“You know, I’m shocked, Johnny,” I exclaimed, putting Miyoko into fifth gear and cruising down the highway, “You haven’t said a lewd joke in about two days. That’s a new personal record.”

  “Gotta wait for the right time. Just lettin’ it simmer a little,” he said sarcastically, glancing out the passenger side window at the cityscape.

  I knew that face. That was his ‘deep introspection’ grin. “Mm… What’re you thinking about?”

  “…Hm? What?” he snapped out of his funk, “Ah, just thinkin’ about the time I ate nine cans of soup in one sitting.”

  That’s… not what I was expecting… “Erm…”

  “Yeah, on a dare. Friend of mine heated the fuckers with a blowtorch. First can was fine. So was the second. By can number five, I just… kept eating,” he shrugged calmly.

  “Okay… Uh, forget I asked,” I laughed to myself, “Any thoughts on Judy? Out of curiosity.”

  “Nah, think you’ve got that covered.”

  Come on, Johnny… “Look, it’s your body just as much as mine, think you’ve earned at least some say in it by now.”

  “Alright, yeah, I like her,” he finally confessed to me, “She’s got spunk.”

  “Yeah, that she does,” I nodded in agreement, “And she’s fiercely independent.”

  “What do you like about her?”

  I had a surprising amount of difficulty putting it into words. “Honestly…? It’s only been a few months since we met. But I feel like I want to know everything about her… That, and just as importantly, I feel comfortable talking about myself around her.”

  “Hmph…” Johnny grunted, “Or are you just tryin’ to make up for lost time with Jackie?” Ouch…

  “I mean, I guess it’s fairly obvious that I’m still dealing with that,” I muttered, “Yeah, I made a mistake. In retrospect a big one. I should’ve treated him better, I know–”

  “And now you wanna make up for it with a new quirky Hispanic fixation,” he interrupted me, “Guess now you’ll just add fucking into the equation, y’know, for that spice in your latte.”

  “Oh fuck you, Johnny…”

  “Fuck you too.”

  I wonder what’s crawled in his ass this time. Seems like the guy’s getting more and more bipolar by the day, if that’s even possible. I can’t tell if he actually gives a fuck or not, which is just as scary to me. He kind of has to care, at least from a self-preservation perspective. But beyond that… who knows?

  It just boggles my mind… Of all the people they could’ve put on this fucking chip, it had to be Johnny Silverhand. Why…? Why not just some random dude? Like a political prisoner they were interrogating or something. Better yet, why not Saburo Arasaka himself? Wasn’t he the one who wanted to be immortal?

  Oh, I could see it now… Saburo Arasaka on the chip. He’d probably be like, ‘I cannot believe I am fated to be carried by this worthless body,’ and would just scold me for everything I ever done. ‘Enjoying Judy’s company should be foregone. Love is a sign of weakness’ or whatever.

  The funny thing is that I never thought of Johnny as a positive, but he’s not been too bad lately. Hell, he’s even backed off of the lewd comments when I’m showering or taking care of my, uh, needs. He stays quiet and just lets me do my thing. I guess that should be the baseline. Fuck, I’m basically cheering him on for even getting over the first hurdle. Which I guess, credit where it’s due, he had… Man, 7 million people living in this geographic asshole, and I had to be the lucky SOB to get this fucker in my head. Not just that, but God knows how many dead people, and Johnny happens to be the one on the chip. I could’ve had a fucking celebrity floating around there. Or, better yet, how about a therapist, that’d be nice. But noooo, I just had to have this guy…

  “Just do me one favor,” I asked him hesitantly, “Please just let me have this one thing. Okay? I really want it to work out. Me and Judy. So just… please give me some space, okay?”

  “Mm, sure,” he nodded. Honestly I wasn’t expecting his cooperation… I couldn’t actually tell if he was being sarcastic or not, but I certainly hope not…

  Alright, I think this is the place… Small bungalow on the outskirts of the Laguna Reservoir. Heh, I would’ve killed to have found this back in the day. Seems nice and cozy. Good sight lines to the dam, too. It would’ve been one of Militech’s primary targets, since blowing that would overwhelm the defunct Petrochem dam further up and spill water and concrete all over Santo Domingo, Night City’s industrial base. And without industry, the city would fall to ruin in a matter of months. But that was a different battalion’s problem.

  There’s not much to indicate anything out here. Nothing on the GPS, even, apart from the vague outline of a building. And only a dirt trail leading here, along with an old defunct bus stop at the end – what the heck was this place?

  I pulled up and parked halfway up the trail head, desperately needing to stretch my legs a bit after driving around for like 8 hours today between different places. First was the diner, then back home, then the warehouse, then back home, now way the hell out here. I’m exhausted…

  Hm… Wait… is… is that humming?

  Oh… oh. Oh, she does look good in that wet suit. Especially just casually sat atop that busted old Galena like that. I guess it’s official – no one sits like that unless it’s a date. No one smiles like that unless it’s a date, either. God, her smile is just… God…

  “V!” she turned to me as I approached, “Mm, long hair?”

  “Not on purpose,” I winced, brushing it out a little, “TechHair grows fast. I actually want to get it cut.”

  “I can do that,” she said eagerly, “After we wrap up, that is. C’mon, siddown.”

  I did as she asked, scrunching up on the other side of the hood, tucking Shinden back to keep it from hitting the car too much. “Everything okay?” I asked her out of concern, “It feels like it’s been a while since we talked.”

  “Yeah, that it has,” she sighed, looking out to the water, “Don’t worry ‘bout it, though. I didn’t bring you out here to talk shop… Can I ask you something?”

  “Of course.”

  “Why’re you always so… uptight?” she stuttered, “I-I’m sorry, that came out wrong… I mean, why are you so proper all the time? Y’know, carrying around the sword, dressed in cheap old clothes, that sorta thing.”

  I’m not sure whether that was meant as an insult or genuine curiosity. It took me a moment to formulate a proper response in either case. “Just the way I was raised, I think… You know, everyone has a certain… I dunno, maybe expectation’s not the right word…”

  “People put you on a path ‘fore you have a chance to say no?” she interrupted.

  “I mean… Hm…”

  “Unclip your sword, V,” she told me, looking me dead in the eyes, immediately throwing me off-balance, “If you want to.”

  “I… hmmph…” I breathed out, my hands anxiously shaking all of a sudden. It’s not like I wear my sword all the time. But for some reason, her request just felt… different to me. “Okay…”

  I gently removed Shinden and had a good, long look at the handle… The fine silk was scuffed and badly worn after many years of constant use. The blue dye of the tsuka had long turned to black, stained by wear. Even the gold damascening was starting to peel. Maybe they’re right. Maybe it would’ve been better if I’d never–

  “Hey,” she stopped me in my tracks, “You okay?”

  “Yeah,” I smiled back at her, leaning the sword against the broken-down car and sitting back up, “Sorry.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah…” I glanced back down at the water, “So… why’re we here, exactly?”

  “A little experiment,” Judy said slyly, “Got inspired by your connection with Johnny. Figured out how to scroll two actors’ experiences together at the same time.”

  Okay… That’s… what? “You’re kidding.”

  “Nope,” she shook her head confidently, “First thing I tried to do was to create a single profile out of two neural tracks.”

  “That’d never work, though,” I stopped her, “You can’t just put two perspectives in one… Wait, can you?”

  “At first glance, no, not really. Too much white noise. Looked kinda like a bad arthouse,” she chuckled, “Couple tries in, though, I managed to isolate specific… sensations.” Heh, by the way she emphasized that, I’m thinking she means something a bit more, uh, sensual. “Then just load it up onto two separate neural tracks, and that’s all she scrolled.”

  “No shit…” I muttered, “And what does this have to do with wet suits, exactly?”

  “Gettin’ to that,” she winked, “You, my fine foreign friend, are gonna scroll me a virtu.”

  “Uh… that’s it?”

  “Hey now, don’t diminish it. This could be my greatest work. Ever.” Hah, that’s a bold statement. She already makes terrific work, from what I’ve seen.

  “Okay, so hang on,” I thought out-loud, “Wouldn’t this make more sense to do in your den? Why’re we out here, what is this place?”

  “Cottage belonged to someone I knew,” she looked over her right shoulder, glancing down to the dock, “Sits empty now. I… take the liberty of using it from time to time. But we’re not scrollin’ here. We’re scrollin’ underwater.” Ah… hence the wet suits.

  “Nope, nuh-uh,” Johnny suddenly appeared at the end of the dock, “Not gonna happen. Tell ‘er to find some other yes-chick.”

  “Johnny…” I muttered out-loud, “Erm – Johnny’s afraid of the water.”

  “Hah, typical,” she laughed, “Why, what’s he not like about it?”

  “I dunno… Johnny?”

  “Can’t rightly say why,” he replied pensively, “Just don’t like the idea of it, that’s all… When I think about the dark, the deep… hands get clammy. Palms secrete sweat I don’t have…”

  “He says he’s afraid of deep, dark places,” I repeated to Judy.

  “Ah… Well, don’t worry, Johnny, our suits’ve got flashlights, and I’mma bring some flares for us, too,” she said reassuringly, surprising both myself and Johnny who reappeared beside her. “So, you in?”

  “Obviously!” I cheered, hopping off the car, “Let me go put Shinden away first.”

  “Excellent!” Judy’s face was absolutely beaming in the sunset…

  “You never told me you were afraid of the water, Johnny,” I thought to him as I walked back to the car.

  “You never told me you were into swimmin’ with the sharks, V,” he fired back.

  “Oh please, you like her,” I sneered, “Stop it. What’s your problem lately, anyway? Is it the parade?”

  “Dunno. Maybe,” he thought out-loud, “Contrary to popular belief, I’m not too keen on goin’ on suicide missions for no reason, y’know.”

  “What’d you say to me when we captured Hellman? That he was ‘a hell of a bargaining chip?’ Think about what we could do with Hanako,” I speculated, dropping the sword into the passenger seat and walking back, “Look, just relax. Let’s have a good time with Judy and see where it goes, okay? The parade’ll be there tomorrow. There’s no rush.”

  “Mm… Fine…” he grumbled as I approached the dock, waving to Judy as I approached.

  “Johnny said it’s fine to go diving,” I smiled at Judy.

  “Nice… But I only got a wet suit for you, heh,” she grinned back, “Now strip. This’ll be skin-tight, so you gotta get out of those threads you’re wearing.”

  “Alright…” I stripped down to my bra and underwear, my body apparently met with gazes from a certain someone. “Uh…”

  “Oh, heh, sorry,” she laughed it off, “I, uh, don’t know if the wet suit’ll fit your bust, but let’s try it out…”

  It was definitely a tight squeeze, that’s for sure. “You want me to put on my binder for this?” I laughed.

  “Nah, fuck that, don’t wanna hurt you,” she stopped me, “Just… Yeah, gonna need to lose the bra…”

  “Is this a ploy?” I teased, “You know, you only have to ask.”

  “Pff, I’ll bear that in mind.”

  “So how often do you go diving, anyway?” I asked her as she helped me into the suit.

  “Oh, not as often as I’d like…” she sighed in return, “And it’s my first time diving here.”

  “Really? Why?”

  “Long story,” she muttered, “You’ll see for yourself in a bit… Fuck me, this is tight… Is this hurting you at all?”

