Chapter 3: Golden Vista
A few days have passed since Johnny got So MI and Chandra on his team to go on a mission to get bounties and get eddies for their troubles. Within Austin, they are seeking a target within an abandoned parking garage using it like a fort keeping the police out of there.
So Mi is outside to use her Netrunning to use the cameras to see inside the building to begin cooking the brains of the thugs. Johnny and Chandra are coming in through a gap in the middle to begin assaulting the thugs called the Metalheads which are a very chromed gang like Maelstrom from Night City.
Johnny is wielding an Ajax assault carbine to begin pouring rounds into incoming Metalhead thugs. One of the thugs uses a Projectile Lauchner to blast apart a car causing a blast that shakes up the floor.
He tosses a Gash grenade with the laser slicing and cooking Metalheads with ease. He fires several bursts of rifle rounds to get in
"Reckless much," Chandra said using her Lexington to pepper 9mm bullets to score headshots. She knocks a crate to slam into a thug's head to crush it on impact. She activates her Berserk to toughen her skin weave further allowing her to rush in with her claws to slice up enemies.
Several bullets strike her exposed thighs and stomach but they simply bounce off leaving her unharmed. "Try better next time, Choomba," she fires her Lexington to strike their heads leaving holes behind.
The thug fires his PLS at Chandra to score a direct hit but she is still in her Berserk state able to shake off the mini rocket. She grabs a broken pipe and throws it like a spear to impale him and get launched into a wall.
"Stick around," she said lightly as the Metalhead was stuck on the wall with the pipe planting him there. They go up to a door but So Mi tells them to stop.
"There is an explosive trap there, don't open that door," So Mi said on the comms.
"I reckon, you got an idea," she said with a southern flex in her voice.
So Mi hacks the bombs to turn them off. "Okay, you can go through now," she said as they slipped through with Chandra pulling out her Carnage 4-gauge pump action shotgun.
"I keep this for close encounters," Chandra said jokily sliding into a Metalhead to fire the buckshot to split the man open and scatter his two halves on the floor. His blood was spreading all over the place.
She rips off the car door and flings it to slice up several enemies down the middle while firing her Carnage to blow off a few Metalheads' skulls. "Getting close to the target," So Mi said as she pulled out her Ashura to lock onto targets on the roof of the parking garage to destroy their heads bursting them like watermelons.
Johnny uses his sandy to wield his handgun to see the leader of the group in the building put a huge hole in his skull while taking out several enemies. "Thank goodness, we managed to take him out. Time to jam out of here and let the cops deal with this," Johnny said as So Mi summoned their ride to get inside to pick them up to head back home. They see 75,000 eddies transferred to them to split among themselves.
"Juicy eddies, we did good there," Chandra said letting her braided pigtails dance in the wind. "Y'all are good partners, right sugar?" Chandra asked to place her hand on Johnny's knee to give it a slight squeeze.
This gets a reaction out of him as he looks into her pretty orange eyes. "Indeed, twin tails," he said as Chandra giggled at him with his handsome smile warming her heart.
"Goodness, you have to make a girl welcome," she flirts with him as So Mi sighs at this.
"You two need a room," she said.
"Yes, please I would love to have this chocolate chip on my lap and watch the moon rise in the dark," Johnny said as Chandra showed a big grin on her beautiful face.
"Oh so romantic," Chandra said feeling like a schoolgirl eating up all of Johnny's words with So Mi rolling her eyes at this. "So we got some money and I am hoping we can hang out around the city," Chandra said.
"You mean a date," Johnny said.
"You can say that, what is your answer sugar," she said wanting to hear him say yes.
"Count me in," he said with a big dumb grin as Chandra wanted to jump with happiness.
"Yes, thanks. I promise we are going to have some fun," she said her sweet belle tone making Johnny's heart race.
Within the hour, Songbird is in casual clothing to sit on the couch to watch some TV. "I am so happy to go on a date with Johnny. It's going to be so Nova," she said.
"Hey country girl, you should calm down or you will blow your brain out with too much energy," Songbird said.
"Sorry So Mi, I can't help myself. I want to get my feet swoop up. Johnny is such a romantic rouge," she said.
"Yeah, he is alright," So Mi said to drink her strawberry milk
"What's that supposed to mean," Chandra was slightly confused.
"When he is ready, he will tell you his real deal," So Mi said as he looked at her outfit. "Looking cute there," she complimented her outfit.
"Thanks, I want to look good for Johnny. Just the two of us in the city of Austin," Chandra said as Johnny came down the stairs to get ready to see Chandra looking beautiful.
"Looking pretty good there," he said as she was wearing a blue sundress highlights some of Johnny's favorite features. "Man, Chandra can't hide her bottom-heaviness. I wasn't imagining things when I mistakenly peeked under her dress," he thought to remember Chandra wearing her lacy white panties which were filled out perfectly by her big rear and broad hips.
