The aging Thorton Galena crawled along the Badlands highway, leaving a faint trail of black smoke behind it.
Every rattle from beneath the hood sounded like the final breath of a dying machine.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Lena watched a massive silhouette rise beyond the desert.
Night City.
The city she had explored countless times through a computer screen was finally standing before her.
Colossal skyscrapers pierced the polluted clouds.
Elevated highways crossed between districts like arteries carrying an endless stream of vehicles.
Holographic advertisements flickered across the skyline, competing for attention even from kilometers away.
The city looked enormous, crowded, and suffocating.
In her old life, Lena had guided V through those streets hundreds of times.
She had accepted gigs, hunted cyberpsychos, purchased weapons, and dealt with fixers whose names could inspire either respect or terror.
Back then, Night City had been a map.
Now she could see the exhaust hanging above its highways and the artificial glow staining the distant sky.
Millions of people lived within those towers, each fighting to survive long enough to become someone—or dying before the city ever learned their name.
Lena couldn’t hide the excitement in her eyes.
She was finally here.
“Listen, chicas,” Jackie said from the rear seat.
“We’re professionals, right?”
His voice carried more uncertainty than confidence.
“You two have done this kind of job before?”
Valerie glanced at him through the rearview mirror.
“What’s wrong?
Nervous?”
“Me?
Nervous?”
Jackie laughed loudly enough to make his denial unconvincing.
After a brief silence, he cleared his throat.
“Maybe a little.”
Valerie smirked, though her fingers had tightened around the steering wheel.
It was also her first real smuggling job, and a heavily guarded border stood between them and Night City.
Lena reached over and gave Valerie’s shoulder a reassuring pat.
“Relax.
I’ve got your back.”
Valerie glanced sideways at her and nodded.
Jackie noticed the gesture.
“Hold on.
Are you two together, or have you known each other for a while?”
“We grew up together,” Valerie answered.
“We’re family, just like you said about Heywood.”
Jackie’s uncertainty faded beneath a broad smile.
“Now I’m really starting to like you two.”
The conversation eased some of the tension, but it returned the moment the Galena approached the checkpoint.
Massive alloy gates divided the Badlands from Night City.
Armored walls extended across both sides of the highway, their surfaces scarred by bullet impacts and repaired sections of metal.
Rotating surveillance equipment covered the towers.
Red scanning beams swept continuously over approaching vehicles, while automated turrets tracked traffic from reinforced platforms above.
The border personnel wore matching protective armor and carried standardized smart rifles.
They stood behind cover with the rigid posture of soldiers who expected trouble.
Lena activated her Kiroshi optics and focused on the nearest turret.
Blue data moved across her vision.
[Automated Defense Turret]
[Classification: Military-Grade Area Defense Platform]
[Network: Night City Border Security System]
[Weapon System: High-Velocity Smart Machine Gun]
[Status: Standby]
The turret’s armored housing concealed most of its vulnerable components.
Even if Lena could damage one with the Burya, several more covered the same inspection lane.
“If those turrets start firing,” she murmured, “this car won’t last two seconds.”
From the rear seat, Jackie handed Valerie a cargo manifest bearing the logo of a logistics company.
According to the documents, the container in the back was part of an ordinary shipment that would conveniently disappear from official records after crossing the checkpoint.
The arrangement was common enough in the Badlands.
Nomads transported goods.
Border officials ignored irregularities.
Everyone took a share of the payment.
Jackie produced a pink credchip next.
“This is for the vultures inside the administration building.”
Valerie accepted it.
The chip contained the bribe arranged for the checkpoint official, but Lena knew money wouldn’t solve everything.
“This shipment is different,” she said.
Jackie leaned forward.
“Different how?”
“Border guards overlook ordinary contraband all the time.
Lena nodded toward the cargo container behind them.
“But this belongs to Arasaka.
And since Valerie and I left the Bakkers, our clan credentials won’t protect us.
The scanners will flag the container, and the guards will report it.”
Jackie’s face tightened.
“Then why the hell are we driving straight into the checkpoint?
We waiting for them to turn us into Swiss cheese?”
“If they intended to arrest us, we would already be surrounded.”
Lena remained calm.
“Border security won’t want trouble with Arasaka unless they know exactly who owns the cargo and why it’s here.
They’ll probably let us through after recording everything.”
“Recording it for who?”
“Arasaka.”
Lena looked toward the distant city.
“Or anyone willing to pay for the information.”
Valerie cursed under her breath.
“So they take money from Nomad smugglers, sell information to the corporations, and collect bribes at the checkpoint?”
“They get paid three times for doing one job,” Lena said.
“That’s practically the Night City business model.”
Ahead of them, vehicles entered the inspection lanes one at a time.
Mechanical arms moved along embedded tracks, passing red and blue scanners over each car.
Armed guards observed from reinforced positions, their smart rifles always ready.
Every few minutes, a vehicle was redirected toward a separate quarantine area.
Some drivers climbed out while shouting threats and insults.
Others remained calm and quietly handed over credchips, clearly familiar with the process.
“Next vehicle,” an electronic voice announced.
