V grunted slightly as he took some more materials from the destroyed manticore. He turns around and throws the pieces he's collected into a bucket next to him, already full of the components he's collected. He runs his eyes around and shakes his head when he sees that he has picked up most of the materials.
The man crouches down and picks up the bucket before climbing out of the back of the manticore. Next to it was a pile of metal boxes also full of the materials he had collected earlier. V leaves the bucket on the ground next to the pile and drinks some water shortly afterwards.
It was still early, very early in fact. The sun hadn't even come out yet. He had a plan, and even if they didn't go through with it, what he planned to do with the Basilisk would still help, not just for this mission but for future missions, should they need it.
"V, I think we can get a lot out of the manticore's batteries, supercapacitors and fuel cells." Next to him, Mitch approached after stepping away from the manticore, the side of the combat vehicle completely exposed and with components missing.
"Great. Thanks for your help, Mitch. If we get enough, I can complete it later today then." V said, and Mitch placed the appropriate components next to the pile of boxes. The man clapped his hands together a few times and glanced at V.
He was no longer wearing the demon mask, which hung around his waist. With the words used by the man, there was no point in him hiding if they already knew who he was. He now wore a jacket with "Samurai" written on the back with the same symbol as his mask, dark pants with red details. Underneath, he wore his armor, which, hidden by his clothes, made him look a little more burly than he was.
"Can you really create that, and especially in such a short space of time? It's not that I don't believe you, I just..." Mitch didn't finish his speech, his arms crossed in front of his chest, and V just snorted out a laugh.
"What? You find that hard to believe? Relax, you're not the only one. But yes, I can... if there are no unforeseen circumstances, I can install this camouflage system today." V said, and his hands rested on his waist as his eyes ran over the Basilisk in front of him.
The idea had crossed his mind after seeing the camouflaged enemies in the previous day's attack. They had served as an unpleasant surprise for the Aldecaldos, but had proved the effectiveness of camouflage. He planned to install a similar system, but in the Basilisk.
They could approach the hotel without anyone seeing, and if he had time to install radar-absorbing materials or deterrent systems, they could remain in place for a long time without their netrunner even noticing.
These radar-absorbing materials are specialized materials used to reduce the reflection or absorption of radar signals, so as to allow them to be invisible. Carbon-based materials are a potentially promising approach to making ultra-thin and versatile materials, and he had plenty of material at his disposal.
"Right, well, we can only trust you now. I hope you really make it, it would really help save our people." Mitch's voice carried a certain desperation behind the words, and V could see that he was anxious, restless... "I don't know much about this issue, but I can help you."
"I'm counting on you, so I'll teach you a thing or two." V said, and he quickly nodded to the man as he picked up one of the boxes of materials. They spent their morning choosing the best materials and moving said materials close to the Basilisk.
V placed a ladder next to the Basilisk to make it easier to climb into the vehicle and got to work. He prepared the Basilisk and took some of the materials, he would apply a thin layer of the selected electrochromic material to the surface of the Basilisk using a chemical vapor deposition technique. It was only possible to use this method because, due to the method needed to repair the Basilisk, they had the equipment. The material would be carefully applied to ensure even coverage across the entire exterior of the vehicle.
Multiple layers of different electrochromic materials could be stacked to obtain a wider range of colors and levels of transparency, in other words, it wouldn't be anything as high-end as what the government had, but for camouflaging a flying vehicle that would be kilometers above the ground at night, the result would be much more than great.
V focused on installing the materials and adjusting the components they had ready, while Mitch focused his attention on repairing the damage caused by the previous day's combat.
"... The conversation you had yesterday was pretty tense, huh?" Mitch brought up the subject after a while in silence, and V looked at him with an arched eyebrow for a few moments.
"Did you hear?" Mitch snorted a laugh at the question, and grabbed a drill from the toolbox next to him.
"V, really? Kid, the whole camp must have heard her scream, not to mention the gunshots. The guys even tried to go there thinking the Raffen had come back." V shook his head and shrugged. Well, he had imagined something similar. He'd spent almost the whole night thinking about things.
It was... good to have revealed himself. Although it didn't exactly turn out like a bed of flowers, it was good. It opened up the opportunity for future interaction.
"Yeah, well... it could have been worse, all things considered. She could have shot me in the head, for example." V got down from the Basilisk and went to spruce up the area. He could work without the necessary safety conditions, but Mitch couldn't.
"Nah, she's hot-headed, sure, but she's not unreasonable. She'd listen to you anyway." Mitch picked up the welding tool and protective mask as he spoke, and V snorted in amusement.
"Well... she did punch me." Mitch laughed lightly and turned around with an amused smile.
"There's our girl. You knew what you were getting into when you got involved with her." V just shrugged at the man's words, who then focused his attention on welding metal to the Basilisk's damaged structure.
"I'm not complaining..." V said to himself in a whisper. He took the batteries and began to peel them off. He separated the nanowires from the batteries on a silicon wafer substrate, then transferred them to a flexible support material for integration into the vehicle. In this case, to the more resistant materials that made up the Basilisk, and which would be protected by the armor.
He kept working on it, getting as much nanowire as he could out of those materials while Mitch repaired and cleaned the entire surface of the Basilisk. Although they were a little way from the center of the camp, it wasn't long before they saw a few people awake. Some probably because of the noise, others because they were used to waking up early.
