1. (Prologue) Cherry Bomb
Hey, so…disclaimer, Night City and Cyberpunk-all of that stuff if CDPR’s stuff, so this is just a little fan project I wanted to write after getting inspired by Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. And yes, there will be nods to Cyberpunk 2077 and Edgerunners around every corner…you’ll see
Anyway, you don’t understand the amount of research I’ve done to try and make this as lore-accurate as possible
This story takes place one year after Cyberpunk 2077…2078, if you don’t know how to count
The streets were quiet…the stench of car exhaust and fumes always lingered, but this time, there was a stench of sweat…but that stench was covered up by a piercing smell of rust…metal
Bodies were everywhere
Blood covered the ground…lakes upon lakes of crimson slime all over the ground, the walls…the other warehouses…
One Latino woman stood in the middle of the scene, her breath was heavy, and every whiff she took caused her torso to rise and drop
Bodies of the 6th Street gang were everywhere…I can tell you now, it would take weeks to find every piece of meat and chrome left of their bodies
The woman begins to stand up straight, a heavy pistol in her right hand
She starts dragging what’s left of herself out of the warehouse, her irises beginning to glow orange, as before they were a dark sapphire
“Hey” A cold voice of a woman echoes through her head
“Did…did the…oh fuck…” The Latino woman drops to one knee, still breathing heavily
“Rose? Rose, you okay?” The cold voice questions
“Yeah, just…need to catch my breath…holy shit…I–I did–did the-the uh–gig…the–6th…6th Street people…not here anymore” The Latino woman sits down in a pool of blood, staining her baggy, black camo pants
“That’s good to hear…you’ll get your eddies soon, I’ll let you know if I get another gig for you, I’ve got something brewing” The cold voice mentions, sounding confident in herself
Rose lays on her back, staring at the ebony sky, small lights dancing in the void, “Cool…cool” She forces out a laugh
“…Hey, you oughta get out of there soon, I’m sure more 6th Street gangs are coming, probably NCPD, too” The cold voice warns, still sounding calm and collected
“I know…Jesus…okay…okay, I’m up” Rose grimaces and grunts, finally twisting around to push herself back to her feet, completely staining her large, yellow jacket and black pants again, even getting clots in her rusty-looking hair
“Bye” The cold voice fades away
Rose holds her forearm over her stomach, shuffling away from the warehouses and edging closer toward her sleek, black car
Her grunting and groaning nulls out by the shrieks of a loud, whirring siren rushing down the street
“SHIT, COPS” Rose swings the door open, bouncing inside the driver’s seat
The sirens run closer toward her, a wake-up call to any sleeping denizens
The inside of the car is shrouded in darkness
Rose slams her finger into the black “On” button
The windshields turn on, showing off the barren streets of Arroyo slowly being filled with flashes of blue and red
Rose slams the door shut and speeds off, the 0-60 on the car feeling almost instant
The radio suddenly jerks on, causing Rose to flinch and cock her head toward it
Rose groans, the sound of heavy guitars and drums almost putting a muffler on the sirens
“What a thing of beauty, I know…will never fade away” The radio descants
Rose starts humming the song to herself, drifting down the streets, now at about 160 miles an hour
All of the sirens fade into the void, out of sight, and out of mind
Rose closes her eyes for a moment, letting out a sigh of relief
…Until her eyes pop open after the car slams into something, but keeps on running
There’s blood on the windshield and a dent in the hood
Rose raises her eyebrows, glancing back at the side mirror….to see someone in a tuxedo writhing on the ground by a crosswalk
She bites her lip, gazing ahead
Then shrugs, “Ah, whatever” She keeps speeding down the road, rocking out to Samurai’s song
The city flies past her from the windows, not even red lights can stop her from racing down the streets
Rose glances down at her clothes, noticing just how much blood is soaked into her attire, “Shit…I hate laundry” she utters, then sighs
Her pupils begin to glow bright orange, she begins slowing down along the road
“This is Jiang, what’s up?” A flat, male voice echoes through her skull
“Babe, hey, uh–I’m coming, I’m coming hard, bloody…lots of blood” Rose stares ahead at the road, continuing to drive toward Watson
“That’s called a period” The man sighs
“You’ll see–soon…very soon…lots of blood” Rose whispers
“Why are you telling me? Should I tell Dante to go to bed?” Jiang questions
“She wants to be called Sera, c’mon–and she’s 17, she’s not gonna go to bed this early” Rose rolls her eyes, a small grin twisting on her face
