MAshley Johnson was a girl with wealth and beauty. She was from a single-parent family; her mother was a high-ranking executive at Arasaka Corporation in Night City.
Ashley suffered from a strange brain disease that left her half-paralyzed. All the doctors said she wouldn't live past this year, but Ashley's mother, who worked tirelessly at Arasaka, brought back a bio-chip that miraculously cured her.
After that, her mother disappeared and has been missing for two months now. As her daughter, Ashley was naturally very anxious. Before her disappearance, a large amount of cash was left at home.
After the chip cured her brain disease, side effects also followed; a man appeared in her consciousness. This man could talk to her face-to-face, and only she could see and hear him. At first, Ashley thought she was going crazy. After a while, she just accepted it; it was just one more person to talk to, except... this man talked a lot, constantly babbling. Ashley found him annoying, as noisy as a dog, so she called him Dog Brother.
Although it was already 2076, Night City had barely developed in recent years; city maintenance was very poor, and many streets appeared somewhat old. Ashley drove herself, traveling on the bridge connecting Heywood and Santo Domingo.
Ashley had arranged to meet her good friend V, because V worked in Arasaka Corporation's counterintelligence department, and Ashley could try to ask her for help. She had some connections within the company and might be able to uncover something about her mother's disappearance.
Dog Brother's image was in the passenger seat, legs crossed and propped up, looking like a smug deadbeat, speaking in an incredibly cheap tone: "I told you, just give in to V, not only is she pretty, but her figure is also hot."
Ashley's voice rose: "Why should I? I'm straight! I don't do lesbians!"
Dog Brother: "Hey, hey, Ashley, you know you don't actually have to open your mouth to talk to me, right? Look how worked up you are... You also know I'm a male consciousness, and we share senses. Do you know what I fear most?"
Ashley rolled her eyes: "You fear me getting a boyfriend..."
Dog Brother: "Exactly, if you get involved with a man... then it means I also get involved with a man, just thinking about it is so disgusting! I don't do gay! You should just get a girlfriend."
Ashley: "Then why should I give in to you?"
Ashley turned her face to look at the man her own brain had virtually created. Dog Brother was a muscular, handsome male figure, wearing a fringed denim sleeveless shirt and similarly light blue denim jeans. If there really was a man with such an appearance, Ashley truly felt she could...
But, he wasn't a real man; he was just an image simulated by the chip inserted into her brain.
Dog Brother: "Because V is pretty, and she just happens to be into both men and women, she's practically your best choice..."
Ashley was about to retort when Dog Brother, who had been speaking animatedly, suddenly looked tense and stared at the side mirror: "Ashley! Step on the gas! Quick!"
Ashley was stunned by the sudden words and didn't press the accelerator harder; she just looked at Dog Brother in confusion, but the next second she knew Dog Brother was right.
A dense barrage of bullet impacts hit the windows of her SUV; her car was being shot at!
Dog Brother wasn't actually speaking to her; he was communicating directly with Ashley's brain through the chip, so no matter how loud the external noise was, it didn't affect them: "Hurry! It must be the Animals. Last time they robbed us, and then I took control of your body and, with my skills, took down three of their members. Now they must be here for revenge!"
Ashley slammed the accelerator, starting to speed away to escape. She saw it clearly: someone on the roof of a car next to her was wielding a .31 heavy machine gun, fiercely strafing her.
Fortunately, her car had bulletproof armor and glass, but that machine gun was powerful, and continuous hits would inevitably break through. She still had to escape. Sure enough, the cracks on the bulletproof glass increased exponentially. It looked like it was about to give out.
Also, because her car had bulletproof features, it was too heavy and couldn't go very fast, making it impossible to shake off the Animals.
Dog Brother pointed to the small storage compartment in her passenger seat: "Quick! Get out your Omaha pistol! Give me control of your right hand!"
Since the last time she was robbed by the Animals, Ashley had given control to Dog Brother, which allowed her to escape danger. Although giving control of herself to Dog Brother would cause nausea and headaches, her life was more important at the moment. She quickly leaned over, grabbed the pistol, and immediately released control of her right hand.
At this moment, Dog Brother's image was gone; only his voice directly in her mind remained: "Good! Drive with your peripheral vision, focus your eyes mainly on the pistol's aim, and when the opponent's wave of shooting stops, lower the passenger side window!"
Dog Brother's vision was actually Ashley's vision. If Ashley only focused on the road ahead, Dog Brother wouldn't be able to see the enemies on the side clearly, and thus wouldn't be able to shoot effectively.
When there was a lull in the opponent's shooting, the already overwhelmed bulletproof glass automatically lowered. Dog Brother used Ashley's prosthetic hand, which had ballistic co-processing installed, to predict the trajectory. The trigger was pulled and held. This tech pistol then entered charge mode. Dog Brother calculated the timing and angle perfectly, and a bullet charged with electricity burst forth. It pierced the first car window of the sedan in between, flew past the faces of a man and a woman inside that car, and then penetrated the second car window. Finally, the bullet entered the skull of the giant man opposite, creating a hole, and blood splattered on the car window!
Ashley's car and the Animals' car were both traveling at full speed. The person who was headshotted was the Animals' driver, so their steering wheel was now uncontrolled. Similarly, the brawny man in the passenger seat of the other car, who had been half-exposed from the car roof while shooting, also lost his balance.
The Animals' car crashed into Ashley's car, first hitting the sedan that was caught between the two cars and traveling at almost the same speed, and then the sedan hit Ashley's car. The speed was already high, and the collision of the three cars caused a chain reaction, leading to them all losing balance, spinning, and rolling.