Others because they simply hadn't slept that night.
"Hey, knuckleheads, I should have known it was you making all that noise first thing in the morning." They heard Bob approaching with a tray in hand, and the two men arched an eyebrow. "Breakfast, princesses."
"Princesses? As far as I know, you're the one complaining about the noise in the morning. I didn't mean to interrupt your beauty sleep, Snow White." Mitch joked after leaving the soldering tool in the toolbox. Then he picked up one of the coffee cups from the tray.
"Ha ha, fuck you." Bob said, and his eyes focused on V, who also approached and picked up one of the coffee cups. The two men stared at each other for a few moments.
V imagined that everyone there knew it was him, or rather, everyone who had met him before.
Bob, after a while, just snorted a cynical smile.
"You look better with the mask on." He held out his hand towards him, and V snorted a laugh before shaking it. "Holy shit, eh, V, who knew it was you."
"Believe me, a few days ago, I was just as surprised as you." V took a sip of his coffee as he said it. Bitter, just the way he liked it on a working morning.
"You have a habit of turning up when we're in deep shit. I don't know if that's a good thing." V just shrugged.
"What can I say? I have the knack of saving others." Bob snorted a laugh.
"Or incredible bad luck." He laughed in good humor.
"It's a question of perception." Bob shrugged.
"If you say so." He left the tray in an empty space on the table and turned to them, his eyes watching what they were doing with curiosity. "So, what's all the fuss about?"
"We're going to install a camouflage system on the basilisk." Bob whistled with slightly surprised eyes as he listened to Mitch explain.
"Really? Considering you're already working on it, I imagine you know how to do it. Whose idea was it?" Mitch just nodded at V, who shrugged as if it was no big deal.
"Shiiiit, I bet it'll explode as soon as you turn it on." Bob teased, and V just gave him the middle finger.
"You'll swallow those words when we've finished." He said, but his eyes were focused on the movement behind Bob.
"Bob, come on, Saul has left us on guard for now." Barrick called out. He approached Angelo, who was leaning his rifle on his shoulder. "Wow, who knew our masky boy was such a pretty boy?"
Bob snorted an outrageous laugh, and V just arched an eyebrow.
"You need to get your optics checked by a ripperdock, I think they're malfunctioning." Bob said dramatically.
"Don't let Panam know you hit on him, mate." Mitch joked, and made a point of ignoring the playful punch he received from V.
"Fuck me, you had a thing with Panam?!" Barrick looked very surprised, his eyes widening so much they looked like they were going to pop out of his face.
"Panam's great, but she's got really poor taste in men."
"Come on, Bob, I think I'm getting a hint of jealousy." V teased as he put the coffee cup back on the tray.
"Jealous? Of you? If you wanted to insult me, you did it." Bob replied, smiling as he heard V's amused laugh.
"Man, I never thought anyone could get involved with Panam. I mean... she's not exactly a princess. Young Angelo here tried something, he got cut down so fast I feel sorry for him to this day." Barrick said, and V's eyes fell on the embarrassed and restless young man.
He... wasn't very happy to hear that. But what right did he have? Two years was a long time, he couldn't just hope that she hadn't got involved with anyone.
"Fuck you, man! I didn't try anything with her, I just tried to be nice." He defended himself, but it was obvious that it was just an excuse.
"You don't have to force it, man, everyone knows, and it's fine." Barrick teased, only smiling cynically when the boy pushed him.
"Changing the subject... V, right? Good to finally see you without the mask. Now that I see you up close, you look familiar." Angelo said, almost desperate to change the subject. Which V promptly did.
"Are you from Night City?" The boy just nodded. "I was a mercenary there. You may have seen me at some point, on some job."
"V had quite a reputation in the Night City underworld. Hard to believe, isn't it?" Bob sneered. "Hey, V, if there's a vote for you to stay with us, I'll be the first to vote no."
V nodded.
"Good to know you're on my side, Bob."
"Any time. I'll talk to you." They waved as they walked away, and V waved back just before walking towards the Basilisk to get back to work.
"They're a real nice bunch. They like you." Mitch said.
"I can't imagine what it would be like if they didn't." V said amused.
"Believe me, you wouldn't be here anymore." Mitch replied.
V then proceeded to deposit the layer of nanowires on the surface of the Basilisk using chemical vapor deposition after Mitch had finished cleaning the surface of the vehicle.
He had to do this carefully, as it was necessary to ensure uniform coverage and correct alignment of the nanowires during the roll-to-roll transfer process, as the nanowire was transferred from a substrate.
Once the layer of nanowires had been deposited on the surface of the Basilisk, V integrated them into the structure of the vehicle and encapsulated them to protect it from environmental factors such as humidity, UV radiation and mechanical damage. That's among the armor that had to be replaced.
Now for the electrical and control part, V selected the right components for the cabling and control system, including wires, connectors, switches, sensors, microcontrollers and power supplies.
He climbed into the Basilisk and looked around, he crouched down and incorporated the wiring into the vehicle's body panels, incorporating it into existing structural elements. Mitch was in charge of creating, manipulating and calibrating the system on the outside panel.
"I didn't ask you, V..." Mitch began after a few hours in silence. "But what did this guy take from you? Considering everything you've done for us, this thing must be pretty expensive. Or very important." He leaned on the side of the Basilisk, one hand on his waist as he looked up towards V.
