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The Afterlife…
A bar located in a former morgue, at least that's what was said about it in the game. I have no idea if that's actually true. All I know is that the best of the best gather here—or rather, the ones fixers with access to this place consider to be the best.
In theory, Regina, like other district fixers, could hang out here like Rogue does, but they're more comfortable in their own hideouts. They don't trust her, and they don't trust fixers who don't have ties to a specific district either.
"Who are you?"
I looked at the guard standing at the entrance to the bar, who was performing the so-called face check.
"Ghost. Here for a meeting with Rogue."
"Them?"
"They're my crew."
"Wait here."
I showed no sign of annoyance and calmly waited for the gonk, whose optics lit up, to call his boss and confirm that I wasn't lying.
"Listen, if they weren't warned about us, maybe we aren't needed here?"
I shrugged.
"Maybe we aren't, and this was just a stupid joke… But it's no trouble for me to wait a couple of minutes for them to verify everything."
"Go ahead…"
The gonk pointed at the door, which opened.
"Rogue is busy right now. Wait in the bar; you'll be called."
I nodded, and we walked inside. Without paying any attention to my surroundings, I walked toward an empty table and sat down. The girls sat down next to me.
"You're not going to order anything?"
"Nah, I'm here to talk to Rogue…"
I shook my head.
"…I need a clear head and a well-functioning mouth, and I'm not a fan of booze."
The girls snorted, leaned into each other, and whispered. Then Panam, who was sitting on the end, got up and went to the bar, behind which stood a very large girl, the bartender…
A couple of minutes later, Panam came back with three tall glasses.
"Judy and I got some light alcohol, and you got a completely non-alcoholic one."
I nodded, took the glass, and took a small sip of the drink. A very small amount of the cocktail got into my mouth, and I swirled it around, evaluating the taste. Only after I had fully evaluated it did I finish the sip.
"Not bad…"
Panam smirked.
"Uh-huh, but ours is still better…"
I shrugged and took another small sip, then pushed the glass to the side and started thinking.
"So, we're just going to sit here?"
"Are you that eager to talk? In a place where everyone has advanced chrome that can help them listen in on us? And I'm not just talking about solos, but about fixers' spies who are probably gathering information on everyone who comes into the Afterlife."
Panam grimaced a little and fell silent. Judy looked around suspiciously and, shrugging, took a sip of her cocktail.
We sat in silence for about ten minutes until some guy came up to our table.
"What are some pretty dolls like you doing with a little boy?"
He smirked, looked at me, and made a gesture with his hand that could be interpreted as: "Get out of here, you're in the way."
"The ladies don't need any other company. So if it's not too much trouble, would you mind leaving?"
My calm voice got the guy's attention. He had already turned away from me and was focused on Panam and Judy, who were just silently smirking.
"Listen, kid, you should just get lost…
"Sir, my companions don't need any other company. I'm asking you to leave. I don't plan on asking a third time."
"Kid, I'm with Smasher's crew. Don't fuck with me and get lost, or I'll put a bullet in your head and…"
Bang! Clank!
I didn't even activate my Sandevistan. I just used the new capabilities of my muscles. I got up, grabbed the hand the guy was resting on the table, and his head. I sharply pulled his hand back and slammed his head forward onto the table. The guy's head hit the table with a very loud thud.
Panam and Judy had the foresight to grab their cocktails and, a couple of seconds before I acted, lifted them off the table. My cocktail, however, bounced from the impact, and since it was on the edge, it fell to the floor and shattered.
The guy stood there for a couple of seconds with his face pressed into the table, and then he collapsed to the floor.
"Listen, choom…"
A rather skinny guy came up to our table, but the amount of chrome on him was… just horrifying. If I met someone like that on the street, I would have thought he was a Maelstrom boss or something. He was just too chromed out.
"I warned your friend. He didn't listen…"
I calmly met the numerous small optics that were drilling into me for a few seconds, probably hoping to scare me. But I didn't care. It only took a fraction of a second to activate my Sandevistan, and with my current abilities…
"Alright, that'll be a hundred grand from you, for physical injuries… and for emotional distress… another hundred…"
"Shut your mouth, turn around, and get lost. I'm not interested in what you want, and I'm not a genie to grant your wishes. And if you dare to push me, you'll be lying on the floor next to your buddy."
"Listen up! I said it once! Otherwise, I'll pass your whores around…"
The Sandevistan was activated.
I calmly got up from my seat, walked over to the guy, and, taking his pistol out of his holster, shoved it into his open mouth.
Deactivation.
Klick!
The teeth of guy number two clanged against the barrel of the pistol.
"Alright, you're going to take your friend and get away from us. But before that… what did you say I owed you? Two hundred grand?"
I snorted.
"I value my companions much more than that, and you threatened them…"
I shook my head.
