Chapter 29: Jackie: How the Hell Did I End Up in This Car?
After Rhys hung up, he looked at Maine, who was practically vibrating with excitement. "Rogue? You mean the Rogue? Seriously, Rhys?"
"Why would Rogue call you?" Rebecca pushed forward, craning her neck to look up at him.
"Oh, fuck... You think Rogue's coming after us?!" Pilar shrieked again, his new cyber-arm distorting his face as he pulled at his cheeks.
Even Dorio, usually the calm center of the crew, looked tense. "We made a lot of noise last night. You think this is about that?"
"You guys know Rogue? Damn!" Jackie chimed in, clearly impressed. Since leaving the Valentinos, he'd been struggling to make a name for himself for almost two years. Anyone who could get a call from the Rogue? That was major league. Rogue, the queen of fixers!
Bombarded with questions, Rhys, who was just as confused as they were, shook his head. "How should I know why she called me? And she doesn't just want to see me. She wants to see us."
"Good news or bad news?" Maine asked in a low voice.
"We'll find out when we get there," Rhys replied.
"Holy shit, delta!" Jackie breathed beside him.
"Go there? Fuck no, I'm not going," Pilar said, his monkey face stretching almost down to his neck. Seriously, Rhys had seen a lot of synth-skin with the Mox, but he had no idea what material Pilar's face was made of.
"Rogue's a major player. Yeah, the Janus thing was big, but not big enough for her to get involved personally. This has to be about something else," Sasha reasoned.
Kiwi had already put her mask back on, adjusting it carefully. "Overthinking it won't help. If Rogue really wants to zero us, what choice do we have besides lying down and dying? We have to go."
"Wait, Kiwi, did you just say 'we'?" Rebecca seized on the word, whipping her head around to stare at the other netrunner.
The interruption broke the tension. Maine grinned at Kiwi, and even Dorio let out a soft, amused chuckle.
"Ooooh—" Pilar drew out the sound, a teasing smirk spreading across his face. This ice queen had been standoffish since the moment they met, constantly reminding them, I haven't agreed to join yet. But now? Look who changed her tune!
"Ooooh your ass!" Kiwi snapped at Pilar, feeling a headache coming on. Fuck, this crew has completely destroyed my carefully crafted persona! This isn't how I imagined things at all!
"Alright, let's move. We can't keep Rogue waiting. We need to get there early. Good news is, the Afterlife is only fifteen minutes from here," Maine said, his expression turning serious again.
Kiwi was right. In Night City, if Rogue wanted them gone, they were gone. She was the queen of the underworld. One word from her, and hundreds, maybe thousands of mercs would be hunting them down.
Most big-time fixers had corpo or gang backing. Rogue was the exception. At least, no one knew who, if anyone, pulled her strings. She didn't need backing. She was the backing. Gang leaders had to show her respect, bow their heads. Cross her, and your career in Night City was over.
Maine led the way, thanking Viktor again and promising to bring him more business. Vick just waved dismissively, his eyes glued to the boxing match on his screen. Maine wasn't offended. Docs like Vick were rare. His prices might not be the absolute cheapest, but they were fair, and his work was clean and safe. Maine could tell Vick was an old-school hardass.
"Let's go. Meet the queen."
With a wave of his hand, Maine signaled the crew to follow.
"Hey, uh, Vick? I'm gonna walk them out," Jackie said, hesitating for a moment before speaking to Vick's back.
"Go on," Vick replied calmly, his eyes still on the screen. He muttered, almost to himself, "You were never the type to sit still anyway. Heywood's too small for you..."
Jackie hurried out after the crew. He pushed open Vick's door just as they reached the top of the stairs, waiting for him.
"See? Told you he'd follow," Maine grinned at Pilar.
"Fuck, I owe you five hundred eddies," Pilar groaned.
Rhys looked at Jackie. "Jackie? Need something?"
