the baleful primal

“TEST OF A PERSON’S TRUE VALUE? DEATH. FACING IT, STARING IT DOWN. YOU STILL GOT A CHANCE TO BE SOMEBODY.”
– JOHNNY SILVERHAND

◂ ◁ ▷ ▸

Johnny rubbed his eyes roughly before straightening up, exhaling. He had never made it a secret that he enjoyed being the pilot every once in a while to have some fun, but this time, it made him sick to his stomach. He tried not to think of how that could have been the last time they’d ever speak again.

Shaking the thought away, Silverhand began to pace the rooftop, muttering to himself as he worked out a plan. Two cigs and ten minutes later he was still pacing the roof, but now V’s holo was ringing in his ear as he called the Afterlife.

Remnants of memories floated to the surface, ones that made his limbs twitch: the sound of whirring heli-blades, the word terrorists splashed over the evening news, Spider whispering, “I’m sorry”, in his ear, and red neon lights.

The familiar lick of righteous anger began to rear its head, but unlike his younger days, this time it came with the trappings of anxiety that had Johnny wondering why the hell he thought he could pull this off. The only thing he’d ever been good at was getting the people he cared about killed. Alt, his team, Rogue –

The holo made a soft click as the line was answered, bringing Johnny back from his spiral. 

“Hey V, what’s going on?”

“Rogue, it’s Johnny,” he replied, V’s borrowed voice low. “I have a huge favour to ask, you got a sec?”

A deep sigh came from the other end of the line, making him crack a smile.

“‘Course it’s you. You only call me to talk biz. I’m not interested in whatever stupid idea you’ve got, Johnny. If that’s all, I’ll save us both the time and hang up now.”

“Wait Rogue, please,” he said quickly, “at least gimme the chance to explain for chrissakes. It’s about V.”

When she didn’t answer, but didn’t hang up, he took that as an invitation and pressed on.

“You know V’s dying because of the biochip: we’ve tried everything from experimental tech to plain ripping it out. Well, she’s finally at the end of her line because of the fucking thing. The only option left is to get her into Mikoshi. Tonight.”

Rogue inhaled sharply, before exploding, bitterness thick in her voice. “Oh for fuck’s sake, Johnny, Arasaka again? You died the last time you went into that building, or do you not remember?!”

Anger leapt to his voice. “It’s always going to be Ara-fucking-saka, Rogue, until that family goes extinct or we do. If it wasn’t Arasaka, it’d be Militech, or Biotechnica, the list goes the fuck on! I may have died that night, but those poor excuses for piss-pods have been stealing the souls of thousands just because they could, and no one was doing a damn thing until we did something about it. And I seem to be the only one who remembers that part!”

“Johnny, I -” Rogue started, but he cut her off.

“There hasn’t been a single day that I don’t think about it since I’ve come back. Not a single day I don’t think about Shaitan, Morgan, Alt… I mourn, Rogue. Is that what you want to hear? They murdered so many of ours, goddamnit! And all of this is besides the point! The point is that V nearly flatlined two hours ago because of Arasaka tech that happens to contain my sorry ass, and I barely managed to get her to her damn ripperdoc in time to save her. And you know what her ‘friends’ offered her when she woke up?”

“What?” Rogue whispered.

“They gave her an iron and a handful of pills,” he punctuated the words with a fist into his hand, “and left her on a rooftop to die by herself. Some fucking friends. I may not have been the one to put her in this situation, but I’ll be damned if I don’t try and get her out of it.”

“Johnny,” Rogue said, after a long pause. “I’m.. I’m sorry. It’s… this has all been both a dream and a nightmare, having you back. I thought I was done grieving for you, for everyone, for how it used to be. I have a life now, but…”

“I know you think about it too,” he replied, a little softer. “And I know it hurts you every time I speak to you in her body. And you should know, it hurts me too. I won’t ever regret what I did that night, Rogue, but I regret not doing better for everyone there. Especially you.”

Johnny sighed and straddled the rooftop ledge. Words he hadn’t realized he’d been holding onto were pouring out of his mouth like water, a weight on his shoulders easing as he kept talking.

“I was an arrogant prick, and I guess I still am, but at least I can own it. And as much as I’m sure you’d love to say ‘I told you so’, V is going to die unless I do something. After everything she’s done for me, I can’t die knowing I hadn’t exhausted all our leads; that I could have made a world of difference to one person in this fucking cesspool of a city.”

