After two years on the moon, Song's body wasn't taking its reintroduction to Earth gravity very well. It probably didn't help that she was also getting used to what felt like an entirely different body. The procedure to save her life was costly, and as a result, the doctors had to swap out most of her cyberware for something more… low key. It was far from ideal, but if it meant being alive, then it was a price she was willing to pay.
"You have now arrived at Night City," the automated voice over the PA informed her. "Enjoy your stay."
Song stepped out into the terminal and looked around. Everything looked so much different compared to when she last saw it- on that fateful night she tried her damndest not to think about. People shoved past her, trying to get to all kinds of different places, but Song's path was clear. She did her best to be as discreet as possible; for all she knew, she was still at the top of the NUSA's most-wanted list, and she wasn't about to take any chances.
"Welcome to Night City!" one of the baggage handlers greeted her as she approached. They turned around and grabbed a small black suitcase with no distinguishing features. "Your luggage."
Song nodded as she took the case into her hands. This was no carry-on. She brought nothing and returned with nothing. This was something else- perhaps one of the biggest favors she had ever called in. It certainly dried up any goodwill her contacts had for her, but that was alright. Starting today, she didn't need them anymore. After slipping into the nearest bathroom, she found her way into one of the stalls and opened the case. Sitting inside was her old clothes- the netrunning suit and denim jacket that she loved so much- even if she didn't want to admit it to her colleagues at the time, she couldn't stand having to wear big extravagant clothes all the time- and more importantly, her old cyberdeck. After a speedy change, Song hooked it up to its usual resting place on her hip and stared at herself in the mirror, taking a nervous breath in and out through her mouth.
"Well, here goes nothin'," she murmured to herself before stepping back out into the terminal.
When she arrived, Song was careful about taking it slow. Now, though, she needed to get out of the spaceport as quickly as possible. She popped open the lid to her cyberdeck as she walked, punching in a series of keystrokes that had been burned into her brain after so many years. 'One… two… three…' she counted in her head. She looked up just in time to see the cameras in the area going offline, which meant that she had about thirty seconds to get out. Fortunately, luck seemed to be on her side. The customs agents at the security gates all seemed to be preoccupied with a man causing a commotion about his combat cyberware. All she had to do was walk right by, and before she knew it, she was out front. Now all she had to do was get off Morro Rock. She was seconds away from raising a hand to flag down a taxi when…
"Excuse me, ma'am, have I seen you before?" a man asked as he walked up to her. "You look… awfully familiar, for some reason."
Song let her hands fall naturally to her side, brushing up against the cyberdeck against her hip to be ready at a moment's notice. "I… don't know what you mean- never seen you before," she replied, keeping her eyes glued to the approaching Delamain.
"Wait, sure, now I remember," the man said. "Saw your face plastered over the news two years back."
Song discreetly opened her cyberdeck.
The man adjusted his jacket to partially reveal a pistol holstered on his belt. "In fact, if my memory serves me correctly, they were talkin' about you being right here- that attack on the terminal." He flashed a wry smirk at her as he reached for his gun. "A thing like that oughta warrant a pretty high bounty."
She was already halfway through typing the command by the time he finished talking. Just as soon as his tech pistol started charging up, it made an aggressive click. It jammed. While one hand moved to unfasten her cyberdeck from her hip, the other reached out to shove the man onto the ground- all while her feet leapt for the Delamain. She practically dove into the backseat head-first.
"Welcome on board, please connect your personal link," the Delamain instructed her.
Song rolled her eyes, instead opting to jack in her cyberdeck instead. While her hands typed as fast as they could, her eyes flashed between the screen and the man on the sidewalk as he picked himself back up. Delamain was about to protest, but he was promptly silenced by Song's command. Tires screeched against pavement as the cab drove off at full speed. The man, still on the sidewalk, tried to shoot her as she drove away, but the shots merely pinged uselessly off the reinforced windows. Song let out a heavy sigh of relief as the cab drove safely away from the spaceport. Fortunately for her, the autopilot did all the work, heading dutifully to the coordinates she put in, allowing her to watch the city pass by through the window. Night City looked… different, but also the same. City Center and Corpo Plaza looked the most like how she remembered it, but she expected as much. As she got further out, though, into Japantown, everything looked… colder.
As the cab pulled over on the side of the street, Song disconnected her cyberdeck, giving control back to Delamain. "Thank you for choosing Delamain. We hope to see you again soon," he said, as if nothing had happened.
Song said nothing as she stepped out. She was too focused on what was now so close. The alley she stopped at gave no indication that it was in any way out of the ordinary, and it was just what she was looking for. Walking slowly and carefully, Song, kept her head on a swivel. Fortunately, nobody seemed to be around. She walked up to an unassuming door protected by a keypad. Many things seemed to have changed over the last two years, but the password wasn't one of them. The door slid open to reveal one of her safehouses from nine years ago- untouched from the last time she was here- and she stepped inside, quickly closing the door behind her.