"... Let's say it's the latter. The son of a bitch has my car." V replied, a few strands around his right hand. He was sitting on the Basilisk to connect the wiring to the control system components.
Mitch blinked a few times in mild confusion, his face contorting in surprise.
"You're... going through all this trouble just because of a car?" The question made V snort out a laugh. Yeah, it didn't seem to make much sense when said out loud, huh?
"You can't put a price on emotional attachment, I guess." He shrugged and slid into the driver's cabin, now modifying the on-board computer. "Mitch, get the soldering equipment, please. We'll have to solder the wires to terminal blocks and then connect them to the appropriate input and output ports on the control system."
His voice came out a little muffled, but Mitch quickly turned around and picked up the soldering equipment.
"Okay then, if you say so. And do you have a plan yet?" Mitch asked after lifting the tools up. V, for his part, stood up from the booth and leaned his arms on the Basilisk.
"What do you mean? We're already building the plan." Mitch moved a few paces away from the vehicle to get a better view of V, both hands now on his waist.
"Not that, I'm telling you when you're done. Are you going back to Night City?" The question made V snort in disgust.
"Not even dead. Night City's gone for me." He shook his head, and Mitch grunted low in understanding.
"So, where are you planning to go?" V sighed and massaged his shoulders as his expression contorted in thought.
"... I don't know." He answered finally, and pulled the welding equipment towards him.
"You... you don't know?" Mitch asked.
"No idea." V shrugged as he prepared the equipment.
"And what were you planning to do then? Do you have any friends anywhere? Family?" Mitch asked, his expression one of curiosity, disbelief and a little surprise.
"No friends, no family... I don't exactly have anything out there. I guess... I don't know, maybe I'd wander around the country." He said, and their brief conversation ended as he began to solder the wires to one of the internal connectors.
Mitch just stared at him for a few moments, until he just decided to go back to focusing on his work.
V integrated the control system with the Basilisk's power supply, ensuring that it had enough power to operate the nanowire-based cloaking system. In other words, he needed to connect the control system to the vehicle's main power distribution system.
Panam lifted her face with a sigh. She shook her head slightly as she felt the water run down her neck.
Her eyes focused on her reflection in the mirror, and she almost rolled her eyes at her state. She had barely slept that night, and felt worse than she had in a while.
Nightmares... she didn't used to have them, not often. But lately, they had practically become part of her life. The previous day had been so... tiring... and so agonizing. She felt so consumed... not to mention the big surprise she'd had.
She shook her head and dried her face. To be honest, she didn't have the strength to go out and face another day. All she wanted was good news and a good rest.
She turned and walked to her closet. After getting ready, she got out of her trailer and blinked a few times until she got used to the light. Her trailer was a little further away from the campsite, and she liked being alone there. Not least because it was one of the few places where she had some privacy.
The woman walked into the camp at a slow pace, wanting to enjoy those brief moments of silence and peace before going back to worrying about the clan's responsibilities. But as she entered the camp, the sound of sawing and welding became louder, until her eyes focused on the two men working on the Basilisk.
Mitch was cutting some metal plates. He was a little sweaty, his dirty overalls showing that he had been there for some time.
Next to him, more specifically on top of the Basilisk, was V, leaning over the vehicle as he modified something inside the cockpit. The woman watched him for some time, minutes perhaps, and didn't even notice.
She still found it hard to believe that he was right there, in front of her, after so long. When she woke up, she thought that last night's events had just been a strange dream. She hadn't expected to see him again, like ever... him showing up again, however much she might try to ignore it, changed things.
He looked different... his implants were gone, his hair was a little shorter than she remembered, and he no longer had the well-groomed beard he used to have. He looked like a younger version of himself, even a little calmer compared to before. And all things considered, he looked... good.
Like... of all the things that could have happened, she hadn't considered the possibility. As she said, she found it easier to be angry with him than to admit that he had died. And now, in addition to the clan issues, she also had this other question. What now?
Things couldn't go back to the way they were before, perhaps... but she also didn't feel she could just wave her hands and let him go.
She sighed... the sooner they resolved this situation, the better. She stared at them again, before turning away... she didn't know exactly what they were doing, but it was rather obvious that it wasn't just fixing the Basilisk.
She just shook her head and continued on her way to the central trailer, where Saul was already standing, his back against the side near the door and his arms crossed in front of his chest.
"Good morning, Pan." He greeted her, and the woman just nodded.
"What's all this mess?" She pointed towards Mitch and V, and Saul just shrugged.
"No idea. But, according to V's words, they're working on something that will make what we decide a little easier." He explained. "The sooner we decide, the better." He nodded for her to follow him, and they both entered the trailer.
Panam closed the door and approached the table in the center, where he took the liberty of sitting in a chair in the corner.
"I stopped by the infirmary earlier." He began and leaned on the table.
"I'm not much in the mood for bad news, Saul." Panam said, already feeling a headache coming on.
"Good, because you won't have to. The wounded are improving very well, and those who were in critical condition are now out of danger. They'll have a few sequelae here and there, but they'll be fine." The woman sighed with relief.
Well, it was nice to wake up to good news for a change.
They stayed there for a few hours, sorting out clan matters and making some plans, discussing some ideas of how they would do things.
"Our people will be fine. Now we have to worry about the rest. Now more calmly." Saul said.
"We don't even have a plan. Hell, we know next to nothing about this hotel, security, the roster of guards..." She argued, and Saul put a device on the table.
