Chapter Text
DECEMBER 2076
INCOMING CALL: YOO JEONGYEON
Ryujin rolls off the side of the bed and groans. Her ears ring, and her head pounds achingly. Yeji rolls onto her side and drapes the entirety of the comforter onto herself. A shiver rolls down her spine as she looks down at her exposed midriff. Ryujin tsks and gets up.
Her bare feet pad against the teal tile floor. Their apartment, if you could call it that, is pitch black except for soft light that flickers from the holographic screens by the corner couch or the fluorescent ceiling lights in the bathroom that keep their electric bills high. If Ryujin felt like being a dick, she’d open the blinds and let the glaring late-morning sun rouse Yeji from her slumber. But not when her holo consumes her senses with the loud notification.
She steps into the bathroom and leans against the counter, gaze meeting her reflection with a cold, blank stare. Her shoulder-length dark hair is frizzy, and the ends are tangled. Her brown eyes land on the red marks on her neck, and she chortles. Already starting her day on a good note.
With a deep breath, she accepts the call. “Ryujin speaking,” she answers, rubbing her eyes.
“Wow, you sound like shit for someone who’s up at 11am,” Jeongyeon’s voice rings out.
Ryujin barely glances at Jeongyeon’s profile picture in the upper left-hand corner of her optics. Even without the holographic projection of the person on the other line, Ryujin can hear her smirk.
“Yeah, well,” Ryujin hums, “I was enjoying my downtime, y’know, with my family. I know you don’t celebrate one of the only corporate holidays of the year because you’re a bitchless gonk.”
“Hey, that’s no way to talk to your coach and fixer.” Jeongyeon fires back. “And I’m not bitchless. You’re about two strikes from me offering this job to Chan and Felix.”
“You better fucking not,” she snaps, slamming her fists on the counter. She grits her teeth, and her shoulders tense up. Biting down on her lip, she closes her eyes and shakes her head. “Sorry,” she relents softly. She looks to her left at the computer screen in the “office area.” The screen briefly flashes with NEW MESSAGE FROM NIGHT CITY UNIVERSITY FINANCIAL SERVICES.
When the screen turns black again, she looks back at her reflection – as if Jeongyeon is in front of her and grimaces. “What’s the job?”
Jeongyeon chuckles. “You’re lucky I like you, kid. Anyway, let me give you the detes. Don’t know if you know this, but I’m actually a faceman for a boss-fixer. A media, former N54 anchor. Had a famous talk show during the Unification War.”
“Huh, it doesn't seem like you to work for a Culture-Vulture,” Ryujin notes.
“She’s good. Knows everything about everyone. Thanks to her, I got the intel on all those cyberpsycho jobs I gave you this year.”
A chill runs down her spine.
Ryujin hated neutralizing them. It was nothing but carnage in the streets. Memories of blood, broken chrome, and dismembered arms and legs flash through her mind. Robotic, pained cries and screams echo from the victims. Some days she couldn’t tell whose blood – synthetic or not – was on her hands. Looking into cyberpsychos’ cold, bloodshot eyes made her wonder if this is how she’ll die, too-
She squeezes her eyes shut, pushing her thoughts away. No. Now is not the time. (There never is time.)
She takes a deep breath and forces herself to nod along. “Okay, so where do Yeji and I come in?” she asks, slightly strained.
“Slow down, kid. I’m getting there.”
Ryujin balls up her fists, letting her nails dig into her skin.
“Nayeon asked me to refer some mercs that I knew could get the job done quickly and cleanly. You and Hwang immediately came to my mind, so I gave her my full recommendation.” The fixer’s tone makes Ryujin wonder if Jeongyeon expects endless praise for her kindness. Ryujin holds her tongue. Technically, Jeongyeon hasn’t done anything for her yet.
Jeongyeon clicks her tongue. “She wants to meet you at The Afterlife around 1pm… You can thank me now.”
“Well, shit,” Ryujin laughs. “Just like that? Thanks for the referral, but, uh….” She scratches behind her ear. “I still have no idea what the hell she wants from us. Nor if she has any street cred. Nothing more off-putting than a fixer who won’t get straight to the point.”
“Ah, that’s the thing, kid. I don’t know much about the job either. Just that it pays a shitload of eddies, and it’s too sensitive to talk about over the holo.”
