The Afterlife. Seemed a tad underwhelming in-person. Perhaps I’d be pleasantly surprised on the inside, though. I’ve never actually been here, though I don’t quite know why; it sounds like my kind of place with my kind of people. A statement that holds true especially today.
I adjusted my backpack and carried on. Figure that it’s normally frowned-upon to wear an Arasaka armored jumpsuit here, but today… Well, I just don’t give a damn.
Probably gonna have to move the car, now that I think about it. I parked up next to Jackie, but this lot was incredibly small for this type of venue. I suppose most people here wouldn’t have a car, but still. We can’t take any of our wheels, so I wonder what Dex’s got in store. I doubt his fat ass would be willing to drive up to the entrance gates, he doesn’t have the balls.
“No, Ma, I’ll tell you about it tomorrow,” Jackie shuffled his feet as he talked on the phone, “Yeah, don’t worry… Misty has ‘em… I know, I know… Oh, look, V’s pulled up, okay?... Sure. Love you, Ma.”
“Talking with Mama?” I asked him as I walked up.
“Yeah, she’s just worried about us, that’s all…” he sighed, “Plenty of us Welles’s in dumpsters n’ shit, y’know, plus she’s got you to worry about too.”
“And you? How’re you holding up?”
“Honestly, chica? Gettin’ those jitters I keep hearin’ you talk about,” he sighed, “The more I tell her it’s gonna be okay, the more I feel like I’m straight-up lyin’. But hey, all that’s done and gone tomorrow… Afterlife, here we come, baby!” So much for the jitters.
“Listen, Jackie,” I leaned in close, “It’s not too late. We could just… turn around. Right now.”
“Nah, V. I told you before, you have to chill out a bit, okay? Here, I promise you it’ll be fine, okay?” he placed his hand on my shoulder, “Promise.”
I let out a long, deep sigh. “Alright… After you.”
“Ready to get your cherry popped? Come on!” Jackie danced as we headed downstairs through a hallway bathed with green. I noticed several people staring at me, probably wondering where the Hell I got my suit from. “Ey, don’t worry about ‘em, choom, can’t help it if they’re jealous of your chic.”
“Sure, Jackie…” I rolled my eyes as we headed deeper into the place, meeting a metal detector and a bouncer at the other end. “Place used to be a morgue, you believe that?” Jackie spouted.
“Jackie, for real?”
“What now?”
“Dude, you do realize I told you that like, a while ago.”
“What, really? Well, pretend like you didn’t – hey, guess what! Place used to be a morgue!”
“Pff, wow, really?” I blew my breath out at him, “I had no idea!”
We headed up to the door, blocked my an absolute bus of a man. “Whoa there, state your biz,” he stopped us, “Can’t let ‘Saka in ‘thout a good reason. Unless you stole it off some gonk.”
“Here to see Dex DeShawn,” I scowled at him, “We have a meeting.”
“Hm… Dex,” he called, “Two live ones out here, say they got biz with you… right… okay.” He stood aside and opened the doors for us. “In ya go. Says he needs a sec or two. Go get yourselves drinks or som’n.”
“Way ahead of you,” Jackie said and I thought.
“Ohhh, fuck…” Jackie whispered, walking backwards and forwards and looking every which way to absorb what he was seeing, “This is it! The heart o’ Night City!” He sounded like a 4-year-old at Christmas, though it was quite impressive. Everything was so… characterful. It takes a certain kind of place to be this exclusive, yet still appear this humble. A storied place, no doubt, one which has infamy amongst solos and edgerunners alike. Everyone who’s everyone has walked these halls. Guess we can say we have, too. “Can you imagine? Susan Forrest, Boa Boa, even Morgan Blackhand, all sat at these same stools, drank at this same bar…!”
“And it looks like it’s our turn,” I smiled, taking a seat beside him at the bar as the bartender came up to greet us.
“Ey,” Jackie poked me, “You see that old lady walk past, look over my shoulder – Fuck me, that was Rogue!”
“What, really?” I blinked a couple times, “Hm. Thought she’d be more… Actually yeah, I can see it.”
“Hey, what’re you havin’?” a cute voice chimed in from the opposite side of the bar, catching Jackie’s attention. I bet he was gonna order the same damn thing he always does.
