Fandom Cyberpunk 2099

[StormWolf]

The sky over the port is the color of television, tuned to a dead channel…

A flat pall of poisoned lead clouds hanging low over Night City, blooming with the half reflected lights of the sprawl below - sodium silvery and painful as it drizzled twisting sheets of greasy, rancid rain. Neon and hologram lights splashed over the sodden concrete like fiber optic viscera.

Bloated, convulsing, choking; but the city keeps living and growing. The vast concrete canyons weaving the unbroken hive of the City of Dreams.

The City of Nightmares.

Shielded from the rain by a mega-highway cutting through Westbrook is one of the older haunts in Night City. A squat two floor cantina that has been the open alms of Solos and Edgerunners for generations – defying its own death and destruction to rise anew from the nuclear ashes of 2023, where it has stood resolute against the the ever-expanding mega-structures that box it it. Threaten to snuff it out.

The Forlorn Hope.

Here, drinks are exchanged for blood money. Bunker-sturdy booths provide security and anonymity for mercs of all stripes and weight classes of street cred. Where afterlife has the mystique and legacy of its own as catalyst and coffin for City legends, the Forlorn Hope is the watering hole of apex predators. Bar and patron have endured five corporate wars and countless smaller conflicts, nuclear fire, and repeated attempts at hostile takeover.

Yet it still stands. Defiant against a city where the only thing built to last is the machine that grinds the world around you to trash. Rick Freeman works the bar, same as his parents did before him – all-American tungsten-titanium hand working a wash rag over the countertop, mopping up booze and blood, shuffling away the brass casings and yellowed teeth from the latest brawl. There aren’t any automated turrets in the Forlorn Hope, but every display gun is fully loaded and fully functional.

No matter the hour, the Forlorn Hope’s neon sign flares and buzzes, advertising cold beer on tap, mixed drinks, home style barbecue, and live music. So long as nobody conducted their wetworking on the premises and left their bullshit at the door, the amenities remain available in the tradition of olde world taverns the world ‘round.

* * *​

When Diego dragged his ass out of bed that morning, he figured it wouldn’t be until sundown until he found himself in the deep end. Time enough to have a decent meal, give abuela her meds, maybe take a bite out of the day-job grind.

But here he was, blazing through the dusty dunes of the NorCal badlands behind the wheel of a klepped Wraithmobile with a righteously indignant host in pursuit. All before cocktail hour. Unethical. Insulting, even! His fists white-knuckling at the wheel in his tungsten-steel grip, Diego set his jaw tightly to keep himself from biting a chunk out of his tongue as the Type-66 soared over a low desert crest, splintering the trunk of a spindly joshua tree over the Quadra’s reinforced bumper.

Light munitions zipped and rattled against the chassis as a Raffen unloaded unloaded a submachine gun from the back of his bike, howling like a jackal all the while. Diego flinched away from the sharp impacts against the CrystalDome window, black prismatic pixel tears left where the rounds punched at the car’s shell.

“Carajo!” Diego spat, swerving in an attempt to ram the Raffen biker, only for the nimbler craft to serpentine away and in front of Diego and his stolen car. “Got you!” Flicking the red switch shroud and depressing the big red button, the Quadra’s twin-mounted machine guns coughed tracer streams through bike and biker. A body hit the dirt while the motorcycle tumbled over the crest of a nearby dune, taking a leg with it.

Yanking the wheel and cranking the gear, Diego spun the Quadra in a sharp 180 as he tumbled onto cracked asphalt, pushing in reverse as he matched the pursuing truck in a bout of machine gun jousting. Shards of windshield splashed against Diego, slashing at his cheek and pooling in the creases of his jacket. Lower to the ground than the pursuing truck, Diego’s counter-fire plugged through the grill - punching the engine block and driver-side wheel. Swerving, flames guttering; the crunch of frame against concrete k-rails.

Spinning the car about, keeping momentum, the last thing Diego saw in the badlands was the flare of a CHOOH2 tank going up.

* * *​

“Two-kay? Are you fucking with me?” Diego said, fists at his hips as he loomed over Burnout. The sharp-dressed chop-shopper was tutting softly against his polished chrome teeth.

“Temper temper, Cazador. It’s the nature of the biz. You should know this better than most,” Burnout said around an unlit cigarette, tracing a cybernetic finger around one of the bullet holes in the Type-66s door.