  “Hah, no, it’s fine, I’m used to it,” I smiled, “You can thank my mother and hormones for the chest.”

  “Tch, well thank you Mama V, your genetics are a blessing and a curse right now… grr…” she grunted in frustration, “Rrrrr… ah! Got it!”

  “See, that wasn’t so bad, huh?” I teased her.

  “Yeah, le’s not put you in my netrunning suit, prolly gonna break the zipper like a twig. You got any chest implants, can I ask?”

  “Mhm,” I nodded, “Cables for my pectoral muscles. Same thing that’s in my arms. Keeps everything from shattering when I’m using my sword, but it’s quite stiff, so.”

  “Ah, that explains it…” she glanced back down to the reservoir, “I missed this… The water.”

  “Oh?”

  “Gettin’ lost down there… ‘s like… a window into another world. There’s just nothin’ else like it. When I’m down there, it makes me forget that the world up there exists for a few seconds. Heh, guess it’s kinda like people livin’ in their little fantasy world of BDs and shit. Just a bit more literal.”

  “That why you wanted to be a techie?” I asked her as she fitted me with the oxygen tank.

  “That why you left Japan?” she retorted.

  “Mm… Point taken.”

  “Nah, I’ve been asked that so many times before. And each time I got a different answer, dependin’ on my mood… I think I jus’ like the idea of escapin’ to another reality. One that isn’t full of scop-filled shit. Know what I mean?”

  “Yeah. Believe it or not, I actually watched a lot of isekai anime back in the day,” I laughed, “Used to like that sorta vintage sci-fi shit for similar reasons.”

  “Hah! Really? Man, we gotta get together and have a movie date sometime… There. Now lemme see… Yeah. You do look good in a wet suit, heheh.”

  “Thanks…” I smiled shyly, “It’s… uh, yeah, it’s a bit tight.”

  “No worries, you’ll be out of it by the time the sun goes down,” she said with a light chuckle, “I should have you try on my MaxTac uniform…”

  “Wait, what? Where’d you get a MaxTax uniform?!”

  “Won it in a bet,” she boasted, going over to the computer sat atop a large plastic box, “Been sittin’ in my closet waitin’ for the right… occasion.” Oh boy… What’ve I gotten myself into…

  “Uh…” I shuddered a little, letting out an involuntarily nervous laugh and prompting Judy to start heartily chuckling at me.

  “Hah! I’m joking… But I do actually have that uniform.”

  “A-anyway!” I interrupted, “Isn’t this water toxic?”

  “Mhm, ‘s why we’ve gotta wear these,” she nodded, “And… alright, we’re good. Just put on that wreath and I’ll sync us up.”

  “Okay…” I muttered, retrieving the BD wreath sitting beside her and loosely putting it on.

  “Hm…” she came over and adjusted it for me, looking at me straight in the eyes and smiling…

  I think she knows. She must know how beaming her smile is. There’s no way she doesn’t know. She knows how crazy it’s making me, doesn’t she…? Doesn’t she?

  God, she has to know. I have butterflies just looking at her… Oh God, she’s touching me. She touched my neck… Relax, she’s just checking the wiring. She’s checking the wiring… Don’t act weird. Just… don’t act weird. Just smile and look back at her… No, stop it, you’re staring. Stop staring. But I can’t stop staring, her smile’s so gorgeous. Does she know I’m staring…? She knows I’m staring.

  Shit, Judy chuckled. Why did she chuckle? Is she laughing at me? No, this sounded like a different chuckle… a more light-hearted one. Is she thinking about me? I hope she’s thinking about me… No, stop it, you’re staring again. “Heh, you’re cute,” she said softly, fixing the BD wreath some more…

  She called me ‘cute.’ She called me ‘cute…’ What does that mean? Does she actually think I’m cute? It didn’t seem like sarcasm. Is it? How would I know? She’s normally pretty sarcastic. Is she okay? Am I okay? I can’t stop tapping my foot and picking my nails… Stop it, that’s weird. You’re an ex-military captain, act like it. Stop, just… stop freaking out. “Here, c’mon, you first,” she ushered me by the water.

  “I-I’m sorry!” I blurted out totally involuntarily.

  “What?” she paused, “Hah! You okay?”

  “Fine… uh… sorry.”

  “You said that already, just put on the face mask and hop in, silly!” she urged me again.

  “Alright…” Stop acting weird, V. Just get in the water…

  Holy shit, it’s cold… “Mmmmhbrr…” I mumbled, “Alright, now what?”

  “Now, you follow me. We’re goin’ deep. Don’t descend too fast, just stick close to me,” she said as she hopped in just after, immediately diving beneath the water, “The current’s gentle. Shouldn’t give us any issues. Goin’ about halfway to the deepest point. Oh, and that mask of yours should have its own built-in HUD.”

  I’d never gone diving like this before… swimming, sure. But I was always taught to keep my head above the surface… drinking this water could easily prove lethal, and it was much the same back home. “It feels like… Hm…” I pondered as I swam behind her, “I admire your dedication… Going this far down for a BD… Scrolling must mean a lot to you.”

  “More than I care to put into words,” she told me frankly, “It’s like painting, or singing, or dancing, even. All of ‘em produce emotional responses… a BD is an emotion in near-pure form. Takin’ away the casing the art’s inside of, seein’ it naked and bare… it can be beautiful… and terrifying…”

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  We followed what seemed to be a sunken interstate turn-off, raised in the air – or, water – by massive pillars that extended into an abyss beneath it. It almost didn’t look real… it was so jarring and uncanny…

  Approaching the highway revealed a pedestal suspended above the inky black – an elevator. “We’re here,” Judy muttered, “Hang on while I calibrate us… hmm-hmmmm…”

  “Are you humming…? Sorry,” I asked her.