“You pick for me,” I instructed Jackie. In front of us was a thick, gorgeous young woman, looked like she’d seen her fair share of hustlers who’d come through here. She spoke with a deep, resonant voice – quite beautiful, to my ears.
“Two old-fashioned tequilas with a splash of cervezas and a chili garnish.” Oh, something different today? Maybe he has turned over a new leaf.
“Duo of Johnny Silverhands, comin’ up!” the bartender replied, picking up the ingredients one-by-one. Fuck me… Johnny Silverhand? There’s a name I’d not heard in a hot minute. I think I read a little about the guy in a few screamsheets. Said to be one of the rockerboys who did the Night City Holocaust. Load of fucking crap, I think. Whatever, at least the guy had good taste in drinks, apparently. “Somebody did their homework.”
“I think the dog ate mine,” I shook my head, “Guessing the drinks are named after, what, famous people?”
“Nah, honey,” she turned to me, “Drinks’re named after our regulars.” Just that quickly, two tequilas sat right in front of us. Good bartender, appropriate for such an establishment, I suppose.
“How long’s the Afterlife been around, anyway? Half a century?” I asked her.
“Longer. Don’t know by how much though.”
“Wow, so this must be among the oldest clubs in the city.”
“And the most respected, don’t forget that bit.”
I turned to Jackie and grabbed my glass of tequila. “Johnny Silverhand, eh?” I stared at the glass, “Say, what do you have to do to get a drink named after you?”
“Snuff it,” the bartender chimed in, “In mind-blowingly spectacular fashion. Preferably mid-op.”
“Oooaah, steep price to pay but what a fuckin’ badass tradition!” Jackie replied earnestly.
“Jackie?”
“Yeah?”
I raised my glass to him, “To this!”
“Oh for fuck– Fine, have it your way, chica,” he laughed, “To this…”
“Say, who else can we, uh, sample?” I asked her.
“All on the menu,” the bartender smiled back.
“Ah, ‘cept there’s a spot missin’,” Jackie interrupted, “Morgan Blackhand, no?”
“Yeah, ‘s true,” she replied, “Can’t seem to make his mind up about whether he’s dead or still kickin’.”
“Tch, wonder if he is still out there,” Jackie thought out-loud, “Nobody knows what happened to him, and it’s been years…”
“Why not? Look at Rogue,” she glanced over his shoulder, “Peeps from that era? Species unto themselves. Seem to just randomly pop in whenever they damn well please.”
“Guess that’s what it takes to become a legend, huh,” I frowned.
“Well, gotta live like a legend first, no? Death’s nothin’ but the final flourish.” That was… oddly poetic of Jackie to say. “Oh by the way, wanna get my name down? Jackie Welles.”
“Jackie Welles, eh? I’m Claire. Claire Russell,” she nodded politely.
“And I’m V. But… Well, no drink for me, thanks.”
“V, huh?” Claire shook her head and smiled, “Well, welcome to the Afterlife, hun. So, what’s that recipe, Jackie?”
“Shot of vodka on the rocks, lime juice, and ginger beer,” I said before he could get a word out.
“Hah! I’m guessin’ you two go way back?”
“Oh, she forgot the most important ingredient,” Jackie smirked, “A splash of love.”
“Haha, I’ll remember that!” Claire chuckled, “Heard you were Dex’s latest finds.”
“Eh, it’s nothin’,” Jackie brushed her off boastfully, “Just doin’ some biz for him.”
“Dex come here often?” I asked her.
“Went on a hiatus for a while, ‘s a matter of fact. Didn’t show his face for nearly two years.”
“Tomcat’s gonna walk where he wants, right?” Jackie shrugged. I don’t think that’s why he went on a hiatus…
“Yeah, well, wherever he walked, he knocked off a few pounds.” Now that I found hard to believe.
“How’d you know who we were?”
“My job to know,” Claire smiled, “Look around, how d’you think mercs earn their reps? Place has more gossip than a high school.”
“Hm- Oh?” Someone approached me from behind. That massive man from the car earlier.
“Mr. DeShawn will see you now,” he growled.
“Ah, guess that’s your cue,” Claire nodded, “Come back soon, yeah?”
