It had been two weeks since Sophie arrived in Night City and while she’d had a few close calls, almost getting caught after stealing food, clothes or money, she’d managed to escape each time.
It was this record that had instilled in her a confidence that she could do more. After only a handful of levels in her Thief class, and only one level in her skills, she decided to try something more challenging.
That’s why the girl now found herself tucked into a slim gap between buildings, watching a group of Tyger Claws as they waited for Sophie’s target.
She was watching for Tasha, a woman playing at fixer, though from the smattering of information Sophie had gathered, she was little more than a street thug. Tasha had a reputation for working with all kinds of people, no matter how disgusting they were.
Sophie had overheard some of Tasha’s men talking in a noodle shop earlier that day, laughing about the latest job she’d picked up; a set of data for the Tyger’s being handed over that night. Thus, she had followed the group of thugs all evening until they showed up here. Sophie didn’t really have a plan, she just wanted to see if there was anything she may be able to get her hands on.
As Sophie waited, she felt the rain soak through her recently stolen hoodie. It made her shiver, but she stayed hidden in the shadows. She had quickly become sick of the rain as she was constantly soaked by it, given she had no home. As she thought about the rain, her eyes caught sight of a woman in a long black coat, with broad shoulders and hair slicked back into a tight braid. Her target for the day.
Sophie felt the now familiar surge of excitement bubbling up. The woman crossed the street towards the girl’s hiding spot, her bodyguards lumbering behind her. She activated Ghost and stayed as quiet as possible.
“You, go and grab the shard from the car. The Tygers look like they’re getting impatient.” The woman gestured at one of her lackeys, a man who quickly ran in a different direction. Tasha moved towards the Claws. Sophie ignored her and followed the goon.
She crept along the edges of the wall, moving quietly as the man got closer to the car, a sparkly new Mizutani Shion. The man popped one of the doors, reaching around and fumbling for the shard. Sophie had an epiphany. With Ghost active, she stormed towards the man.
The slapping of her feet against the wet ground caught the man’s attention but it was too late. Although she was small, planting her fist in the man’s jewels stunned him, allowing Sophie to grab his head and slam it into the side of the car multiple times. His dented skull left a trail of blood on the car as it fell to the ground. Sophie wasn’t sure if he was dead, but the adrenaline pumping through her didn’t let her stop to think.
She swiped the car’s key chip from the man’s neck, confirmed the datashard Tasha wanted was still in the vehicle and then jumped in. The key was slotted into her neck and she quickly set a course for an abandoned warehouse she had squatted in the previous week. As the car door slid closed and the engine purred, her rapidly beating heart started to slow.
“Holy fuck. What did I just do? What am I gonna do with this ride?” As the streets of Night City flashed past, she quickly realised that her impulsive decision to steal both the car and the data that Tasha was selling was monumentally stupid.
The young thief realised she would likely have to dump the car, but she wasn’t in a rush. Sophie decided to check the datashard she’d stolen. Slotting it into one of the ports on her neck, the data appeared in her vision. Her thoughts briefly questioned how that worked, considering her eyes were organic but she moved on.
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The amount of data was pitiful but the more she read, the paler her face became. Accessing the car’s autopilot mode, she changed her destination to Lizzie’s Bar, home of the Mox. The gang itself had only been recently established, a fact Sophie discovered after realising she’d arrived in the Cyberpunk universe during 2067, around 10 years before the game is set.
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Sophie’s stolen Mizutani Shion parked itself down the street from Lizzie’s Bar, the small thief slipping out and running towards the Mox stronghold after locking the car. As she approached, she spotted a young version of a familiar face. Rita Wheeler. The purple haired Mox bouncer stood at the door, baseball bat in hand. Her sharp gaze deterred a number of street thugs who loitered around the front of the bar.
Sophie ran directly towards her, slipping past drunkards as they stumbled around the parking lot. Unfortunately, she had severely overestimated her endurance, coming to a stop in front of the tough bouncer and almost keeling over, sucking in deep breaths. She took a few moments, then looked up, only to be met with an amused face.
“Well kid, you ran over pretty quick huh,” she spoke slowly, her voice oozing amusement as she looked at the small streetrat. “But you look a bit young to be partying. You need somethin’ from me?”
Struggling to get any words out as she huffed, Sophie instead responded by handing Rita the data she stole. The woman took the shard, glanced between it and the girl, then shrugged and slotted it in. Not even a few seconds later, her face grew stormy, a near palpable anger radiating from her. When she finished, she looked at Sophie.
“Fucking bastards. Come on kid, I’ll take you to Susie. You’ll need to explain everything to her.”
Without giving the girl time to answer, the bouncer turned and entered the braindance bar, two other Mox members moving to cover the door. Sophie followed closely behind her, looking at the bar that looked slightly different to the version she had visited so many times when she played the game.
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Rita walked briskly and Sophie had to pump her small legs as quickly as possible to keep up. The purple haired bouncer stormed into Susie Q’s office angrily, handing her the data Sophie had provided. Meanwhile, the girl in question tried to make herself smaller at the growing anger of the Mox leader. After all, while her confidence had grown after spending a few weeks in Night City, this was pretty much her first proper interaction. Considering she had brought bad news, she was finding her current situation very nerve wracking.
While Susie looked at the data, Rita seemed to notice Sophie’s reaction, her face softening.
“Sorry for the outburst kiddo. I haven’t introduced myself yet. Rita Wheeler, at your service,” she started to stick her hand out for a handshake but paused, then plopped it on Sophie’s head instead.
“I uhh, I’m Sophie. I’m a thief.” The moment the words left her mouth, Sophie realised what she’d said and blushed, mentally berating herself. Why would I say that?! Stupid Sophie! Just because Rita’s really cool and a total hottie doesn’t mean I should tell her I steal things for a living! She lowered her head even further, shrinking into her jacket in a pitiful attempt to hide her blushing face.
A bark of laughter interrupted her spiralling thoughts as Rita ruffled her hair. “Well little thief, thank you for getting this data to us. Can you tell us where you got it?”
Sophie looked up, finding both older women now looking straight at her. Calming her nerves, she spoke.
“I uhh, overheard some thugs talking about a deal their boss, Tasha, was making with the Claws tonight. She seems to want to become a fixer or something, but her rep is terrible ‘cause she works with anyone, even Scavs,” before she could continue, Susie interrupted her.
“I’ve heard of that bitch. We’ve spotted her with the Claws before but didn’t think much of it. I’m guessing there’s more?”
“Mmm, I went to the meeting place, some back alley in Japantown and found a bunch of Tygers waiting. Eventually Tasha arrived and sent one of her goons to a car for the data I gave you. I assume she was selling it to the Claws. I also, uhh, stole her car.” Sophie gave a sheepish grin when she mentioned the car. Both women looked at her strangely before Rita burst into laughter again. Susie just looked bemused, then turned serious.
“Well Sophie, on behalf of the Mox, thank you for getting this to us. I assume the Tygers wanted a list of our people and their information to cripple our operations. You klepping it from under their noses and giving us a heads up has possibly saved hundreds of lives. The Mox owe you now.” Rita nodded in agreement.
“If you need anything, just gimme a buzz. I like ya Soph, it’d be a shame to see you in an early grave.” Sophie’s interface lit up, Rita’s contact info sliding into her empty contacts list.
“I appreciate that. So, about that favour? I’d appreciate some work. Stealing things to be precise.” Considering how the Mox had treated her, Sophie quickly decided on what she wanted.
“Well, I’m sure we can find something for you to do.” Susie and Rita smirked at her.