"Well, now we know that the mayor's aide is pissed at Max." Panam got up from his chair and walked over to the table, his eyes focused on the news broadcast on a local TV channel.
"Apparently, some of the vehicles and men who attacked us were from the government. He didn't tell the mayor's aide anything, he just said he needed to borrow some things for security. Because of the attacks he suffered, the aide gave in." Saul explained. The news report said that the aide had taken some of Max's funds after the tragedy the day before.
They had no idea how it had gotten into the media. Generally, the government was very secretive about its personal affairs.
"That's a gap." Panam realized after a few moments. She straightened her posture and put her hand on his waist.
"Exactly. One of the funds Max received went to his hotel. In other words, security has been compromised, and the netrunner that V was worried about will probably no longer be there as of tomorrow." Panam just shook his head at the man's words.
"It doesn't matter, this Max is clearly powerful. He can hire someone else at any time." She argued.
"Still, it's a delicate moment of transition. We'll have one chance, and one chance only before things get complicated again." Saul said.
"So, what do you want to do? This Max seems to be cautious, I doubt they're accepting guests just yet. In other words, no chance of V getting in there and being able to connect to the system." Panam said, his arms now crossed.
"We can break in at dawn. V could still get in with that fancy armor of his, connect to the system and clear our path. If everything goes smoothly, we can get in and out without setting off any alarms." He said, and on the device, he changed the image to a 3d plan of the hotel in question.
"See here? That's the back gate to the basement. That's where they take the prisoners. I even thought about stealing one of these and impersonating one of the guards, but they check everyone in and out, so no chance." He said.
"... Right, let's say V manages to get in... however weak the security is, it's a whole building against us. In other circumstances, that wouldn't exactly be a problem, but any mistake and our people are gone." Panam said with a weary sigh.
The short discussion of their plan was interrupted when the trailer door opened, and they both looked towards the entrance. Lena, a woman who had joined them shortly after they left Night City, rescued from an accident with some highway bandits.
"Panam, Saul, sorry to interrupt. I just came by to let you know that... that boy of yours, V, isn't it? Well, he called you, Saul, to help with the Basilisk test." The woman said, and both leaders exchanged a confused look.
"... Is there a problem?" Saul asked as he headed for the door. Panam followed a few steps behind.
"I haven't been told, but there doesn't seem to be any issue." Lena said. In the distance, they could see the two men under a makeshift tent; they seemed to be talking to each other quite calmly. Mitch kept his arms crossed and V had his hands on his waist as he stared at the Basilisk.
Panam would be lying if she said she wasn't a little afraid of facing the man again, but, well, the more sense they had in dealing with this uncomfortable atmosphere, the sooner they could understand each other, perhaps.
Bob and Taco were also nearby, and considering the lunchbox they had in their hands, it was likely that they'd taken their lunch with them.
"What did you call me for, you lot?" Saul said as he approached, drawing the attention of both men. Panam winced inwardly when his eyes met V's, but outwardly he remained impassive.
"Saul, Panam." He greeted them, and she could have sworn she heard his voice stutter as he said her name. It could have just been her impression, of course. "You and Mitch used to fly this thing a lot, didn't you? Well, it would be good for you and him to test the new system."
Saul stared at the Basilisk. There were some notable differences in the structure, but he couldn't tell exactly what they were.
"And what system is that?" Panam asked, and she regretted it inwardly. The motherfucker smiled in her direction, a cocky smile mixed with a little arrogance and pride.
She... kind of missed it... and kind of didn't want to see it ever again.
"See for yourself." That was all he said, and although he didn't like surprises, Saul just sighed and moved towards the Basilisk. Mitch followed soon after.
Panam crossed her arms in front of her body and moved towards the tent, standing a few steps away from V.
"The moment that thing explodes, we'll run and get Saul's trailer." Bob said in a few moments, drawing an amused laugh from Taco.
"I'm telling you, you're going to eat those words." V said, his arms now crossed.
"That's actually a great plan, V. Take out Saul and Mitch in one fell swoop... Mitch's car is mine." Taco said, his arm resting on the table because of his leg.
"Keep joking." Panam just arched an eyebrow at the friendly discussion. They seemed to have accepted that V had come back very well.
She didn't quite know what to make of it.
And she didn't have to, her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the Basilisk rising from the ground. The discussion came to an end and everyone looked intently at the vehicle, which was only gaining altitude.
Panam just stared at it curiously. When the Basilisk reached a few dozen meters above the ground, they heard a low noise of something activating, and both Panam and those watching the vehicle widened their eyes in sheer surprise to see the Basilisk simply turn invisible.
The noise of the engine seemed to become muffled, low, and could easily be unnoticed in an urban environment, for example. And it was only because of the low noise that they could tell that the vehicle had moved, as they couldn't see very well in the air.
The woman blinked a few times... so that's what they'd been working on all morning... holy shit! How had they managed to install such a system in the Basilisk in such a short time? How did they even know how to do it?
She lowered her gaze, and her mind thought of all the equipment that V said he had created. She snorted out a surprised laugh as she remembered what he had told her... apparently, he had turned out to be quite a professional...
"Fuck yeah!" V's sudden shout snapped her out of her thoughts, and she looked with both eyebrows arched towards the man, who had a wide, cocky smile on his lips. "Suck on that, Bob!"
