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Afterlife belonged to Rogue.
She was the best fixer in Night City, the idol of every edgerunner who wanted to become somebody.
Ever since her own days among the legends decades ago, she had built a life as the fixer others had to pass through.
Afterlife existed like a shrine to that promise.
People like Jackie, unknown but hungry, came because the right fixer in that bar could put a name on the map.
But Rook cared about one line from the Cyberpunk 2077 database.
Rogue owned Afterlife.
Nearly the entire mercenary network in Night City flowed through her.
Any truly major job needed her nod.
V’s search for Anders Hellman had absolutely been major.
That made him think of another job.
Dexter DeShawn hiring V and Jackie to steal the Relic from Konpeki Plaza, the engram chip carrying Johnny Silverhand.
Stealing from Yorinobu Arasaka, heir to the Arasaka empire, was not a small job either.
Which meant Rogue’s approval should have mattered.
And Rogue had once been Johnny Silverhand’s partner.
If Alt Cunningham, Johnny’s former lover who had fled into cyberspace, was added to the picture…
Had Rogue’s shadow been behind V and Jackie all along?
Everything had lined up too neatly.
Why had Saburo Arasaka, who had not seen Yorinobu in decades, suddenly gone to meet his son at exactly that time?
Argus’s scan did not prove the theory wrong forever, but it did prove this room was not being monitored.
For now, Rook let it go.
The door opened again.
Maine entered with his crew.
For the first time, Rook saw the rest of them in person. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
Maine introduced them as they came in.
Dorio, one of the crew’s core members and Maine’s lover, was a broad, powerful woman with blond hair and blue eyes.
Sasha was the netrunner Rook had saved the night before.
Pilar was the crew’s crude, loud tech with wild punk hair and absurdly long arms.
Falco was their driver.
Then came Rebecca, Pilar’s sister.
Small, volatile, gun-happy, fiercely loyal, and much more dangerous than her size suggested.
Last came the woman who made Rook’s eyes narrow.
Kiwi.
He had not expected her to join Maine’s crew as a backup netrunner only one day after Sasha survived.
Still, with Argus in hand, he did not mind keeping Kiwi where he could see her.
Professionally, she was excellent.
She would simply need to be handled carefully.
“In Night City, people don’t cross paths for no reason.” Rook stood and welcomed them toward the sofas.
“I’m Rook Mercer.
This is Lucy.
I assume Maine filled you in on the way here.”
When Sasha passed him, he gave her a small wave.
She smiled back and sat beside Lucy.
Rebecca stopped in front of him and stared with huge eyes, inspecting him from head to toe.
Rook did not get offended.
He reached out with an indulgent smirk and ruffled her hair.
The little solo showed her teeth at him immediately.
Once everyone had taken a seat, Rook gestured to Jackie.
He may not be famous yet, but believe me, one day he’ll be a legend too.”
Everyone looked at Jackie.
“Hermano!” Jackie stood from the sofa like he had just been knighted.
“Rook, for that line alone, I’ll ride through hell with you.”
He slapped a hand over his chest, then offered Maine a broad handshake.
“Maine, choom, I’ve heard your name all over Night City.
Meeting you today is an honor.”
Jackie’s humor, confidence, and easy warmth softened the room almost immediately.
When the chatter finally settled, Rook walked to the center of the room.
He clasped his hands, let his gaze pass over all of them, and began.
“You all heard the news this morning.
An unidentified flying vehicle extracted a terrorist who planted explosives at Biotechnica Tower.”
Everyone understood he was referring to his rescue of Sasha in the Model 85 armor.
When they nodded, he continued.
“One day ago, I was still an R&D employee inside Arasaka Tower.
Now?
Unemployed?
Founder?
Freelancer?
Ambitious bastard?
Take your pick.”
He paced slowly as he spoke.
“I have a series of new cyberware frame designs, developed by me personally and unknown even to Arasaka.
They are powerful, efficient, and beyond anything currently on the market.
I call the platform the Source Protocol.”
He stopped and looked at them.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter.