The wind whipped through the cracked windows of the speeding Quadra as Starr raced through the endless stretch of the Badlands, the safehouse now a distant memory behind them. The sun had long dipped beneath the horizon, leaving only the cold glow of the Night City skyline far in the distance, like a beacon of neon chaos calling them back into the fray.
Starr gripped the steering wheel, her jaw clenched. In the seat beside her, Nix was silent, his hands shaking slightly as he stared down at his cyberdeck. Behind them, Vega sat stone-faced, his rifle resting across his lap. They had made it out of the safehouse, but the weight of what they had left behind—Juno's death, the destruction of the Neural Shard—hung over them like a dark cloud.
But they couldn't slow down. Militech's team would be hot on their heels, and with Juno gone and the shard erased, they had nothing left to offer as leverage. They were running on fumes, surviving by the skin of their teeth, with no clear path forward.
"Starr," Byte's voice crackled through the comms, pulling Starr's attention back to the present. "You need to know something. There's chatter on the city's net—Militech and Arasaka are both looking for you, but it's worse than that."
Starr's grip tightened on the wheel. "What do you mean, worse?"
Byte hesitated, the sound of rapid keystrokes filling the brief silence. "It's not just the corps anymore. Word of Juno's death is spreading. Mercs, bounty hunters—anyone looking for a quick payday—are going to be after you now. They think you're sitting on something valuable."
"Great," Starr muttered, her gaze fixed on the road ahead. "As if we didn't have enough problems."
"They're not wrong," Vega said from the backseat, his voice low and gravelly. "They don't know the Shard's gone. They think we're sitting on Arasaka's ace in the hole. That's enough to get anyone with a gun chasing us."
Starr cursed under her breath. She could feel the tension building inside her, the familiar, suffocating weight of being hunted. But this time, there was no clear escape. Juno had been their key, and now she was gone. The Shard was destroyed, leaving nothing but ashes of a mission that had taken everything from them.
"So what do we do now?" Nix asked, his voice shaking slightly as he glanced at Starr. "We can't outrun Militech forever. And Arasaka… they'll want revenge."
"We don't run," Starr replied coldly, her eyes hard as she made a sharp turn, the Quadra's tires kicking up dust in the night air. "We go back to Night City."
Nix blinked, the shock evident on his face. "Go back? Are you crazy? We just escaped!"
Vega leaned forward, his tone dark but calm. "She's right. If we keep running, we'll get picked off one by one. If we go back to the city, at least we'll have a fighting chance. We know the streets. We know how the corps work."
Starr nodded, her thoughts racing as she pieced together their next move. "Night City is the last place they'll expect us to go. Militech and Arasaka will be hunting us out here in the Badlands, thinking we're hiding. But if we slip back into the city, we can disappear. Regroup."
Byte's voice came through again, more cautious this time. "I can help you stay off the grid once you're back in the city. But you'll need to be careful. Militech's got feelers everywhere, and Arasaka's network is even tighter now that Juno's dead."
"I'll handle it," Starr said, her mind made up. "Once we're back in Night City, we'll find a way to survive."
Nix looked unconvinced, but he didn't argue. The truth was, they didn't have many options left. The city was dangerous, but it was the only place they knew well enough to navigate under the radar. Out here in the Badlands, they were sitting ducks, exposed and vulnerable to anyone who wanted to take a shot.
The road ahead narrowed as the desert gave way to the outskirts of the city, the glow of neon lights slowly growing brighter against the inky black sky. Night City loomed ahead, a beast waiting to devour them whole, but for Starr, it was home. It was chaos, violence, and corruption—but it was where she had survived for so long.
And now, it was the only place left to turn.
Scene: Slipping Back into Night City
The Quadra cruised through the industrial zone on the edge of Santo Domingo, where the city's flickering neon lights met the crumbling ruins of old megabuildings. The roads were rough, and the streets were mostly deserted at this late hour, but the danger was never far off. Gangs controlled this area—people who wouldn't hesitate to take a shot at a passing car if they thought it held something valuable.
"Byte, you have eyes on the streets?" Starr asked, her voice low as they passed a group of Maelstrom gangers loitering near a graffiti-covered building.
"Yeah, I've got you," Byte replied, her voice calm but focused. "I've hacked into some of the local surveillance feeds. Nothing major moving in your direction yet, but the gangs here are on edge. Keep your heads down. Militech and Arasaka both have feelers in Santo Domingo."
Starr kept her eyes on the road, her fingers tapping the steering wheel rhythmically as the Quadra rumbled through the darkened streets. The glow of the city loomed larger now, the once distant spires of Night City rising like sentinels, casting long shadows over the dilapidated neighborhoods they passed through. The towering megastructures ahead seemed to pulse with the familiar hum of neon and decay, their presence both reassuring and suffocating.
"Where do we hole up?" Nix asked, his voice barely above a whisper, as if the city itself could hear them. "You got a safe spot in mind?"
Starr thought for a moment, her mind racing through the list of contacts and hideouts she had used over the years. Most were compromised now, burned by years of bloody work and double-crosses. But there was one place left—one person she could trust.
"We go to Mama Welles' place," Starr said, turning the wheel sharply and taking a back alley to avoid the main roads. "She runs a bar in Heywood. Quiet, off the grid. No one's going to look for us there."
"Mama Welles?" Vega asked, raising an eyebrow. "You think she's still got your back after everything?"