“You’re goddamn right. I know a tricked out Quadra like that can run for almost 80k.”

“And if you brought it back not looking like target practice, you would be looking at a far more substantial cut. But as it stands, amigo, I have repairs, detailing, a custom painjob – involving a fuck-bucket and a half of gold, by the way, and a small mountain of paperwork. So…” Burnout paused to flick his lighter, taking a drag as the butt flared cherry red. “You get two kay, because you still need to be paid for your work, but I need to turn a profit.” Lead-gray smoke swirled in a nimbus around Burnout’s head, his back turned to Diego, who had set to pacing like a caged animal.

“Come on, man. That’s hardly gonna cover rent…” Diego said with a sigh, broad shoulders sagging. Burnout kept his back turned to the Nomad, taking another drag and flicking ash onto the rusted hood of the Quadra.

“I know your situation, Cazador. You’ve been a good driver and merc, so I’ll do you a solid, provided you don’t lip me over pay ever again.” Diego felt his lips tighten over his teeth, ready to bare and retort, but as if sensing the Aldecaldo was about to make a mistake, Burnout continued.

“I forwarded your deets to an… associate. If they like the cut of your jib, they’ll be in touch. Deal?”

Silence hung in the air heavy as the smoke for a few long moments before Diego answered. “Deal…”

“Good. Stay in touch, get the fuck out.”

* * *​

Back at Woodchipper’s Diego leafed a handful of plasti-laminate bills free from the roll of Eurodollars he got from Burnout before dumping it into the old ammo tin he used as a safe. Mercy was working at truck in the shop, Antonio was god-knew-where. The radio in the garage squawked Morro Rock while Abuela’s room was full with one of her favorite telanovelas.

Diego was in the midst of loading Abuela’s airhypo with her evening meds when his holo chirped with a message.

>>[#ENC://Recluse] Cazador. Forlorn Hope, tonight – happy hour.

Diego squinted as he pulled his agent from his pocket. The message was encrypted, but it wasn’t like Diego had the mind nor means to run a backtrace if he wanted to.

>>[Cazador] Who the fuck is this?

>>[#ENC://Recluse] The handle gives it away, doesn’t it?
>>[#ENC://Recluse] Burnout sent me your deets. You want a job or not?

>>[Cazador] Yeah, alright. I’ll be there.

>>[#ENC://Recluse] Good. I’ll find you. And the others. Don’t be late.

Diego gave Abuela her shot and a kiss in her iron-gray hair before heading out to his car,
“Mercy! I got another gig. You’re in charge.” Diego jangled his keys, twirling the ring on his metallic black trigger finger like some discount TV gunslinger.

“What do you mean she’s in charge?!” Antonio called from the roof, wearing nothing but a set of daisy dukes and mirrorshades.

“Because only one of you is fetching a tan between the solar panels during shop hours, Antonio…” Diego was halfway into his Thorton before thrusting a finger back up at the roof

“And don’t forget to change the hepa filters! If Abuela is coughing when I get back, I’ll feed you your own ass!”

* * *​

Parked atop a stool at the Forlorn Hope’s bar in the basement, Diego rummaged for his rumpled pack of yeheyuans in his ballistic jacket, plucking a bent cigarette free from stiff cellophane and lighting it. He cast his eyes around, noting fresh caulk on the walls pathing up bullet holes. The band he’d never heard of giving it their all on the stage beneath the quartz halogen glare of the overhead lights. Laser lights and holo-technics bloomed through the thick haze of tobacco smoke and Night City humidity.

Diego could feel the languid trail of road-sour sweat slither down his spine. Elbows perched on the bar like the bipod of a cannon, the blackened metallic trigger finger of his right hand tapped at the dull countertop, subconsciously matching the rhythm set by the band. They were catchy; growing on him like a fungus.

“What’ll it be, killer?” Rick asked from behind the bar, metal fingers drumming expectantly. His two-tone black and pink hair sat in thick curtains, framing all-seeing emerald eyes. Diego took a moment to peruse the menu as it scrolled like liquid crystal past his elbow, grumbling thoughtfully around his cigarette,

“Hope Reborn.”

“Light or dark?” Rick drove on, grabbing a squat and angular tumbler from the clean rack.

“Light.”