“Any gonk who calls themselves a fixer says that shit,” she points out. Who the fuck does Jeongyeon think she is? She sighs in disbelief and rubs her forehead. Through her fingers blocking her face, she sees the computer screen light up again with another notification: FIVE DAYS UNTIL RENT IS DUE.
She groans and wipes her eyes like that’ll clear the bullshit her optics are projecting.
“Ryujin, listen to me,” Jeongyeon’s voice rings out in a much softer tone. “I get that you’re worried. Especially since Nayeon is a corpo, I know how you feel about ....”
“Yeah.”
The fixer takes a deep breath. “If you don’t trust her, trust me.”
Ryujin’s gaze stays fixated on her reflection while her nails drum against the counter. She breathes out; her gaze shifts to the left hesitantly. The computer screen is still pitch black. The sound of something crashing comes from her right. Her neighbor swears loudly, echoing through the vent. She can’t help but snort and roll her eyes.
Finally, she exhales. “Shit, I don’t know. Alright. I’ll see what this job’s all about. The second I sense a trap – I’m outta there.”
“Glad to hear it, kid. I’ll see you at one. C-YA.”
“You, too, Jeongyeon.”
Jeongyeon hangs up, and Ryujin wipes her face. Merry fucking Day-After-Christmas.
Gentle arms snake around her waist, and Ryujin’s back immediately straightens up. Her eyes widen as another person appears in her reflection. Then, her posture relaxes when soft lips press against her jawline. A smile breaks out on her lips as she leans against her head.
“Good morning, Yeji,” she hums.
“Morning,” Yeji mumbles sleepily, resting her chin on Ryujin’s shoulder. “Who was that?”
“Jeongyeon. She has a job for us from some media named Nayeon.”
Yeji hums. “Nayeon? Never heard of her.”
“I know. Me neither.”
The other girl’s expression hardens, but she makes no move to soften her hold on Ryujin. Instead, she just exhales sharply. “Well, are we gonna take it?”
“She wants to meet at The Afterlife at 1pm.”
Yeji furrows her brows, lips tightening into a firm line.
Ryujin moves her hand up to pat her head. “Jeongyeon says there’s a shitload of eddies involved. Don’t know how true that is, but….” She turns her head towards her and brushes her nose above her ear. “We’re a team, yeah?”
Yeji nods and lets go of her. She leans against the archway and crosses her arms over her chest. Ryujin has to wince to prevent the light’s reflection off Yeji’s chromed knuckles from temporarily blinding her. “It could be a big opportunity for us. Our big break.”
“We’ve been saying that for seven and a half years, and look where that’s got us?” Ryujin half-jokes.
Yeji narrows her cat-like eyes, and a brown hair strand drops in front of her face. If you didn’t know any better, she’d be the most intimidating person in Night City. Or, well, one of them. “Better than where we started, that’s for sure,” she gestures to the apartment around them. Her lips protrude into a pout as she reaches over and grabs Ryujin’s hands.
Ryujin flinches. Touching Yeji’s hands reminds her of the non-human parts of her. Her fingers are made of chrome and are always cold to her touch, but her palms are warm, welcoming… Yeji is real. Yeji won’t hurt you. Yeji won't turn cyberpsycho.
She takes a deep breath, intertwines their fingers, and grips Yeji’s hand tightly.
“Deadlines are coming up, and we… we didn’t make a lot in the past six months,” Yeji continues.
“I know.”
There’s never enough.
“Think about Yuna. Think about our lives. Think about us-”
Ryujin laughs and shakes her head. “You don’t need to convince me to take this job, Yej. It’s just… I fucking hate dealing with corpos.”
“I’ll be there with you.”
“Yeah. You and Jeongyeon are gonna be the only people keeping me from flatlining the entire room.”
“Ryujin!” Yeji hisses, but then she grins like a Cheshire cat.
Ryujin playfully smirks before Yeji hits her arm, and her amusement immediately drops. She winces in pain and mutters several curse words under her breath.
The other girl’s expression softens, and she rubs Ryujin’s arm frantically with the sleeve of her sleep shirt. “Sorry, sorry, sorry!”
Yeji bites her lip as their gaze meets, and Ryujin feels her cheeks heat up. She squeezes her arm gently, comfortingly.