“It’s 10” Jiang mentions
“Yeah, she’ll hit the hay at like…I dunno-but she’s a–a–a teen, you know how you’re a teen and wanna party until the sun rises, yeah?” Rose starts to adjust the rear-view mirror to focus on her, helping her try to wipe the blood off her face
“When I was a teen, I-” Jiang starts
“Yeah, yeah, slums, blah, blah, I immigrated from Cuba at 13, sob stories, but do you really think she doesn’t wanna stay up late? Today’s Friday, anyway” Rose winks at herself in the mirror, adjusting it to give her a view behind the car again
“…Why are you telling me there will be lots of blood and you’re coming?” Jiang grumbles
“To start the washing machines, just give it a pep talk” Rose decides to stop at a red light instead of rushing past it
Jiang sighs, “See you soon”
“Bye, hon, love you” Rose smiles
Jiang hangs up, the bright orange fading from Rose’s eyes
Rose lowers her head, gazing down at her lap
It isn’t until a car honks behind her that she suddenly presses the gas again
Rose glances at the rear-view mirror, then rolls the window down and sticks her middle finger out
The driver behind her speeds up beside her and rolls down the passenger side window, flipping her off
Rose glances back at the road, pushing her arm out of the car further, trying to enunciate
The black driver reveals his scarred face while he flips Rose off using a second hand, a large robotic middle finger on his left hand
Rose pokes her lip out with an angry face, flipping the guy off with her other hand
The driver raises his hands higher, straining his fingers harder
Rose pokes her entire torso out of the car, “FUCK YOU” She shouts
“FUCK YOU” The driver shouts back
They’re in a stalemate of fingering each other, both still driving down the street at about 80 miles an hour
Both of them glance back at the road, then realize there’s a turn coming up
Rose pops back down in her car, swinging the car to the right, then drifting left, getting on the highway to drive back home
The black driver from before nearly crashes the car in a ditch, but manages to keep driving along the road, his breath so heavy it can pick up on scales
Rose slows down, getting beside the driver again, “HEY, HEY, YOU” She yells out at the driver
“THE HELL YOU WANT?” The driver yells
“WHAT’S YOUR NAME?” Rose glances back at the highway, then back to the driver
“MITCH” The driver shouts
“FUCK YOU, MITCH” Rose calls out
The driver lets out a faint laugh, “WHAT’S YOUR NAME?” Mitch hollers, spit flying out of his mouth
“ROSE” Rose introduces
“FUCK YOU, ROSE” Mitch shouts
Rose giggles to herself, rolling the window back up
Mitch grins, but then his eyes widen, staring at her expensive car
Rose speeds along the highway, now going at least 120
Her eyes glisten orange, a curious look sprouting on her face
“Hello?” Rose raises her eyebrows
“You mean Rose Domingez? Cherry Bomb? Nah, nah, you’re bullshit–hittin’, choom” Mitch’s voice scoffs through her head
“What, you a fan?” Rose smirks, glancing back at Mitch’s car in the rear-view mirror
“Really? I just flip-flipped off Rose Domingez, seriously? Holy hell…he-hey, and why are–why are you covered in blood?” Mitch questions
“It’s-uh-just-just-just a bad period” Rose tries to joke, but the holo screws up any attempt at a joke and makes her sound like she’s trying to cover something up
“Riiiiiiight, just a per-period, alright, I’ll see–well, it was nice talking–n to ya, choom” Mitch’s gruff laughter rings through her skull
“See ya” Rose’s eyes fade back to normal, twisting the radio up by a few notches
She groans when her song gets immediately interrupted by a news report
“Hello, citizens of Night City, I’m Eric Iqbol, now do you remember about one year ago, how Arasaka’s best supercomputer network, Mikoshi, had all of its data suddenly disappear? Well, we just received word that Arasaka is going to attempt to re-do this astronomical idea, Yorinobu Arasaka has claimed that not all data was wiped from Mikoshi during the ‘Incidental Cyberspace Erase'” The reporter explains in a crisp tone, almost joyful to be at his job, even…which honestly, I doubt, but props to him
Rose rolls her eyes, changing the station, but the report is being broadcasted everywhere
“Could this be Arasaka’s last wind to try and recuperate after the terrorist attack by V Dreamer last year? Or could this simply be a hoax by the international company in an attempt to show its power? At any rate, the tensions between Militech and Arasaka are ever increasing with each passing day…not to instill worry within anyone, but this may lead to serious ci-” The reporter blabbers on
Rose swings the volume knob down, “Jesus Christ, I don’t caaaaaaare” She groans, throwing her head back
The car speeds down the barren highway, Mitch’s van nowhere to be seen
