Sorry for missing last week here you guys go.
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Dank.
That was the one word I would use to describe the inside of this cesspool I woke up in the next day. Walls were stained with indiscriminate substances, carpet in all sorts of shades and colors. That's a Night City motel for ya.
If I hadn't been so fucking exhausted the bed would've never felt my weight. But, rest was imperative, especially with all I had to come to terms with. Dying, getting dropped in the body of an alternate me, and to top it off, in Night fucking City of all places. At least I had some semblance of who I was now. Still me, just, also not me? I don't know I'm just rolling with it at this point.
The memories came back to me in a dream, one where I was sitting in a theatre, watching this bodies past. Well at least the last couple years at least. Nothing before the age of 9 or so.
The first scene I recalled was getting to night city. Dust and sand wafted through the desert air as the Thorton Mackinaw I was in the back of tore down the road.
Apparently, I wasn't even from night city to begin with, I was a kid born in a strung out clique of nomads from Louisiana. Full name was the same as my last life, Javeon Kaster. My father was good with machines and my mother was the ripper of our little pack. Both had me pick the basics up, saying I didn't have the luxury of being helpless. All of this was narrated by somebody along the ride like an intro to an 80s movie.
Unfortunately, by the time I was twelve both parents had been lost to fire fights, defending our traveling home. It wasn't just them though. In the end, only about eight of us made it to night city, the rest fading from either starvation or a lack of medicine. But there was no point in turning back, Snake Nation had either slaughtered the rest of us who didn't join them or simply subsumed the survivors into their ranks with force.
But we were the Pythons, a close knit Nomad family, thought we'd all try and tough it out together. Some tried, but everyone eventually splintered off in the grand metropolis that is NC. Regardless, it was their priority for the children that even allowed the few kids a chance at a home even if it was temporary.
But that was all in the past, seven or so years ago now. This body had always had known his way around his tools, eventually getting into the more techie side of things as time went on, an interest in net running bloomed soon after. It was how he scrapped by, fixing things and cars, while cleansing data packets on the side, learning as much he could.
As a teen he did what most did to get a quick adrenaline rush in this city once he discovered em, BDs. Eventually he got into XBDs and the one that left the most lasting impression was one of a netrunner, running a successful breach into a small corp.
The boy, well me now, had an obsession with creating his own cyberdeck. The silky smooth way the heist went on, without a single bullet being fired despite dozens of armed guards being present was incredible. It was like she was a phantom, incapacitating people in her way from halls down, not a single alarm sounding as she dismantled digital defenses.
The footage left a lasting impression on the teen, he started pouring every ounce of his free time into crafting what he thought would get him ahead. He used his minor hacking skills to do a few odd jobs here and there to get the components he needed for his cyberdeck. Studying like a mad man, digging through netrunner forums, at least the ones he could enter with his meager skills and even less stunning amount of equipment.
It took years of quiet yet diligent development and research but he had done it, he had made a first and second prototype to his deck, unfortunately he was killed with the second when the scavs kidnapped him. Whatever chemical they used on the rag sure as hell wasn't cloroform, because the other Javeon went into shock and died after a few minutes of prolonged exposure. They probably took the chip out then, brought him back to their haunt and planned to dissect him the next day.
The same purple one he had felt drawn too.
It was strange, I had rifled through a pile of metal body parts and found a piece from my own head.
But other than the personal stuff the main takeaway was that the year is 2075, a year before edge runners and two before the carnage that is V rips night city a new one.
The movie ended when he perished in the back of the dingy scav van trying to buck the two bastards holding him down off as whatever poison was on the rag did its magic. From start to finish it was around ten years crammed into one night of sleep. At least I know I'm still nineteen
When I woke up however I did notice a key piece of the film was missing, it never showed where I actually lived, only dingy motels and abandoned rooftops when I closed my eyes back then.
Broke in two lives, how bout that.
But there was a difference, a big one to me at least. He never hesitated. He saw what he wanted for himself and started sprinting towards it. A street rat, former nomad, not even worrying about housing only about achieving what excited him; The road ahead.
I couldn't help but respect him for that, especially for the fact that I had never done the same. Always hesitating, thinking my life is going to evolve just cause time goes on.
I feel like this is a chance though, a chance to be better. To not cower in the face of change but evolve myself.
I want to be less cowardly then I was yesterday and all my days before.
I want my heart to thump in my chest when I think about tomorrow, not to dread it.
I just want to be better… I don't want life to just pass me bye again. I want to have fun and not be broke god damnit!
"Alright, that's it!" I shot up from the mattress that had probably seen horrors indescribable and walked straight to the standing shower, one that spat out frigid water at first, taking a few for it warm up. It woke me up some and gave me more clarity
No more moping, it isn't gonna make any money appear in my wallet, which speaking of, Vik did say I could come back to appraise what I had collected in my escape, plus I need to know what I have all in me cyberware wise.
Other than that I need a notebook or something to record everything I remember from the game. I was one hell of a loot goblin and I loved the lore, to the point I was falling asleep to deep dive videos. It would be a waste after going through all those shards to forget it all.
Also…
{QH CATALOG}
{Data log}
{********* ****}
The familiar purple lines lit up in my vision as the water ran through my dreads and down my grin split face.
I need to find out what else this puppy can do.