Her skin feels aflame compared to Yeji’s cool metallic fingers. She can’t help but look at the frizziness at the top of Yeji’s head, then down to the red blotches on her neck and close to her chest. Yeji is beautiful, and she doesn’t need cyber or bodyware to enhance it. Just from her delicate features and the warmness of her smile, she’s the only person to constantly make her feel at ease since-
She gulps suddenly and looks up at the right-hand corner of her optical HUD. 11:37am. “We should get ready,” she rushes out, snapping her gaze to her feet. “Gotta make ourselves look good for Miss Corpo-Cunt.”
“Ryujin!” Yeji chastises.
Ryujin laughs devilishly, pushing her out of the bathroom and ignoring her companion’s shrill protests. She steps into the shower and bangs on the wall.
“Hey, Yuna! Yeji and I are going out. If you’re hungry, there’s kibble in the cupboard.”
“Don’t worry about it!” Yuna shouts back, echoing loudly through the vent. “I’m heading to campus to have lunch with my professor and some classmates.”
“Ohhhhhh!” Ryujin drawls and rolls her eyes. “Well, have fun chowing down with a bunch of corpses!”
“Thanks! Oh, by the way, have you paid my rent yet? I just got a notification that my rent for last month is still unpaid, and January is coming fast-”
She leaves the bathroom without another word.
“Gooooooood Afternoon, Night City! Yesterday’s body count lottery rounded out to a solid ‘n’ sturdy thirty! A Merry Christmas, indeed! Ten outta Heywood – thanks to unabated gang wars! One officer down, so I guess you’re all scA-REEWD. Cuz the NCPD will NOT let that go. Got another blackout in Santo Domingo. Netrunners are at it again, pokin’ holes in the power grid. While over at Westbrook, Trauma Team’s scrapin’ cyberpsycho victims off the pavement. And in Pacifica… Well… Pacifica is still Pacifica. THIS has been your man, Stan! Join me for another day in our Cit-y of DREAMS!”
Yeji lowers the radio’s volume and grips the steering wheel with one hand while adjusting her aviators with the other. “What and where is The Afterlife again?” she asks seriously, which makes Ryujin’s eyebrows shoot up.
Then, she remembers that Yeji isn’t from Night City. It’s a miracle an outsider even lasted seven and a half years in this shithole, but she knows Yeji wouldn’t have made it far without her. And truthfully, the same could be said for Ryujin.
“It’s a bar, in a morgue,” she answers simply, trying to hide her laughter when she sees Yeji’s eyebrows scrunch up in the rearview mirror. “This place is where all the solos and mercs meet, drink, and do biz. Owned and operated by the Rogue Amendiares.”
Yeji furrows her brows, unfazed.
“Oh, c’mon, Yeji, you don’t know who Rogue is? She’s like the only living Night City legend. Queen of the Afterlife and Fixers. Whatever job she has for you, you’re guaranteed to make enough eddies to be set for the rest of your life.”
“But here we are, meeting with a media named Nayeon,” Yeji shakes her head.
Ryujin shrugs. “Well, it’s like you said. We gotta start somewhere.”
The tall skyscrapers and megabuildings block the scorching sun, darkening the streets. They pull into an alley not far from the bridge leading to the City Center. Even though it's midday, bulky, tall, muscular, and chromed people are standing outside. Some smoke cigarettes and others are clearly too drunk to go anywhere.
Ryujin and Yeji exit their vehicle and turn on the anti-theft security measures. Yeji lowers her shades to the bridge of her nose. Her eyes glow blue briefly, and a robotic voice coming from the car says coolly, “Smart link recognized. Turret armed.”
Ryujin bites her lip and stuffs her hands in her thermo-fabric pants.
Yeji sends her a knowing look and bobs her head to the side. “You ready?”
“Yeah, let’s delta.”
The partners walk side by side, keeping a respectful distance between each other as they enter the front doors and walk down the stairs. The green fluorescent lights make the tiled walls look like a neon-colored sewer. As they turn right toward the entrance to the club, a large, insanely jacked white man stands in front of the way. Ryujin notices a sabercat logo sewn into his jacket.
He’s an Animals gang member. Figures. The biggest meatheads are always the best bouncers.
“I don’t know you two, ‘means you’re not welcome here. Now, scram,” he says.
“Chill out, man,” Ryujin scoffs, taking a step forward. “We got a meeting with a fixer. Nayeon.”
“Don’t know that bitch. I’m gonna count to three, and if you don’t get the hell-”
“Yo, Bronson!” Jeongyeon yells.