Rose stares ahead at the road, bouncing her leg
After a while, Rose finally drives into her megabuilding complex parking garage, driving down the levels in search for a parking spot, of course, at the very bottom, she finds a parking spot between a large truck and a dune buggy
Rose lets out a sigh of relief, getting ready to back into the spot
Suddenly, a brown motorcycle peels into the parking spot, the driver covered in a brown coat and no helmet, showing off all sorts of implants in their head…namely two sets of cybernetic, red eyes on their face
“HEY, I WAS GONNA PARK THERE, SCOP-FOR-BRAINS” Rose sticks her head out of the window
“GUESS YOU AIN’T GONNA NOW, HUH?” The woman laughs away to herself, getting off the bike and starting to stroll toward the garage ramp
“Oh, you did not just fucking say that” Rose grinds her teeth together, putting her car in drive
The implant-heavy chick still maniacally giggles to herself, waving her arms around, for some reason
Rose slams on the gas and rams into the chick, blasting the red-eyed woman into the wall, and even making a bigger dent in the hood of the sleek car
The woman wheezes out blood all over the hood
Rose presses on the gas harder, the tires squeaking harshly, “YOU STILL WANNA FUCKING PARK THERE, YOU MAELSTROM GONK?” She screams
The Malestromer’s spine doubles over, blood and saliva falling out of her mouth
Rose puts her foot on the break, setting the car in park before swinging the car door up
The Maelstromer is struggling to breathe between the coughs
Rose briskly gets out of the car, taking huge steps toward the cyberwearer
“Save…me” The goon weakly whispers, gazing up at the sky
Rose rips out her Overture pistol and blasts the chick’s brains out against the wall, not a hint of remorse in her oceanic eyes
The Maelstromer goes limp, the red LED in their eyes fading
Rose takes a deep breath, sheathing her gun, “Just…remember…what…the guru…said” She takes a full inhale through her chest, puffing it out, then gusts all the wind out through her lips in a simple stream of air
Her face twists into a smile, then she gets back in her car, gently shutting the door…before slamming her fist against the horn
(Just gonna spare you the details of her parking and everything and say she made it up the ramp and into the elevator that leads to the 7th floor)
“Hey, choomers, shroomers, and viewers, Mr. Whitey here!” One of the ads on the TVs inside the elevators opens up with
“If they play that damn ad one more time…I’m gonna go psycho, Jesus Christ” Rose rubs her forehead, letting out a long and heavy sigh
She leans against the side of the elevator, gazing out chainmail-like doors inside the elevator to watch the roads and other buildings fall underneath her
The elevator door finally opens up
Rose pushes herself off the wall, walking toward her apartment, past all the other doors
To the few people still awake and sifting through the halls, they stare at Rose, unblinking with their mouths on the floor
Rose twists her mouth into a grin, continuing to walk down the hallway
“Cherry Bomb…the fuck did you do, lassie?” A Scottish man wearing heavy boots gapes
“What? There something on my face?” Rose furrows her brows, glancing at the guy
“Jus’–don’t get me involved, alright? Jesus Christ” The Scottish-sounding guy heads back inside his apartment
Rose simply giggles to herself, now bouncing her feet up the stairs, leading her to the next row of apartments
She glances down at her chest, then grips her silver cross necklace, nodding to herself
Eventually, Rose drops her hand in her pant pocket, making a little squishing noise, and pulls her room keycard, then hovers it over the scanner
The door slides open, showing off a shirtless Korean-looking man boasting long hair running down his shoulders on the couch and his gaze locked on the ceiling
There’s a kind of headset wrapped around the sides of his head, projecting a thin visor over his eyes, think of goggles like Cyclops had, but more futuristic
“Hey, babe, I’m back” Rose giggles, stepping inside the apartment
Jiang doesn’t respond, staring at the sky
Rose playfully rolls her eyes, sauntering toward the washing machines by the door
The door slides shut behind her automatically
Jiang lets out a soft sigh, still gazing up at the ceiling
“SERA, HEY, CAN YOU COME HERE FOR A SEC?” Rose calls out, pulling her bright jacket off in the kitchen-like area
A young woman with a-Jesus Christ, look at that jawline-a sharp jawline and a cut in her eyebrow steps out from a sliding door by the very small balcony
And halfway through walking out, she just stops and stares at Rose
Rose stares back at the teen, stopping halfway through taking off her jacket
“…Mom, do you need a ripper?” The teen raises her eyebrows, now covered by her spiked bangs leading to her wavy, brown ponytail, a neon streak of blue running through the ponytail to make it pop that much more