"Fuck you, V!" Bob pointed his middle finger.
"Take it back, you fuck!" V pointed both middle fingers.
"I ain't takin back nothin!" Bob replied. The two started arguing, with Taco occasionally butting in to make sure the discussion continued. A small smile appeared on Panam's lips at seeing them so agitated.
A bit of fun was always welcome.
The Basilisk descended and the men approached. Mitch had a satisfied smile on his face.
"I admit I didn't believe it at first, but it worked." He and V shook hands, and the man just shrugged.
"Mitch, if I'm building it, it'll work." V said. Cocky little shit.
"If we'd known what it was before, we'd have had a plan in place." Saul said, not exactly judging. "But, fuck, that's going to be a lot of help."
"Saul, are you sure you didn't catch a virus when you plugged yourself into the Basilisk?" Bob asked in clear mockery.
"I don't know, Bob. I think that virus settled in your head and made it swell, that's why it's so big." V teased back.
"Ha ha, smart ass." Bob pointed a middle finger, V just shrugged along with a smug laugh.
"We've also started installing a powerful EMP system underneath. V's idea is to position the Basilisk above the Hotel and activate the system, this will disable everything in the hotel for about fifteen minutes." Mitch explained, his arms crossed in front of his chest.
"I like the idea... they certainly won't be expecting it." Saul said, standing next to Mitch.
Panam thought about approaching, discussing the plan. But for some reason, she didn't. In fact, she just stood in the corner, observing the conversation, the jokes, the brief and occasional laughs.
It was nice to see them so positive like that, so animated. She knew them well enough to know that it was just a way of hiding the despair they felt deep down. That was one of the reasons Taco was there, he probably didn't want to stay in the infirmary, to be consumed by his thoughts and the feeling of agony.
It was good just to observe, however briefly, but it did help to refresh their spirits a little.
"Are we doing a good job, boss?" She was startled out of her thoughts by the voice next to her. Her eyes met V's, who stared at her intensely with that same smug look.
Damn... even though he had a few physical differences here and there, he was still the same.
"... That was a great idea. Makes me wonder where you learned it?" He shrugged, making light of it.
"Come on, I couldn't install implants in my own body without knowing how they worked, how they were installed, repaired, replaced... the same with cars, guns... over time, I think I got good at it." He explained, his eyes now focused on the Basilisk. The EMP system would be similar to Delamain's, but many times more powerful and customizable. He could control how long the devices would be deactivated and the effect it would have, whether it would cause any damage or not.
He smiled to himself.
"So... is that enough for you to forgive me?" The question made her arch an eyebrow.
"Forgive you?"
"Yes, you know, for disappearing... I could at least have told you about the risks." She looked away and squeezed the side of her own arm.
"... V, you've already explained why. A coma is not something you could have predicted, let alone avoided." She said, and at a glance, she could see his expression relax into a kind of relief. "But no, it's not enough."
"Argh, really?"
"It's been two years, there's a lot of baggage." She said simply, and V stared at her for a few moments. "What?"
"Nothing... I thought you'd be more annoyed, I guess." She shook her head.
"I've had plenty of time for that." She said with a sigh. Now that her emotions were more subdued, that they both had their heads on straight, she slowly felt a little more relaxed.
She was no longer as hesitant as before.
"Well... even if you were, I would hope that this other thing would change your mind." She arched an eyebrow in confusion, and that's when he pointed to a cloud of dust coming from the desert.
The woman squinted and put her hand on her weapon, but when she saw V's calm gaze, along with the fact that no one from the clan had alerted them, she just looked around in confusion.
It was then, now closer to the camp, that her eyes focused on the various vehicles on autopilot.
"... V... is that your doing?" Saul asked as he watched the vehicles park in front of the camp. Armed cars and a few vans.
"The power of money, Saul." V said simply as he watched the others approach the vehicles.
Rather expensive vehicles, so to speak. Most were variants of the typer-66 quadra, "Javelina", "Avengers", "Reaver...
Some from Mizutami, like the "Shion", decorated with some symbols and deserts that resembled the V mask.
Vans modified to resemble nomadic vehicles, but with a structure similar to that of executive vehicles. All of them armed and armored, modified with the latest technology and systems.
The prices certainly ranged from 50000 to 200000. In other words, at this very moment, it was possible that a fortune of more than a million eddies was parked in front of them.
"So... is that enough to forgive me now?" The smug smile on his lips only got bigger, and Panam playfully pushed him aside, not letting him see the happy, satisfied smile that sprang to her lips.
V snapped the bones in his neck and installed one of his Mantis blades back into the frame. He had taken the rest of the late afternoon to repair and modify his things, to update his system. The rescue mission was scheduled for that evening, just a few hours away. Outside, people were already packing up the entire camp. As soon as they got their people, they would be on their way.
Thanks to the vans and vehicles he had bought, the trailers and trucks would have more space for the still injured. He heard a shower of thanks, and frankly, he thought it was unnecessary. As much as he had started off on the wrong foot with the Aldecaldos, he liked helping them. In fact, he liked them.
He raised his arm high and activated the mechanism. Its blades glowed red, now longer than before, but as thin as the last model. It reminded him of Oda's blades, but with a few different touches. And instead of being released from the top, they now came out of the sides in a curved motion. The tips were serrated... more deadly than ever.
