"V, finally!"
Jackie Welles looked up the moment he heard footsteps. He snapped his BDGirls Monthly shut, then immediately held it out toward Neo with a smirk—only to pull it back again, laughing like the devil himself.
"Wait, wait, what the hell am I thinking? You just came from a night with that pretty choom of yours. No way you need this mag right now."
Neo sighed. "…"
Jackie scooted over, patting the seat beside him, his grin widening. "C'mon, hermano, sit down. Don't just stand there lookin' like a corpo accountant."
Neo ignored the invitation and sat across from him instead. "So, what's the situation? Why's Vik working on David?"
"Oh, that." Jackie leaned back, his tone pure gossip. "That's a funny story. Your little protégé made one hell of an impression."
As Jackie spoke, Neo learned everything that had happened — David walking in, volunteering for the chrome swap, and insisting on paying himself.
When Jackie finished, Neo couldn't help but chuckle. "Hah. The kid's got guts, I'll give him that."
In the world of Night City, Viktor Vector wasn't just a ripperdoc. He was a legend — one of the last good ones. Fair prices. Steady hands. A moral compass most thought extinct.
People said that if David or Maine's crew had gone to Viktor first, the story of Edgerunners 2076 might've been a little less tragic. Not happier, maybe — but less cruel.
And Neo knew one thing for sure: anyone who earned Viktor's respect had already passed one of Night City's hardest tests.
…
On the operating table, David was getting his first real taste of a professional upgrade.
The difference was night and day.
His last "ripper" had been a back-alley butcher who charged him extra to not use anesthesia. That guy's idea of surgery was "hold still and try not to scream too loud."
But here, under Viktor's hands — there was no pain. No cold. No fear. Only the smooth, quiet hum of machinery and precision.
Viktor stepped back, wiping his hands. "Alright, David. You've got the new MooreTech Rage-1 enhancement, reinforced tendons, a Kiroshi mod eye, and neural palm connectors. Check everything. Tell me if anything feels off."
David sat up, blinking as his new optics focused and adjusted. He flexed his hands, then grinned wide. "Old Vik, you're a damn wizard! I feel… amazing!"
Then came the question that always followed joy in Night City. "Uh, how much is this gonna cost me?"
Viktor chuckled. "Relax, kid. Not every top-shelf mod is corpo-exclusive. Those big companies love selling multiple 'tiers' under one brand. Yours sound dangerous, but they're the baseline models. Don't sweat it."
He turned, stretching his stiff shoulders as he walked toward Neo and Jackie.
…
"Vik, lemme introduce you to my brother from another mother," Jackie said proudly. "The one and only V."
Then, to Neo, "And this fine gentleman right here is the Viktor Vector — best ripperdoc in Night City. No contest."
Viktor raised an eyebrow, visibly uncomfortable with the title. "Heh, Jackie, you always talk too big. I'm just a doc trying to make rent."
He extended a hand, studying Neo more closely — and immediately noticed the most unusual thing about him.
No ports. No chrome. Not even the faint trace of a neural implant. A true organic — a man untouched by tech.
"...You're unmodified," Viktor said slowly.
Neo nodded. "Never have been. Never will be."
Jackie, half-laughing, leaned in. "He's not bragging, Vik. He doesn't need chrome. The guy's built different — like, legend-in-progress different."
Viktor smiled faintly. "Well, it's not often I meet someone who refuses the easy path. That's rare around here."
Then he sighed, opening a small cabinet behind him. "You know what? This kind of meeting calls for something special."
He pulled out a dusty bottle of whiskey. "Let's have a drink. To your upcoming job — and to surviving it."
Jackie's grin exploded. "Now that's what I'm talkin' about! Hell yeah, Vik, finally you're sharing the good stuff!"
Glasses clinked. For a few hours, laughter replaced the hum of machines, and even in that rust-stained clinic, Night City felt almost… human.
…
Three Days Later – Japantown
Beneath an abandoned apartment block, the air was thick with oil and old blood. The team sat inside a van parked deep in an underground garage, the dim lights flickering above them.
Neo leaned against the back door, arms folded. Rebecca spun her SMG like a toy, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. Jackie sat up front, running over the plan.
"Alright, chooms, listen up." Jackie pointed at a holo-map projected from his wristband. "We've got Rebecca on fire support, David taking his first dive in the field, and Kiwi handling the net from afar. Maine's crew is hitting from the other side."
He zoomed in on the red-marked sector. "Our target's being held by the Scavs in this block here. Once we breach, Maine's crew moves simultaneously. Two teams, two fronts — we crush 'em between us, fast and clean."
Jackie reached into his pocket, pulling out a sleek anti-interference earpiece. He handed it to Neo.
"Here. Plug this in. It's how you'll stay connected with us and the middleman."
Neo took it, slipping it on. Jackie grinned. "Test the line, hermano."
Neo tapped the device. "V here. Loud and clear."
"Perfect," Jackie said, his grin widening. "Then let's roll."
The van's engine rumbled to life, headlights cutting through the shadows.
Somewhere above, the neon veins of Night City pulsed — unaware that beneath its streets, a storm was about to begin.