“Sure thing, Claire.”
“Dig the unitard, by the way, where’d you get it?” she asked me.
“Oh, I got it a long time ago. Surprised it still fits to be honest with you,” I laughed, “See ya!”
Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
“This way,” the hustle said as he took us to the left and behind the bar, leading us down some dark back hallway. Funny, I guess I should’ve expected that Dex wouldn’tve been given prime seating after all that. Wait!... Maybe he’s using us to get his reputation back. Right, so all this is him just restoring his faith in Rogue… now it makes sense. Alright, now I just have to think of how to use that… Hm. I think I remember this man… Oleg, if I’m not mistaken? Dex’s driver… Guess he’s only got the one guy with him, too… Smoke and mirrors, huh.
“Damn bro, you work out?” Jackie tried to make conversation with him.
“Mm.”
“Yeah, yeah, I fight myself… Uh… So whaddyou do? Kempo? Ninjutsu?” Jesus, Jackie…
“Mm.”
“Think you could teach me?”
“Dex is on your right.”
“Fuck, fine, I’ll take the hint…” Jackie muttered.
We entered what appeared to be a small soundstage with frosted glass. Jackie opened up the door first and suddenly I heard Dex’s voice clear as day. Soundproof room, most likely. “Mm, Excelsior Package, tha’ss right,” he said over the holo, “Call you back later. Gotta bounce.” T-Bug sat opposite him – a face I’d not seen in a long time, that’s for sure. “Ah, Mr. Welles, Miss V, a pleasure as…” he stared blankly at my unitard, “...Always.”
“Likewise, Mr. DeShawn,” I nodded as I entered the room. A coffee table dominated the middle, on which rested the Flathead and what looked to be a set of suits. How very interesting… Infiltration mission, perhaps.
“Go on, have a seat,” Dex gestured to the chair behind me and I did as asked. This’ll be a fun conversation, I had no doubt…
“Sweet booth,” Jackie started us off, “Is it soundproof?” He draped his arms over the sofa rather casually, absorbing the whole atmosphere. I suppose this was the first time Jackie’s been on any sort of mission to this level of magnitude. He must feel on top of the world right now. I almost felt bad for tearing him back down to street level, but I took it upon myself to keep his head in the game.
“Jackie…” T-Bug glanced over at him harshly.
“Now, now, Mr. Welles is right to ask,” Dex said smoothly as ever, “We’re gon’ be goin’ over some sensitive material. But if it’s all right wit’ y’all, I wanna start with a couple questions for Miss V.”
“Hm?”
“Evelyn Parker. How’d you fare?”
“It went as well as it could’ve, I suppose,” I stated truthfully, “I saw Konpeki’s penthouse from the inside, located our target, and have a good idea of the layout of the defensive grid we’re likely to encounter.”
“Mhmm, hence the whole, uh, getup?”
“It’s proof to rifle-caliber fire and fits neatly under a suit, plus it comes with thermal camouflage. Some Arasaka agents wear these under their garments to blend in while on the job. Figured it might come in handy.”
“Hm, sounds useful,” Dex noted, “Who’d you klep it from, some ‘Saka exec?”
“Actually, you have to get one custom-made to fit your body for it to work right. They stopped giving these out after the War ended, so if you want one of your own, gonna have to go back in time and earn it yourself like the rest of us had to.”
“...Huh. Alright, then, respect. Seems you one-upped me there,” Dex nodded, “And Bug filled me in on the rest.”
Wait, hang on… So T-Bug didn’t know through Dex? Then who told her what the target was? Jackie didn’t know, I didn’t know, and as far as I’m aware, Evelyn never spoke a word… Fuck. Do we have a leak, or is T-Bug…?
“So then I’m assuming you know our target, too.”
“Mhmm. Man with the million-eddie name and no talent to back it up.” Bit of a bold statement, considering who’s talking. “Evelyn Parker’s ‘special friend’ as well. So she just wanted to see wha’s good, nothin’ else?” I didn’t tell him what was really on my mind. But I fed him enough to keep his fat ass sated.
“Mm, something doesn’t add up,” I shrugged, “She spends her afternoons in Yorinobu’s penthouse and evenings with the Mox’s. Those two places don’t mix,” I pondered out-loud.