“…Nah, I’m good, just wanted to let you know I’m gonna take a shower and don’t use the washing machine until my clothes are dry…so just go back out to hanging out on the balcony” Rose nods slightly, letting out a grin
“…Mmmmmhm” The teen steps back onto the balcony, shutting the sliding door
Rose starts to strip down, her bloody clothes splattering on the ground
Jiang continues to stare at the ceiling, basking in the glory of his brain dance…but his heart is pounding for some reason
The teen leans against the side rail, watching the starry night sky of Night City
The sky coated in a jet black…stars twinkling and shimmering to show their presence
The ball of rock in the sky…giving the sky an open smile with its beaming glow…
Sera stares at the moon, a smile washing across her face
She gazes back at the streets…the only soul she sees is somebody pissing on another guy’s car tire
Sera grimaces, gagging before she stares back up at the comfort of the darkness…it almost calls out to her…”Come here, Dante…come here…I’m waiting for you…and I’ll wait as long as I have to”
Her face bends into a smile, unable to break her gaze from the eternal darkness
“Hey, your mom’s naked” Jiang pokes his head out from the balcony door
“DAAD, STOP” Sera whips around, groaning
“Just saying” Jiang defensively holds his hands up, then shuts the door
Sera lets out a bemoaning sigh before leaning back on the balcony
The dancing skies still invite her to come inside it
Sera’s pupils start glowing a bright blue, bouncing her vision around whatever she’s looking at
She hangs her head, pushing out another guttural sigh
Then her face turns to confusion when her eyes flicker orange, receiving a message from someone named “Sex1estBuuhBuuh”
“Yo, u don’t know me, but Arasaka Tower, tomorrow, like out at day or night, idc, just tomorrow, plz, Arasaka Tower, outside, Corpo Plaza” The message reads
Sera tries to respond to the message, asking, “New phone, who dis” but the only message she gets back is:
“UNABLE TO SEND MESSAGE”
Sera shakes her head slightly in disbelief, scrunching her face up
Rose lets out a heavy sigh, staring up at the cold water coursing over her face, when it drips off her naked body, it gains a new, bloody color
“…I need to take a fucking vacation” She sighs, turning her head to the side and squeezing the reddened water out of her hair
“Hey, uh…Rose” Jiang speaks up in a low tone
“Mm?” Rose glances over her shoulder, rubbing herself down with her hands
“I uh…cooked some eggrolls earlier…not the legitimate stuff, but…I thought you might be hungry when you got back and…yeah” Jiang mumbles, staring at the ground
Rose raises her eyebrows, then the corners of her mouth curve, turning into a smile, “Thanks, babe”
“Dante–I mean Sera, Sera…she helped me make them…” Jiang flattens his mouth, shuffling his feet
“Really? My big, strong, independent boy actually let someone help him out for once? What’s gotten into you?” Rose cheekily giggles, washing the small hairs underneath her armpits
“…I’ll just heat them back up, they’re probably cold by now” Jiang briskly walks off to the fridge
Rose shakes her head with a smile, “Love you” She glances back at Jiang, turning the shower off
“…Maybe I should just…drop out…I dunno” Sera mutters to herself getting on her knees and resting her head on the guard rail
She wipes under her eye, heavy makeup smothered on her thumb, a light purple mark where she wiped the makeup off
Sera stares at the makeup on her thumb, examining the dark makeup, then she flicks her hand, “…I’m not gonna let those bastards get the best of me, fuck them” She stands up, grinding her teeth together
The door slides open behind her
“Hey, you can come back in, I’m done” Rose knocks on the glass, now dressed in a tank top and jeans
“Alright” Sera sighs, turning around
“…Hey, are you okay? Did someone punch you?” Rose opens the door up more, sauntering toward Sera and holding her hands out to try and cup Sera’s face
“Mom–no–stop–I’m fine–I’m-STOP” Sera swats Rose’s hands away
Rose flinches back, “Are you sure? You-” She starts
“Mom, I’m FINE” Sera shakes her head, walking past Rose and back inside
Rose drops her hands to her sides, letting out a sigh and hanging her head
“Dante, come here a minute” Jiang crosses his arms, leaning against the couch
“I told you to stop calling me that” Sera cocks her head to Jiang
“Well that’s what your birth name was, now you don’t talk to your mother like that, do you hear me?” Jiang points at Sera
Sera scoffs, dragging her gaze away from Jiang
“Now apologize to her, and then go to bed, are we clear, young lady?” Jiang raises his eyebrows, his tone flat yet demanding
Sera glares at Jiang, gritting her teeth, then sighs, pacing back toward Rose