Rogue was quiet, but Johnny could hear the background noise of the Afterlife coming through. He lay back on the cold cement and shut his eyes, feeling lighter than he had in years, waiting and hoping.

“She’s changed you.” It wasn’t sarcastic, or pointed. Maybe relieved.

He cleared his throat. “Yeah, well, we rubbed off on each other I guess. Look, we’re wasting time, are you gonna help or not?”

A bassline beat through the line.

“Rogue?”

“…fine. But last time, Johnny.”

He released the breath he had been holding and got to his feet to start pacing again. “Thanks Rogue, I owe you one. I got the deets already, you want ‘em now?”

Quickly, Johnny outlined the plan he had cobbled together. When he finished, he sat down in V’s chair, a stream of curses half meant for him emitting from the other line.

“You’re out of your goddamn mind,” Rogue stated, and he heard her pop a bottle and take a long drink. “Have you told anyone else about this plan of yours? Is there, dare I ask, a Plan B?”

“You’re the first and only person who knows so far. And no, this is Plan Z, but it’s going to work,” Johnny replied, Night City fading to a dusky backdrop. “It has to, we have no options left.”

A barstool scraped across the floor from Rogue’s end, and he heard the sound of her heels walking the floor in the Afterlife.

“I’m going to miss this place, y’know.”

He frowned. “You’re coming home, Rogue. Nothing to miss just yet.”

She exhaled softly. “We both know I’ve got unfinished business to deal with, Johnny. It’s only going to end one way for me.”

“Rogue…” he hesitated, then said, “you’ll be back to being the Queen as soon as we get V stable. We’re all going to come home from this.”

They agreed on where to meet and disconnected, leaving Johnny feeling empty as he gazed at the city. Arasaka Tower glowed in the distance, sticking far above the city skyline like a goddamn sore thumb.

◂ ◁ ▷ ▸

A pack of cigarettes disappeared while Johnny waited outside of Tom’s Diner, attempting to smoke his anxiety away. He half-watched the news from the window, but he already knew what they were saying: Yorinobu Arasaka was taking over the family business, effective immediately. The truth was that Yorinobu no longer existed anymore – it was daddy-dearest who now looked out from behind his son’s eyes, overwritten by his engram. 

Johnny checked the time again as he lit another cig when two dusty Thortons pulled up. Four Aldecaldo members sat in the back of each vehicle, while more leapt out of the cabs. A tall, dark-haired woman shrugged on a leather jacket as several more nomad trucks arrived behind them. Digging her hands deep into her pockets, the woman approached Johnny with a genuine smile: an NC rarity. Two men followed close behind her.

“Hey Panam. Mitch, Saul,” Johnny gave them a nod.

“Hey… Johnny, right?” Panam chuckled nervously, glancing at Mitch. “This will take some getting used to. How’s V holding up? She… okay?”

Gesturing with V’s hand, he tapped his chest. “She’s not looking good, but V’s hanging in there. We have to get inside that building as fast as possible.”

Panam paled, but straightened and squared herself. “You can count on the Aldecaldos, don’t worry. V’s family, and we’ll do anything for family.”

“Are we ready to go?” Saul asked, frowning. “Time is of the essence, is it not?”

Johnny shook his head and tossed his cig on the ground, stamping it out. A midnight Caliburn arrived, then a black Sprinter, followed by a well-loved Thorton pickup.

“I called in the cavalry for this. Can’t take any chances when we’re only getting one, and V is owed a number of favours.”

He headed towards the Caliburn as a woman stepped out. Dark teal tresses and a close side-shave in the dim light lent Rogue a ghostly visage. Tucking her pistol into a holster, she gave Johnny a once over. 

“Oh V,” she murmured.

A well-built man with a cyborg eye and a long, worn leather coat halted beside Rogue, while a short woman in coveralls perched against the diner wall to light a smoke, leg bouncing.

“Rogue, meet Judy and River,” he said, gesturing to each respectively. “Friends of V.”

“We’ve worked together before,” Rogue smiled at Judy, who returned it, before nodding to River. “You, not so much. But an ex-cop with a flair for rule breaking should be useful. I do my homework,” she added, seeing River’s surprise.

Judy went to Johnny’s side and peered at his borrowed face, face drawn. “Is she really still in there? What happened?”