“Yeah, struck me too,” T-Bug shrugged.
“You sayin’ we puttin’ two and two together and gettin’ five?” Dex waved his cigar around, “Some part of the equation’s missin’ then, clearly.” Clearly, indeed. I only hope I can figure it out in time. “S’why you got a fixer. Anyone try to fuck you, they gotta fuck their way through Dex DeShawn’s three hundred pound ass.” Well there’s a thought I didn’t need. “Anything else?”
“As you said, just wanted to see what I was about.”
“What you was about…?” Dex asked, possibly sensing my deception. Not that I cared much at this point. Fuck was he gonna do, let Jackie and I go? That’d be a miracle.
“I’m not interested in Evelyn, I made that point clear when I got there,” I replied bluntly, “And I’m still not. I’m only interested in the end-goal here. So let’s go over the plan, please.”
“Fair enough,” Dex nodded, “Slot in the shard.”
“Alright…” Jackie picked up his shard and slotted it into his neck. I removed the BD wreath Judy gave me from my backpack and slotted mine into the back, sitting the device on my head and playing the footage. Quite a useful gadget, what she rigged up, I must admit.
“Me ‘n Dex’ve already covered the fine deets,” T-Bug said, “Should be a stroll in the park so long as everyone plays their part.”
“Elaborate, I wanna hear it,” Jackie replied.
“A Delamain’ll drop your asses at the front door of Konpeki Plaza. You’ll stroll right in thanks to your false identities.” A couple of images popped up on-screen – Jackie and I’s mugshots, along with matching aliases. “Then with Bug’s help, you’ll breach the hotel subnet…”
“Mine and the Flathead’s help,” T-Bug corrected his statement.
“Last but not least, you slip into Yorinobu’s pad and klep the Relic.”
“Goes without sayin’,” T-Bug finished, “No bodies, ideally. We leave without a trace.”
“You’ll have T-Bug on comms for the duration. Time for your burnin’ questions.” Oh, I have a few…
“Delamain’s our transport?” I asked him as I removed the wreath and zipped my backpack up.
“Preemest cab company in Night City… Not bad…” Jackie grinned. Not that I cared. But the luxury did serve a key purpose in maintaining our supposed covers.
“DeShawn don’t ever work with anyone but the best. I consider Delamain to be just that.”
“Yeah, who needs creepy, nosy cab drivers when you got your very own personal AI to take you from Point A to B in style?” T-Bug smiled. Again, another bold statement. This time from a netrunner. Not often I hear one extolling AI’s virtues.
“And how he bags a permit every year is anyone’s guess,” Jackie laughed.
“Nosiness doesn’t concern me,” I replied, “Nothing we say leaves this room.”
“True, true,” Dex nodded, “If everything goes as planned, Delamain’ll drop you back here. If things get sticky, he’ll head to the safehouse.”
“Which is?”
“The No-Tell Motel. Quiet, no questions asked. Make our next move from there. But I’m flat certain that won’t be necessary.” Not the least of which because someone said something about our goings-on.
“And these covers? Tell me about them.”
“Hello, Ramón Victorino,” T-Bug smiled at Jackie, “And you’re Hannah Conwell.” He showed me an image of someone clearly not Japanese. What the fuck…
“…Do I look like a Hannah Conwell?” I raised an eyebrow, “What kind of cover ID is that, that you couldn’t even get the ethnicity correct? What, am I gonna have to dye my hair blonde and get blue contacts? Shouldn’t I be notified about this?”
“Hey, s’what you get, gotta make it work.” Fuck me…
“And what’re we supposed to be, anyway?” Jackie asked.
“Biz as usual. Corpo arms deal,” Dex replied, “Case anyone asks, you’re there for a bogus meeting with Arasaka’s defense rep, Hajime Taki.”
“Know him?” Jackie asked me.
“No… Okay, so that’s our in,” I posited while tracing a line in my head from Point A to B, “What about getting into the penthouse?”
“Yorinobu’s got barely any muscle, hardest part’ll be penthouse security,” T-Bug explained, “If we wanna disable it, we’ll need to neutralize Konpeki’s runner. Elite dweller monitoring the subnet 24/7. Only catch is there’s no way to get into the dweller’s den from the outside.”
