"No matter what, seven hours of downtime is more than enough for us to grab the goods," Sasha said, unfazed by how grueling the job might be for the corporate dogs. She pressed on with her plan, cool as a character straight out of Ghost in the Shell.
"I've got the internal map of the biotech company's building, and I've confirmed the exact location of the target data. I'm sending it to you guys now."
Sasha, the cat-headed lady, was all business. Her eyes shifted color as she transmitted the data to Riku and the others. Her water-blue irises framed pink pupils, which turned green when she was running network calculations—a real cyberpunk vibe, like something out of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.
"The whole thing'll be quick. Two minutes to get in through the ground floor, two minutes to reach the target room, about five minutes to transfer the files—though it'll probably be faster—and two minutes to get out. We'll wrap this up in ten minutes, tops."
As she sent the data, Sasha explained the plan with confidence. To her, this was just another gig—snagging some data, no big deal.
Riku, V, and Jack Wells stared at the map she sent, complete with the optimal action route, escape path, and estimated times. They exchanged glances, clearly impressed.
"This is pro-level stuff! Totally legit!" Jack Wells fumbled for words, his limited vocabulary landing on "pro" and "legit" as he gave a big thumbs-up.
"What do you need us to do?" V asked, scratching her nose. The street-smart gal, usually so confident, looked a bit sheepish. Taking 100,000 eddies for this felt almost too easy, like she was cheating the system.
"One of you guards the entrance, one secures the escape route, and one comes with me. Sound good?" Riku chimed in, practically forcing the three of them into Sasha's plan, like squeezing extra characters into a Neon Genesis Evangelion episode.
"No problem," Sasha nodded briskly. She could've handled this solo, no sweat, but since the client wanted a team, she wasn't about to argue.
"When do we move?" Jack Wells asked, glancing at the time. It was just past 4 a.m. If they could wrap this up in ten minutes, they'd have plenty of time.
"Tomorrow. I'm heading back to catch some sleep," Sasha said with a wave, yawning mid-sentence.
"Works for me. I've got some stuff to handle anyway," Riku agreed quickly. The real reason? By tomorrow morning, his time-travel ability would be off cooldown. He knew this job was destined to go sideways—something always did in Cyberpunk stories. Sasha's plan might've looked flawless, but Riku had a gut feeling it'd end in trouble. After all, in the original timeline, Sasha didn't make it out alive.
Riku wasn't just thinking about saving his own skin. If things went south, his time-travel trick would let him stay behind and cover for the others, ensuring V, Jack, and Sasha got out safely.
"See you tomorrow, then," Sasha said with a grin, waving as she left.
"Tomorrow," Riku echoed, waving back alongside V and Jack.
After Sasha left, the booth fell quiet.
"This money… it feels like we're picking it up off the street," V said, rubbing her red hair with a mix of awe and disbelief. She'd never had a gig this easy. Usually, for a few thousand eddies, she'd be dodging bullets from scavs or rival gangers, no plan beyond "load up and shoot."
"That girl's young, but she's the real deal," Jack Wells added, equally impressed. This was his first big job, and it felt like stepping into a Cowboy Bebop heist.
"Don't get too excited, guys," Riku cut in, dousing their enthusiasm like a bucket of cold water. "Sasha's plan looks perfect, but you really think a biotech corp's HQ is some kind of stroll-through park like in Kimi no Na Wa?"
"You're right," Jack said, his tone sobering. "A corp's doghouse ain't no park. Plans are great, but execution's what counts."
They were infiltrating a megacorp's office, after all. Who knew what kind of Akira-level chaos could go down?
"I don't know why, but I'm torn. Part of me's worried we won't be useful, and part of me's scared we'll actually need to be," V said with a wry smile. Teaming up brought that weird mix of feelings—hoping the job went smoothly but knowing the eddies would still hit their accounts either way.
The two of them sat there, marveling at the gig, too caught up to even enjoy the Afterlife bar they'd always dreamed of visiting.
"Alright, chooms, time to bounce," Riku said, checking the time. Dawn was creeping up, and he wasn't keen on sticking around. "Get some rest today. We can't be dozing off on the job tonight."
To Riku, the Afterlife felt like someone else's turf. He'd rather be at the Coyote Cojo, where Mrs. Wells ran things. In Heywood, everyone respected her, making it a safer bet.
"No rush, right? Let's soak in the Afterlife vibe a bit longer," Jack protested, and V nodded. They'd just scored a big payday—why not enjoy the legendary bar's atmosphere?
"Look over there! That's Rogue, the Afterlife's boss, Night City's baddest fixer!" Jack whispered excitedly, pointing stealthily like a fan spotting Spike Spiegel in the flesh.
Riku and V followed his gaze. Sure enough, there was a silver-haired woman in a yellow jacket—Rogue, Johnny Silverhand's old flame, the queen of Night City's fixers, and a cyberpunk legend. She looked like she was in her forties, not the seventy-something she actually was. Talk about aging like a fine Nausicaä wine.
"Jack, V, we gotta go. It's almost dawn, and I've got a… genetic mod issue. Sunlight's bad news for me—think Tokyo Ghoul-level pain," Riku said, gritting his teeth. If he was going to team up with V and Jack long-term, he couldn't hide his "sunlight problem" forever. Better to toss out an excuse now.
Jack and V froze, clearly thrown off by Riku's bombshell.
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