on.
"Morning." Josue answered, crouching back, "We don't have any engines, do we?"
"Nope," Scarp confirmed. "The law is that we have to turn them over. Why?"
Josue sighed, placing a hand on his knee and pushing himself to his feet, "Just thought it'd be easier to modify the engine than make one from scratch, but oh well. Got any jobs for me?"
"A few. I'm currently running down my list of contacts to check them out." He admitted, taking a sip, "Don't want you walking into a situation you have no idea about."
"Thanks," Josue responded, hopping onto the frame of the car and resting on it. His legs swinging slightly, "Still, I should probably start working on this." He noted, using his foot to tap the car. "It won't run on magic after all, and Originium isn't any better." He grumbled, about to return, but was interrupted by his Agent. He opened it, answering the call, "Yeah?"
"Josue?" Swire's voice rang out, "Is that you?"
"Dunno," Josue answered, "Did you mean to call me?"
"Yes, actually," she started, his heart dropping for some reason, "you said you have experience as a Clerk?"
Slowly, Josue put a hand to his face and groaned while Scarp's face twisted in vague amusement. "Yeah." He answered in resignation.
"Perfect." She crooned, "Come to the LGD building."
Ending the call, he let his arm fall while he groaned, and Scarp continued laughing.
"I should've started a fight on my way here." He complained within Swire's office, the cat watching slightly impressed and amused while he bowled through the reports and gave them to her to be stamped. "At least I wouldn't have been as bored."
"Now, now~," Swire crooned, enjoying the suffering the mercenary was going through. "You brought this on yourself, causing problems for four days straight, all the paperwork piled up, and now, here we are."
"This is your responsibility." He retorted, pointing at the stack. "Why don't you do it?"
"Why would I when I can pay you to do it?" She asked, waving her hand, "All these files need is a quick read and a stamp. I already told you to put aside certain things."
"So, a glorified secretary?" Josue noted, his lips twitching again.
"Besides, I want to hear the rest of the story." She insisted while Josue rolled his eyes.
"If you want to hear it, so do Ch'en and Hoshiguma. I'm not repeating the story." Josue shut her down. "So, you don't want your car modified?" He asked, returning to last night.
"Really? You weren't lying?" Swire asked, and Josue sent her a flat look.
"No, why would I?" He asked, returning to the paperwork.
"Just…" She trailed off before shaking her head, "Never mind. Fine, I'll accept your offer."
"Then I'll go later in the afternoon." He confirmed that while Swire's eyes were on the clock on the walls, the sound of the movement of the second hand rang out. The sound was loud enough to drown out the scratching of Josue's pen until it rang out one last time. The hands of the clock on the wall pointed at four in the afternoon. Josue checked his Skinwatch and saw that it said the same.
"Right," Swire said, grinning. "Let's go." She proclaimed while Josue was still working on the paperwork. She stepped out, her footsteps receding before they returned a second later, the door opening, before Swire's narrowed eyes pointed at him. "What are you doing? Hurry."
Josue blinked, pointing at himself while Swire rolled her eyes, "Yes, you. C'mon, the dragon is asleep at this time. Let's go say hi." She said, a mischievous grin in place, while Josue shrugged.
He followed after her, the officers giving them strange looks as he passed by them until they found Ch'en's office. Swire opened it without fanfare before Josue followed a second later. "Damn, she really is asleep."
Unlike what Josue thought, Ch'en's office was fairly messy, with the insignia of the LGD on the white wall opposite the entrance he walked into. In front of that wall is a desk with a pile of paperwork on one side and a laptop on the other. Pushed off to a corner of the room is what looks like a dummy for Chinese martial arts, and in the other corner are some workout machines. To the right wall was a clue board, images, and files he didn't recognize connected via a red string, while the left wall had a bookshelf decorating it. On her wall were diplomas, certificates, honors, and more, all in frames and hung up in a cluster. Beside that was a cabinet, weapons behind glass, and Josue couldn't help but hum in interest.
He has always been more of a gun guy, but he's used swords, and he can see the appeal.
Still, in front of her desk, in between the door and the wall, was a coffee table with a pair of couches on either side, a single sofa in front of it. On one of the couches was the subject of his interest, Ch'en, supposedly, sleeping on one of them.
"Even Madame Ch'en needs sleep." Hoshiguma noted, walking to him with a smile while greeting him, "Afternoon, Josue. How's your day been?"
"Fine, don't like being inactive, so I was cleaning the auto shop I'll be working in." He answered, standing up and away from Ch'en, looking around. "Then, Swire called me, and now I'm contracted to help her with her paperwork."
"Hrm!"
"Really?" She noted, vaguely amused with a raised brow, "I'm the last person who should say this, but you don't seem like the type."
"My mother was a clerk," Josue informed Hoshiguma. "Not my best skill, but I've had some good teachers."
"Rrrrr-hm!"
"So," she asked, grinning, "you wouldn't mind me stopping by if I ever need my bike maintained or modified. Because I'll be honest," she said, spreading her arms and putting them up, "the speed your bike went at was insane."
"Sure, just be ready to pay."
"Hngh!"
"Don't expect too much." Hoshiguma scoffed, placing a hand on her hip. "I am still a cop; we don't get paid much, to begin with."
"Oh, trust me, I know." He confirmed, the two chuckling until they finally turned to the fourth person in the room, by Ch'en's weapon locker, the glass open, and Ch'en's weapon in her hand.
"Gah!" Swire groaned, trying to pull the sword out of the sheath. If Josue were still on Earth, he'd probably equate it to being locked behind biometrics or something else. It wasn't an uncommon thing to add to a sword, especially a sharp one.
"So, does she usually do this?" Josue asked, and Hoshiguma huffed in amusement, glancing at him with a raised brow.