  “Mhmm. Etta Sorrentino - ‘Only You.’ Song’s been stuck in my head… Normally I don’t go after the softer stuff, though.”

  “It sounds lovely,” I smiled, “Keep going.”

  “Heh, sure…” Her voice was really soothing, I must admit…

  “Alright, that’s us calibrated… Now, prepare to have your mind blown…” she grinned, producing a few chemical glow-sticks and dropping them down. After about ten seconds, the light faded into nothing, obscured by the grime suspended in the water. “Now hold on!”

  “Oka-oh!” I shuddered as the lift activated, pulling us down into the unknown…

  Wait, hang on…

  What– what… Oh my God…

  It’s Laguna Bend… It’s still here…

  Buildings came into view like ghosts. Not even algae or barnacles grew here… it was almost like we were in a simulation… no, frozen in suspended animation…

  “Incredible…” I muttered, “What is this place…”

  “What’s left of Laguna Bend,” Judy sighed, “Now, our very own Atlantis… Just fifteen years ago, people still lived here…”

  “Yeah… I read about this place. Said that the NC Dam corp bought out all the land, tried to forcibly evict everyone… Adults, children…”

  “Mhm…”

  “You have some connection here, I’m guessing…?”

  “Yep – grew up here,” she said with a heavy breath, dismounting the lift, “Haven’t been back since the town was wiped off the map.”

  I’m stunned… I feel like I’m trespassing on a sacred rite. “Why are you showing me this?” I asked with curiosity.

  “It’s perfect for my experiment, and… and it’s important to me.”

  “Are you sure this is okay?” I asked her one last time, climbing off the lift and floating next to her.

  “Mhm, hopin’ you’d pick up all the emotions I got tied to this place… Like it or not, you’ll experience ‘em now, too. C’mon.”

  “Sure,” I replied meekly, swimming up next to her, “You okay?”

  “Played this moment in my head a thousand times, comin’ back here… Taken me years to work up the nerve for this,” she muttered as we swam down the main boulevard, a distant church looming over the town like a great sunken monument.

  “That why you didn’t come here sooner?”

  “Good question… I think it was more nerve than anything. But at the time I would’ve said I didn’t have the time, energy, equipment, y’know, excuses…” she pointed over to this diner at the corner, “That’s Flo’s Diner. Best eatery in town. Greasy burgers were too big and gross. But when you’re a kid, they’re the best thing you ever tasted… And next door, that’s where I lived,” she motioned to the building’s right side, pointing at this old, dilapidated home, “Me ‘n my grandparents.”

  “Huh…” I thought… Wait… do I hear… voices? Sounds like laughing… kids playing in the road. One of them shouted ‘Score!’ or ‘Goal,’ I couldn’t make it out. A thought just crept in my head… What’s… “Did you used to play hockey or something?”

  “Hockey?”

  “Yeah, uh… I have this… this vague recollection of hockey for some reason…”

  “Weird… our thoughts must be crossing over,” she pondered, “Yeah, I did. Rollerblade hockey in the street. I miss it…”

  “I know,” I muttered, “It feels… lively.”

  “Yeah…” More voices echoed around us…Memories in real-time…

  “What was it like? Growing up here.”

  “My grandparents were great, actually… My grandpa taught me everything I know. He was a huge techie, like me. Used to sit around, teach me how to fix old radios and cameras and shit like that… Grandma, well… she was temperamental. Hot one second, cool as ice the next.”

  “Heh, ‘temperamental…’ I see it runs in your genes,” I quipped.

  “Shuddup!” she lashed out, “But yeah, was just us.”

  “What happened to your parents?”

  Well, my mom died when I was little… I have pictures of her, just… feel nothin’. She’s just a stranger…” More voices… a Spanish-speaking man. Yelling. “And my father was no bargain, ended up disappearin’ one day to God knows where. So I lived with my grandparents full-time.”

  Kids yelling at her… mocking her for being poor… For not having a ‘real family,’ as they knew it… Shit… “Sorry you had to go through that,” I sighed.

  “Nah, ‘s okay. All in the past now,” she shrugged, “Now let’s see… Your childhood was… Hm…”

  “What?”

  “Just tasted somethin’ amazing… Fresh sushi?”

  “Oh, heh, yeah, was looking at the diner and it made me think of what I used to eat when I was little… My family runs the biggest water desalination plant in Japan. Could get real fish all the time. But I used to like the synfish better. Saltier, heh,” I chuckled, “But my mother insisted on healthy foods, so it was mostly the real stuff.”

  “Fuck me… talk about growin’ up in different worlds,” she mumbled out-loud, “Your mother, I can almost hear her, but not quite… just words.”

  “Mm, yeah,” I nodded, “I don’t really remember her voice at all… I’ve not seen her in a very long time. Same with my father. He and I, well…”

  “…Will you stop swinging that sword in the house?! And what are you doing near my office! I told you to keep this outside. But you either don’t listen or don’t remember… idiot in any case…” I could hear his voice muttering.

  “I can hear him yelling… How old were you…?”

  “Not sure… Maybe seven or eight,” I shrugged, “Like you, just ancient history, though.”

  “Mm… Sorry for bringin’ it up,” she sighed pensively before swimming around again, “Man, this place is bizarre to look around… feels like we’re swimmin’ in a snow globe…”

  “Yeah…” My eye drew closer to an old gas station she lit up with another set of glow sticks. A gleam caught my attention before I headed over there – an old film camera, lying in the middle of the street. “Hey, you notice this?” I asked her, picking it up, “Looks like an old camera, a… uh… DPI-350, it says?”

  “Wow, that’s practically an antique!” she excitedly shouted. Obviously I have to give this to her…

  “Here,” I swam up to her and handed her the crusty old camera, “Figure you of all people could restore it.”

