Carter sits on the roof of his apartment complex... alone in a lawn chair, overlooking a bustling district late night after being dropped off. A light drizzle of rain has checked in for the night shift as he swigs his Broseph. He glances over to an empty lawn chair beside him... he hears the feint giggle of a woman in his head causing him to restlessly stand up. He walks to the edge of the roof and rests his foot on the overhang... calmly watching the path the raindrops fall as he stares down at the 5 story dead drop below him. The vibrant colors of cars casually crawling by and the tops of neon umbrellas glow as he takes another swig of his beer.
The woman's voice echoes in his head at the end of a long conversation... one he'll never forget:
"Babe… Listen to me... Whether you decide to stay with them or walk away doesn't matter… I'm... I'm going to be… wherever you are… I'm yours Carter... You know that."
He hears his own voice respond: "Like i said before doll... This' it. Last ride... then we're outta here. After everything's that's gone down till now, we're right where we need to be. Dominos just about lined up. We've talked about this….. You know that."
"Memory fades as time changes my love... I just want…. I just want you to be careful. Be careful of what you choose to hold onto…... I choose to hold onto you." She replies in a whisper.
He slams the beer bottle on the roof shattering it as the stray sounds of the city and downpour take back over... pressing his hands to his head... racked with guilt. The drizzle quickly turns to rain... masking his tears as the rolling thunder creeps into the atmosphere.
The gentle pattering of rain takes us to another area of the city... tapping on the windows of Audrey's clinic. Brian leaned up against a wall with his arms crossed stares out the window in deep thought as he hears Zaunya's voice in his head:
"You wanna talk about trust..? I don't even know who the fuck you are."
He turns to look back at her... passed out on Audrey's ripper chair.. with Audrey jacked in and working on her. He looks back out the window... watching the streets and heavy rainfall. Growing too anxious... he breaks the silence.
"How is she." He asks in a deep tone as he walks over.
"Not sure... I'm doing a full scan.. not really finding anything fucked with... but they hit her with some serious narcotics…. anesthetics mostly… don't really know why… Fucking monsters. I almost thought that they-"
"-And how are you." He asks cutting her off.
They both pause for a clear moment... the light sounds of beeping machines and Audrey rummaging through tools in a drawer are heard... She doesn't respond, so he continues.
"What happened in there." He asks somberly while looked away... she again ignores him for another clear pause and rumbling thunder.
"Audrey..."
She doesn't respond.
"Do you wanna talk about it?"
The silence in the air rests even longer as the room sits quiet to the sound of pattering rain on the windows.
"No..." She whispers in reply... her tone soft while working on Zaunya.
This hits Brian hard... feeling the personal responsibility behind her hurt. The lack of information tortures his imagination. After another extended period of tense silence, she changes subject.
"Who the fuck were those guys.." She asks, disconnecting from Zaunya's neuro port and gently laying her head down. Zaunya rolls over onto her side facing her back towards them in her sleep.
"Probably doin' merc work for the scavs based on the shit i saw in there. They had me in some sort of… holding or interrogation room. Could be like some pre-screening shit they do before they rip. Shit looked like it ran like a system... weirdly organized. Saw a bunch of equipment... active rips goin' on... and uhhmm.." He stops himself and looks away... causing Audrey to glance back at him
"What is it?"
"...Found a girl in there... couldn't've been a day older than twenty... She um..."
He lightly shakes his head and looks away... failing to express the words. Audrey picks up on it and says nothing.
The pair share a long silence together while some time passes... allowing the heavy rain on the windows to again take back over. Audrey eventually breaks the silence.
"Well..."
"Well what?"
She looks back at him in the eyes without saying anything. The expression on her face more than enough for him to pick up on what shes implying. Brian continues.
"Choom who helped me clean the place... Carter. Told me hes got history with these gonks. Apparently shit runs deep, whatever the hell that means. Said they're seriously stacked though… but he also said he knows where they stash their shit... guess they never planned on him livin' to tell about it. Should be able to find all of our dues there... everything that we're owed... there's probably-"
Audrey slowly stands up... causing Brian to halt his analysis.
She slowly steps towards him maintaining deep eye contact... the heavy taps of her boots on the linoleum close the distance between them.
She stands before him… face to face... looking deep into Brian's eyes... her tone a calm whisper with buried intensity.
"We have to finish it."
Brian gives Audrey a silent nod before they break eye contact... she steps past him to walk outside.
Some more time has passed as the bright lights of Audrey's clinic have gone dim, while the various machines purr idle.