"Like clockwork," Hoshiguma confirmed. "Ch'en usually sleeps at this time, so Swire usually tries to unsheathe Chi Xiao."
"Chi Xiao?" Josue asked, raising a brow while scratching at his head. The name bugged him for multiple reasons, as it was involved with a job he had once had. One that went wrong in more ways than one.
"Yeah, depending on the day or event, Ch'en lets the department try to unsheathe it," Hoshiguma explained while Swire pouted, walking to her and offering the sword to Hoshiguma as she grabbed it, "Check it." She said, grabbing the handle and correcting her stance while her brow furrowed in concentration.
For a second, Josue could swear he saw a hannya mask behind her as she began to try to pull the sword from the sheath, a vein popping on her forehead and on her arms as she gritted her teeth. Despite such strength, the sword barely budged, which was not normal since he had forced apart some biometrically locked swords himself. Trying for a bit longer, Hoshiguma relented with a sigh, relaxing as she brandished it, "See? Nothing."
"Hoshiguma is our strongest officer here." Swire pointed out, "And even she can't unsheathe it." She added, grabbing the sword, "Does this bitch fucking glue it when I'm not looking?"
"Magnetic lock is probably the most reasonable explanation," Josue said, looking at the sheathed blade. "Still, beautiful sword, she must take care of it."
Swire scoffs, looking at the sword before brandishing it at him, handle-first. "Wanna try?"
"Well…" Josue looked at the blade, a strange feeling bubbling up from his stomach as he grabbed the sheath with his left hand and looked at it.
Neither tried to hide their curiosity and anticipation, and even Ch'en had partially given up her act of sleeping to peek over, one eye open and her lips tilted slightly upward in the vaguest images of smug superiority.
Swire noticed him looking over as she yelped, "Bitch! Why are you awake? Shouldn't you be sleeping?!"
"Nah," Ch'en retorted, a vicious grin in place, "I'd rather see you attempt and fail at drawing Chi Xiao."
"Now, now…" Hoshiguma started, chuckling while looking at them.
No one saw Josue's hand drop, left hand still on Chi Xiao's sheath while his right rested on his handle. They didn't see his hand curl around the sword and instinctively pull on it.
They didn't see the way his neural link lit up, his nervous system going crazy as Chyron displayed error messages, his biomonitor displaying to Chyron an increase in brain activity and heart rate. They didn't feel or hear the strange presence that reminded him of the first time he jacked into the Malorian before he got a Subdermal Grip or even got used to it. Before Eran modified it to fit him.
Unlike the almost psychotic focus and unending rage he felt being added into his when he first jacked into the Malorian, this one was calm, almost mute, but still strong. As if its strength was displayed not through action, but through mere existence. It almost felt like a Sandevistan in a way.
The memory of the cyberware that nearly pushed him over the edge knocked him out of his stupor, glancing down at the silver of red peeking from the sheath. He pushed it back in subtly, shaking his head while he propped it against the wall and turned back to them. Barely a second passed as he felt… strange.
"Whoa," Hoshiguma said, Josue barely noticing how dull it all felt, her voice causing Ch'en and Swire to turn to them. "You okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, just…" he started, rubbing his eyes, both of them feeling in pain before he shook it off. "Phew. Sorry, dizzy spell." Josue managed, hopping to his feet while he blinked. "Sorry about that, cyberware and stuff."
"You say stuff like that." Ch'en started, leaning over the back of her couch, "But how much of that is real?"
Josue raised a brow and turned to Swire. "Sorry to ask this, but please turn off the lights."
Swire understood what he was asking as she did so, the room becoming dark as he rolled up the sleeve of his leather jacket. "So, what no-." His arms lit up, and what sounded like Cantonese came from Ch'en's mouth, falling off the couch.
"Ohhh~," Hoshiguma said, poking at his right arm. "Impressive. Do you train a lot?"
"I work with heavy machines." He answered before continuing with a shrug. "And yeah, a bit of training. Though I think the focus is supposed to be on my arms, maybe?"
"It's cool," Hoshiguma affirmed, Ch'en clambering over the couch to take a look.
"How?" She muttered, looking at them while Josue shrugged.
"Synthskin. Kinda like tattoos, but they have a chemical that absorbs light and stores it for whenever I need it, like places with low visibility." He elaborated, the lights coming back on as the Synthskin is deactivated. "Very useful when you're maintaining a vehicle in the dark."
"So, you really are…" Ch'en trailed off, while Josue sent her a raised brow.
"You didn't believe me?" He asked before Ch'en sent it right back.
"With how drunk we were, I'd take anything said with a grain of salt." Ch'en pointed out, and Josue rolled his eyes.
"As you should," Josue noted with a stretch. "Now, I tried pulling the sword out, failed, now I'm gonna get back to work." He said, walking out of the office before being stopped by Hoshiguma.
"C'mon, we're all on break anyway, join us," Hoshiguma noted with an easy smile, "if Missy over there," she jerked her head in Swire's direction, "is going to hire you to be an assistant, we might as well get to know each other."
"Can you do that somewhere else?" Ch'en complained, standing up from her couch, and making her way to the wall where Chi Xiao is propped up against. "I'm busy."
"No, you're not," Swire pointed out, "you're on break, dumbass dragon."
"Shut it, you prissy cat." She said, grabbing the sword before pausing.
Something about it was… different, in a way. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it felt almost… distorted. No. A strange feeling tends to flow from Chi Xiao even if she simply holds it by the sheath. It was like a string, in a way.
The string was frayed, and while a large part of it was still connected to her…
The other was connected to Josue.
And he knew.
