An hour later, Evelyn knocked on our door; photo in hand.
I thanked her profusely, taking the memento in my arms and hugging it close to my chest. I bowed deeply to in front of her before running off to my room, partly to sell the grieving son act but mainly because Pride was having a tantrum at the fact we had lowered our head to someone else.
Truly, I didn't care for the photo much; so once I was alone in our room, it was cast aside underneath one of my pillows.
I delayed going back to the main room for a little over a minute; and would subtly mourn my 'mother's' death upon my eventual return, which I was sure Evelyn would pick up on.
The topic of coversation then turned to the booking of a ripper, once our blue haired guest had clarified my agreement on the matter. Evelyn then suggested a clinic in Downtown; and we all agreed, with Judy huffing and going on a small rant about how unreliable street-level rippers were.
I guess it was from experience.
"Those walk-in's can't be considered clinics, some rippers there don't even use anaesthesia; they just rip you open and slap the chrome inside ya', It's fucking nasty."
"Well, enough of that," Said Evelyn, waving a hand and pulling out a small circular gadget from her coat. "I only have one optic set on hand for someone of your age, as even corpo's don't chip their kids so young; and to top it off they aren't Kiroshi made."
She then placed the strange device on the table, her black nails clacking against the table's metallic surface.
Evelyn's eyes flickered briefly, causing the device to glow and project a blueish hologram into the air between us. A floating pair of eyes.
"The Teknics 3250's; a relatively older model, but a stable one. They were designed with cosmetic appliance in mind, so you can change the iris' color according to your will. It's also equipped with a self-growth package, so you'll never have to chip another pair of optics again and can keep it your entire life if you want to."
Judy's eyes widened when Evelyn mentioned they had a self-growth feature, and she blurted out, "Self-growth? I didn't even know that was a thing. When I reached 19 I had to chip a new pair cuz' mine started glitching out - too small."
"Yeah, truthfully I was surprised aswell - so I went and did some digging. Apparently Kiroshi had an SG model too, but they recalled it almost a month after release because their predicted sales took a pretty big drop."
Judy looked slightly confused now, evidently wondering why something so convinient was pulled back.
So, I decided to elaborate on Evelyn's behalf; nudging my benefactor so her attention would be focused on me. "A one time purchase for their entire lives, not a very profitable investement; compared to having them chip a new pair atleast three times."
I watched as a look of understanding dawned on her face, and her confused expression dulled into a dark frown. "Fuckin' corps." She muttered, crossing her arms and leaning backwards against the wall.
Evelyn ignored Judy's outburst, instead glancing at me appraisingly; a small smile playing across her face. She was taking note of my apparent intelligence, just like I wanted her to.
I also didn't doubt that she knew exactly what I was trying to do by showcasing this deduction for her to see. I was selling myself to her, much like an interview of sorts. My roundabout disclosure of 'Judas' intellect was how the present me planned on selling the idea of a future me. And with a bit of luck, hopefully one worth investing in.
"How astute of you," She said, leaning forwards to withdraw the projection; stashing it back into her blue coat. "How old are you again?"
"6." I replied, holding her gaze evenly.
Judy butted in, oblivious as ever. She could be so perceptive sometimes and yet so dense it others; it was a rather endearing quality I had never seen in anyone but her.
"So, you gonna chip em' or not?" She asked, looking at me intently.
Evelyn sighed at her interruption, clearly feeling the same way I was.
'Aaaand Judy to the rescue!' Said Pride, the sarcasm in his voice evident. He was getting bored of the subtle back and forth between me and our guest. 'Is having Evelyn on our side truly that important?'
'Evelyn could be useful; look at how competent she is. It could prove beneficial to have a good rep with her.'
Pride snorted decisively, before giving me a vital warning. 'You want to keep the main story unchanged? If you intend to stick by it then tread carefully around Evelyn. The reason she commissioned the heist on Konpeki-plaza was because she wanted a new identity; a fresh start away from NC. Don't let her get any more attatched to Judy, or even you if it comes to that.'
I paused, taking this new info into consideration. 'I see.'
"If your're sure you want to buy this for me, I'll gladly accept." I muttered, my eyes downcast.
"You should be more assertive," Said Evelyn, "Being humble can only get you so far in this city."