  “Aw, thanks!” she cheered before looking back at the gas station behind her, “Man, if only I could sort through all these buildings. Imagine the treasures we’d find…”

  “Heh, old receipts, busted computers, crumbling infrastructure?”

  “Please, where’s your sense of adventure, V?” she teased me.

  “You must really like this urban exploring stuff, huh?”

  “Mhm, I do,” she confessed, “I like the stories… Like, look here. See those cars over there? People used to own them, drive them around. Someone worked at this gas station, payin’ the bills like the rest of us… Maybe they lived here, maybe they commuted. Came home to a partner and some children… What stories did they have? Stories that’re jus’ locked away at the bottom of the sea? ‘S like this whole place is a time capsule. Or a book, I guess. Beggin’ to be read and understood by someone…” she thought out-loud, “It’s stories like these that give meaning to places like this. Cause after we’re all long-gone, it’s all we’ll have left. Else what’s the point of it ever existin’ in the first place, y’know?”

  “Mm…” I hummed, thinking on her words.

  “Heh… Wow, there’s somethin’ I’ve not seen in a while,” she chuckled, looking down at an overturned garbage bin containing an old doll.

  “Looks lonely,” I mumbled, “Yours?”

  “Nah, that belonged to Jenny Chapman… I thought it was creepy as hell, so I hid it. Used to make believe it was a monster… But I think all I really wanted was for her to notice me…” More voices appeared… making fun of her even more for not liking dolls. Playing with rocks in the streets. Naming them, like little families of pet rocks. Kids used to kick them into the sewer grates… Judy would get on her knees and cry… over rocks… “C’mon, wanna show you somethin’.”

  “What is it?” I asked her as she swam over to the church, tossing some more glow sticks in front of her.

  “Used to think this place came from outer space. Locals said it was built in the 1800s or somethin’, during the old California Gold Rush. Still hasn’t aged at all,” she glanced back down the street, “Surreal, thinkin’ of life just goin’ on here. We had no idea what we had, back then.”

  “Yeah, I can almost picture it…” I pondered, hearing the sounds of cars and bustling foot traffic, along with odd, discordant bells tolling.

  “Bells were cracked. Gave off this weird, atonal clang… swear I can still hear ‘em…”

  “Me too,” I muttered, glancing at the top of the bell tower, noting that it’s conspicuously missing the bell itself.

  “Man, still can’t get over how weird that is… must be bizarre to have this full-time with Johnny,” Judy pondered.

  “Eh, you get used to it…” I tried the doors – nothing, not even a budge. After looking around for a bit, I came across another curious artifact – an old crucifix necklace, not unlike the one Jackie wore. “Hey, what’s this?” I asked with a furrowed brow, shining my light on it.

  “Oh, no shit! You found the Heart of Laguna Bend! The town’s treasure – it’s this crucifix that’s hundreds or even thousands of years old, said to be priceless!”

  “What?!”

  “Hahaha! Nah, I got no idea what that is,” she laughed, “But feel free to take it as a souvenir.” I just might do that… The Heart of Laguna Bend, eh? Nice…

  I explored some more of the church… Seems to be built out of old sandstone bricks or something similar, then reinforced with some kind of waterproof resin? I have no idea. Maybe it’s just stone? But it doesn’t feel like stone… Hm… I heard all the voices of the people going in on Sunday for Mass. “You ever went to Church?” I asked Judy as I probed for an entrance.

  “Nah, well, I went to Church, but never really ‘went’ to Church, y’know? Just kinda showed up and got bored 15 minutes into Mass.”

  “Pff, fair enough,” I said, letting a chuckle leave the side of my mouth.

  “Everyone gathered here in protest when the town was gonna be shut down. People climbin’ on the construction cranes, blockin’ pipelines… That sorta thing. We tried passing bills several times, but just kept gettin’ delayed. Eventually they gave us all pittances to move out. Most of us went to places like Santo Domingo or northern Watson. Couple went to Dogtown. The rest into the Badlands or… well, wherever…”

  “Shit…” I whispered before finding a hole in the roof, just big enough to slip through as well… “Hey, found a way in,” I keyed in, pinging my location.

  “On my way,” Judy confirmed, swimming up to me and popping through the hole first, “Shit… yeah, this place really hasn’t changed…” she pondered to herself, “Used to come in here when no one was around. Sing… test the acoustics… Heh, I was a bad singer at that age, but it was fun…”

  “Oh yeah?” I muttered– wait… Wait, no… Johnny…

  “Stood at the altar, tryin’ to picture how the padre knew so much about us. Seemed almost psychic… just tellin’ us all exactly what we needed to– wait, V? You okay?”

  “Judy…!” I shouted, “F-ffffff…”

  “V!” Fucking– Johnny!

  –

  “Scream…”

  I can’t see…. Mom, I’m so cold… So cold…

  Help…

  “Scream…”

  “Scream…”

  “V…”

  –

  “V!” Judy screamed, smashing my sternum with her fist, “C’mon, dammit!”

  “HHHGGHH! Aaahhghhh… foooo–” I coughed and hacked back to life, barfing up a chunk of the toxic water and collapsing on my back. “Mmuuuhhh…” My chest feels like someone’s sitting on it…

  “V! Oh… thank fuck you’re alive…” Judy panted, panicking and sweaty, “Are you okay?! What happened?!”

  “Jo-Johnny…” I mumbled between coughs, “H-had an attack… Ku-uuuhhh… How’d you get me here?”

  “Didn’t think, just did was I had to– hey, easy,” she stopped me from sitting up too fast, guiding me with her hands, “That’s it… Now unzip the wet suit, let your chest breathe, it’s constricting you.”