It was a moment of weakness-no. Not weakness, but happenstance, intuition, and experience. She's no stranger to investigations, but of all the people who've grabbed Chi Xiao, the feeling only appeared after Josue grabbed it. There's also the fact that Josue was so nonchalant at her probing eyes, her intuition telling her that, beyond hiding many capabilities and secrets, despite his honesty and good nature, he's not mentioning it for a reason.
Ch'en shook her head, knocking her out of her stupor while wondering why Chi Xiao allowed someone like him to draw it. There's no illusion in her mind that she's some pillar of kindness or purity; she's hurt others, and she's led many to unfortunate circumstances. Despite this, why..? What made Josue worthy?
Ch'en's answer was not immediately obvious, or really visible as she held back to observe Josue. He was polite and rough, not being afraid to curse or speak his mind, the picture-perfect image of a punk, especially in his leather jacket. Despite that… he was getting along with Hoshiguma and Swire.
Still, Ch'en had to get to her next event. Overseeing the training of some of the newer recruits. Something Hoshiguma joined her, and Swire followed, leaving Josue to the mercy of the other officers.
"Hey, Tiger, bring me a coffee." One of them chuckled, and Josue narrowed his eyes, the officer flinching as he did so. Seems like his handle was spread around, as not many of the officers within don't know his name.
Placing the cup on the desk, he continued on his way while he continued signing off on the papers he brought with him. Correcting a few things as he began to note a few… discrepancies. For example, recurring calls of strange things that went bump in the night, supplies getting 'lost', and more. Closing his left eye, a reticle appeared on his cybereye, the feeling of images being saved and sent to his Agent coming through before he opened them.
W might find these interesting, for a price.
Still, he continued his job as he returned to Swire's office and worked through the paperwork at impressive speed. Once he did so, he made his way to the training area where Ch'en and Swire were, Hoshiguma having long since gone on patrol.
"Come on! Faster!" Ch'en yelled at the recruits, crossing her arms as she oversaw the training of the newbies from among them in the middle. The training room was filled with mats, dummies, both literal and in the form of some of the people in the room, practice weapons, workout equipment, and more. There was an area cordoned off where Swire was working on something on her tablet while seated.
"Most of the paperwork is done," Josue said, sitting beside her on a chair as she turned to him. "The rest are things I shouldn't touch, as you said." He reported as Swire nodded.
"Well done." She said with a proud smile, "You did well; it seems like I made the right choice to hire you."
"I'm glad you're paying me to sit around and write." Josue retorted, stretching his arms out as even his cyberarm felt the ache of not doing much, even if he knew that it was just his mind.
"I'll make sure to hire you the next time someone tries to escape the building." Swire retorted, rolling her eyes, "Or if I ever need a driver or who knows what other skills you might have."
"Violence." Josue summarized as Swire stared at him. A part of her forgetting that this man was the one who stabbed one and probably would have killed the others with him that night. The idea caused her stomach to turn at the almost casual way he fought that one night. "But," he said before she could think further, "driving, lying, and playing the guitar."
"Really?" Swire asked, almost surprised, while turning to him. Leaning back, he placed a hand on his chest as if he were offended.
"Jesus, don't sound so surprised." He noted out loud as some of the facts began to connect.
He always seemed to have a presence about him, beyond simply his charisma. Kind of like a celebrity, but a small one. "Sorry, it's just…"
"Yeah, the label tried to get on my ass a few times for being…" He trailed off as he pointed at himself, "Me."
Swire snorted, already imagining how that conversation went. Little did she know that she was somewhat right. She only needed to add the death of the manager, and then she'd have been right on the money.
"Yeah. Didn't really get too popular but was pretty good at it." He admitted with a shrug. "I was better at playing songs for my Family and the like."
"You don't say?" Swire asked, almost amused as a shiver ran down his spine. "That said, how are you feeling?" She added, a little worried, "No more dizziness?"
"No." He confirmed, not feeling anything lingering from whatever Chi Xiao did to him. "I'll be fine, though I'll probably leave early and start working on your car."
"Excellent," Swire said, almost proud. "In that case, that's enough for today. I'll call you if I ever need you, and your payment should have already gone through."
"Jesus, I'm gonna have to do this all over again." He huffed, practically turning into a puddle while he slumped. "Fine~. Guess I'll just go and perform maintenance on your car."
"You do that~," Swire said, satisfied as he made his way out of the building and to Swire's home.
There, the employees let him in as he opened the trunk of the car and began to inspect the luxury groundcar. Reminiscent of an old luxury sports car, his newfound knowledge of the various engines and their systems runs through his mind as he begins identifying some problems.
First off, every system ran off of Originium, which meant things like AC. Second, the car seemed to run on mostly code rather than mechanical components. Of course, this meant that he could insert a port to interface with, but the problem is that the code isn't very advanced or simple. The final detail, but the material of the car isn't very solid, so if there's a crash, there's a chance it'll crumple.
So he should start inspecting and see what he needs. First off… Hmmm…
The problem was that the engine was in the front, where they had all this dangerous stuff. Could he move it to the back?
It was an idea, one among many, but for now, he'll have to inspect the various systems and connections, probably forcing him to do a complete overhaul.
A dangerous grin plastered itself on his face. It was going to be fun if nothing else. He got to work deep into the night until Swire appeared later, the two falling into idle chatter until he left once he had done as much as he could.
"Right…" He trailed off, peering into the depths of the engine before closing it as he turned to Swire. "So, I haven't made too many changes. Small things here and there," he elaborates, "but nothing too big. I can make anything that'll be needed, but I'll need the materials."
"What do you need?" Swire asked as Josue sat on the hood of the car.
"What do you want? I can make it faster, make it stronger, make it so it doesn't run off of Originium, what's your choice?" Josue asked as Swire raised a brow, bringing a hand to her chin.