Ryujin peers around the corner to see Jeongyeon come out from the back door by the bar. “They’re clear. Nayeon Im’s expecting them. And if that’s not good enough for you, they’re with me.” She hurries over and stands next to Bronson, then pats his back. “You’re a little too good at your job. I’ll put in a word with Rogue.”
Bronson grunts and reluctantly steps to the side.
Jeongyeon grins at them and beckons them inside. “You’re just in time. Perfect. This is your first time in The Afterlife, right?” Ryujin and Yeji nod. She grins and throws her arms around them. “Welcome to the beginning of your path to glory!”
Ryujin can’t help but gawk. This is like entering the gates to heaven. Everyone who grows up reading about the badassery of Morgan Blackhand, Adam Smasher, or Johnny Silverhand dreams of one day being able to enter this place and carve their name into the list of many Night City legends. The club is crowded with the likes of all sorts of people. Corpos seeking to get dirty biz done discreetly and outside of company bounds. Nomads looking for work and good trading deals with clients in the city. Street kids and rising mercs just like her who will throw their life away just for a chance at making it big.
An older woman sits surrounded by bodyguards in one of the private booth areas. Ryujin raises a brow, wondering if she’s the Rogue Amendiares. Her legs are crossed, and her posture is stiff, tall, and formidable. Although, Ryujin feels like if she looks too long, she'll end up on a shitlist.
She looks over at Yeji, who has the same starstruck look on her face. This is real. This is happening.
Jeongyeon chuckles. “I know this place is cool as hell. You guys can chill and get a drink after the meeting. I personally recommend the David Martinez. It’s the newest drink, got quite the kick to it.” She winks and waves to the bartender, a brunette muscular woman that Ryujin swears she’s seen on the streets before. “Afternoon, Claire,” Jeongyeon greets and opens the door to the left of the bar, ushering them inside.
The back of The Afterlife is much less lively and much more like it used to be. It’s eerily quiet and neglected, with messy shelves and boxes stacked against the walls. Green fluorescent lights make her feel like she’s in an abandoned maglev tunnel. Jeongyeon opens the door at the end of the hallway with an access card. Ryujin looks at Yeji apprehensively, then enters the room.
It’s pitch black except for a bright, fish tank-like room in the middle with couches and holographic screens. Inside there’s a woman with brown hair dressed in a pantsuit and talking with someone on her holo. She’s alone, surprisingly, except for the two bodyguards before the door.
Everything about this woman screams evil corpo lady with gold cyberware running across her cheeks and to the bridge of her nose. Her eyes glow blue, giving Ryujin the impression that she has top-of-the-line implants and upgrades that only corpos can afford. Her unused braindance wreath sits comfortably on her shoulders like a necklace of thorns. Who knows what sort of memories she’s recorded and manipulated for entertainment?
But it’s too late now. Not when Jeongyeon is eagerly leading them inside the tank, and the bodyguards have tactical infovisors, scanning Ryujin and Yeji of all their secrets as they enter. It’s a good thing they decided against arriving armed.
Jeongyeon sends them a smile of encouragement and makes her way toward the exit to the bar.
Just as they step in, the clear windows of the tank shut, and Ryujin feels like she’s been lured into a prison cell. She involuntarily shudders. She wishes she could grab Yeji’s hand, but she can’t. She’d give this corpo bitch entirely what she wants – a weakness to exploit. Fucking hell.
“Ah,” Nayeon clicks her tongue, turning off her holo. Her eyes shift from bright blue orbs to regular dark brown eyes. “You must be Ryujin Shin and Yeji Hwang. Glad I was able to track you down.”
“You didn’t…?” Ryujin raises a brow. “Jeongyeon referred us to you ‘cause you were looking for capable mercs.”
“Well, that’s half-true….” Nayeon hums, tilting her head to the side. “Come. Have a seat,” she gestures to the two red padded chairs in front of her.
Ryujin and Yeji look at each other apprehensively and sit down in front of the corpo. Yeji takes off her aviators.
The pit of Ryujin’s stomach twists slowly like she’s just about to dive off a cliff into a deep pit of serpents.
“Jeongyeon’s referral just made my job much, much easier. The job was always going to be for you.” Nayeon’s honeyed words, though crisp, sound like sweet lies.
What the fuck does a Culture-Vulture want with a street rat with nothing but the bad and the ugly attached to her name?