"Well… I guess this'll do for now," she mused to herself as she switched on the power.
As the lights and various machines around the hideout began whirring to life, she sat down in the chair sitting next to her comp. She'd been waiting for this since she got on the flight to Earth. She could feel her hands getting jittery as she grabbed the link to jack in. As soon as she felt the connection, her brain reached out and felt the BBS address she'd tucked away. Now all that was left to do was make the jump. The familiar tingling sensation washed over her body as her mind extended out into the net.
Song heard her before she saw her. Her voice was gentle- playful, almost. "You certainly took your sweet time," she teased.
Song looked toward the source of the voice and there she was: V; or rather, what remained of her. The merc's attack on Arasaka Tower had been costly for her. In the end, she came out alive, in a sense, but it came at the cost of her body. Now, she was merely a construct, reaching out from beyond the Blackwall. But that didn't stop Song from feeling so relieved to see her again.
Song shrugged as she walked up to V. "Well, you know how it is with customs. They always take their sweet time," she joked, allowing herself a brief smile before it faded. "But… I'm finally back on Earth. It's finally over."
"For a free woman, you don't seem all that excited about it," V observed.
Song exhaled sharply with her head hung low. "I- I just… I wish it didn't come at your expense. You didn't deserve any of this. It shoulda been you that got away from everything, all I did was stab you in the back."
"You're still beating yourself up about that?" V asked, closing the distance between them. "I told you already, So Mi; came to terms with my hand a long time ago. If you told me the cure was just for yourself from the jump, I still woulda helped." She reached up and put her hand up to Song's chin, gently lifting her head to meet V's eyes. "I'd go through hell and back for you- did it once and I'd do it again."
Song didn't know why, but as much as she wanted to think that V's assurance made her feel any better about what she did, it didn't. They could've been together; both of them in the physical world. They wouldn't've had to worry about megacorps, or the NUSA, or anything else, but she was too damn selfish to realize that before it was too late.
V was about to lean in close for a kiss, but just before their lips touched, she suddenly recoiled sharply. "Fuck!" The construct staggered backwards, her hands had a death grip on her head as if to alleviate the pain she felt, but it didn't seem to be doing much good.
"V? What's wrong?" Song ran up to V, unsure of what to do to help.
V shook her head. "I… I don't fuckin' know!" she gasped. "Fuck it hurts! Hang on." V's construct suddenly vanished, leaving Song alone in cyberspace.
"V?!" Song yelled, her voice echoing through the net with no response in sight.
The netrunner started pacing frantically. She couldn't let this- whatever this was- happen; not after they were finally at the end. V had suffered enough, she couldn't let her go through even more pain on her behalf. She had to do something.
As soon as she vanished, V's construct reappeared. She looked to be in less pain than before, but by no means alright. "Alright… I should be… good- for the moment, at least," she said between deep, heavy breaths.
"V, what the hell was that?" Song asked, rushing forward to hold V as if she was about to float away.
"Rogue AIs," V answered, pausing for a moment before letting a slight chuckle escape her lips. "They, uh… they don't seem to like me very much."
Song nodded in understanding. "Must be somethin' about how you're stuck in the middle. Not quite one of them, but not quite human either," she theorized.
"That's what Alt seemed to think, anyway," V replied. "She's been doin' her best to keep 'em off my back, but lately… haven't seen her in a good while. And since I'm stuck behind the Blackwall, I'm still plenty exposed to them- especially when I'm projecting myself to the other side like this." V opened her mouth but stopped herself from saying anything more. She started looking around, her eyes wide with fear. "Fuck, they're comin' back. Persistent little- AGH!" She recoiled again.
Song couldn't bear to watch this. Seeing V suffer was too much for her. She had to do something, but no matter how hard she tried to think, there was nothing she could do. Suddenly, a realization hit her. There was something she could do.
"V, hang on!" Song assured her as she ran up to the merc, holding onto her tightly. "I'm gonna get you out of here!"
V looked up at her, doing her best to manage a confused expression through all the pain she felt. "What are you-" she stopped mid-sentence as she realized what she was going to do. "Song, no! Don't!"
But Song was committed. It didn't matter what happened to her. V had already done so much for her- done so much suffering on her behalf. It was time for her to suffer for V. "It's the only way. Gotta use the wall to punch through the wall. That way I can pull you out."
"DON'T!" V tried to protest, but it was already too late. She felt Song break through- the point of no return. All she could do was embrace her as they were both yanked out of cyberspace, and their vision went black.