Ashley's consciousness was somewhat blurry, feeling only dizzy and lightheaded. She only wanted to confirm one thing: whether she was disabled. She was a Platinum member, and three minutes later, a Trauma Team AV arrived overhead. It found a suitable place to land. As soon as her vital signs showed any problem, Trauma Team would come to her rescue immediately.
The car door was severely deformed and could not be opened normally. The first Trauma Team member to approach her scanned her through the panel on his hand, confirmed her identity, and began to forcibly dismantle the door. Ashley hadn't completely lost consciousness. She saw the sedan involved in the crash, which also had people inside, and pointed to that car, speaking with difficulty: "Please save the people in this car too. I can pay extra."
She actually forced herself to say this, then fainted.
When she woke up, she found herself in a high-end hospital room. Dog Brother was facing away from her, leaning on the windowsill, seemingly admiring the street view. The weak Ashley didn't forget to quip: "What are you pretending for? Your perspective is completely tied to mine. I'm lying in bed, so I can't see the view outside the window at all."
Dog Brother turned to face her, with a fake smile: "Girl, we've been together for over two months now, inseparable good friends. Can't you just criticize me a little less?"
Ashley forced a smile: "Who told you to talk so much every day? It's so annoying. I just love criticizing you."
Just as Dog Brother was about to retort, there were several gentle, polite knocks on the door, clearly waiting for a response from inside the room. Ashley raised her voice: "Come in."
The doorknob turned, and the door slowly pushed open. A red-haired woman in a yellow jacket led a spiky-haired young man, nodding very politely: "Hello, Miss J, I am Gloria Martinez." Then she raised her hand and pressed the back of the young man's head beside her, continuing: "This is my son, David Martinez. Thank you for spending money to save my son and me."
Ashley expressed concern for the mother and son and transferred 2000 eurodollars to Gloria, who showed an uncomfortable expression: "Miss J, how can I accept this? I can't take your money."
Just as it looked like an intense back-and-forth was about to ensue, Dog Brother felt a headache coming on, and a super-sized man walked in from outside the door. At first glance, his cybernetic modifications were very exaggerated.
Following closely behind him was a short-haired blue-haired beauty, dressed fashionably and revealingly, with her buttocks and beautiful legs exposed on both sides. The big guy wore sunglasses indoors and spoke with a bold tone: "Yo, Gloria, I'm here to pick something up!"
He seemed quite familiar with Gloria: "Oh, Maine, you're here. David and I just had a car accident. I was supposed to have delivered the item to you by now."
Maine: "No wonder I couldn't reach you earlier. You know, I paid for this item in advance, and I need it urgently..."
They were talking about a military-grade Sandevistan, a miraculous device that could increase human speed several times over. Dog Brother and Ashley were not yet aware of this. The short-haired beauty behind him stood with her arms crossed, leaning against the wall, her cybernetic eye flickering, clearly scanning Ashley.
David stared openly at the short-haired beauty, lost in thought. Dog Brother's vigilance rose: "Hey Ashley, this woman is definitely a hacker. She's scanning you."
Ashley deliberately avoided looking at the female hacker and communicated with Dog Brother telepathically: "Let her scan. My data has been changed. My mom heavily revised my information before she disappeared. It was directly modified within the Arasaka regional network. My new name is J, so, to everyone else, the data is real."
Another person entered the hospital room doorway. This person was V, whom Ashley had arranged to meet. She wore black leather pants that exquisitely outlined her lower body, and an oversized pink jacket on top, giving her a cute look. Although she worked for Arasaka Corporation, when she took off her corporate suit, she had a street-smart vibe.
As soon as she entered the room, she walked over and sat by Ashley's hospital bed: "What's wrong, little Ash? I didn't know you were so popular, with so many visitors?"
Dog Brother's translucent image flashed next to V: "Tsk tsk, I still like V the most, she's hot!"
Ashley actively hugged V's arm: "Sister V, it's all my fault. I didn't hold the steering wheel tightly, not only did I crash myself, but I also involved others." As she spoke, she pointed to Gloria and David. V gave the two a polite smile.
Gloria spoke: "Well, thank you very much again, Miss J. This big brother and I have something to do, so we'll be leaving first." Gloria gently pulled David towards the big guy Maine. David refused to go, pulled away from his mother's hand, walked to Ashley's bedside, and bowed deeply: "Sister J! Can I have your contact information? I think your marksmanship is really amazing! So cool!"
Dog Brother: "See? I told you, this kid idolizes me."
Ashley didn't want to have any contact with a kid, but refusing would look bad, so she added David's account. It was 2076, and few people used cell phones anymore; everyone had chips inserted near their earlobes. They could be controlled by thought; adding a person only required looking at the other party, requesting, and agreeing, which was very convenient. Of course, Ashley usually had friend requests blocked. Otherwise, if she just walked down the street, men would constantly see her and send her friend requests, which would be incredibly annoying.
After David added Ashley, his happiness was written all over his face. After a hearty thank you, he left with Gloria. Maine leaned close to the hacker woman and whispered: "Let's go, Lucy, getting the item is urgent, although I know you're interested in those two women."
Lucy smoothed her bangs and softly replied: "Both of those women have very high-level cybernetics. They might even be corporate dogs." At this point, Maine and Lucy had both exited the room: "Indeed, those two women look like corporate dogs. Let's hurry."
Only two people remained in the room. Only after everyone had left did V drop her guard, showing a gentle expression: "Are you okay?"
Ashley smiled sweetly: "I'm fine. Trauma Team is just being overly cautious; they send you a message even if you lose a single hair."
V: "Speaking of which, I'm truly sorry. My job in Arasaka counterintelligence was arranged by your mother. Now that she's in trouble, I can't help at all..."