“Right, so what’s the plan there?”
“Trust me when I say that whatever hiccup you think of, T-Bug’s figured it out already,” Dex flagrantly masturbated T-Bug some more.
“This is where the Flathead comes in,” she elaborated, “You’ll have to get ‘im in the ventilation shafts, guide ‘im to the den, and force the dweller to… take a break. Flathead’ll stay there, jacked into the dweller. But thanks to that, you’ll be able to just roll on up in there with the red carpet all laid out. Then you ride on back down the elevator and that's all she wrote.” Wait… that's it?! What the hell?
“Anything else?” Dex asked me.
“Yeah, just one more small issue,” I nodded, eager to rip him down like a fucking house of cards, “We walk in there with the cover of conducting an arms deal with a defense rep. We’re carrying a prototype Militech drone with us, something which Militech themselves may have flagged as stolen if the corpo I dealt with didn’t keep her word.”
“We know they didn’t, I’m monitoring the subnet for traffic,” T-Bug interrupted.
“Sure, fine, let’s assume that T-Bug’s got this. Then you want Jackie and I to stroll up in there, with my ID that has the wrong ethnicity on it. We get past the front desk and check in and head up to the suite. Let’s say, by some miracle, that everything goes off without a hitch and we ride back down the elevator that’s most likely locked to Yorinobu’s biometrics along with his closest confidantes. After all that, we’re supposed to, what, just walk out the front door while carrying a highly-specialized and probably extremely distinctive Arasaka briefcase that we’re not supposed to have, without being stopped?"
“I getchyour concerns, Miss V-”
“Mr. DeShawn,” I interrupted him, “Respectfully, you gave us two-thirds of a plan here. You told us how to get in, how to steal the device, but never told us how to get out. I can’t do this job in good conscience without knowing that part of the plan and its contingencies.”
“I’ll be in their subnet,” T-Bug reassured me, “The parking garage door’s just to the right in the main lobby. I’ll bypass the security monitors and send you both down and nobody’ll be any the wiser.”
“Alright, and there won’t be anyone physically guarding that exit, checking people’s luggage as they leave?”
“If there is, you’re juss’ gonna have to improvise, Miss V,” Dex scowled. This fucking job is giving me the shits and it hasn’t even started yet.
“Jackie?”
“What’s up, chica?”
“Leave the shit. We’re walking.” I stood up and went to open the door.
“Wait, what?” Both T-Bug and Jackie said in unison. Dex simply sat in stunned silence.
“I’m not going to risk my life, nor my best friend’s life, on improvising,” I hissed, “He’s talking about stealing one of the most dangerous items on this planet like we’re knocking over a fucking bank or something. Hell, I’d rather us do a bank job, walk away with a cool six-figure sum each. And, as a nice bonus, we wouldn't have to worry about Arasaka breathing down our necks every waking moment we’re alive.”
“Wait, hang on a minute, V-” Jackie started.
“No, Jackie. You’re no good to your family if you’re buried in a fucking landfill somewhere. And you’re no good if you get made the second Arasaka finds out something’s wrong, T-Bug,” I fired back before shooting my stare at Dex. “You must really think we’re idiots, don’t you, Mr. DeShawn? I make more comprehensive plans about what I’m eating for breakfast in the morning. You couldn’t even be bothered to procure a cover that accounts for us having the Relic, nor could you give me an ID that matches the way I look. Did you even bother to check what the people you hired look like? Because the last time I checked, I can’t shapeshift on-command. If you honestly think that this job can go off without a hitch and you want us all to enjoy long, fruitful lives, then we all go back to the drawing board and make it work for us, specifically. Then, and only then, will you get your case. But if you want to just keep stringing us along like it’s a fucking open-mic night, then I’m walking.”
“Hmm…” Dex pondered for a few seconds, “I’mma juss’ ignore all them insults for two seconds and chalk it up to a heat o’ the moment. Fine, take a seat, Miss V, le’ss reassess.”
He must want this case badly if he just overlooked all that like it was nothing. I did as he asked, albeit hesitantly. The tension filled the room up to the point where it was like talking in wet concrete. “We need two things. A backup plan in case the elevator is locked out, and one in case someone stops us with the Relic on our person,” I elaborated.
