As the footsteps got closer, Sophie turned her attention away from Mia’s corpse. The next moment, a woman appeared in the cage room.

The girl’s first impression of the woman was how large she was. The merc, for that was what she looked like, had to duck under the top of the doorway slightly as she entered. The sleek black, military-style bodysuit and heavy combat boots certainly added an intimidating edge to her presence. The look was enhanced by a dark grey coat that reached the middle of her thighs.

Her eyes were obscured by a black visor, the single line of light where her optics should be reminding Sophie of classic sci-fi appearances. Admittedly, the visor may have been her optics. The girl hadn’t gotten the chance to experience much of Night City after all, so her knowledge was lacking. The other notable facial feature was the perpetual frown. Sophie couldn’t tell if the woman was actually upset or if that was just a permanent expression.

Her two most striking features were the pair of silver hands, which the younger girl suspected continued further up the arms, and the mane of dark red hair. Gripped in one hand was an RT-46 Burya; an oversized tech revolver typically used to punch through armor or cyberware.

The woman looked around for a moment, eventually settling on the girl that was staring at her. Before she could say anything however, the wall next to her exploded. The scav ‘borg that Sophie had previously seen charged into the room, quickly locking onto the mercenary. His figure blurred and the caged girl was only able to see a faint afterimage as the man attacked. Fortunately, that was as far as he got.

A massive crack echoed in the room and the ‘borg dropped to the floor, his head missing. The merc lowered her Burya casually, as if flatlining a chromed out monster was an everyday occurrence.

“Hey, kid,” she said, moving towards her. “What’s your name? “

“Sophie.”

“I’m looking for two people. Think you can tell me where they are?”

“Who are you looking for?” The quick description the merc provided was enough for Sophie to realise she was here for the two teenagers she suspected were corpo kids. Still, the girl wouldn’t give up the info for nothing.

“I’ll tell you if you open my cage.” She frowned and took a closer look at the girl. She stared at the multitude of wounds that covered the captive kid.

“Kid, you’re nearly dead. Even if I let you out, you won’t survive.”

“I don’t care. Let me out and I’ll tell you what you want to know.”

“Fine. Don’t expect me to help you though. I’m not being paid for that.” With those words, the merc… stayed motionless. Moments later, the nearby gunfire stopped and a man, even larger than the woman, ran in, one hand gripping a Carnage shotgun.

“What’d ya need, Shade?” He asked.

“Need you to open the kid’s cage. Made a deal with her.” The man shot her an odd look but stepped forwards anyway, holstering the shotgun on his back. He grabbed onto the cell’s door and pulled. Sophie watched as his arms seemed to crack apart, revealing the insides. Gorilla arms? With a snap, the door’s locking mechanism broke, granting the girl freedom. The door creaked open slightly, though Sophie didn’t make any attempt to leave.

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“The boy is dead. He was harvested yesterday, a few hours after they brought him in.” The woman swore.

“The girl?”

“She’s alive,” the now free girl pointed to the cage next to her. In the back, the corpo girl could barely be seen, hiding behind the only bed in all of the cages.

“Well, that’s something at least.” The man opened the other cage and ‘Shade’ stepped inside, speaking quietly to the corpo girl. When the merc was finished, she turned to Sophie. “She’s asked me to get everyone here out of the den as well, willing to pay extra. You want to come with us?”

“No. I still have business to attend to.” Her eyes drifted to the body of her friend. “And I don’t trust you.” That got a scoff.

“Whatever you say. I doubt you’ll survive with all those injuries but if you do, my name’s Amber, or Shade if you’d prefer. You can find me at the Afterlife.” With that, she walked away, the corpo girl and the other previously captive teens following her.

As Amber left, the reborn girl realised that the noise coming from the rest of the scav den had stopped during the brief conversation. She waited for a few minutes, until she couldn’t hear anything at all in the area. Only then did she sag a bit, staring at Mia’s corpse. Have I completed my quest yet?

Mission Completed

Find a way to escape the Scavengers.

Difficulty: Very Hard

Reward: 2000 L-Coins, 1000 Eurodollars, Mid-Grade Healing Injection, Iron Resolve (Passive)

The girl ignored the currency and trait reward, instead focusing on the item. When she claimed the rewards, an object appeared in her hand. It reminded her of an Epipen, only slightly larger. There was a small window in it, allowing Sophie to see the bright green liquid it contained. System, can you show me a description of the item?

Mid-Grade Healing Injection

Heals most normal wounds, including small levels of bone damage. Does not have any effect on status conditions. Will leave scars.

Without a second thought, she jammed the injector into her chest. An intense rush of energy burst into her body and she watched as the green liquid slowly depleted. At the same time, she could feel her internal damage being repaired.

Her bones ached painfully where the scavs had drilled into her and the feeling of having nails forcefully pushed out of her body was extreme. Once most of the major pain had passed, she did her best to remove all of the dried blood and other liquids from her body. Afterwards, Sophie watched with a curious expression as the lacerations and bruises covering her body gradually disappeared.

Huh. I wonder how that works? She checked herself over. The injection had removed almost all traces of her recent abuse. All that remained was a multitude of scars, covering everywhere except her face. Well, she couldn’t actually see if there were any on her face, but the scavs had mostly left it alone when torturing her. She figured it was to get a better video. There was also the extremely poor condition of her body. She was malnourished, her ribs easily visible and there was barely a hint of muscle anywhere on her frame.

“Well, it could have been worse I suppose,” she murmured. With her body healed, Sophie was able to stand up, though her legs were shaky and weak. She gradually made her way over to Mia, who’s body remained where it had been dropped.

The girl dropped to her knees and pulled her friend’s still warm body closer. The injuries were severe, similar but even worse than what they had done to her the previous day. Minutes passed in which the only noise that could be heard were Sophie’s soft sobs. Only once the corpse no longer had any heat remaining did she stop.

Awkwardly, she bundled the body into her arms and scooted along the floor, heading deeper into the scav den. The rough concrete scratched her rear but she simply didn’t have the strength to stand and carry her friend. After what seemed like hours, Sophie made it to her destination. The industrial furnace, still spilling immense amounts of heat, loomed in front of her. Nearby, a mobile table was available.

With great effort, she was able to haul her friend’s body onto the table, wheeling her over to the mouth of the furnace. There, she stood in silence. Why? Why did you sacrifice yourself? Why am I so weak? The faces of her squadmates in her previous life flashed before her. Then the past months, where she grew to rely on and care for Mia.

With a heavy heart, Sophie closed her friend’s eyes and pushed her into the fire. The body quickly caught fire. She watched, intent on burning the last memories of the fallen girl into her mind forever. Only when the corpse was completely incinerated did she allow herself to speak.

“I’ll never be so weak again. I won’t allow myself to be protected. I won’t allow someone I care about to sacrifice themselves for me. No. I’ll become stronger. So strong nobody can touch me.” Her eyes hardened. “I’ll hunt them down. Anyone that behaves like these monsters. This, I vow.”

A mental command finally accepted the piece of cyberware she received from the welcome gift box. A sharp pain appeared across her skull and neck, but she paid no attention to it. It was a sign of improvement, the first tiny step on a path to gaining the power she wanted–no. That she needed.

“Even if I have to become a monster myself.”