Rick’s hands worked in a blur; mezcal, vermouth, and blood orange juice shaken over ice, garnished with jalapeno slices and a blood orange twist. Sweet, sour, spicy, and smokey all unfolding on the palette. Fucking perfection.

Now for the ‘others’. This oughta be good...

[ Karcen SomebodyElse Fox of Fate Nellancholy ]

 

[Fox of Fate]

Firebrand's Mission: Dirty Deeds (Done Dirt Cheap)
Firebrand stood in the bed of her Butte "Little Mule", machine gun mounted and ready as she hooked it up to the remote control system she recently had installed. She used her Kiroshi's to give one last scan, marking what enemies she could find. "Well this might be one less gang when I'm done..." she said, getting into the driver seat, testing the directional controls for the gun. Once she was happy she grabbed the wheel and sped forward, crashing through the metal gate, and then the rolling door of the warehouse and pinning one gang member against a wall with the front of her car, right beside some boxes of street drugs. The rest of the Piranha's were stunned and confused for a moment before opening fire, with Firebrand's machine gun returned the favor. It would quickly run out of ammo, but not before multiple gang members laid dead or dying. She got out as she heard a commotion from the leader's room. Once the leader and his bodyguards came out, they saw Firebrand, executing the last of the dying gang members. "I prefer not to prolong THEIR suffering...but yous I will be" she said, putting her gun away and bringing out her monowire. Two quick movements, the bodyguards were sliced up and the leader restrained by the super heated, molecule thin wire and Firebrand stepping forward. "Now tell me, why did you boost these drugs and go around the supplier?" she asked. The leader spat on her jacket, causing Firebrand to amputate his arm, she would then control the bleeding. "You have 3 more limbs, I can do this all day but you...if a human loses 2 liters of blood, they die, end of story so...shall we tempt fate?" she said, smirking.

Three hours, and three limbs, later the leader of the Piranha's was dead, and Firebrand had her information, Biotechnica had hired them. She searched the compound, finding a computer with the files she needed as proof. She then loaded up the meds and drove towards Rocky Ridge where they would be picked up by a transporter of the fixer that hired her.

A short time later she got a call. "Very good, unfortunately we can't move on this information yet...I know you want to burn the corpos but that'll have to wait...for now go to the Forlorn Hope, your particular skill set will be needed there." the Fixer said, hanging up before she could respond.

-----

Highway to Hell
The drive was uneventful. She had restocked on ammo for her guns, and refueled her vehicle. Passing through multiple Militech checkpoints in NC she felt...trapped. And like she was being watched. Which she was, and she knew it wouldn't be worth it to try anything against these corpo soldiers. She was outnumbered by...she didn't even know to one. As she arrived at the Forlorn Hope she parked up her vehicle, beside a strangely familiar Thorton, but right now she couldn't place who owned it. She walked inside and then she noticed Cazador, a fellow Aldecado, although from a different family. "Well whatever they need me for has just gotten interesting" she said to herself, sitting beside her fellow Nomad. "Let me guess, got sent here after a mission?" she said, chuckling, ordering a simple shot of tequila.

 

[Karcen]

Project Titan ( Tia)
mentions:
location: Japantown

​

Japantown one of the more colorful districts of night city and home to an equally colorful gang , a place where white was most often used only to show the vibrancy of the neon greens, and yellows, and reds of the signs, shops, and the gang members. This was not a place where the color white was truly noticed or left to show itself without something to take the attention, and yet something white got everyone's attention. Perhaps it was the pure white of the less than practical outfit, or the paleness of skin, or even the almost pure white hair of the figure that stood out the most. That would be true enough in a den of neon anyone in just white did stand out, but that was not the most striking feature of the figure, what most noticed first and what drew the most fear was how she moved. She didn't move like a tank that forced all others to yield, nor did the have a feline grace that saw her move like she was not a solid being, no she floated through the air. Her feet were inches off the ground as if the dirty earth below was not worthy of her touch. When people looked from the woman's feet to her fac however, they saw not hardened self righteousness that she was the greatest, but rather a disturbing innocence that seemed a paradox upon what all could tell was a being of power. A Psion a mutant with unearthly powers, an object of fear and envy, what others would have to spend many lives to gain he money to even mimic a fraction of she was born with, power. The mystery of psions kept many from trying anything, rumors of what they could do were well knows, mind readers, flesh warpers, mind enslavers, there was no telling what danger lurked behind the innocent face of the floating woman. It was only by these rumors that the unearthly woman in white was left alone, their fear of the unknown perhaps saving their lives more than they knew. If they move, if they attacked, if they tried to call in NCPD then they would unknowingly be drawn into her game.