  “Mmuuhh…” I muttered, unzipping and letting my sternum actually move with its full range of motion, “Aaahhh…”

  “Better?”

  “Much… thanks…”

  “See?” Johnny appeared behind her, “Told ya you shouldn’tve gone in that toxic filth.”

  “Toxic filth…? What?” Judy furrowed her brow.

  “Huh?” I looked at her… then Johnny, then back at her… “Wait, you can hear him?”

  “Oh, that’s what that was?” Judy paused, looking around behind her, likely half-expecting to see him there, “Shit, you’re not kidding.”

  “Heh, Judy, meet Johnny. Johnny, introduce yourself,” I instructed him out-loud.

  “Sup,” he said bluntly.

  “Uh… well shit, hah,” Judy chuckled back, “Nice to meet you, uh, I guess.”

  “Too much?” I asked her, clearing my throat and getting rid of the last of this horrific tasting water.

  “Nah, just… gotta get used to it. Not gonna blame you, not like you control it.”

  “Nobody does,” Johnny interrupted, “Not even me. All I can do’s be the voice of logic and reason in this fucked up partnership.”

  “Bah, and here I thought we were being honest,” I laughed at his statement. ‘Logic and reason,’ good one, man.

  “Whatever, just go do your thing and–”

  “Johnny!” I shouted, “What did we discuss?”

  “Fine, I was never here,” he said surprisingly calmly, disappearing behind Judy.

  “He’s gone,” I told Judy, “Sorry about that. He’s, uh, a bit eccentric.”

  “Yeah, I can tell,” she nodded, getting up and extending her hand, “Here, c’mon. Let’s head inside n’ go get cleaned up.”

  “You sure it’s okay?” I asked her, “Didn’t you say someone else lived here?”

  “Yeah, keyword being ‘lived.’ They disappeared several years back, to be honest… I made ‘em a promise, told ‘em I’d keep it nice and, well, still doin’ that.”

  “Fair,” I shrugged, grabbing her hand to support myself, “Thanks.”

  “Sure,” she smiled, heading over to the door, “They used to be my neighbor. Hell-bent on staying in Laguna Bend. Then the badges showed up and dragged them out by their legs. They ended up settin’ up shop here, as close as they could. But then they got sick and… well, the water was way more toxic back then.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah, I still hold out hope for ‘em, but who knows,” she shrugged, opening the door to the cottage, “Well, mi casa es su casa. Here, want some coffee? Place’s got runnin’ water, still.”

  “Please,” I smiled.

  “Black, right?”

  “Mhmm.”

  “Like the heart of a merc… heh,” she chuckled, starting up the kettle–

  Wait. Oh, lights went out…?

  “Ah, forgot to fuel up the generator,” she mumbled, “Hang on, got some extra CHOOH2 in the van.”

  “Here, lemme go get it,” I offered with a smile, “I need the walk.”

  “No, you need to take it easy,” she said insistently.

  “Judy…”

  “Fine, keys’re on the table over there,” she pointed to her right. I took them and zipped the wet suit back up – was getting cold… Must be midnight by now.

  “Alright, be right back…”

  “…Speakin’ of harm’s way, know what I see when lookin’ at you two? Walkin’, talkin’ corpses…”

  “What?” I looked back as the door closed, “Oh… she must still be synced… Hm.”

  “You go that route, city’ll always win, so be careful…”

  “Pff, course I will be…” Evelyn’s voice echoed in my head, “Besides, we’ll talk in a bit…”

  Judy…

  Guess she has Evelyn on her mind… Might have something to do with my own near-death experience. I saw that look on her face. She was scared to death.

  Now that I think about it, she’s been through so much, that poor woman. Evelyn was never totally straight with her, first of all. In fact she didn’t even mention the scope of the heist up until we jacked in. Nor did she mention it to me… Hell, she left everyone out. Everyone except Dex, I guess. Or was it T-Bug…? Fuck, I don’t even remember anymore.

  But I do know what it feels like to have someone you’re close to just leave you out of the loop on something important like that. It hurts… It hurts bad…

  …Sorry, Jackie… I didn’t know…

  I retrieved the jug of fuel from the trunk of her van, walking over to the generator sat up on the hilltop and just… lost in thought. Between Maiko, Evelyn, and who-knows how many other people, it’s no wonder why Judy’s so assertive. Not to mention all the shit she must see on a daily basis, hooked up in BDs like that. I can only imagine the range of emotions and pain she experiences hour after hour, locked up in her den… Seeing all of this, it’s definitely given me a new respect for her. She didn’t deserve any of this. Didn’t deserve this shitty fucking city. This old, broken-down van. This place that used to be her home that she can never go back to. It’s like everything in the world was hostile to her. But she’s so positive, so fierce… I wish I could be that courageous.

  “Alright, Judy, it’s filled up!” I shouted, starting it up… No response. The feed was dead, too… “Judy…?”

  I walked inside, met with nothing… No Judy. Just a cup full of hot water on the countertop. “Judy?” I called out again, checking the bedroom… Weird. All the lights were on.

  “In here,” I heard a deep sigh coming from the bathroom… Oh no, did something happen?

  “Can I come in?” I knocked on the door.

  “Yeah…”

  I opened the door and found a sobbing Judy sitting on the bathtub… not unlike back when Evelyn… Well, this is a different story. “Hey…” I sat down to comfort her, “What’s on your mind?”

  “A lot…” she sighed deeply, “I… where to start…”

  “Hey…” I whispered, “Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.”

  “I know… I know.”

  “Here, is it okay if I touched your hand?”

  “Sure…” she half-smiled, reaching her hand out and laying it on top of mine. “Sorry… Today was just supposed to be for us…”

  “It is…” I reaffirmed, “What’s going on? You want to talk about it?”