"Well… make it… stronger? More efficient." Swire finished, still unsure, but a lot more confident. "Originium is widely available and used; any alternatives are probably only going to be available from you." She explained as Josue nodded along, impressed.
"Good point." Josue relented as he hopped off the hood with a piece of paper in hand and proceeded to write on it. "Efficient… copper wires, coolant…" He trailed off before turning to her, "You want to go fast at the press of a button?"
Swire didn't answer for a second before nodding. "Mh."
"Alright, some NOS, an alternator, and a battery…" He trailed off before finishing as he presented the paper to her. "Here, let me warn you, it's pretty expensive."
She rolled her eyes at that, "Please, can't be any more than what the car itself is worth." She said, grabbing the paper and raising a brow at the notes. There was a lot of information that went way over Swire's head, trying to understand it made her eyes spin, and her mind constantly freeze. "What…? Well, the more problematic thing will be the wait. Some of these will take some time to get here."
"I can wait," Josue said, hopping off the hood. "I'm not going anywhere any time soon, besides, I can just grab some scrap and-."
"No, that won't do." Swire interjected with a stern frown, "I'll get the material, and I'll call you when it gets here."
Josue raised his hands, "Well, alright." He let them drop before continuing, "That's about all I can do at the moment. Your car should be fine, but call me if something goes wrong."
"I'll keep that in mind." Swire answered, a smile on her face, "Same to you. If you need some help, call me."
"That's a dangerous thing to offer Swire," he said, "remember, I'm not exactly on the same side as you and Ch'en. Who knows what I'd use a favor like that for?"
"Then I'll arrest you." Swire countered, crossing her arms, as Josue chuckled.
"I'll keep that in mind. Though don't worry, if I do get down to some mischief, you won't hear about it." He retorted, making his way out with a wave. "Then, 'till later, Swire."
"Good night, Tiger." She responded as Josue got on his bike and made his way back to his auto shop.
Once there, he stretched and made his way to his kombi as he had a week or so until Swire called for him, possibly. With what he has, it should be enough time to make a groundcar.
A week or so should be enough.
Lying on his bed, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.
A/N: Here, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. If you're interested in more, check out my carrd where I tend to post stuff early. Regardless, hope you enjoyed, gonna start bringing in some other stuff I write from FF and AO3, so look out for that as this will start slowing down.
That's about it, Solar out.
"That's it for tonight." Josue finished, Swire now shit-faced, Ch'en a close second, and Hoshiguma barely looks drunk.
"What!?" Swire complained, swirling to him as she tried to stand and scold him, "Y-You can't just end it there!?"
"The rich bitch is right!" Ch'en cheered, a blush on her face, "Continue, continue!"
"It was getting pretty good." Hoshiguma agreed while Josue sighed.
"Look, it's a story that spans weeks. I'm not getting it done in one night." He grumbled, not exactly the picture of sobriety, but he's had worse nights. Turning to the chef, he asked. "So, how much do I owe ya, add in their share too."
The man told him a number, and Josue frowned, raising a brow, "That's a lot less than I thought."
"Well, the story was really interesting." The man admitted with a shrug, "But it's probably not something I should spread. If you come here to continue the story, I'll give you a discount and keep my mouth shut."
"Well, here," Josue said, leaving a bundle of cash, enough to pay for their food and then some extra. "For your silence. Good food too." He added, which, while not a difficult hurdle to overtake due to Josue being used to artificial food like Kibble, MREs, or snack bars, did mean a lot since good food is good food.
The trio of Lawmen were already outside, with Ch'en and Swire already arguing and Hoshiguma trying to act as the mediator, "So, you girls fine going home?"
"Ch'en and I live in the same building." Hoshiguma confirmed, "As for Missy here…"
"Exec's got her own Beaverville conapt, huh?" He muttered under his breath, Hoshiguma giving him a strange look while Ch'en and Swire continued arguing. "Well, I'll drive her over there."
"You will?" Hoshiguma asked, raising a brow as Josue shrugged.
"Sure," he said, "I'll get her on my bike, drive her over, leave her to whoever's there, then come back."
"Well, if you're sure." Hoshiguma relented, making her way to Ch'en and grabbing her, "Just be careful. I don't think I need to say what happens if you try anything."
"She'll kick my ass?" Josue asked, calling his Parallax while Hoshiguma scoffed.
"That and more. Well, see ya." Hoshiguma said, waving as Ch'en turned to her and they began to talk.
"Tch." Swire clicked her tongue, "That bitch was spouting bullshit."
"Well," Josue started, but didn't say anything, "yeah, let's go with that. Whoa." He noted, placing a hand on her back and helping the drunk cat find her balance. "You're alright? I don't think anyone drank that much."
"I-I'm fine." She insisted, pushing him off as she found her balance. "Just a bit dizzy is all."
"Well, I'll be driving you home." He noted before jerking his head, "Come on, my ride's this way." He said while she followed after him with the occasional swaying, her eyes glancing at Josue from time to time.
"Something on my face?" He asked, checking his face for anything before she blinked.
"N-No." She started, "I was just wondering, why do you act like Night City is real?" Swire noted, bringing a hand to her chin. "It makes no sense, I've never heard of Night City from anywhere, and it can't be real. Not to mention a 'Deepdown', it has to be a coastal city, but-."
"Probably because it might not even be the same world," Josue answered while she gave him a strange, almost shocked look. "After all, I've seen people like Ch'en before, but I've never seen Lungmen before."
"That's impossible!" She practically yelled, getting some attention before waving them away. "It sounds like fiction."
"Hmmm." He trailed off, bringing a hand to his chin, "You know, I might just do that one day. Publish an anthology of my jobs." Josue said before shrugging. "Still, it is real. I lived through it after all."