Sensing Ryujin’s surprise, her peach-pink lips curl into a smirk, “Oh, trust me. I’m just as shocked as you are. I don’t work with fodder and proles like you. But this client asked for you by name, Ryujin.”
Yeji flinches.
Ignoring her, Nayeon leans in, eyebrows arching upward as Ryujin scowls and shifts in her seat. “And it’d be best for both of us if we do what they want.”
“What the fuck makes me so special?” Ryujin hisses. This sort of streetcred is unwelcome, especially if a fixer doesn’t want to work with you but has to because the client wants you. She wants to be infamous, sure, but the kind of infamous that fucks with the people who rule the world with a chromed fist.
She thinks of all the people she’s pissed off in the past seven and a half years: her family, the NCPD, Maelstrom, some factions of the Tyger Claws, Scavs, Yeji’s sort-of former nomad family, some nomad families associated with the Raffen Shiv, 6th Street gang, megacorporations like Arasaka, Militech, Night City Dam Ltd….
Okay, maybe she’s not as much of a nobody as she thought. (Still hasn’t done shit for her, though.)
“I’ve asked myself the same thing, so, of course, I had to do some digging….” Nayeon trails off and pulls a tablet out of her purse. She slots in a datashard, and the screen lights up. “Ryujin Shin, born April 17, 2054, in Night City, Northern California. You’ve lived in several neighborhoods: Vista del Rey with your parents, Laguna Bend with your aunt and uncle, a trailer park in the Badlands… And now, Little China with your business partner and your cousin.”
Ryujin’s eye twitches, and she grits her teeth. Fuckin’ nosy medias.
“Laguna Bend. I haven’t heard that name in a while. Such a tragedy, all those lives and eddies going to waste for yet another Night City infrastructure failure,” she continues like some fucking investigative journalist for an N54 special program. Ryujin’s not sure if she’s relieved or pissed that her knowledge seems limited. Or maybe she’s just shit at her job. Like a gonk who thinks IP addresses can still track someone’s location.
“Is this relevant to the job? Yeji interjects, crossing her arms over her chest.
Nayeon turns her attention to Yeji and sneers, “Of course, I need to know what type of degenerates I’m working with. Got a lot of goodies on your NCPD file. Smuggling, larceny, grand theft auto, malicious mischief, illegal street racing… she clearly got the ideas from you, nomad.”
Yeji’s jaw drops, and Ryujin sends her a warning look. She composes herself and shrugs. “Yeah, I was- I am a nomad. So what?”
“Why did you leave the Artemis Clan? A nomad usually doesn’t settle down, especially for as long as you have. And you owe a lot to this family, don’t you? After all they’ve done for you-”
Suddenly, Ryujin flings out of her seat. “Listen, corpo bitch,” she spits, “you want us to do your damn job or not? Because you’re not selling yourself by sticking your nose in our fucking business like we’re your next big documentary subjects.”
“Ryujin-” Yeji pleads.
“You tryna blackmail us? Is that your plan? Scare us into doing your dirty work?”
Yeji reaches over and squeezes her arm. “Ryujin, it’s not worth it,” she hisses.
Ryujin shakes her head furiously and takes a menacing step forward.
“Sit down, girl.” Nayeon narrows her eyes and then darts her gaze to the door threateningly.
Ryujin tenses up. Fuck.
She takes a deep breath and glances at Yeji, who nods encouragingly. Reluctantly, Ryujin slumps back down into her seat.
“I apologize for opening old wounds, but I had to be 100% sure I had the right people. Reactions speak louder than words,” Nayeon says smugly. “Technology makes it hard to tell what’s real and what isn’t these days, right?”
Ryujin and Yeji exchange confused looks and then turn their attention back to Nayeon.
“The job,” Ryujin says impatiently.
“Right. The job.” Nayeon pulls a small box out of her purse and opens it. She hands them two small objects.
Ryujin looks down at the small metallic bar apprehensively. A datashard. This is where shit gets real.
“Well, go on. Slot it in.”
She lifts the shard to the slot just under her ear and slides it into the opening. It fits snugly with a clicking sound, and her vision turns dark with a bright UPLOADING… notification replacing her view.
A blue holographic image projects itself in front of her. Politicians sit around a rectangular marble table in stiff suits and corporate cybernetics. On the wall is a logo of the Earth with a ring around it and ten stars. In bright, bold letters under the logo reads “ESC - European Space Council.”
Several men have yellow screens in front of them with graphs and images of a giant space launcher with the name “Arasaka” on the side.