V smiled to himself... he had wanted to install the camouflage system on his armor, but he hadn't had time. And well, after this job, when he finally gets his car back, maybe he wouldn't need to wear his armor so often anymore. He had no idea where he was going, but his dream of being a legend had kind of come true... he should start choosing his fights better, just high-level stuff, without as much noise as he was used to.
Damn, what a shame.
After making sure everything was in order, V left his weapons ready in his van, put his mask around his waist and left the vehicle. The sky was already dark, the few remaining tents would later be dismantled by the people who would be left out of the mission.
He walked towards where the Basilisk was, occasionally being greeted by people. He greeted them back, happy at the way he was welcomed.
His eyes flickered in slight confusion as he saw that Mitch wasn't near the Basilisk, and as he looked around, he realized that the sides of the camp were much emptier than usual. Not just because of the tents, of course.
He made his way to the center of the camp. The tents still set up around it were well lit, people were sitting around talking to each other, others were tending to some wounded lying on stretchers, some were listening to music and drinking alone or in company. Others were lying on the hoods of their cars, watching the sky.
In the center was a circle of a few people, a lot of drinking and a guitar.
Well, considering that that night would determine the fate of many members of the clan, he would say that a break, a rest and a relaxation was more than welcome.
"Hey, V, tired of playing with yourself in your van?" Isaac asked suggestively, which resulted in a strange look from V and some laughter all around.
"Not at all, I just came to get some more tissue." The laughter got louder.
"Hey man, you said it." Isaac held up both hands.
"All set with the Basilisk?" V asked Mitch, who was sitting on the floor with both arms resting on his knees.
"Everything's ready. The systems are ready, the calibration is up to date..." Mitch replied.
"Sure you don't want me to take a look?" V insisted, and Mitch just arched an eyebrow.
"V, relax." Mitch said.
"Get your ass on the floor, V, or I'm gonna hurt you." Barrick was the one who said it, not caring about V's response, he just downed his bottle of beer.
V shrugged and did it, when you can't be against them, join them.
"All right, but only because you asked nicely." V said amused, and didn't refuse when one of the members, Jayce, handed him a bottle of beer.
The circle of people was large. Barrick, Isaac, Taco, Jeff, Mitch, Lena, Angelo, Bob and a few others. They seemed to be enjoying themselves.
"Did I tell you about the time my friend Keith started a history tour?" Jeff, Taco's brother, began. He wouldn't be taking part in the mission, so he'd already had one or two more beers than on a normal day. "Once, my friend Keith started a history tour, because his mother took him to Colonial Williamsburg, and it was like a license to print money in those places. Now, you may wonder how an honest attempt to recreate the majesty of colonial times turned into chicken fights at five dollars a pop in Keith's backyard? And the answer to that particular question is that Keith was sharing a house with his two brothers, and they were assholes who wouldn't let him do it anywhere but the backyard. If you add to that the fact that Keith didn't technically have any... you know, history to show for, but he did have a whole family of chickens living on the chassis of an old car, you begin to understand."
Jeff finished his story with a slurred laugh, and his brother, Taco, laughed more at his own brother than at the story itself.
"Holy shit." Bob said as he drank some more, a broad amused smile on his lips.
"What a fascinating story." Angelo said with his beer raised.
"Please don't ever stop telling them." Jayce said, his arms resting on his knees.
"Did it really happen or is he making it up?" V asked, genuinely interested.
"We have no idea, but I don't care, they're fun." Isaac said, sitting on a chair, his hands resting on his thighs.
"Man, that reminds me of the time I tried to cross a bridge drunk." Jayce began.
"How the fuck does a chicken story remind you of a bridge?" Lena asked amused.
"Dude, I don't know... I guess the stupid part. I was with my friend on this huge bridge, and I was sure I could jump across the river without the bridge. My friend lifted the bridge and I... well, did you know that cars float? At least for a little while." They laughed at the story, and Jayce was just pleased to see that they had a good time.
"Oh shit, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard, I love it." Taco said amid low laughter.
"Let's give our masky boy here a chance to socialize, what was it like getting arrested?" Mitch asked. V just stared at him with an arched eyebrow.
"Have you ever been arrested?" Lena asked.
"A few times." V took a sip of his drink.
"Please let it not be the story of when you had to share a bucket with four other homies." Isaac said.
"What?"
"Now I'm curious."
V snorted a laugh.
"... Okay, it was my first score, I'd never done anything like it and I was alone. It wasn't a lot of money, but for me, at the time, it was more than enough for the month, about two thousand bucks." He heard whistling all around.
"Two grand on your first gig? Not bad."
"Two G's, years ago, was like winning the lottery."
"Well, I would have won the lottery if the fucking dye pack hadn't set off. The money was useless." V said, laughing at himself and the laughter around him. Bob made a point of being the one laughing the loudest.
"You amateur!" Isaac exclaimed amid the laughter.
"And that wasn't even the worst part. My fucking phone crashed just before I ran away. The police showed up at my shack a couple of hours later." He ducked his head as he remembered what had happened. Years ago, being arrested hadn't been nice. Prison didn't exactly have a hierarchy as shown on TV shows, but because he was young at the time, he attracted unwanted attention.
He took care of himself, but it resulted in a few scars, black eyes and a few broken bones during his time there.
"And that's why, kids, we don't follow the life of a thief... well, except if it's stealing corporative material." Angelo said.
"Kids? Bitch, you barely have any hair on your balls!" Bob said.