“…It’s okay…” Rose turns around, letting out a faint smile as Sera approaches
Sera glances back at Jiang
Jiang gestures to Rose, then crosses his arms again
Sera closes her eyes, unable to look in Rose’s direction, “I’m…..sorry” She mumbles
Rose slowly nods, hanging her head
There’s a silence…like the whole world shut down, the sound of a beetle could be heard crawling along the wall
The quietness is deafening…until the ring of the microwave screams out
Rose steps inside, shutting the sliding door behind her
Jiang nods at Sera, watching her
Sera drags her gaze back in Jiang’s direction, primarily staring at his feet
“Bed, now” Jiang orders, pointing at the ground
Sera grumbles, walking toward the only other room in the apartment
“…Love you” Rose waves at Sera
“Whatever…” Sera opens her bedroom door, then slams it shut
Rose lowers her head, then sighs, “Are we…really good parents?” She turns around to face Jiang, “Because…maybe we aren’t” Rose cups her face
“Well…I’m certain we’re doing better than our parents…no?” Jiang faintly smiles
“But…what if we aren’t?” Rose’s voice is brittle, riding on the edge of shattering
Jiang pulls one foot in front of the other, then hugs her, “…I~I don’t know, either” He mumbles
Rose drops her hands, pressing her head into Jiang’s bare chest…her whole body feeling the warmth emanating off his body
Sera sits on the edge of her bed, covering her face…water leaking between the cracks of her fingers, “Why–why am I like this? Why…why am I so…like this?” She squeaks
Rose puts her hands on Jiang’s chest
Jiang sways his legs back and forth slowly…dancing with her to no music…
They rest in each other’s embrace…each other’s faith…each other’s love
…Rose feels her stomach start to shiver from hunger, a subtle groaning rushing out of her gut
“…Egg rolls are in the microwave…I’m going to sleep…” Jiang speaks in a soft tone, kissing Rose on the forehead before letting go of her and turning to walk off
Rose grabs his shoulder
Jiang raises his eyebrows, twisting his torso back around to meet her gaze
Rose doesn’t say anything, she just wraps her arms around Jiang, resting her head between his collar and jaw
Jiang…faintly smiles, wrapping her arms around her again
“…..I don’t want Sera to end up like me…” Rose mumbles
“Why not? You’re amazing…you’ve even got fans in the merc community…I’d know because I’m your biggest” Jiang grins, gliding his hand up and down her back in a slow pace
Rose chuckles, her face flushing to pink, gazing up at Jiang, her eyes glossy
“Look at you, my little strawberry” Jiang caresses Rose’s cheek, chuckling to himself
“Shut up” Rose rolls her eyes, dragging her hands on her mouth, hiding her huge smile and reddening face
“What, is my little ‘Red Pepper’ any better?” Jiang teases, beaming at this point
“I will strangle you, I will put your head on a pike and strangle you” Rose’s face warms up, beginning to burn
“…I’m going to bed, goodnight” Jiang kisses her on the forehead one last time before unraveling his arms around her and pacing toward the bed integrated into the wall
Rose watches him walk the short distance, unable to break her gaze and un-curve the corners of her lips
Her stomach grumbles in discomfort once more
Rose glances back at her slightly toned stomach, then saunters off toward the microwave, popping it open to drag out her steamy egg rolls
She shuts the microwave, then plops down on the couch and takes a crisp munch into her first roll
The crumbs from the golden outside crumble onto her chest
Inside her mouth, the mixture of shredded cabbage and browned pork dance along her tongue
Rose moans in joy, taking another large chomp out of the roll, her teeth breaking the crust open with a crisp crackling noise, even more textures of thin lettuce mixed with small chunks of juicy shrimp gliding along her tongue
She spreads her lips apart, going for a finishing bite, the roll makes it halfway into her mouth when her eyes flicker orange
Rose groans, answering the holo call
“Hey, Rose, Sunset Motel, need you” The cold voice rummages through her skull
“Yeah~alright, got-got it” Rose lets out a small sigh
“See you soon” The shrewd voice fades from her head
Rose’s eyes fade back to their normal blues
She tosses the piece of eggroll into her mouth, getting off the couch
Rose pops open the washer and throws her bright yellow jacket on, the collar illuminating with a blue light…with a peculiar green logo on the back of it starting to fade away from the wash
There’s still blood on the jacket, but at least she doesn’t look like she put her back against a barn while the paint was drying
She glances back at Jiang resting in bed, then she pops her gaze over to Sera’s room
Rose lowers her head, then slides the door open, leaving the apartment