Tia moved through the twisting maze that was japantown completely lost. She had gotten direction and even told where to go, but it was not easy to find your way around on an empty stomach and in an unfamiliar place. Tia had tried to ask people, but when she moved close to them they away ran off shouting something about psions and devils. Tia didn't really know what any of that meant and why they were saying that to her. None of the scientists had ever talked about devils or psions, they had mentioned deamons, but that it was other peoples jobs to deal with those. Still she had a game to play, someone named recluse, assuming they weren't some spider, had contacted her to play a game. Tia had been hiding form Militech after she had kind of of blew up one of their floors. This recluse must be working with militech so the job they offered had to be one of the games that Militach had her play. That was a good sign to Tia as it meant Militech was at least less mad about what she did, so many she could go home soon. Tia didn't really think she was escaping or hiding from Militech for any grand reason, she was just trying to avoid getting i trouble. Still the game that recluse wanted to play was an odd one, normally games were hunt down the arasaka soldiers, or destroy the arasaka base. Really most were to do with arasaka who Tia was told were really bad people so it made sense. Still they were just games and the people were fine after the games, or so she had been told. Really they had been good actors, Tia had even sometimes thought they might really be from the evil arasaka, but they were just there to test her.

This game was to get a thing from a place and take a person down. Well she had to get a chip from them, just another game though Militech was being so mean as they didn't tell her where to get any food. She had decided to hide not long ago, but she hadn't known that people here had no food. For Tia food was a colored paste and its was normally grey, but sometimes had over flavors based on the color, her favorite was orange, but when she asked if people had any grey to eat they were confused. Really Tia was tempted to just go back home and get grounded or whatever militech decided. Still she didn't want to get punished and Militech was likely still made so she couldn't go back just yet even if she was hungry. Well maybe they would have food at this place forlorn hope. That really was a weird name, it wasn't lab hope, or section hope, or anything like that like at Militech. The outside world really was just as strange and weird as the researchers had told her it was, though not as scary, or well everyone seemed scared but she didn't know why.

Floating through the street Tia would figure out from the map where she was and where the drop box was. The reasons he floated was nothing special, the researchers had told her it was good training and had trained her with it so much she just kind of floated by herself without even thinking about it. She almost needed to focus to not float these days, as the new thing in her head made it even harder to force her power to turn off completely when her instincts told her to do something. She had to get a package and a chip from the person delivering it. What the package was Recluse hadn't told her, but Tia knew to obey orders when told and not to question them so she wasn't about to do so and make Militech think she was dumb and had forgotten. Still how did one remove things from people? Or was this shard in the person or something they were carrying?

" Hmm questions questions maybe i should take the head as well?" Tia asked herself not at all getting this would be fatal as well she had been told what she had done in other games wasn't so she had no reason to think this game was anything different. She had also been told they could fix any people she broke so she didn't have to worry about anything. " But people get scared if i bring them back heads i wonder why?" She mused remembering times she had been told to get the head of commanding arasaka officers in games and when she brought the heads back the ones given orders had seemed scared. " Maybe it was the blood?" That had to be it before she had been bloody when she brought back the heads. " Still heads have lots of blood, i'll just take it apart" that was a good plan to Tia.

With the spot picked the question was who was the person? Tia looked around people either turning and running away or giving her a wide berth for some reason like she would bite them. That was kind of mean she was a very good girl, minus the one bit of trouble she was in she had always been a good girl. The spider person had sent pictures as well so Tia looked through them while she waited. " hmmm lets see she mused flicking the air as she looked through the pictures then looked around.

She was not the one who found her target, as the sound of gunfire erupted and bullets flew at Tia. she almost didn't have to think as she turned in the air and the bullets stopped before reaching her. her telekinetic powers shielding her with an unseen wall of force when she unconsciously sensed the danger. Tia had been shot a good few times to train this reaction and every now and then she would have something thrown at her in the labs without warning to see if she would stop it.