"Have you been spending a lot of time looking at his balls, Bob?" V sneered, and both Angelo and Taco spat out their drinks.
"Hahahaha, he got you on that one!"
"Son of a bitch." Bob gave him the middle finger, but everyone there saw the smile on his lips."
V just laughed at the man, and his eyes immediately went to the two people walking not far away.
"Hey, Panam, Saul... come and join us." Lena called out. They both stopped a few meters away from the wheel and seemed to say something to each other. Until Panam turned and approached, to the satisfaction of some.
"Aren't you coming, Saul?" Barrick asked, and the man just nodded.
"I'm going to take this moment to take care of a few things. Maybe I'll join you later." He just said and walked away towards his trailer.
Panam approached and exchanged glances with V, before sitting down next to Mitch, who offered her a drink.
"Panam, did you know that your boyfriend here was arrested?" Bob said, and the line drew arched eyebrows from both the people who were hearing it for the first time and those who already knew about the pair's past.
"... That I know, he just didn't tell me the details." She only answered, caring little for the man's words.
"Too bad he's a complete amateur. What do you have to say for yourself, dye pack?" Bob sneered.
"Hey, take it easy, it was my first job." V defended himself.
"And how was your first time in prison? You always looked like a troublemaker, you must have had a lot of trouble." Mitch asked.
V just shrugged.
"Nothing... they respected me." Taco snorted a laugh.
"Why? Did you drop the soap too often?" Taco scoffed, getting a few laughs.
"That sounds just about right." Bob said.
"Don't fuck with me. That stuff is just a myth. They left me alone after I beat the shit out of the guys in the next cell." Barrick whistled.
"Baloney, you?" Jeff asked, despite being drunk, he sounded pretty disbelieving.
"Are you doubting?" V asked.
"With that pussy face? Okay, buddy." Bob scoffed.
"Didn't you say you were the best fighter in your area?" Panam asked, and V hid his surprise when he saw that she had struck up a conversation and was looking at him a little amused.
"I was." He confirmed.
"Do you fight?" Angelo asked, looking a little curious.
"I used to. It wasn't anything professional, more like fights in the street underworld." He said, and arched an eyebrow when he saw Angelo's slightly confused grimace.
The boy then widened his eyes and opened his mouth in sheer surprise.
"I remembered! I knew I'd seen you somewhere! You're the guy who beat Razor!" Angelo practically shouted, his eyes shining as if he were seeing his idol in front of him.
"Razor? The fighter Razor?" Isaac asked.
"Exactly!"
"And who is he?" Mitch asked, and Angelo looked at him like he was crazy.
"Don't you know him?! He's Night City's three-time heavyweight champion and holds a record of forty-seven consecutive wins, with twenty knockouts! The guy was a legend in the city!" Angelo explained.
"And you're saying that V beat this guy? Like, really?" Bob asked, this time with no mockery in his voice, just genuine curiosity.
"That's a story I don't know about." Panam said, her body leaning slightly forward, her arm resting on one of her crossed legs and her chin resting on her hand.
"As I said, it was a fight in the street underworld. Not everyone knew about it, but as far as I remember, it was forbidden to record it. And my face remained unknown." V said.
"You didn't know? Razor was arrested and had all his dark little secrets revealed. Apparently he got involved with some of the wrong people and ended up paying the price. There's a recording of that fight. Your face is a bit blurry, but I knew I recognized you." Angelo said, and then he snorted an excited smile. "Shit, I've wanted to meet you ever since I heard he lost! I'm not going to lie, I was expecting a different guy."
"And I was expecting no one to recognize me." V said.
"Did you really think no one would recognize you? Some people did a little search on the information of the man who defeated the invincible Razor. Your name didn't come up, at least I don't remember it, but the information that did come up said that you were reliable, effective, the best mercenary in Night City. Dozens of jobs, all successfully completed... you became a bit of a legend in the bars. Fuck, why did you stop with the jobs?" Angelo asked, and after a sigh, V just shook his head.
"A few things happened, I almost died... in short, I shouldn't be here, I should have died." He said vaguely.
"And yet you survived? Fuck!" Bob said dramatically.
"Fuck... no wonder you fight like that. Hearing the stories is one thing, witnessing said legend is totally different." Angelo said.
"Well, thanks, I wasn't really expecting a... fan." V said, a little unsure of how to react.
He ran his smiling gaze over the people there, until he noticed Panam staring at him. He winked, and she nodded to follow, getting up soon after.
"I'll be right back." He said, and although some were already seeing everything doubled, they noticed the two of them getting up almost at the same time.
"Good luck. And Panam, try not to kill him like you did yesterday." Mitch said, laughing softly as he felt a gentle slap on his shoulder.
"You'd better get back, masky boy... I'll get a dye pack just for you!" Bob said, and V pointed his middle finger as he walked away.
They walked closer to Panam's trailer. The surrounding tents had already been dismantled, leaving a wider view of the camp.
The site was lit only by moonlight, until the woman approached and turned on the interior lights.
"The landscape is beautiful." V said, her eyes focused on the full moon. Panam got out of her trailer and leaned her back against the wall next to the door, also watching the moon.
"... It's nice to see people so relaxed like this." Panam began, her eyes slowly leaving the moon and turning to the circle formed in the center of the camp. "The atmosphere has been a bit tense since we got here."