Chandra saw Johnny getting starry-eyed by her great figure as she had a smile on her face from his goofy grin. "At least I know what he likes in a woman's figure," she thought making of note of it. "Thank you. Such a gentleman, let's hit the town," she asked.
"Watch the digs right So Mi," Johnny said as the duo went outside to go into the city.
"Have fun you two," So Mi said as she had a big playlist of movies she wanted to watch.
The duo go onto the streets with the city of Austin being filled with life being an oasis in the middle of the desert. "This is so new to me," Chandra said.
"Well, I will be your lovely tour guide for the rest of the evening," he joked as this made Chandra crack a laugh and a smile.
"Guide on," she said playfully as they went around to see all the shops and restaurants there. Chandra's stomach is growling for a blush appears on her face. "I'm pretty hungry, didn't eat much for breakfast," she said.
"Well I will treat us, what do you want?" he asked.
"Some cinnamon buns would be lovely," she said.
"Okay," he said as they went to the shop to get themselves some big cinnamon buns with them sitting nearby to enjoy their food.
"Wow, this is so good," Chandra said as her mouth melted from the sweet taste of the treat.
"It's good but I have the perfect sweet buns in mind," he said.
"Like what," she asked.
"It's warm, big, round, soft, and a perfect shade of dark chocolate," he said in a lewd tone as Chandra got what he was saying only smiling.
"I bet he peeked under my gown, and I don't mind one bit," she thought to let it slide since she liked the attention he was giving her. "Sounds nice, where are you going to get such sweet buns?" she asked in a teasing tone.
"I got two nice buns, but I have to wait for them," he said.
"When it happens, it will be worth it," Chandra said to put her hand on his as they enjoyed their meal while liking each other's company. "So you got those Metalheads. Got anyone else who is a problem in the state?" she asked.
"Well, there is the Inquisitors. The old gang from Night City moved here but they are becoming more of a cult now. They hate all forms of Cyberware and kill anyone who has it. They use just training and Bioware to enhance their bodies like your powerful skin weave," Johnny said.
"I fought those when I was moving here. They are the worst. How about crazy clowns?" she asked.
"Oh yeah, the Bozos. They spread from Nighty City going to San Fransisco to old o' Texas here. Crazy fuckers, killing and blackmailing just for fun. Beyond nuts," Johnny said.
"Then you got the Wraiths, The Lone Stars, and now the Aldecaldos," Chandra said to bite into her cinnamon bun.
"One clusterfuck of disaster. Thankfully unless Night City, Austin takes its security seriously due to the threats of invasion from the NUSA," Johnny said to finish his snack. "That's fulfilling," he said.
"My sweet heavens, that tastes amazing," she said as they went off to see a gun shop nearby. "Oh Dead Aim," she said with there being a huge sign on top of the building showing the title of the shop with bright red lights.
"Got some of my best gear here. Come on, some more smart weapons will benefit Songbird," Johnny said as they went inside with all the guys checking out Chandra with some of the females being jealous that Chandra was getting the attention.
"Hey Johnny, I see you brought a pretty bird with you," the shop owner said looking at the pretty lady
"Oh; this is Chandra Dawn, she is living with me," he said.
"Are you, his girlfriend?" he asked.
"Oh no, I am his friend and partner for his freelancing jobs. I am here to practice my aim," Chandra said. "Wish I could be but that is for later," she thought as she was working on it.
"Oh; I see, I don't remember friends looking like that. Have fun, you two," he said as they went into a section of the range. There are rows of weapons on display that can be tried out or they can use their weapons to practice with.
"Pick your poison Sunshine," Johnny said.
"Sunshine?" she asked.
"You got a bright smile, puts me at ease when I see it. A nice warm within my heart, hence Sunshine," Johnny said to give her a cute nickname.
"Okay, it's cute," she grabs her personal Unity pistol which has a muzzle brake and a small holo sight "I want to start with my pistol," she said as Johnny set up the targets with them moving and some standing still. Chandra is lining up her handgun to begin picking off targets with her Unity.
Johnny sees Chandra taking shots as he is giving her pointers, he also grabs her waist to adjust her stance. Chandra could feel his strong hands holding her waist and her thighs for she adored his firm touches as well as his light caresses which made her skin shiver in delight.
"Johnny," she whispered as she finished her session with her pistol.
"Good, now try out some weapons and see how you do," Johnny said as Chandra put her pistol away to take an Ajax assault rifle with an Optical Scope, compressor, and foregrip.
She pulls back the rear charging handle as she sets the gun on semi-automatic to line up her shots with her looking through the scope. She is popping the targets with some effort but manages to clear the round.
"How did I do?" she asked.
"Pretty well but you can always improve," Johnny said as Chandra switched to a Saratoga SMG. She fires but the high rate of fire caught her off guard. Chandra held onto her grip and balance. "Oh boy, are you okay?" he asked, feeling gentle with her.
"That was one hell of a kick but I am fine," Chandra said.