"Fine." She harrumphed before pointing at him, "I'll hire you. You were complaining about cars, as it turns out, I have my own. I'll pay for the materials, so all you need to do is modify it to your liking. If you can make it better, then I'll believe you."
"You sure?" Josue asked, raising a brow, "You're kinda drunk at the moment." He noted out loud, to her offense.
"I'm fine!" She retorted, and Josue shook his head.
"Look, we're at my bike," he motioned to his Parallax, "I'll get you back home, and you can call me in the morning if you still want my help."
"Fine then!" She proclaimed while she sat down on the seat behind him. After giving him her address, he started it and made his way through the sparse streets of Lungmen. Her grip on his stomach wasn't bothering him, but the way she seemed interested in his bike was also interesting.
"Wh-Are your arms glowing!?" She asked, realizing that his Synthskin was activated. An upgrade from Chemskin and something he used rarely in performances or when working at night.
On his right arm was a green and red rose bush crawling up his arm, while his left, his cyberarm, had blue circuit-like marks going up it. Visible considering the sleeves of his jackets were rolled up.
"Yeah." He confirmed with a nod while taking a turn, and the motorcycle smoothly turned. "They absorb light and can light up the area." With a few 'presses' of a mental button, the light of the skin changes to white, lighting up a good area. "Pretty useful for performing maintenance at night."
"Whoa ~." Swire started before he stopped in front of the building that was Swire's home.
"We're here." He warned her while she began to get off, "I'll let you have a good night's rest."
"You better!" She said with a pout. "You had us working late nights!"
"Well," he said with a huff, "I was raised a clerk, I know a bit about paperwork. Call me, and I could probably help." Josue chuckled at the joke and waved at her. "Anyway, night."
Once he made sure the heiress was fine, he made his way to the scrapyard and entered his auto shop, his kombi hidden from most, while he spotted a pile of books on one of the tables in the auto shop. Josue made his way over and checked the titles out of curiosity.
Manuals atop manuals of the sparse vehicles made by the various companies in Terra were piled on the table. "Thanks." He noted, grabbing them and putting them in his kombi before falling asleep, some extra cash in his account, and prepared himself for another day.
The next morning, Josue got up and freshened up before making his way through the city and into a corner store. He bought some cleaning supplies and made his way back to the auto shop as he got down to cleaning.
After doing so until midday, Josue sat down and got to reading the various manuals of the vehicles, leaving notes as his thoughts were only reinforced. The vehicles are not well-made compared to what he knows. Everything runs off of Originium; it's efficient, but it's also stupid to constantly rely on one thing to run a vehicle.
Vehicles were meant to be reliable; constantly being in danger of blasting yourself with what is possibly a biological sickness is not reliable. There's also the fact that there are no forms of alternative energy, almost like they only focused on Originium and ignored all the other resources. It… left Josue feeling conflicted that while this world won't experience what oil did, they have Originium instead.
Josue took it as a challenge, making his way to the scrapyard as he looked for what he needed and found it. The frame of a car with most of its innards removed. The parts were rusted beyond belief as he made some measurements, noting them down internally.
Replacements, or take it apart and make his own thing? Hmmm.
"Morning," Scarp said, stepping outside, a cup of tea in his hand as he looked at what Josue was working on.
"Morning." Josue answered, crouching back, "We don't have any engines, do we?"
"Nope," Scarp confirmed. "The law is that we have to turn them over. Why?"
Josue sighed, placing a hand on his knee and pushing himself to his feet, "Just thought it'd be easier to modify the engine than make one from scratch, but oh well. Got any jobs for me?"
"A few. I'm currently running down my list of contacts to check them out." He admitted, taking a sip, "Don't want you walking into a situation you have no idea about."
"Thanks," Josue responded, hopping onto the frame of the car and resting on it. His legs swinging slightly, "Still, I should probably start working on this." He noted, using his foot to tap the car. "It won't run on magic after all, and Originium isn't any better." He grumbled, about to return, but was interrupted by his Agent. He opened it, answering the call, "Yeah?"
"Josue?" Swire's voice rang out, "Is that you?"
"Dunno," Josue answered, "Did you mean to call me?"
"Yes, actually," she started, his heart dropping for some reason, "you said you have experience as a Clerk?"
Slowly, Josue put a hand to his face and groaned while Scarp's face twisted in vague amusement. "Yeah." He answered in resignation.
"Perfect." She crooned, "Come to the LGD building."
Ending the call, he let his arm fall while he groaned, and Scarp continued laughing.
"I should've started a fight on my way here." He complained within Swire's office, the cat watching slightly impressed and amused while he bowled through the reports and gave them to her to be stamped. "At least I wouldn't have been as bored."
"Now, now~," Swire crooned, enjoying the suffering the mercenary was going through. "You brought this on yourself, causing problems for four days straight, all the paperwork piled up, and now, here we are."
"This is your responsibility." He retorted, pointing at the stack. "Why don't you do it?"
"Why would I when I can pay you to do it?" She asked, waving her hand, "All these files need is a quick read and a stamp. I already told you to put aside certain things."
"So, a glorified secretary?" Josue noted, his lips twitching again.
"Besides, I want to hear the rest of the story." She insisted while Josue rolled his eyes.
"If you want to hear it, so do Ch'en and Hoshiguma. I'm not repeating the story." Josue shut her down. "So, you don't want your car modified?" He asked, returning to last night.
"Really? You weren't lying?" Swire asked, and Josue sent her a flat look.
"No, why would I?" He asked, returning to the paperwork.
"Just…" She trailed off before shaking her head, "Never mind. Fine, I'll accept your offer."