Ryujin finally notices after a bit of vision stuttering that the datashard is actually a recording of the meeting but with no sound.
She’s not sure what she’s supposed to be looking for. All she sees are stuffy European politicians and one man in a NUSA military uniform moving their lips and making wild hand gestures.
Suddenly, about five members sitting in front of the screens start convulsing. Electricity sizzles out of their infovisors and other cyberware attached to the head. Not even a second later, they slump over. Smoke rises from their burnt-out chrome. The video ends just as surviving ESC members panic, covering their heads or rushing to the exit.
What the hell?
Ryujin reaches for the slots under her right ear and pops out the datashard. Her vision reverts to Nayeon on the edge of her seat, tapping her foot loudly. She turns to her left to see Yeji unslotting the datashard with a grimace.
“So, do you see what we’re working with?”
“Not really,” Ryujin says bluntly. “I couldn’t hear jack shit from the recording.”
“You weren’t supposed to.” Nayeon narrows her eyes. “None of you low-lives would ever be able to understand corporate politics anyway.”
Yeji frowns. “But that’s part of our job, isn’t it? Why else would you show us this?”
Nayeon lets out a long sigh and clasps her hands together. “All you need to know from that video is that the ESC called a vote to revoke Arasaka’s license to conduct business in space after the ESA received a tip that Arasaka had an unauthorized mass driver on the moon. The voting was, tragically, delayed thanks to a cyber attack.” She shakes her head, and her nose crinkles.
The fixer puts the datashards back in the box and puts them away. Nayeon clears her throat and taps her chin. “Our client wants to know who did it.”
“But it’s obvious that it’s Arasaka behind it,” Ryujin thinks out loud.
“Yes, well, they want a name, Ryujin,” Nayeon says. “They want to know who is directly responsible — who authorized this special operation, and why. The way they did it is messy. Even for Arasaka’s standards.” She leans forward slightly. “That’s where you two come in. You’re going to get close to an Arasaka official and manipulate them into admitting Arasaka’s involvement in murdering representatives from several European countries and a NUSA general.”
Ryujin can hardly believe it. Is this some sort of sick joke? What on Yeji and her own resume screams spying and corporate sabotage? She does dirty work, like beating the shit out of people for information or blowing up corporation assets. She prefers it that way. Much more straightforward and less loose ends. This all feels way too foreign to her, and she can’t help but wonder if Nayeon has the wrong Ryujin Shin.
“I’m not seeing why they want Yeji and me to do this job. We’re mercs, not spies. We don’t know shit about getting corpos to talk without beating them- I mean, we don’t deal with corpos like that,” she mutters at the end.
Nayeon hums and lets out a breathy laugh. “That’s exactly why I didn’t want to work with you two. But the client wants you, won’t let me bring anybody else.” She rolls her eyes. “If that means I must hold your hand the entire time, so be it.”
Then, the woman’s brows furrow, and her gaze hardens as she locks her eyes with Ryujin. “Failure is not an option,” she emphasizes, “about a million and a half eurodollars are on the line for each of us.”
“Each!?” Yeji and Ryujin blurt out simultaneously, lunging forward in their seats like hungry dogs.
She rubs her eyes. Ryujin can’t even imagine how much 1.5 million eddies would change her life. Certainly, get them out of their shitty apartment in Watson, and move into one of those villas she sees in the hills of North Oak off of Highway 101. Maybe a new car or motorbike or goodies from Constitutional Arms. No! A delicious meal with real meat and vegetables at a high-end restaurant with Yeji and in fancy clothes — a proper dinner fit for legends. (Yeji would look so pretty in a polyamide dress).
Nayeon snickers, pulling Ryujin from her fantasies. The media’s lip curls upward. “Yes. Each. High-risk and high-reward. It’s only fair if I split the pay evenly.”
“World’s nicest fixer,” Yeji mutters under her breath, making Ryujin’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise at her sarcasm. The older girl’s shoulders slump as she realizes what she said out loud. She quickly composes herself. “So, uh, how exactly are we going to go about this? We don’t have any contacts in Arasaka.”
The smile on Nayeon’s face seems to tear at her cheeks. “Ah, I think it’s time you meet the other person you’ll be working with for this job.” Leaving no room for Ryujin and Yeji to react, Nayeon cups her hands over her mouth and shouts, “Chaeyoung! Tzuyu! Bring our guest in.”