Starr clenched her jaw, pushing down the doubt that gnawed at her. "She owes me. Besides, she's not the type to turn someone away, especially not with Arasaka breathing down their neck."
"Let's hope you're right," Vega muttered, leaning back in his seat, his rifle resting against his chest. "We're not exactly in a position to be picky about allies right now."
As they approached Heywood, the streets became narrower, the buildings more tightly packed. The glow of the neon signs flickered in the distance, casting an eerie light on the cracked pavement. This part of the city had its own rules—one dictated by gangs and forgotten promises. But it also had loyalty, something that was rare in the upper echelons of Night City.
Byte's voice crackled in Starr's ear again. "I've mapped a route that should keep you out of sight. Arasaka's been pulling back their patrols in this area, but Militech's been sniffing around the outskirts. Stay sharp."
"Understood," Starr replied, steering the Quadra through the maze of backstreets. The tension in the car was thick, every turn bringing them closer to the heart of the city—and to the enemies hunting them.
Scene: The Coyote Cojo Bar
The Coyote Cojo sat nestled between two rundown apartment blocks in the heart of Heywood, its flickering neon sign a familiar beacon in the dark. The bar wasn't much to look at—just a small dive where locals came to drink away their troubles—but to Starr, it was one of the few places that still felt like home. It was a place where promises were kept, even when the rest of the world turned its back.
Starr parked the Quadra in an alley behind the bar, the engine's rumble dying down as she killed the lights. The night air was thick with the smell of garbage and the faint hum of the city beyond, but here, in this forgotten corner of Night City, it felt strangely calm.
Nix shifted uncomfortably in his seat, glancing at the dimly lit bar. "You sure about this place? Doesn't exactly scream 'safehouse.'"
"It's not supposed to," Starr muttered, stepping out of the car. "That's the point."
She motioned for Vega and Nix to follow as she approached the back door of the bar. The door was old, rusted at the hinges, but familiar. Starr knocked twice, pausing for a moment before knocking again. The sound echoed through the narrow alley, and for a moment, there was only silence.
Then the door creaked open, revealing a tall, broad-shouldered woman with graying hair and sharp, watchful eyes. Mama Welles stood in the doorway, her gaze sweeping over Starr with a mixture of surprise and suspicion.
"Layne," Mama Welles said, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's been a long time."
Starr offered a faint smile, though her voice was tinged with exhaustion. "Too long. I need a favor, Mama."
Mama Welles raised an eyebrow but didn't step aside. "A favor? Last I heard, you were deep in some corp mess. You brought that trouble to my door?"
"No trouble," Starr replied, though the weight of her words didn't match the reality. "Just need a place to lay low. Militech and Arasaka are both gunning for us. We don't have anywhere else to go."
Mama Welles' expression hardened, but after a long moment, she stepped back, letting them inside. "You've always been good to my boys. I won't turn you away. But this had better not bring heat down on me."
Starr nodded, grateful for the reprieve. "We'll stay off the radar. Just need a few days to figure things out."
Inside, the Coyote Cojo was dimly lit, the bar lined with empty glasses and a few patrons nursing their drinks in the corner. The soft hum of a jukebox playing an old, melancholic tune filled the air, a stark contrast to the chaos waiting for them outside.
Mama Welles led them to a back room, away from prying eyes. The small, dim space was cramped but secure—a place where they could regroup and plan without fear of being overheard.
"Stay as long as you need," Mama Welles said, her tone softer now. "But be careful, Layne. Night City's not as forgiving as it used to be."
Starr nodded, watching as the older woman left the room. The door clicked shut behind her, leaving Starr, Vega, and Nix in the silence of the dimly lit space.
"Alright," Starr said, rubbing a hand over her face. "We've got some time. Let's figure out our next move."
"Next move?" Nix asked, sinking into a chair, his face pale with exhaustion. "We're lucky to still be breathing. What are we supposed to do now?"
Starr leaned against the wall, her arms crossed over her chest as she considered their options. "We need to find out what Militech and Arasaka know. If they think we're still holding the Shard, we need to throw them off the trail."
"How?" Vega asked, his eyes narrowing.
"Disinformation," Byte's voice came through the comms. "We can plant false data—make them think the Shard's been sold off, or that it's still in Arasaka's hands. But it'll be tricky. Both corps have heavy surveillance running now."
Starr nodded slowly. "We don't have a choice. If we can get them to turn on each other, we might be able to slip through the cracks."
Vega's expression remained hard, but he didn't argue. "Alright. But we can't stay here forever. Once they figure out we're still alive, this place becomes a target."
"I know," Starr replied, her voice heavy with the weight of the situation. "But for now, it's the best we've got."
Scene: A Moment of Rest
The hours stretched on, the tension in the air thick as Starr sat in the back room, her mind racing with a thousand possibilities. She kept her eyes on the cracked ceiling, the faint sound of music from the bar filtering through the walls, but her thoughts kept drifting back to Reaver.
His absence was a constant ache, a reminder of the sacrifices they had made to get this far. She had left him behind in that tower, fighting for his life while she ran. And now, despite the brief moments of calm, the question of whether or not he was still alive gnawed at her.
"Starr," Byte's voice broke through her thoughts, softer this time. "You okay?"
Starr closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "I'm fine."
But even as she said the words, she knew they weren't true.