"Then I'll go later in the afternoon." He confirmed that while Swire's eyes were on the clock on the walls, the sound of the movement of the second hand rang out. The sound was loud enough to drown out the scratching of Josue's pen until it rang out one last time. The hands of the clock on the wall pointed at four in the afternoon. Josue checked his Skinwatch and saw that it said the same.
"Right," Swire said, grinning. "Let's go." She proclaimed while Josue was still working on the paperwork. She stepped out, her footsteps receding before they returned a second later, the door opening, before Swire's narrowed eyes pointed at him. "What are you doing? Hurry."
Josue blinked, pointing at himself while Swire rolled her eyes, "Yes, you. C'mon, the dragon is asleep at this time. Let's go say hi." She said, a mischievous grin in place, while Josue shrugged.
He followed after her, the officers giving them strange looks as he passed by them until they found Ch'en's office. Swire opened it without fanfare before Josue followed a second later. "Damn, she really is asleep."
Unlike what Josue thought, Ch'en's office was fairly messy, with the insignia of the LGD on the white wall opposite the entrance he walked into. In front of that wall is a desk with a pile of paperwork on one side and a laptop on the other. Pushed off to a corner of the room is what looks like a dummy for Chinese martial arts, and in the other corner are some workout machines. To the right wall was a clue board, images, and files he didn't recognize connected via a red string, while the left wall had a bookshelf decorating it. On her wall were diplomas, certificates, honors, and more, all in frames and hung up in a cluster. Beside that was a cabinet, weapons behind glass, and Josue couldn't help but hum in interest.
He has always been more of a gun guy, but he's used swords, and he can see the appeal.
Still, in front of her desk, in between the door and the wall, was a coffee table with a pair of couches on either side, a single sofa in front of it. On one of the couches was the subject of his interest, Ch'en, supposedly, sleeping on one of them.
"Even Madame Ch'en needs sleep." Hoshiguma noted, walking to him with a smile while greeting him, "Afternoon, Josue. How's your day been?"
"Fine, don't like being inactive, so I was cleaning the auto shop I'll be working in." He answered, standing up and away from Ch'en, looking around. "Then, Swire called me, and now I'm contracted to help her with her paperwork."
"Hrm!"
"Really?" She noted, vaguely amused with a raised brow, "I'm the last person who should say this, but you don't seem like the type."
"My mother was a clerk," Josue informed Hoshiguma. "Not my best skill, but I've had some good teachers."
"Rrrrr-hm!"
"So," she asked, grinning, "you wouldn't mind me stopping by if I ever need my bike maintained or modified. Because I'll be honest," she said, spreading her arms and putting them up, "the speed your bike went at was insane."
"Sure, just be ready to pay."
"Hngh!"
"Don't expect too much." Hoshiguma scoffed, placing a hand on her hip. "I am still a cop; we don't get paid much, to begin with."
"Oh, trust me, I know." He confirmed, the two chuckling until they finally turned to the fourth person in the room, by Ch'en's weapon locker, the glass open, and Ch'en's weapon in her hand.
"Gah!" Swire groaned, trying to pull the sword out of the sheath. If Josue were still on Earth, he'd probably equate it to being locked behind biometrics or something else. It wasn't an uncommon thing to add to a sword, especially a sharp one.
"So, does she usually do this?" Josue asked, and Hoshiguma huffed in amusement, glancing at him with a raised brow.
"Like clockwork," Hoshiguma confirmed. "Ch'en usually sleeps at this time, so Swire usually tries to unsheathe Chi Xiao."
"Chi Xiao?" Josue asked, raising a brow while scratching at his head. The name bugged him for multiple reasons, as it was involved with a job he had once had. One that went wrong in more ways than one.
"Yeah, depending on the day or event, Ch'en lets the department try to unsheathe it," Hoshiguma explained while Swire pouted, walking to her and offering the sword to Hoshiguma as she grabbed it, "Check it." She said, grabbing the handle and correcting her stance while her brow furrowed in concentration.
For a second, Josue could swear he saw a hannya mask behind her as she began to try to pull the sword from the sheath, a vein popping on her forehead and on her arms as she gritted her teeth. Despite such strength, the sword barely budged, which was not normal since he had forced apart some biometrically locked swords himself. Trying for a bit longer, Hoshiguma relented with a sigh, relaxing as she brandished it, "See? Nothing."
"Hoshiguma is our strongest officer here." Swire pointed out, "And even she can't unsheathe it." She added, grabbing the sword, "Does this bitch fucking glue it when I'm not looking?"
"Magnetic lock is probably the most reasonable explanation," Josue said, looking at the sheathed blade. "Still, beautiful sword, she must take care of it."
Swire scoffs, looking at the sword before brandishing it at him, handle-first. "Wanna try?"
"Well…" Josue looked at the blade, a strange feeling bubbling up from his stomach as he grabbed the sheath with his left hand and looked at it.
Neither tried to hide their curiosity and anticipation, and even Ch'en had partially given up her act of sleeping to peek over, one eye open and her lips tilted slightly upward in the vaguest images of smug superiority.
Swire noticed him looking over as she yelped, "Bitch! Why are you awake? Shouldn't you be sleeping?!"
"Nah," Ch'en retorted, a vicious grin in place, "I'd rather see you attempt and fail at drawing Chi Xiao."
"Now, now…" Hoshiguma started, chuckling while looking at them.
No one saw Josue's hand drop, left hand still on Chi Xiao's sheath while his right rested on his handle. They didn't see his hand curl around the sword and instinctively pull on it.
They didn't see the way his neural link lit up, his nervous system going crazy as Chyron displayed error messages, his biomonitor displaying to Chyron an increase in brain activity and heart rate. They didn't feel or hear the strange presence that reminded him of the first time he jacked into the Malorian before he got a Subdermal Grip or even got used to it. Before Eran modified it to fit him.