"Some of modified with higher rates of fire. Be careful with controlled bursts," Johnny said as Chandra was putting shots at the targets with Johnny using another Ajax to put rounds onto moving targets for his shooting is quite good compared to Chandra's.
"I can see your skill is top-notch in and out of battle," Chandra said giving him praise.
"Your words mean a lot to Chandra, but I am just a humble man who knows how to shoot," he said lightly as he hit a target with Chandra resuming her practice shooting.
She finished with her SMG to grab a Soviet VST-37 full auto shotgun with a 24-drum magazine to fire several slugs at rapid speed to land hits on the moving target. "This takes me back to my father training how to use a gun when I was small," Chandra thinks fondly of her father to remember a nice moment between them.
-Flashback Begins-
A young 12-year-old Chandra is on a private gun range within the forest with her father Robert Dawn overlooking her training. "Okay Chandra, get into your combat stance and begin shooting," Robert said as the young girl was holding a Lexington machine pistol fitted with a shoulder stock and a red dot sight in her tiny hands to see the moving targets.
"Okay Daddy," Chandra said in her sweet voice as she was taking shots for the recoil of the pistol was manageable and picking off targets with some trouble.
"Kid; hold your stance better and take in the recoil," Robert said as he went up to fix up her stance with her getting the buttstock to her small shoulder. "Okay, let it rip," Robert said to back away to see Chandra firing her shots more constantly.
"I did it, Dad," Chandra said as her bright smile warmed her old man's heart.
"Just like her mom," Robert said as he looked down at his little princess. "Okay, kid if you manage to get 500 points on the range. I will take you out for ice cream along with your cousin," he said as Chandra leaps for joy.
"Okay Daddy, I will do my best," Chandra said as she poured burst fire onto the targets getting a good score of 500 points on the screen.
"Good work kid, it's on me," Robert said as they went back to the city for Robert and his favorite girl goes to the city to get some ice cream.
-Flashback Ends-
Chandra finished sharing her little moment as Johnny looked on to hear her little story about her bonding with her dad. "He seems like a great dude," he said.
"I love him and I always love him," she said as Johnny put his hand around her waist to be close to her.
"I hope there is room for your list of favorite guys," he said playfully for Chandra laughs at his silliness.
"Oh, you are climbing up there quite fast," she said lightly. "So how about your parents?" Chandra asked.
"Don't remember them, I was born and raised in Texas with a nomad group. It was a normal life until went to the US Army when I was a teenager than everything changed," Johnny said as Dogtown brought back some bad memories.
"US army, you mean the NUSA, right?" she asked as Johnny sighed about this.
"I need to tell her about my condition if this is going to work out. Can't make the same mistakes," Johnny thought as they finished practicing with them ordering guns to send to the house to head outside.
"Come on, let's hang out at the park nearby," she said to take Johnny's hand to drag him across the pavement with her raw strength.
"At least they try to make the city look nice," Johnny said as they arrived to see a wide park filled with grass, forests, trees, and various places for kids and families to have fun in.
"Look at them, so much fun. I and Papa used to hike in the forests in Georgia," she said as she sat down on a bench with Johnny sitting beside her enjoying the view.
"Hey Chandra, I need to tell you something," he said.
"Oh, what is it?" Chandra asked.
"Well, I want us to be on a good foot. So I am going to be honest with you. Do you know what the Relic is?" he asked.
"Oh yeah, Arasaka was developing that. It got shut down and exposed to the public. Secure your Soul was a massive scam, who knew," she said dryly.
"Yeah about that. I was part of that assault to try and save my friend's life. Relic was killing them because of me," Johnny said.
"Really, what do you mean?" she asked.
"My old identity was Johnny Silverhand imprinted on an Engram on the Relic. Due to bad luck, I was put in my friend's head who is named Vincent aka V. We managed to go through so much and got to where we needed to go. Sadly it wasn't enough, the Relic was changing his DNA allowing me to take over without issue. V gave me a second chance to live while he went away in the net," Johnny said as Chandra felt a lot of pain and happiness in his voice.
"Wow, that is crazy," Chandra said.
"Don't believe it, I can make a braindance to show you firsthand what happened," Johnny said.
"It's okay, I can tell this is deeply personal. I believe you, thanks for telling you Johnny," she said.
"Thanks, Just call me Johnny Linder from now on. Johnny Silverhand is gone, put back in the past where he belongs," Johnny said.
"So that woman Panam is upset with you because your friend willingly gave up his body to save you?" Chandra asked.
"Yes, Panam was V's girlfriend and they were close but I told her the truth and was too stubborn to care," Johnny said.
"She can't let go and now she is trying to kill us," Chandra said.
"Yep," Johnny said plainly.
"Well, that's her problem. If she gets her hands on you, I will hesitate to snap her neck," Chandra said as Johnny felt grateful.
"Thanks," Johnny said as Chandra kissed him on the cheek.
"You're worth it despite what you are. I always have your back," she said as the duo kept walking around the park enjoying their time together.