“Vehicle identification confirmed.
Prepare all documentation.”
The Galena rolled forward.
Valerie guided it into the inspection zone and stopped within the yellow boundary lines.
Blue lights activated beneath the vehicle.
A mechanical arm moved along the driver’s side while scanning beams passed over the Galena from its chassis to its roof.
Lena remained still as the light crossed her body.
Her customized cyberware display revealed the four Tier 2 implants she had chosen to make visible.
Nothing more.
The scanner continued toward the rear compartment.
When it passed over the Arasaka container, the officer monitoring the terminal paused.
His eyes narrowed at the information on his datapad.
He exchanged a brief look with another guard.
Lena noticed the silent signal.
The second guard stepped away from the lane and touched his fingers to the communication implant near his ear.
The checkpoint had identified the cargo.
The scan ended.
A guard approached Valerie’s window.
“Driver, step out of the vehicle.
Take your identification and cargo documents to the administration building for further questioning.”
Valerie frowned.
“Questioning about what?”
“Get out and go inside,” the guard snapped.
“You’ll find out there.”
His hand remained close to his rifle.
Valerie looked ready to argue, but Lena spoke before she could.
“It’s fine.”
The guard gave Lena a suspicious glance before walking away.
Once he was out of hearing range, Lena turned toward Valerie.
“Take the documents and the credchip.
Transfer the bribe directly, then leave the chip with him.”
Valerie looked toward the border building.
“And after that?”
“Once we cross, expect trouble.”
Jackie shifted uneasily in the back.
“You really know how to inspire confidence, chica.”
“I’m telling you what we’re facing.”
Valerie picked up the documents.
“Alright.
I’ll handle it.”
She stepped out and walked toward the administration building.
Lena watched until the reinforced door closed behind her.
Then she turned toward Jackie.
“How good are you behind the wheel?”
Jackie looked offended.
“Chica, kids in Heywood learn to ride motorcycles at five.
By fifteen, we know every alley where the cops lose sight of us.”
He tapped his chest.
“I survived Heywood streets.
Racing, drifting, combat driving—you name it.”
Lena gestured toward the driver’s seat.
“Then get up here.
If something goes wrong, you’re getting us out.”
Jackie climbed out of the rear and moved around the Galena.
“Should’ve let me drive from the beginning.”
He settled behind the wheel and adjusted the seat.
The Galena creaked in protest as he tested the clutch and accelerator.
Outside, border guards continued patrolling between inspection lanes.
Their rifles reflected the sunlight, while the automated turrets rotated overhead and scanned passing vehicles.
Jackie tapped his fingers against the steering wheel.
“How long has she been in there?”
Lena checked the time through her Kiroshi interface.
“Five minutes.”
“Feels longer.”
“Don’t rush.
Panic makes people careless.”
Jackie looked at her.
“You know something?”
“What?”
“The more I listen to you, the less I believe this is your first job.”
Lena raised an eyebrow.
“What makes you say that?”
“Rookie mercs don’t calmly explain the relationship between border guards, Nomads, and corporations while sitting under six automated turrets.”
Jackie nodded toward the administration building.
“You were right about the scan.
The guard saw something in the back, but they didn’t drag us out or open fire.”
He shook his head.
“If I realized the client had sent us into a trap, I’d start by cursing the fixer.
Then I’d figure out how fast we could run.”
Lena smiled faintly.
“The people who know when to run usually live longer.”
“And the ones who don’t?”
“They become stories at the Afterlife.”
Jackie laughed once, but the humor didn’t remain in his expression.
The doors of the administration building opened.
Lena and Jackie turned simultaneously.
Valerie emerged and walked toward them at a quick, controlled pace.
She didn’t look frightened, but the tension in her shoulders told Lena enough.
Jackie sat straighter.
“Our beautiful negotiator survived.”
Valerie opened the rear door and climbed inside.
“How did it go?” Lena asked.
Jackie started the engine.
Valerie released a long breath.
“I put the credchip on his desk the moment I entered.
He took it without checking the amount.”
“That sounds promising,” Jackie said.
“It wasn’t.”
Valerie leaned forward between the seats.
“He kept asking which clan I belonged to, when we left the Bakkers, and what we planned to do in Night City.
He didn’t ask about the container once.”
Her expression darkened.
“It didn’t feel like an inspection.
It felt like he was keeping me inside until someone finished making a call.”
Lena showed no surprise.
“Then they’ve already sent the message.”
“To Arasaka?” Valerie asked.
“Most likely.”
Lena drew the RT-46 Burya from its holster.
Unlike an ordinary revolver, the Tech weapon used electromagnetic acceleration to fire devastating rounds.
Lena released its cylinder, inspected the ammunition, and confirmed that every chamber was loaded.
The movements came naturally, guided by the combat experience mapped into her mind and supported by the Recoil Dampening System in her hands.
She snapped the cylinder back into place.
Click.
Jackie’s smile disappeared.
Lena looked toward the road leading into Night City.
“Get us through the gate.”
She rested the Burya across her lap.
“And once we’re clear, be ready to drive.”