"Hah, sounds like you actually care." Exclaimed Judy, smirking at Evelyn while elbowing her playfully.
She huffed crankily, in response. "How can I not? He's Angel's kid after all; we owe her that much."
Judy smiled faintly, "Yeah- Yeah we do."
"I'll contact Clarke then, book an appointment." Evelyn stood up, her eyes glowing blue. "Well if that's all, I'll get going."
"Already?"
"My working hours start soon, I need to get there early to prepare."
Judy stood up and walked her to the door, suddenly spinning her around and embracing her. "Be careful okay?" She mumbled, squeezing Evelyn tightly.
"I will be, take care."
With that, our guest finally left; and with it, a week passed by.
~~~
"Yo Jude," A loud call echoed throughout the apartment, startling me out of the habitual brooding I had picked up since arriving here. "It's time to go."
I sat up, sliding a large silver datapad off my lap, switching it off in the process. Judy had kindly lent it to me since I had nothing else to do; and because going outside wasn't currently an option, this was pretty much my only passtime.
This very restrictive lifestyle would change for the better within a few hours, which I was anticipating heavily.
Evelyn had held true to her word, and booked a visit with one Darius Clarke; an experienced ripper located in the city centre, known best for his exceptional skill and thorough discreetness.
What Judy found impressive though, was the amount of time it had taken Evelyn to book and setup a meet for said appointment; barely a week since we had discussed the details and come to an agreement about it.
I was rather nonplussed about the entire thing, as during the game you could simply walk into any ripper's clinic at any time; but I quickly pieced togther that the real world wouldn't allow for that kind of flexibility, especially considering the amount of potential clients these people had.
I vaulted the bunkbed's safety rail, dropping down to the floor gracefully.
Being given a week alone, I hadn't wasted any time before familiarising myself with this new environment. Learning the layout was a must, and I wouldn't be tripping over anything else too soon; at least inside this apartment.
Straitening up, I exited our room, glancing to my right after leaving.
Judy stood, leaning against the doorframe, my boots in hand. "Since you seem to like these the most, here. I don't get why you won't just slip on some sneakers like me; it's so much easier."
"I like them, they're comfy." I said, witholding a plethora of reasons that sprang to mind about why my boots were categorically superior to the cheap sneakers she was wearing.
"If ya say so."
I took them from her outstretched hand, putting the footwear on while Judy waited patiently.
"Ready? Then lets go. We'll be takin' my van there, since I hate the metro with a passion; too many goddamn chipjackers and junkies."
I acknowledged her complaints and travel plans, nodding my head quietly.
We exited the complex, hand-in-hand, wrapping around the outskirts of the building and heading towards the parking lot behind it.
Her van stood alone in the deserted lot; the cracked, unkempt ground coupled with heaps of trash lining the street indicating just how abandoned this place was.
I was honestly surprised that someone hadn't made off with the thing yet, that is until I walked around to hop in he passenger seat and saw a large Mox logo plastered on its side.
Having gang affiliated art painted on the side of your car generally helped keep away any of the particularly confident streetkid population that wanted to earn a quick eurobuck.
At least that's what Judy told me when I asked her about it.
"I don't generally like to advertise I'm part of the Mox, but for things like this - there's not really a choice."
As we started to drive, Judy and I passed though various different places; some similar, some not.
The name Night city was fitting; because compared to how it felt during the daytime, this corparate and capitalist utopia only truly came alive in the dead of night.
I could start appreciating just how beautiful the many bright neon lights and cheap looking advertisments flashing all around our district looked, only noticeable now under the cover of darkness.
More people seemed to be active at this point in time as well, the streets somehow becoming fuller and more densely packed than before, with an excited buzz emiting from the busy crowds.
Or maybe Corpo-plaza was just the nicer side of the city, which made the most sense to me. Compared to the run-down streets of Kabuki, this place was much more civilized in comparison.
I leaned my head onto the cool glass of the window and time began to blur as we got closer to our destination.
My eyes unfocused, losing myself in thought as I started to plan my next set of moves.
While the fresh new hunting ground that was this world had so much prey to offer me - hiding from its current predators wouldn't be an easy task, and with this childlike body of mine; I wasn't going to be a fast runner.
(A/N: Please guys, I'd like some reviews for this now - I need feedback on my writing.)