  “Yeah, just…” she breathed out, “The Clouds coup… it failed. Tyger Claws came back with a vengeance… killed half the dolls… Roxanne barely made it out…”

  “Jesus…”

  “V, Suzie Q, she… uhm…”

  “What? What happened?”

  “She cleaned out my desk… Said she didn’t need another war on the Mox’s hands… Fuck…” she gritted her teeth and smacked her knee.

  “Hey, hey! Breathe, honey,” I stopped her, “Hey, look at me.”

  “I… I did today cause I wanted… I dunno what I wanted, a… uh, magnum opus, I guess… Heh…” she sobbed.

  “I’d say you accomplished just that,” I smiled, “Hey, eyes up, Jude.”

  “V…” she breathed in and out rhythmically, “I’m sorry…”

  “Judy…” I placed my hand on her chin, raising her head up to my level, “You’re a wonderful person. And you have a beautiful heart.”

  “V, don’t patronize me,” she frowned and retreated a bit, “I fucked up…”

  “You did everything you could, okay? We’ll deal with this together.”

  “Yeah but I don’t know how…” she mulled, “I’m scared…”

  “I know…” I brushed her messy hair out of her face, “I wish I knew what to say… I’m sorry.”

  “Nah, don’t apologize, it’s enough that you’re here.”

  “No, I know, just… ah, force of habit, I guess,” I scoffed at myself, "What about Rita?"

  "She's still around… I think…" Judy murmured, "I dunno…"

  Shit… Okay… Just comfort her, V… “Look, whatever happens tomorrow, I’ll be right here, okay? You’re not alone.”

  “I dunno, V… I…” she muttered, “When I planned this out in my head… Well, things went a bit differently. And now… I just don’t know…”

  “Hm…” I frowned, “Alright, I have an idea…”

  “Oh?”

  “Is it okay… if…” I gently reached out and touched her cheek… She didn’t resist. Instead, she silently reached up and caressed my hand, pulling it closer, teasing her lips with my thumb.

  “Sure…” she smiled, closing her eyes and leaning forward…

  She tasted like the first day of Spring. Her lips were soft, full, and sensual… The kiss was slow, deliberate, exploratory, as if she didn’t want to scare me… Her hand trembled as she leaned more into it, as did mine… our fingers interlocking as we felt one another… It felt magical. Passionate. Slow, yet the moment passed so quickly… It was unlike any kiss I’d ever had…

  “Mmhh…” I moaned involuntarily as we mutually broke off the kiss, our hands gently petting each other. She slowly got up, still holding on and gently motioning me to follow… “Are you sure…?” I whispered nervously.

  “I’m sure…” she smiled warmly, leading me out of the bathroom.

  Her smile was so inviting, so beautiful. Her skinny, slightly androgynous body wasn’t what I’d have pegged as being ‘sexually attractive,’ yet I found myself staring deeply and longingly at every last detail. Tracing every crease, every line, every tattoo, every scar it bore.

  I’d never felt this nervous before a night spent with someone else… I couldn’t even begin to process my emotions… This woman has put a spell on me. And she did it so effortlessly, with nothing more than a smile and a wink.

  She didn’t care about my body. Didn’t care about my scars. Nor my insecurities. She took it slow… carefully… as if she was admiring a work of art… She made me feel wanted. It felt like I’d just been splashed with warm water.

  I spent many years fighting… for myself, and for others. Others above and below my station… Fighting for deeply-held beliefs, and for the vague, detached politics and philosophies of whatever conflict I found myself in. I thought I knew nothing more than fighting… Running… Then more fighting…

  It feels strangely alien to me to just… take a moment. To open myself up to someone. To be totally vulnerable. Naked, afraid, and bare. But so warm.

  –

  “Scream…”

  No, stop…

  Why… Why do you do this…

  Stop it… Please…

  I can’t feel my arms…

  I can’t see…

  I’m so tired…

  Don’t let the fire consume me… Jackie…

  –

  “GUH!” I shot up and looked around… Another day, another night terror… And no Judy. Did I scare her off…?

  Hm… Sunrise. I picked up my watch and other effects… 4:58 AM. Fucking hell, it’s way too early…

  Looks like our clothes were just haphazardly thrown on the ground… Ah, crap, my shirt’s all wet and stained, too… Alright, let’s see, uhm… Well, I guess since we’re officially in the relationship territory, that means borrowing her shit is on the cards… Heh. Wonder if any of her shirts would actually fit me. We have similar builds but I’m about three cup sizes larger. Guess I better choose wisely.

  Aww, that’s a cute one…

  “Judy…?” I called out as I slipped on her shirt, along with my booty shorts and boots, “Hey, you alright? Where are you?”

  “Yeah, outside!” I heard her shout. I opened the door and rubbed my eyes, shocked by the sudden influx of light that practically blinded me. Slowly they adjusted, revealing our cars parked out front and Judy sat on the dock, lazily kicking the air as she sipped a cup. “Mornin’, sleepyhead… Heh, stole my shirt? Anyway - made you that coffee, finally…” Her voice was markedly pensive again. “Wanna come sit with me a sec?”

  “Sure…” I grabbed some dock next to her, having a sip of her freshly-brewed black coffee, “How’d you sleep?”

  “Eh, definitely gotta get used to you screamin’ in the night, heheh,” she chuckled, “Nah, slept alright. Can tell you’re a bit restless, though.”

  “Yeah, just… well, night terrors.”

  “I can tell,” she nodded as I sipped some coffee, “Anything in particular?”

  “Bunch of stuff, honestly… I have PTSD from a bad fire when I was a kid, and… Well, I lost a lot of people in the War… And the things I’ve seen since then… Yeah, it’s kind of a mess…”

  “Mm, I get it… Don’t worry, you’re safe here.”