After everything that went down in Pacifica… Zaunya's eyes open slowly as she wakes up. She quickly notices shes in Audrey's shop... mellowing her in the moment.
She rolls over onto her side and sees Brian right next to her... in Audrey's chair soundly asleep.
The sentiment hits Zaunya hard as she lays there looking at him…..
Having someone who cares about her in this way is a foreign concept to her… one she doesn't fully understand yet resembles something she was often spoken to about. Almost like shes only been taught what it is… as apposed to experiencing it. The life of a sworn shield to a megacorp like PetroChem is home to no sentimental bonds or camaraderie.
She breaks the silence in her alluring, gruff, feminine voice.
"I've had PetroChem special security agents chrome-wiped for falling asleep on post." She murmurs with a soft smile... gently waking Brian up.
He sees Zaunya laying on her side watching him stir awake.
He quickly sits up at the edge of his seat as he slowly comes too.
Brian instinctually leans closer to her... gently grabbing both of her hands... holding them tight. He looks at her with a soft grin as she smiles.
"Hey..." She whispers, looking deep into his eyes.
"Hey..." He whispers back, his tone deep with relief.
They share a silence as they stare at each other... the sound of them both softly giggling breaks the moment.
"Are you ok?" Brian asks giggling.
"Hard to say... feels like… a hell of a hangover honestly. Like… i've been wandering the streets skezzed out of my mind for days….. who-… who were they?"
"Had to be scavs... or at least active mercs workin' with em. They had scattered chrome and tech hardware from rips and convoy raids... place was a mess. Had me chained up in some sort of processing area. Interrogations and beatdowns for information going on. Felt like it was a structure. A system they'd been runnin' for a while based on how they ran it. Saw some serious shit in there. A young lady had um... had been... tortured to death. I.. there was nothing i could do for her."
Zaunya pauses briefly... processing all of the information before responding. Causing the pattering rain on the windows to take back over for a bit.
"...Are they all dead?"
He says nothing.
"Brian?"
He pauses briefly. "We don't think so-"
"-Then they'll be looking for us." She says getting up slowly... feeling the lingering effects of a nuclear dose of anesthetic.
She rests at the edge of the ripperdoc chair while Brian gently helps her sit up.
The two share a silence together as Zaunya stretches and takes a few deep breaths... checking herself over. The sound of rolling thunder enters the room as the intensity of rain on the windows picks up.
Brian sits back in his chair… looking directly at her as she gathers herself. The discomfort in his body builds along with the hesitation… struggling to get the words out... he leans forward toward her in the chair.
"Listen, I... I haven't... I haven't taken the time to explain.... ev-... Everything i..."
Zaunya's attention is immediately raised... a serious look washes over her as she listens to a genuine tone in Brian's voice that she's never heard before. After everything…. after all this time.... she had resided herself to believing a side like this to him didn't even exist. He continues.
".....The last thing I ever wanted was for you to not-"
Brian is cutoff to the sound of clinic's front door sliding open causing them both to look over at it. Audrey rushes in with a look of panic on her face. She quickly puts her index finger over her lips with her eyes wide open, gesturing the both of them to stay quiet. As she rushes over to them, they both quickly get up and she pushes... motioning them to a trap door in the floor in the back storage room of the clinic. She raises the trap door as Zaunya quickly follows Brian down. Audrey and Zaunya share a look of panic with each other without saying anything. As the pair descend down the ladder, Audrey closes the trap door and covers it thoroughly.
She soon hears a ring of the doorbell causing her to look over at the entrance. Zaunya and Brian turn their attention to a small drain hole on the ceiling leading into the clinic allowing them to hear Audrey's boots tap on the linoleum walking toward the entrance. Although no visibility, they're able to hear fairly well.
Audrey slides the door open and is met face to face with Molly Seeker with her signature grin plastered on her face. The sight of her startles Audrey and gives her pause, but she does a great job of masking it.
"Hey doc!!" Molly shouts in a bright tone.
"Mind if I come in? Any longer out here and I just might start dancing in it!" She says with a chuckle as the crackling thunder erupts alongside the downpour of rain.
"Please! By all means!" Audrey says matching her tone.
Molly enters and takes a deep breath of relief while slowly removing her black overcoat. Audrey's gaze is again forcibly drawn to Molly against her will... watching her move from behind... checking out her toned body through her tight, black corpo skirt hugging her curves.
She can't help herself... it bothers her just how alluring her figure is as she slowly gazes at the back of her neck... all the way down to her black high heels while shes shifts her weight. She notices the beginning of a large back tattoo starting at the bottom of her neck... as Molly unties her long white hair and lightly shakes it out, it covers it. To Audrey, It was almost as if she was moving in slow motion... Molly then rests the overcoat on Audrey's desk before removing her black leather gloves and tossing them on top.