“Alright, so, whaddyou have in mind?” Dex asked.
“T-Bug, I need you to hack into Konpeki Plaza’s internal database and update the names and credentials of our personas with our mugshots. As for my alias, look for a list of captured Arasaka whistleblowers and identify key targets for re-education, use one of them for myself. Make sure the person is listed as KIA, that’s the internal designation for someone who’s been re-educated.”
“Got it,” she replied, recording this whole conversation.
“Next, I’m gonna need you to find an emergency exit or service hatch separate from the elevator shaft. If we can make our way to the roof, we might be able to navigate a path to a freight line or head down a maintenance ladder somewhere.”
“Okay…”
“Lastly, once we’re inside, I need you to update Hajime Taki’s itinerary, stating that he’s conducting a ‘personal business meeting.’ It’s the internal term Arasaka Counterintel uses to signify confidential materials changing hands, and will give us an alibi if we’re stopped.”
“How d’you know all this, anyway?” Dex asked me.
“Because she literally wrote the book, holmes,” Jackie replied for me.
“And that’s it?” T-Bug asked like a fast-food clerk.
“As long as Dex’s exit strategy of the No-Tell Motel holds up? Yeah. I’d rather us not be in the city at all, but at least that’s fine.”
“Perfect,” Dex nodded, “Alright, goin’ rate’s 30 percent for new talent as determined by yours truly.”
“30 percent?” Jackie raised an eyebrow, “After that? Nah, holmes.”
“You put together two-thirds of a plan, Dex. So you get one-third of your pay,” I furrowed my brow, “Half for us. 30 for T-Bug. 20 for you.” Jackie knew I was gonna give him my share anyway.
“Sure you wanna go down this road?” he asked us.
“If you got others lining up to do it cheaper, I’m not seeing them.”
“Hmph…” he groaned, “Fine. Gotchyourselves a deal. Plenty to go around anyway.” Shit, that was way too easy.
“Fuck yeah, when will we see the eds, anyway?” Jackie asked Dex with a light in his eyes.
“All depends on how Evelyn avails herself of her role. I say a week, two weeks tops.”
“And I’m guessing we sit tight until then?”
“Just what I had in mind, Miss V,” Dex took a puff of his cigar, almost totally dead by this point. “Now as that old Greek dawg says, life’s a banquet, so don’t get thirsty, but don’t get drunk either. Your chariot awaits outside.” With that, he got up and silently walked out of the room, having nothing more to say to us, I suppose. Though I did feel good about ripping him a new asshole, I admitted to myself.
“I should delta, too,” T-Bug chimed in after, “Gotta prep to jack in. I’ll be with you on comms the whole time. Any other issues, now’s your chance.”
“Yeah, how long have you and Dex known each other for, anyway?” I asked her.
“Umm, why?”
“Eh, we hear things, y’know?” Jackie smirked.
“‘Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact.’ Marcus Aurelius. I think.”
“Hah, you and Dex philosophizin’. No wonder you two get along so well,” Jackie laughed. I couldn’t help but notice that she didn’t answer the question, but I chose to leave it alone. It’s more of a curiosity anyway..
“And what’s your take on the plan?” I said bluntly.
“Hopefully it’ll be enough to put me in a luxury Cretan villa where I’ll never have to set foot in cyberspace again. No offense, but I’m gonna burn any and all bridges – need a clean break.”
“I understand…” I nodded as T-Bug saw herself out, “Well, should we go, Jack?”
“Let’s. ‘Fore Dex changes his mind. Fuck…” I really wish he did. But I guess we can’t all be that lucky.
---
ICE stands for Intrusion Countermeasures Electronics, and represents the wide variety of firewalls and other tools that corporations and individuals utilize to keep netrunners from gaining access. Likewise, skilled netrunners are capable of slicing through thick layers of ICE in a relatively short timeframe, with some specializing in certain formats. For instance, some netrunners are particularly adept at breaking through the self-ICE capabilities of modern cyberdecks, granting them control over a person's vital functions if need be. Others can hack into high-level corporate subnets, accessing information and classified records - for a price.
