Cyberpunk - The Fall of Icarus

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"A 'street clinic' that offers services better than Trauma Team's?" Sasha asked skeptically, casting a suspicious look my way.

"In my defense, Trauma could easily treat your mom if not for the corporate corruption rotting them from the inside," I replied. "You might not know this, but everyone who signs an insurance contract with Trauma Team is more of a 'resource' than a patient. If there's an 'unfortunate death,' every organ they've got is company property by contract." I watched her expression shift as the implications hit. Smart girl; she didn't need everything spelled out. I nodded slightly before continuing, "They get their money's worth either way—whether it's from a live body or a dead one."

"Can I?" she suddenly asked, pointing a delicate finger at the training dummy in the corner.

"Go ahead. Just don't go overboard." I waved her on, curious.

Without hesitation, she stepped up to the rubber figure and threw a few sharp punches, finishing with a solid right hook to the face. Interesting to watch; her technique had the distinct flair of something straight out of the NUSA police academies. Since yesterday, I hadn't had a chance to look up her family background, but it was clear now her parents were likely in law enforcement. That explained her mom's silver insurance status and the heavy-duty painkillers. She'd probably been injured in the line of duty, trying to recover fast enough to provide for her daughter.

"Your parents were cops?" I asked, watching her a bit more closely.

"My mom was," Sasha confirmed, turning to face me. "She got hurt during a call, and… well, I guess you can figure out the rest."

"No need to say more," I replied, waving it off. "Looks like Inga's got everything set up, so we can head out." I stood, stretching my arms and heading to the door. "The hardest part is still ahead, though."

"What do you mean?" Sasha asked, looking confused.

"For one, we have to get your mom out of there, which won't be easy. But don't worry—we've got a solid ace up our sleeve."

"An ace?" she repeated, clearly puzzled.

"You'll see when we get there. Gotta keep a little mystery alive." I gave her a playful wink, catching her slightly pouty expression as she followed me out of the office. Trust me, if things go south, Vega's going to squeeze every last drop out of those so-called 'doctors.' I could practically picture their faces already.

***

August 22, 2066, 12:47 PM

"Something on your mind?" I asked, glancing at Sasha, who sat thoughtfully in the passenger seat beside me.

"It's… incredibly comfortable in here," she finally replied, practically melting into the seat cushion.

"Nomads spend most of their time on the road. It'd be weird if they didn't make their vehicles as comfortable as possible, right?" I replied with a grin, watching as she gave a shy nod, clearly surprised by the setup. "But beyond comfort, a nomad's ride has to be tough and, most importantly, ready to bite back." I tapped a finger on my console. One command, and the turrets hidden inside the car would spring to life.

"What's your armor class?" Sasha asked, her curiosity clearly piqued.

"After all the upgrades, it's pretty much on par with a second-level tank," I replied, grinning. "Bit of a stretch, maybe, but my friends know their stuff."

I didn't mention the energy shields and the extra high-tech gadgets that Han and Shiro had installed at my request. If things went south, this car could take multiple tank blasts and keep rolling. The shields wouldn't exactly love it, but just knowing I had that kind of protection was comforting.

"Got it," she murmured, pulling the seatbelt across her chest and settling in.

"I'd say we'll make it to Watson in about 15 or 20 minutes. Not much traffic at this time of day," I said, starting the engine and connecting to my visor before easing out of the parking space.

Reaching the clinic took a bit longer than planned. We got stuck in a bottleneck on the bridge between Japantown and Watson. The NCPD had cordoned off part of the bridge after a clash between two gangs. The Tyger Claws and the Animals had decided to hold a "friendly" shootout, leaving a trail of casualties. While it didn't happen every day, gang shootouts were way too common in this city for my liking.

"They're at it again?" Sasha asked, breaking the silence that had grown between us during the drive.

"Looks like it," I replied, reflexively shrugging and briefly disconnecting from my control drone. "This kind of crap happens all the time around here. Haven't you gotten used to it by now, living here your whole life?" I arched an eyebrow, letting a bit of sarcasm slip out. Her question felt almost naive.

"Didn't think anyone could ever get used to this," Sasha muttered, scrunching her nose and lifting her chin slightly.

"You're quite the character," I said, throwing out a casual comment that probably didn't mean much to Sasha but smoothly shifted the topic.

"Oh, yeah? How so?" she replied, turning her sharp gaze on me, studying me closely.

"Let's just say, it's not every day you meet someone who sees the city the way you do."

"I could say the same for you, mister mercenary," she shot back, dripping with sarcasm on that last word.

"Hey, we've all got our hobbies," I replied, lifting my brows theatrically. "Mine just happens to involve sneaking around at night, playing vigilante." I grinned, watching her burst into laughter.

"Right, look who thinks he's Batman," she chuckled, covering her smile with her hand.

"Well, I see myself as more of a Tony Stark, but close enough," I winked, noting how the traffic finally started to loosen up around us. "Looks like our wait's about over."

"Thank god," Sasha exhaled, looking relieved.

The jam cleared up faster than I expected. The cleanup crew had done their job well, and we had a smooth path forward. After crossing the bridge, I took a right toward the Bay to shave off some time. Reaching the med center's front entrance could be a hassle, but if you knew the right shortcuts, you could slide right into the internal parking without too much delay.

"The longer I live here, the more I'm convinced the architects had a serious thing for giant buildings," I remarked as we rolled up to the towering structure, pulling into one of the internal lots.

"With population density like this, big structures are a necessity. There's just no room left for smaller buildings," Sasha replied with an almost bored shrug, gazing out the windshield.

"Nerd," I snorted, summing up her whole speech in one word.

"And who's calling me a nerd?" she shot back, arching an eyebrow at me.

"Want me to show you just how nerdy I can get?" I smirked, pausing to catch her reaction. "Anyway, time to head inside." Unclipping my seatbelt, I slid out of the car, taking a deep breath of the crisp air.