"How's business doc? Good?" She asks glancing around the room and pacing about... clearly restless.
"Oh, fine… Just fine. Even on late nights like this there's never really a shortage of traffic through this place. Is.. uhm… is everything alright?"
Molly doesn't respond.
After glancing about the clinic and satisfying her nosy instincts assuring no one else is there, she takes a seat in Audrey's chair.
"Please. Sit with me" Molly says causing Audrey to grab one of the stools in the clinic and pull it up next to her. As she drags the stool across the floor, Brian and Zaunya quickly glance at each other remaining silent.
"What's goin' on?" Audrey asks... doing her best to mask her nervous adrenaline. The anticipation of yet another unexpected visit has her mind racing over this vague, eerie acquaintance of hers. Their first interaction with each other truly fucked with Audrey's head... returning to her a lot of long buried paranoia. Her history with PetroChem is extremely convoluted to say the least. An entity that has both given and taken everything away from her overtime. She wonders what could've happened if they hadn't even come to the shop themselves that night. Could she possibly already know about the scavs? Or worse... Zaunya? The rampant speculation in her mind builds to peak as Molly finally breaks the silence.
"You're... you're from Night City... right?"
The question completely catches Audrey off guard... it instinctually eases a significant amount of built up tension while raising confusion.
"Uhm... Yeah. Born n' Raised. I mean, i've done my fair share of traveling over the years of course but this is certainly home without question. Why?"
Molly pauses for a while as the heavy rain and rolling thunder fills the dead silence… the expression on her face becoming one less of control and more of concern.
"I've been having….. these….. feelings.. these... sensations."
Brian and Zaunya glance at each other again as they continue to listen closely. Audrey looks on at Molly attentively with now genuine concern as a doctor... She continues.
"I can't… really explain them? Like, lately when i've found myself alone out here I... I don't... really feel alone…? If that makes sense…? Whenever I take the time look at or... admire the place it just... i don't know. Its like... staring back at me. Calling to me... gripping." Molly concludes in a soft tone... looking at Audrey while masking fear. A true look at the woman behind the corporate facade.
Audrey takes a deep breath while shifting her weight on the stool. She responds.
"Something people tend to say to those not from here is that... Night City often has a promise of something for you. Just a promise. Doesn't really matter what that 'something' is to you specifically. To some, it might be a lie. An illusion. But its there. Right around the corner at any given time, in any given place. Whether its someONE, somePLACE, or someTHING. It can find out who you truly are and reveal it to yourself. If it has you it…. it doesn't let go... not without a cost."
Molly listens closely to Audrey's words with an attentive look of fear on her face… A look we've never seen on her before. Something about Audrey's statement resonates... like impossible to understand pieces of a puzzle finding a match. She breaks eye contact… thinking deeply. She hesitates, but speaks in a fearful tone.
"But... but what if- " Molly is interrupted by the sound of a holocall coming in, causing her eyes to glow orange. She quickly turns her head to the side and answers with a shifted tone far more in line with what Audrey's familiar with.
= Seeker. What is it. =
= uh huh. =
= Copy that. I'll be right out. Give me a minute. = Molly ends the holocall and turns back toward Audrey.
Before she continues, she notices Audrey staring directly at the subtle red blood stain on her white dress shirt. Audrey then catches a glimpse at the deep bite marks on Molly's chest through her loosely buttoned dress shirt along with the fading redness on her throat…. it startles her. Molly instinctually tries to cover herself up quickly.
"Do you um... Want me to take a look at tha-"
"-I've uhm, I gotta go doc. Thanks for the um… I'll um…. I'll see you later." Molly says as she quickly stands up... she grabs her overcoat and gloves before heading out the entrance back into the pouring rain with the door sliding closed behind her.
Audrey takes a deep sigh of relief as she sits back in her chair... overwhelmed trying to process the interaction as she hears the trap door slowly opening with Brian and Zaunya returning.
Molly quickly gets back into her Chevillon Emporer with Manny waiting at the steering wheel for her. The rain pounds the windows of the Emporer while she stares at the entrance to Audrey's clinic as Manny speaks.
"Got the heat on for ya ma'am. Everything go smooth?"
"Yeah uh… Yeah, everything's fine." She says in a distracted tone.
"Good. Boards waiting ma'am." Manny says as he and the city slowly pull her away from the clinic... the various glowing, neon lights of Night City enter Molly's eyes as they make their way through the streets... away from help.