"Uh, yeah. Just wanted to see you guys off," Jackie said, rubbing his hands together awkwardly.
"Alright." They walked out together, Rhys falling into step beside him. "Let's swap numbers. You said I could hit you up if I had a gig, right?"
"Damn right! You call me, I'll get it done! I might not be famous yet, but trust me, I'm gonna be a legend!" Jackie puffed out his chest, slapping it confidently.
As they walked towards the cars, Jackie launched into his story, telling Rhys and Maine about the gigs he'd run. He was clearly capable, but like they'd already discussed, skill alone wasn't enough on the street. You needed luck, connections... Jackie's luck had clearly been shit. The fixers he'd worked with were all gonks, and he couldn't leverage his old gang ties. He was one of the few who'd managed to leave the Valentinos in one piece. Gangs... easy to get in, almost impossible to get out clean.
They reached the cars. Jackie leaned against the window of Maine's ride, looking at Rhys with a wide, boisterous grin. "Alright then, it's settled! Mano, you got work, don't forget about me! Just throw some eddies my way, whatever you think is fair."
Rhys smiled and nodded. Jackie was clearly down on his luck. Ever since leaving the Valentinos, nothing seemed to go right for him. It wasn't until he teamed up with V that his fortunes started to turn. But right now, he was just another struggling merc.
Rhys considered asking him to join the crew, but he'd need to talk it over with Maine first. And right now, Rogue was the priority.
Jackie stood up straight. "Okay then. Call me if anything comes u—"
"MOTHERFUCKERS! IT'S THEM! GET 'EM!"
The screech of tires cut Jackie off. At the same time, Pilar's panicked voice yelled over the comms. "Maine! It's those 6th Street bastards! Shit, they're fast! How'd they finger us already?!"
Down the end of the Kabuki street, a car barreled towards them, sunroof open, a light machine gun spitting lead. Pedestrians scattered, screaming, desperate to avoid the crossfire.
Rhys threw his door open and grabbed Jackie's wrist. "Get in!"
"Huh?" Jackie yelped as Rhys hauled him into the car. He tried to resist, but was shocked to find Rhys's strength completely overpowering his own.
"Maine, drive!" Rhys yelled, a hysterical laugh bubbling up. Since joining Maine's crew, he'd seen more action in a few days than he had in years with the Mox.
"Haha! Fuckers! If the time and place were right, I'd show these gonks a real fight!" Maine grinned, sunglasses back on. He slammed the accelerator, wrenching the steering wheel. With a scream of tortured rubber, the two cars fishtailed out of Kabuki, leaving chaos in their wake.
Jackie was crammed into the back seat, his head practically shoved into Rhys's lap, his massive frame folded uncomfortably. He stared, bewildered, at the back of Maine and Dorio's heads. What the hell just happened? How did I end up in this car?! He was utterly lost.
The back seat was a crush of bodies. Kiwi and Sasha were pressed together, Sasha grabbing the overhead handle for balance, a faint smile playing on her lips despite the situation.
Amidst Maine's booming laughter, a new day began for the crew.
"Rhys! Intense enough for you?"
"More than enough, choom!" Rhys laughed back.
Maine roared. "Damn right! I told you I'd show you a good time!"
"Will you two gonks shut up and drive?! Stop acting tough! They're gaining on us, and this car isn't that well armored!" Dorio yelled, cutting them off. She'd just poked her head out to check and nearly lost it to a stray bullet that had seared past her cheek.
Hearing Dorio's outburst, Rhys and Maine exchanged embarrassed glances. Seeing each other's expressions, they both burst out laughing again, the shared danger forging an instant bond.
"But this... this is fucking Night City!" Rhys yelled, exhilarated.
In the back, Jackie, caught up in the chaotic energy, felt his confusion replaced by a wild grin. Deep down, he was built for this kind of madness.
"Fuck yeah, mano! You said it! This is Night City! What better way to start the day than with a goddamn car chase!" he roared in agreement.