Unlike the almost psychotic focus and unending rage he felt being added into his when he first jacked into the Malorian, this one was calm, almost mute, but still strong. As if its strength was displayed not through action, but through mere existence. It almost felt like a Sandevistan in a way.
The memory of the cyberware that nearly pushed him over the edge knocked him out of his stupor, glancing down at the silver of red peeking from the sheath. He pushed it back in subtly, shaking his head while he propped it against the wall and turned back to them. Barely a second passed as he felt… strange.
"Whoa," Hoshiguma said, Josue barely noticing how dull it all felt, her voice causing Ch'en and Swire to turn to them. "You okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, just…" he started, rubbing his eyes, both of them feeling in pain before he shook it off. "Phew. Sorry, dizzy spell." Josue managed, hopping to his feet while he blinked. "Sorry about that, cyberware and stuff."
"You say stuff like that." Ch'en started, leaning over the back of her couch, "But how much of that is real?"
Josue raised a brow and turned to Swire. "Sorry to ask this, but please turn off the lights."
Swire understood what he was asking as she did so, the room becoming dark as he rolled up the sleeve of his leather jacket. "So, what no-." His arms lit up, and what sounded like Cantonese came from Ch'en's mouth, falling off the couch.
"Ohhh~," Hoshiguma said, poking at his right arm. "Impressive. Do you train a lot?"
"I work with heavy machines." He answered before continuing with a shrug. "And yeah, a bit of training. Though I think the focus is supposed to be on my arms, maybe?"
"It's cool," Hoshiguma affirmed, Ch'en clambering over the couch to take a look.
"How?" She muttered, looking at them while Josue shrugged.
"Synthskin. Kinda like tattoos, but they have a chemical that absorbs light and stores it for whenever I need it, like places with low visibility." He elaborated, the lights coming back on as the Synthskin is deactivated. "Very useful when you're maintaining a vehicle in the dark."
"So, you really are…" Ch'en trailed off, while Josue sent her a raised brow.
"You didn't believe me?" He asked before Ch'en sent it right back.
"With how drunk we were, I'd take anything said with a grain of salt." Ch'en pointed out, and Josue rolled his eyes.
"As you should," Josue noted with a stretch. "Now, I tried pulling the sword out, failed, now I'm gonna get back to work." He said, walking out of the office before being stopped by Hoshiguma.
"C'mon, we're all on break anyway, join us," Hoshiguma noted with an easy smile, "if Missy over there," she jerked her head in Swire's direction, "is going to hire you to be an assistant, we might as well get to know each other."
"Can you do that somewhere else?" Ch'en complained, standing up from her couch, and making her way to the wall where Chi Xiao is propped up against. "I'm busy."
"No, you're not," Swire pointed out, "you're on break, dumbass dragon."
"Shut it, you prissy cat." She said, grabbing the sword before pausing.
Something about it was… different, in a way. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it felt almost… distorted. No. A strange feeling tends to flow from Chi Xiao even if she simply holds it by the sheath. It was like a string, in a way.
The string was frayed, and while a large part of it was still connected to her…
The other was connected to Josue.
And he knew.
It was a moment of weakness-no. Not weakness, but happenstance, intuition, and experience. She's no stranger to investigations, but of all the people who've grabbed Chi Xiao, the feeling only appeared after Josue grabbed it. There's also the fact that Josue was so nonchalant at her probing eyes, her intuition telling her that, beyond hiding many capabilities and secrets, despite his honesty and good nature, he's not mentioning it for a reason.
Ch'en shook her head, knocking her out of her stupor while wondering why Chi Xiao allowed someone like him to draw it. There's no illusion in her mind that she's some pillar of kindness or purity; she's hurt others, and she's led many to unfortunate circumstances. Despite this, why..? What made Josue worthy?
Ch'en's answer was not immediately obvious, or really visible as she held back to observe Josue. He was polite and rough, not being afraid to curse or speak his mind, the picture-perfect image of a punk, especially in his leather jacket. Despite that… he was getting along with Hoshiguma and Swire.
Still, Ch'en had to get to her next event. Overseeing the training of some of the newer recruits. Something Hoshiguma joined her, and Swire followed, leaving Josue to the mercy of the other officers.
"Hey, Tiger, bring me a coffee." One of them chuckled, and Josue narrowed his eyes, the officer flinching as he did so. Seems like his handle was spread around, as not many of the officers within don't know his name.
Placing the cup on the desk, he continued on his way while he continued signing off on the papers he brought with him. Correcting a few things as he began to note a few… discrepancies. For example, recurring calls of strange things that went bump in the night, supplies getting 'lost', and more. Closing his left eye, a reticle appeared on his cybereye, the feeling of images being saved and sent to his Agent coming through before he opened them.
W might find these interesting, for a price.
Still, he continued his job as he returned to Swire's office and worked through the paperwork at impressive speed. Once he did so, he made his way to the training area where Ch'en and Swire were, Hoshiguma having long since gone on patrol.
"Come on! Faster!" Ch'en yelled at the recruits, crossing her arms as she oversaw the training of the newbies from among them in the middle. The training room was filled with mats, dummies, both literal and in the form of some of the people in the room, practice weapons, workout equipment, and more. There was an area cordoned off where Swire was working on something on her tablet while seated.
"Most of the paperwork is done," Josue said, sitting beside her on a chair as she turned to him. "The rest are things I shouldn't touch, as you said." He reported as Swire nodded.
"Well done." She said with a proud smile, "You did well; it seems like I made the right choice to hire you."