Looking to the source of the gunfire Tia would smile it was her target. The person was not exactly anyone that stood out in a crowd, and Tai might have missed them if not for the gunfire. Why he had decided to try to shoot her tai didn't know, the reason in truth being his fixer had learned someone was after him and tipped him off and the floating girl seemed about as much an interception as anyone, Still it was his mistake. Tia had no weapons to use, while Militech trained her to use her powers they did give her weapons that she had to use her powers on, btu she had left them at home. So she was in a little bit of a bind as the target unloaded more bullets at her, which was annoying. While her shield was powerful enough to stop bullets, it wasn't unbreakable, powerful ordinance or just volume of fire could bring it down, but this man only had a hand gun. That was at least what she thought as seeing his gun was having no effect and well with it now just being them as anyone sane had cleared the street at the sound of guns. The man had more than small arms, he had mantis arms. The blade unfolded and with a speed born from augmented legs he leapt up into the air both blade brandished at Tia.

What exactly he was trying to do Tia didn't know " Does he think i can't deal with him up close?" she asked herself as she was able to deal with anyone at any range with her powers, well not any range snipers had always been the worst for her.

Tia raised a hand and telekinetically gripped the man before bringing her arm down swiftly, bringing the man who was caught mid air slamming down into the ground. it was enough to crack the pavement, but not enough it seemed to keep the man down as his arms held another surprise as they launched mini missiles from a hidden lower port. The arms were a very costly custom bit of chrome and they could launch gas grenades, namely smoke. Tai was left blind to where the man was as even if she blocked the smoke she could not see through it.

The man could have run, but then he might be chased and would have to deal with the issues that came with fucking up a dead drop. His only good option right now was to take down the mutants blocking his path. More shots ran out form the smoke and Tai was surprised having to focus to make sure she was protect in the right area to avoid whatever trick the man had. The truth was the only trick he had was desperation as he tried to stay out of sight and Tia tried to grope blindly in the smoke with her powers to try to grab him. She was expecting something like a shock grenade or frag grenade, or some kind of explosive she would have a very hard time dealing with. it was just like on other games where they threw her weakness at her.

The expected blast never came and the smoke only lasted so long, the man was revealed after a short time and only then did he try to run when he realized his barrage had truly done nothing. Dealing with this fuck up might be a head ache but that was better than being dead. he never got the chance to run as Tai finally got to see him and once more her powers were able to grab him.

" Looks like i win " Tai said with a childish giggle " Now to get the shard and package " She said her powers going to work as she found a box that looked right. The man tried to make sounds but Tai closed his mouth with her mind, she didn't like screams that were close, they were all to real. " Shardy shard where is that shard " She mused her powers keeping the man aloft as s she telekinetically tore his clothe s apart ripping them to shreds and keeping it all suspended. " Nope not in the clothes" She sighed the man nude before her " i guess it's really in your head that's no fun blood is really scary you know?" she asked rhetorically her tone like she was chastising someone for playing a game wrong.

" Well i guess i'll just have to take you apart then, i am sure Militech will put you back together just fine they always do in games" She said as she focused on the mans head. His skin started to deform his eyes going wide with pain and fear, all of which was lost on Tis as she peeled away his face with her mind layer by layer. The blood that splattered forth impacted the unseen wall between the world and Tia and ran down it. She continued the blood all being pulled away from the bone and metal skull which shattered under the strain of her attack. everything came apart as the seams, plates and screws being torn into smaller bits that they had been installed as. The mechanical bit of the man floated apart as Tia looked through what had once been an edgrunner and finally saw it. " Found you" she said happily reaching into the floating parts and picking up a shard that had been in the mans head

With that she let the man fall her game here done, though she had to deliver this stuff the the forlorn hope.

Location: Forlorn hope
Find the bar was much easier than finding a person, as buildings didn't move in Tia's experience. though people were still so very odd about her, she just didn't get people that weren't in games or part of militech. The outside was scary btu not that scary it seemed. Getting into the bar was an issue as Tia was apparently unknown or so the man at the doors said. he had only relented when she mentioned the spider that had started the games. Tia hadn't really been told much just get the stuff and go to the bar then wait. Well bars had food right? Tia floated to the table that she guessed was where you got food " Do you have any orange, maybe just green?" She asked not knowing others wouldn't get she was asking for food, and completely obvious to how painfully out of place she was.