"I can only imagine... I don't know exactly what it's like to have my family kidnapped by a bunch of psychopaths." V said, also crossing his arms and leaning against the wall next to the door.
"It's not easy, but they put up with it. Sometimes there were fights, intrigues, but they always tried to keep their heads. Today I noticed that, even though they're only a few hours into a mission where everything could go wrong, they're fine... or trying to be fine, they're laughing, smiling, joking, that's something. And part of that is because of you." V glanced at her, knowing more or less what she was getting at.
"No, Panam, I didn't do anything." She snorted.
"You and your habit of not seeing things... yes, you did, V. You gave them hope. You were the first to run onto the battlefield, you helped Taco and Angelo, you destroyed enemy vehicles, you killed countless enemies... and today, with the systems you installed on the Basilisk and the vehicles you bought, it's as if they've been given extra motivation. We're not just going to fight to rescue our own, but to repay your help. No one here will forget your actions." V just sighed.
"Panam, I'm not after any thanks. I did it because I wanted to help, it didn't cost me anything. Money comes into my account almost every week now." She arched an eyebrow, and he just shrugged. "I had a few million, I had a contact with many more millions than me, I asked for help on behalf of the work I'd already done for him, we made a deal." He explained vaguely, but she didn't insist.
"That's great, V... but then why did you help us so much? As far as I know, you don't owe us anything... hah, I think it's the other way around." Her voice was so soft, V just closed his eyes and allowed himself to let her in slowly.
"Because as much as time has passed and things have changed, for me, time has kind of stopped. What I feel hasn't changed." He opened his eyes and stared deep into Panam's, who, not knowing exactly what to say or do, could only stare back, her cheeks getting warmer by the second, but the pink being masked by the poor lighting.
V snorted a smile and looked back down at the floor.
"When I woke up... you were the first person I called." The woman made a confused face.
"What? But I didn't see a call log or a message." V ran a hand down the back of his neck, almost regretting having said that... almost.
"Well, Mitch sort of... deleted it." The woman's look of confusion turned to one of incredulity and disbelief.
"Mitch did what?!" She raised her voice slightly, and V shrugged.
"Don't be angry with him, we talked... he was afraid you'd go back to the way you were before." She shook her head.
"That wasn't his decision, that cunt!" She scolded.
"I'm not going to say that I agree with what he did, but... I can understand the line of thought. Anyway, I just... I wanted to hear your voice... I saw the messages and I really wanted to explain to you what happened. In my whole life, I've only had three moments when I was really alone. When I was kicked out of the Joytoys house where I grew up. When Jackie died... and when I woke up in that hospital." He blinked a few times, until he decided to just close his eyes. Even though it hadn't been that long ago, for some reason it felt like it had been longer.
"Not all my relationships endured that long. Some stayed, others moved on." He finished his speech, and just sighed at the memories. He was still a little irritated by Kerry's neglect... but perhaps he shouldn't have expected so much from the man.
"And what did you do? After you woke up?" He grunted lowly at the question.
"I went back to Night City. I had some unfinished business to take care of." He said.
"Unfinished business? Does it involve this Max guy? You said he had something of yours." He smiled at the woman's quick thinking.
"Yes. I had to say goodbye to some people... help patch things up with others. But my main goal was to get my things back. Jackie's guns, his bike, your rifle, Scorpion's bike, and my car." Panam grimaced.
"You went back to that hellhole... just for that?"
"Of course. No chance of me letting that rat's nest beat me. And believe me, I've done a fair bit of damage." He smiled arrogantly, which made her roll her eyes. "I got everything back... the only thing missing is my car."
"Is that what Max has? Your car?" He snorted.
"It's not just any car, it's a Porsche 911 turbo. Do you know how many Porsches there are in the world now? Fewer than the fingers on your hand. And this particular model was manufactured in 1977. A hundred years ago! I'm not fucking leaving my little beauty in the hands of a Raffen!" He said dramatically, in a mixture of seriousness and humor.
Panam just shrugged.
"Well, I won't say I don't understand." She said as she remembered having been in a similar situation before. "And once you've got your car, what are you going to do?"
V was silent for a few moments. It was the second time someone had asked him that question that day, and it would be the second time he wouldn't have an answer.
"I have no idea." He smiled to himself. "I spent so long focused on getting into the elite, making a name for myself, being a legend... that I never thought about what I would do if I made it. And well, technically, I've achieved all that. I have all the money I want, I can buy any car and property I want, go anywhere I want... but, for the first time, I don't know what I want."
He explained, his gaze only on the ground, which left him oblivious to the woman's sympathetic look. V shook his head after a while, and watched Saul sit down in the circle in front of him. His gaze then went to his watch. There was little time left until the mission started now.
The voices got louder, and after a few minutes, Panam moved away from the wall.
"I think we'd better go back... let's enjoy the time we have left before we go on the mission." She said, already taking a few steps away.
V didn't move, he was stuck in his thoughts. That is until the woman stopped and turned to him.
"Just one question... when I asked you, before we left Night City, if you wanted me to stay... if you were awake, what would you say?" V stared at her for a few moments in silence, until he snorted a sideways smile.
"I'd ask to go with you." They stared at each other for a few moments. Panam was impassive on the outside, but he could see the feelings in her eyes. Euphoria, surprise, joy... and satisfaction.
The woman just nodded, more to herself than to him, and smiled shyly before walking away.