"I'm glad you're paying me to sit around and write." Josue retorted, stretching his arms out as even his cyberarm felt the ache of not doing much, even if he knew that it was just his mind.
"I'll make sure to hire you the next time someone tries to escape the building." Swire retorted, rolling her eyes, "Or if I ever need a driver or who knows what other skills you might have."
"Violence." Josue summarized as Swire stared at him. A part of her forgetting that this man was the one who stabbed one and probably would have killed the others with him that night. The idea caused her stomach to turn at the almost casual way he fought that one night. "But," he said before she could think further, "driving, lying, and playing the guitar."
"Really?" Swire asked, almost surprised, while turning to him. Leaning back, he placed a hand on his chest as if he were offended.
"Jesus, don't sound so surprised." He noted out loud as some of the facts began to connect.
He always seemed to have a presence about him, beyond simply his charisma. Kind of like a celebrity, but a small one. "Sorry, it's just…"
"Yeah, the label tried to get on my ass a few times for being…" He trailed off as he pointed at himself, "Me."
Swire snorted, already imagining how that conversation went. Little did she know that she was somewhat right. She only needed to add the death of the manager, and then she'd have been right on the money.
"Yeah. Didn't really get too popular but was pretty good at it." He admitted with a shrug. "I was better at playing songs for my Family and the like."
"You don't say?" Swire asked, almost amused as a shiver ran down his spine. "That said, how are you feeling?" She added, a little worried, "No more dizziness?"
"No." He confirmed, not feeling anything lingering from whatever Chi Xiao did to him. "I'll be fine, though I'll probably leave early and start working on your car."
"Excellent," Swire said, almost proud. "In that case, that's enough for today. I'll call you if I ever need you, and your payment should have already gone through."
"Jesus, I'm gonna have to do this all over again." He huffed, practically turning into a puddle while he slumped. "Fine~. Guess I'll just go and perform maintenance on your car."
"You do that~," Swire said, satisfied as he made his way out of the building and to Swire's home.
There, the employees let him in as he opened the trunk of the car and began to inspect the luxury groundcar. Reminiscent of an old luxury sports car, his newfound knowledge of the various engines and their systems runs through his mind as he begins identifying some problems.
First off, every system ran off of Originium, which meant things like AC. Second, the car seemed to run on mostly code rather than mechanical components. Of course, this meant that he could insert a port to interface with, but the problem is that the code isn't very advanced or simple. The final detail, but the material of the car isn't very solid, so if there's a crash, there's a chance it'll crumple.
So he should start inspecting and see what he needs. First off… Hmmm…
The problem was that the engine was in the front, where they had all this dangerous stuff. Could he move it to the back?
It was an idea, one among many, but for now, he'll have to inspect the various systems and connections, probably forcing him to do a complete overhaul.
A dangerous grin plastered itself on his face. It was going to be fun if nothing else. He got to work deep into the night until Swire appeared later, the two falling into idle chatter until he left once he had done as much as he could.
"Right…" He trailed off, peering into the depths of the engine before closing it as he turned to Swire. "So, I haven't made too many changes. Small things here and there," he elaborates, "but nothing too big. I can make anything that'll be needed, but I'll need the materials."
"What do you need?" Swire asked as Josue sat on the hood of the car.
"What do you want? I can make it faster, make it stronger, make it so it doesn't run off of Originium, what's your choice?" Josue asked as Swire raised a brow, bringing a hand to her chin.
"Well… make it… stronger? More efficient." Swire finished, still unsure, but a lot more confident. "Originium is widely available and used; any alternatives are probably only going to be available from you." She explained as Josue nodded along, impressed.
"Good point." Josue relented as he hopped off the hood with a piece of paper in hand and proceeded to write on it. "Efficient… copper wires, coolant…" He trailed off before turning to her, "You want to go fast at the press of a button?"
Swire didn't answer for a second before nodding. "Mh."
"Alright, some NOS, an alternator, and a battery…" He trailed off before finishing as he presented the paper to her. "Here, let me warn you, it's pretty expensive."
She rolled her eyes at that, "Please, can't be any more than what the car itself is worth." She said, grabbing the paper and raising a brow at the notes. There was a lot of information that went way over Swire's head, trying to understand it made her eyes spin, and her mind constantly freeze. "What…? Well, the more problematic thing will be the wait. Some of these will take some time to get here."
"I can wait," Josue said, hopping off the hood. "I'm not going anywhere any time soon, besides, I can just grab some scrap and-."
"No, that won't do." Swire interjected with a stern frown, "I'll get the material, and I'll call you when it gets here."
Josue raised his hands, "Well, alright." He let them drop before continuing, "That's about all I can do at the moment. Your car should be fine, but call me if something goes wrong."
"I'll keep that in mind." Swire answered, a smile on her face, "Same to you. If you need some help, call me."
"That's a dangerous thing to offer Swire," he said, "remember, I'm not exactly on the same side as you and Ch'en. Who knows what I'd use a favor like that for?"
"Then I'll arrest you." Swire countered, crossing her arms, as Josue chuckled.
"I'll keep that in mind. Though don't worry, if I do get down to some mischief, you won't hear about it." He retorted, making his way out with a wave. "Then, 'till later, Swire."
"Good night, Tiger." She responded as Josue got on his bike and made his way back to his auto shop.
Once there, he stretched and made his way to his kombi as he had a week or so until Swire called for him, possibly. With what he has, it should be enough time to make a groundcar.
A week or so should be enough.
Lying on his bed, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.
A/N: Here, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. If you're interested in more, check out my carrd where I tend to post stuff early. Regardless, hope you enjoyed, gonna start bringing in some other stuff I write from FF and AO3, so look out for that as this will start slowing down.
That's about it, Solar out.