The doors slide open, and the two intimidating bodyguards drag in a small brunette woman. She has a big bruise on her forehead and a split lip. She has a huge black eye on her left eye. Her facial cyberware looks blood-stained (or maybe that’s the color she chose to design it). The girl is wearing a gray corporate pantsuit - unkempt, as if someone scoured her.
“No, no, please,” she begs hoarsely.
The taller bodyguard throws the woman onto the floor and exits the room. The shorter bodyguard smirks and kicks the woman in the side before following her colleague outside.
The woman whimpers and clutches her stomach. “I told you… I’d have the money-”
“This is Julia Choi,” Nayeon interrupts, glaring down at the girl. “She’s a security consultant at Arasaka, recently transferred from Montreal.” She leans over and yanks Julia’s ponytail harshly, making the corpo look at her. “And someone who had the guts to take a loan from me without enough scratch to pay me back on time.”
“I told you! I told you that my pay will come in t-tomorrow.”
“I don’t want your eddies anymore, rat. Get off the floor. Such a sickening display. You call yourself a proud employee of the world’s biggest megacorporation?”
Julia whimpers and slowly climbs to her feet. Yeji gets up to help her, but Nayeon waves her hand dismissively.
“Leave her be. She’s caused me enough problems.”
Yeji ignores her and wraps her arm around Julia’s waist to help her stand up. The woman looks up at Yeji with a strained smile. “Thank you,” she whispers.
“The files,” Nayeon spits. “Give me the files, Choi.”
“Files… That’s all you wanted? You didn’t need to-”
Nayeon stomps her foot. “Don’t play dumb with me. I gave you a task, and you better have completed it.”
Julia gulps and stumbles forward, pulling a small datashard from her slot. “I- yes. I made a copy. It was hard because I didn’t have full clearance yet, but I managed to-” She’s cut off by Nayeon swiping the shard from her hand and slotting it into her neural port. Her eyes glow electric blue, and Ryujin hears the familiar sound of a holo ringing.
The media begins talking with the person on the other line, but no sound comes out of her moving lips. Ryujin scoffs, unsurprised that holos had upgrades that could mute the conversation for everyone else nearby.
Yeji slowly leads Julia to an empty seat and smiles apprehensively. “Are you okay, Julia? What did they do to you?”
Ryujin narrows her eyes. “Yeji.” She’s too fucking nice.
“Please just call me Lia,” the woman says shakily as she sits down. Her gaze then hardens as she looks at the pair with suspicion. “Who are you people? Do you work for Nayeon, too?”
“No,” Yeji answers shortly.
“Not yet,” Ryujin says at the exact same time.
She recoils when the older girl shoots icy daggers with her cat-like eyes. She clears her throat awkwardly. “What I mean is… Nayeon called us here ‘cause she has a job for us. We’re mercs.”
Lia’s mouth makes an “O” shape, and she shakes her head. “I… okay. Um, well, I guess the rumors about Night City are true.” She says something else in French, which Ryujin can’t quite make out with her broken language knowledge. Her cyberaudio isn’t equipped with an auto-translator.
“Do you need a MaxDoc?” Yeji asks, pulling a Trauma Team inhaler out. “I promise it’ll make you feel a little better.”
Just as Lia nods and reaches for it, Nayeon snaps her fingers and brings everyone’s attention to her. Her eyes no longer glow, and she has a triumphant smirk on her face. She scrolls upward with her tablet and projects something onto one of the holographic screens.
An Arasaka employee file of an Asian woman with a cold expression and long dark hair. She has a mole below her lips and round ears that poke out slightly. Her eyes are dark, almost pitch black - but she can’t differentiate any colors because of the hologram’s blue hue. She has the same facial cyberware as Lia, most likely a corporate standard. Two dark lines curve under her eyes. Two parallel lines run under her chin, turn outward, then almost merge at the base of her neck - close to a V shape. At first glance, Ryujin thinks this woman is genetically modified because there’s no way someone could look this… Beautiful? No. Proportionate? That’s a weird way to describe somebody. Perfect? Again, utterly untrue because she’s a corpo.
Corpos fool you with their flawless appearance and expensive fashion, but they’re vile, rotten reptiles.
Still, she skims over the file with piqued interest.