He grimaced. “We had a meeting with one Hanako Arasaka, and V ended up having an episode as we were leaving. She blacked out, nearly flatlined, and after barely getting her to her ripper, the fucker hands her a gun. So now we’re all here instead. For fuck’s sake,” he said teresely, peering down the alleyway behind Judy. “Where the hell is he?”

“I apologise for my tardiness.”

A weather-worn man appeared from the shadows of the diner. Silver streaked through both his black hair pulled into a neat ronin knot and a closely trimmed beard. The subtle hint of a sheathed katana was slung around Goro Takamura’s waist, and two pistols were holstered on his chest, concealed beneath a coat.

“You invited him here, Johnny, are you fucking kidding me?!”

Rogue rounded on Johnny, pulling her gun and pointing it towards Takamura, who hadn’t moved.

Judy hung back with a dirty look, while River and Panam watched. Johnny stepped out and around in front of Goro, glaring at Rogue.

“You really think I’d bring that big of a liability for something this fucking serious? Put the gun away, and calm the fuck down, alright? Now,” he growled.

Rogue glared at Johnny, then Takamura, who bowed his head.

“My role within Arasaka was forfeit the moment Hanako-sama learned of my inability to act on the will of her father; or rather, my rejection of killing V. Whether it was mercy or something else, she relieved me of my position, but did not tell her father the truth about why I was gone. You are right to be suspicious,” he said quietly, “but I owe V my freedom. I may wear the ghosts of Arasaka, but I am not your enemy.”

Rogue and Goro stared at each other a long moment, before she exhaled harshly and holstered her gun.

“And I’m the unreasonable one,” she muttered, lighting a cig and standing beside Judy. 

Johnny shook his arms out, bouncing on his toes. “Right, now that that’s done with, there’s just one more piece of the puzzle left to -”

V’s holo began ringing. Panam raised an eyebrow at Johnny.

“That for you?”

Ignoring her, he quickly answered.

“Hello?”

A woman with a pronounced street-drawl answered. “This the terrorist holed up in V?”

“Ah, this must be Regina,” he replied, smiling. “Look, if you’ve got beef, save it. We’re here for V first and foremost. Think you can handle that?”

Regina snorted. “Alright, fine. Everyone is in position and ready to go: strings pulled, favours cashed in. You better make sure V appreciates the hell outta this,” she added, begrudging admiration in her voice. “Not just anyone could get all the fixers of NC in one place, never mind working together.”

“Consider us legends when we’ve pulled this off,” Johnny replied, and the line went dead.

“What did Regina have to say?” Rogue asked, arms folded.

“They’re all in position, waiting for the signal.”

A slew of messages suddenly came in at the same time, flashing on V’s phone. The first one had Wakako’s signature.

Call me when you arrive. My people are in place.

The remaining messages were almost all from Delamains, stating they were ready. The last one came from someone named Excelsior.

On your word, V.

Johnny tucked V’s phone away, very conscious of all the eyes on him. It was one thing to have an audience at a show, or a couple girls backstage. And it was another to be painted across the news to millions of strangers. But the way he was being watched right now made Johnny feel as if he were truly present for the first time since he has died, not just a pilot in a body. A chill slid down his spine.

“Okay. Rogue?”

“Let’s get this show on the road! Judy, you’re with me,” she nodded to the tuner, heading back to her car.

Judy offered Johnny a small smile as she returned to her Sprinter.

“Keep her safe, eh?”

“Do my best,” he replied, V’s voice an underliner. The two women peeled out and were gone. Johnny turned to the remainder of them.

“Right, here’s the plan. Rogue and Judy are going to dismantle the initial security so Alt can break into their systems, then direct us from there. Ward, Goro,” he nodded to the two men, “it’s your job to take care of the exterior soldiers and drones. Don’t care how, just do it thoroughly.”

Takamura and River turned on their heels and disappeared into the darkness together.

“Panam, I’m riding with you for the first half. We’ll meet up with Excelsior and the Delamains. Reggie and the other fixers are on standby to redirect NCPD, MaxTac, and whatever other shit show tries to rain down on us. We’ve only got one chance. No one will be expecting such a turnout.”

Panam twirled a finger in the air, heading back to her truck. “Let’s mount up!”

Johnny took one last look at the news inside the diner, but caught his reflection. He stared hard at V’s face, knowing she was behind those eyes, somewhere. She had given him her full trust to do this: there was no fucking way he was going to let her down now.

Lighting a cig, he strode towards Panam’s truck, taking a long drag before getting inside.

“Alright. Let’s do this.”