  “I know,” I shyly smiled, “Thanks.”

  “But, I gotta ask you somethin’...” her face turned into a thousand-yard stare, “What was that last night?”

  “That was…” I paused, collecting my thoughts, “That was one of the most beautiful nights of my life… How do you feel about it?

  “Hm…” she thought to herself, “Right in the middle of town, there was this creek that sorta ran through the whole place in a ditch. Like a little miniature canyon or somethin’... The rocks filtered everything out, so the water was crystal clear and good to drink. Used to go down there all the time, there was this bench that no one really visited, was hidden by a bunch of trees. Took a seat there, just kicked my feet in the water, and that’s when my grandpa took a picture of me on film, just sittin’ there. Said it was like a snapshot from another world… Surrounded by lush green trees, clear waters, and a pure, wonderful kid… Later on, went to the bay, out past the city limits, that’s where I had my first kiss… It’s ironic, y’know. Now that I think about it, all the greatest times of my life happened in the water,” she turned to look at me, “Every one.”

  “Judy…” I smiled from ear to ear.

  “I know you’re never gonna ask, so I will – V, will you be my girlfriend?” she stated in a trembling voice.

  “Obviously!” I shouted out, giving her a warm embrace and a kiss.

  “Heh,” she moaned between kisses, “You can be such a gonk sometimes…”

  “Oh?” I asked, breaking it off.

  “Ruined my plans, y’know… After everything that happened, was planning on doin’ this, then skipping town. Out of a job, back to square one… Felt like I needed a fresh start… But now… Now I think I got a reason to stay,” she winked at me. “Gimme your hand, V.”

  I wordlessly did as she asked, Judy lazily petting my hand… Her eyes turned bright blue…?

  “What is this?” I asked her curiously.

  “The keys to my pad,” she smiled.

  “W-wait, are you asking me to move in?” I stammered.

  “I-if it’s what you want, I… uh…” she awkwardly scratched the back of her head, “Well…”

  “Thank you so much, Judy,” I interrupted, “I don’t know what to say… I… Apart from my brother, nobody’s ever done anything like this for me before…”

  “No problem,” she subtly nodded, “Just, y’know, try to avoid bringin’ Arasaka to my front door, heh.”

  “Pff, Noted,” I laughed. Actually, that gives me an idea… “Hey, c’mon. I told you I needed a haircut.”

  “Oh! Right, hang on,” she set the coffee down and got up, “Here, meet me in the kitchen, better lighting over there.”

  “Sure,” I followed her inside, taking off her shirt so I didn’t get hair all over the place. She quickly came back out with some scissors and a comb in-hand, looking my head over.

  “What kinda cut d’you want?”

  “Something that’ll keep the hair out of my eyes, is all,” I instructed her, “Let’s start small and see what we can do from there, huh?”

  “Sure thing, boss, heh,” she laughed.

  “So…” I pondered out-loud as she trimmed it back, “Okay, dumb question. Since you’re out of a job, do you need anything? Money, housing…?”

  “Nah, but thanks for the offer,” she shook her head, “I’ll find my way, you know that.”

  “How much do you have saved up?”

  “V, you’re not givin’ me money,” she insisted.

  “Fine… Well, in that case, I had an idea–”

  “V, no, seriously, it’s okay.”

  “Alright, alright…” Nevermind then, I guess…

  “Fff… Thanks for the offer,” she huffed, “It’s more’n Maiko’d ever done, that’s for sure.”

  “Okay, out of curiosity, what’d you see in her, anyway?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “That’s… complicated,” she swallowed, “She wasn’t always like that. ‘Member when I said I learned how to tune doll chips? She was kinda my prototype… Back before all this shit, she was a doll like Evelyn. Ambitious and talented, but not exactly confident… So she asked me to help her out… And, well, that’s what happened.”

  “Wow…” I muttered, “That’s… a lot to take in.”

  “Yeah…” she sighed, cupping the scissors, “Alright, how’s that?”

  “Hm, looks… Actually pretty good,” I remarked with a measure of surprise, “Kind of got this badass hard rocker vibe to it.”

  “Heh, we aim to please,” Judy grinned, finishing with the final touches along the forehead, “Here, a hair tie.”

  “Thanks,” I smiled, putting my hair back and walking outside with her, “I should get going soon… Wanna try and get some sleep before the mission tonight.”

  “Heh, aw. Wish I could come with,” she chirped, giving me a hug.

  “Well you can, I guess,” I shrugged semi-sarcastically, “My mission partner’s not exactly a techie, so…”

  “Oh? You wouldn’t happen to know any techies for hire, would you?” she grinned.

  “Well… there is this one girl I know…”

  “Yeah? Who?”

  “She’s the most talented BD editor in NC. And a hell of a wizard with computers in general.”

  “Mmm, sounds like the perfect match for you,” she said seductively, “What’s she do?”

  “Funnily enough, she’s actually recently out of a job, could use a steady paycheck…” I raised an eyebrow, “Might be willing to do some freelance work on the side.”

  “Heh, you’re bad…” she slapped me playfully in return, “Fine, I’ll help ya out.”

  “Thanks, Jude,” I smiled, brushing off some errant hairs off the shirt, “God, that sunrise does look amazing– Hey!”

  Judy sneered behind her phone, quickly snapping a candid picture, “What? It’s tradition!” she said between laughs, “Alright, alright, here, go stand over there, wanna get you in the light.”

  “Oh? Right here?”

  “Nah, little over to the right, so all the garbage isn’t in the shot.”

  “Garb–” I looked over my right shoulder, eyeballing the pile of old trash bags, “Oh, uh, right, okay.”

  “Alright… perfect, this'll go right on the nightstand, heh…"

  "Judy!"

  "Hey! Hold steady, and say cheese!”