NAME: KARINA YU
D.O.B: 2053.04.11
BIRTHPLACE: SEOUL, UNITED KOREA
EDUCATION: ARASAKA ACADEMY - SEOUL CAMPUS
POSITION: DEPUTY HEAD OF COUNTERINTELLIGENCE [ARASAKA AMERICA]
YEARS WITH ARASAKA: 6
EMPLOYEE ID #: [ENCRYPTED]
“She’s wonderful, isn’t she? A mid-level corporate executive in the department that’s in charge of protecting Arasaka assets….” Nayeon sighs dreamily. “The client and I both agree that she’ll be our target. Her characteristics are… most suitable for the task.” She folds her hands in her lap. Her gaze shifts from Lia to Yeji and then finally rests on Ryujin.
“I’ve laid all the cards out on the table. You are to find evidence of the person directly responsible for the cyber attack on the European Space Council. You do this by getting close to and coercing Karina Yu into revealing this information to you. The reward is split evenly, 33-33-33, for about 1.5 million eurodollars each,” she summarizes quickly.
She turns to Lia and sneers, ”Your pay, Choi, is a forgiven debt, which should be more than sufficient.”
“I- No- I want no part of this. I d-did what you asked-”
“Oh?” Nayeon raises a brow. “If that is the case, I suppose your usefulness has expired. Although, I still need my payment.” Her gaze rolls over Lia’s body, focusing on something chrome behind her ear. “I bet your corporate cyberware is worth a fortune to the Scavs-”
“NO!” Lia shrieks and sinks to her knees, covering her ears. She lets out a sob, rocking back and forth. “Please, don’t… Don’t sell me off to cyberware scavengers. Anything but that. I’ll- I’ll do the job.”
Ryujin’s jaw clenches, and Yeji’s shoulders shake violently. Neither of them dares to look at Lia.
“Glad I have your cooperation,” Nayeon says mockingly. She turns her attention back to Yeji and Ryujin. “You must follow the plan to the letter, only improvising if your cover is blown. I will find out if you try to double-cross the client or me. You’ll have wished I put a bullet in your brain.”
Her piercing glare makes Ryujin recoil into her seat. Nayeon clears her throat and holds her hands out to Yeji and Ryujin, “Do you accept these terms?”
Ryujin can’t ignore how her stomach churns. The more she learns about the job, the less confident she feels about her abilities. She can’t quite wrap her head around why the client wants her and chose this random Arasaka representative. Corpos and street kids got nothing in common except one’s a rat with all the money and power, and the other’s a rat with a criminal record and crippling debt. She glances up at Karina’s profile. Her stern gaze makes Ryujin wonder if she’s actually staring at her right now. Fuck me, she groans to herself.
She looks at Yeji, focusing on her scrunched-up face. What does Yeji think? Should we take it? Ryujin bites her lip as Yeji looks right back at her. Her chest tightens differently than it usually does when Yeji looks at her so intensely. Her eyes have always reminded Ryujin of the comfort of a warm flame, beckoning her home.
She hardens her expression once she remembers they’re not the only ones in the room.
“Live or die, know that you’ll become legends of Night City,” Nayeon adds.
Glory. Power. Fame. A chance to turn their shitty life around. There will never be an opportunity like this for them ever again. The title of Night City Legend is enough to free Ryujin from her indecision. She nods toward Yeji.
“We accept these terms,” Yeji says, facing Nayeon and shaking her hand. Ryujin does the same. “We won’t disappoint you.”
Lia makes a strained sound like she’s been punched in the gut.
What did this girl think would happen? They were going to say no ‘cause they felt sorry for her? Fuck that!
Nayeon smiles, but there’s no hint of mockery in her expression. “Excellent. Let’s get to the good part: my fool-proof plan.” She folds her hands in her lap. “Since neither of you has the background for corporate espionage. We’re going to try something else.”
With a dramatic sigh, she relaxes against the couch. “People are the same, proles and corpos alike. We are selfish and use other people for our own gain. Nobody likes to admit it, but corpos love having a street scum pet as their little secret until they finally meet a suitable corpo match. It’s their idea of connecting with all the bugs they squash. We’re going to exploit that.”
Her smile turns into an unsettling grin. What she says next makes Lia laugh hysterically; Yeji yelps like she found another cockroach in their shower, and Ryujin’s mouth hangs open unabashedly:
“Ryujin, you’re going to seduce Karina Yu. Make her move mountains for you. There’s nothing more pathetic than a corpo risking their career for puppy love, don’t you think?”