"…that's not right…"
"Kid, put the gun down…"
The security guard from the entrance was standing nearby and watching me intently. I had no doubt that if he had to, he would intervene, or at least try to, and he would try to stop me.
"You should have intervened when your boss sanctioned this test…"
I shook my head.
"…which goes against the rules of the Afterlife. And, surprisingly, I studied them before I came. So for now, just stand on the sidelines and watch."
I smirked.
"Going back to you…"
I looked at guy number two.
"That'll be five hundred grand from you."
"M-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-f-f-f-f-f!"
In the voice, which was extremely hard to make out because of the gun in his mouth, there was a clear sense of panic.
"Should I be concerned about that?"
I raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"You agreed to this, whoever offered you the job. So you should have been prepared for the consequences. You don't have the eddies, so take out a loan…"
I shrugged slightly.
"That's enough…"
I glanced in the direction of the voice and saw a slightly graying woman, quite pretty, who had come down to us from a private booth. She came down because all the booths were on a small raised platform, separated from the main floor of the club by a couple of steps.
"I didn't start this, and I won't be the one to finish it. Either this gentleman meets my demands, or I'll put a bullet in his head and sell his chrome, which I'll get…"
I activated my optics in scanning mode.
"About three hundred and fifty thousand."
"I said, that's enough."
"So you're vouching for him?"
I looked at Rogue questioningly.
"Yes."
A slight smirk appeared on her lips, to which I shrugged. I pulled the pistol out of guy number two's mouth, took it apart in three movements, dropped the parts on the floor, and then looked at Panam and Judy.
"We're leaving."
They nodded and, getting up, followed me.
"Ghost, stop."
The voice was authoritative, but I still resisted and didn't stop.
"If you want to meet, make sure Smasher transfers me the eddies. Regina will be the intermediary. And yeah, if you still need my services as a solo, then you'd better not set up any more tests like this. My time is expensive, and I value the nerves and honor of my companions even more."
We managed to get to the Thorton when Regina called me.
"What the hell did you do?!"
"Regina?"
"Could you explain to me why Rogue just called me, asked me to act as a middleman to transfer five hundred thousand to you for settling a dispute, which she then immediately transferred? And she asked me to facilitate a conversation with you. What. The. Fuck. Happened?"
"They tried to test me…"
I gestured for Panam and Judy, who were about to get into the Thorton, to stop.
"…I put the guy in his place and demanded compensation, just like he had demanded from me a couple of seconds before. Then the club's security guard intervened, but I put him in his place by saying that I knew the rules and that he, or his buddies, should have intervened sooner. Then Rogue came out and vouched for the guy. I turned around and, after saying that my feet wouldn't set foot in the Afterlife again until I was paid what I demanded, I left, ignoring Rogue's call."
"You're crazy…"
"Not at all. I just value my reputation, and as you know, it's quite high. And if I had caved now, even to Rogue, others would have realized that they could also make me cave."
"Fucking psycho… you squeezed five hundred grand out of Rogue… now she's only going to send you on jobs that will help her make back that money!"
"And?"
I snorted.
"Are you going to help me get back into the club or not?"
Regina transferred the five hundred grand to me and looked at me sternly.
"What do you want?"
"Just tell me, should I go there or not? What's best for you as my fixer?"
"Just like that?"
"Regina, we work very well together. We even came up with a plan to screw over Rogue with my permanent employment. So you should have realized that it's just that simple."
She sighed.
"Go… please. At the very least, listen to her with a polite smile…"
My image nodded in understanding.
"As you wish."
"Ugh… you're so difficult…"
Regina's image shook its head.
"…however, it's a good thing this happened. Rogue has been getting a little too big for her britches lately. All the best solos always went to her, and the jobs…"
Regina grunted.
"…now, if this works out for us, we might be able to steal some jobs from her… just don't get too greedy, or she might retaliate. But if we do it right, I won't screw you over either…"
My image showed a satisfied grin and a nod, confirming my agreement to participate in this adventure.
"Alright, then stick to the plan… I'm going to hope she doesn't find a way to pressure you or bribe you, because otherwise, my whole scheme will collapse like a house of cards."
"Don't worry. As long as I'm in Night City, I'm on your side."
"Hmm?"
"Yeah, I have this idea to save up money, get prepared, and get the hell out of this city and go somewhere far away."
"Yeah, right…"
Regina snorted.
"Got something to say?"
"You won't last two months outside the city."
"Why do you think that?"
"You're a solo to the core. Jobs and adrenaline are an inseparable part of your life. So once you're outside this city, which is one of the few that offers such extensive opportunities, you'll just… wither."
I snorted.
"You know, if you turn out to be right and I, if I ever decide to leave Night City, come back here, I'll do every fifth job for you for free for a whole year."
"I'll remember that…"
Her image nodded, but the smirk on her face immediately disappeared.
"…now go talk to Rogue."
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