[Damn, she thinks I'm some kind of idiot.]
Roqi already knew this direct approach wouldn't work.
He took off his Bluetooth earpiece and handed it to Rogue.
Rogue glanced at it with those dark-lined eyes, gave a faint smirk, and took it.
"Didn't think people still used these things."
Roqi just smiled, saying nothing, as he watched her tuck the earpiece into her hair.
[Johnny, time to say hi to your old flame.]
He didn't need the earpiece to communicate with Johnny—he could talk to him through that weird interface he still didn't fully understand.
Come to think of it… what is that thing, exactly?
He made a mental note to ask Rogue about it later—she might actually know something.
Roqi nodded to himself, eyeing her with a mix of anticipation and curiosity.
Rogue still sat with that classic power posture, then narrowed her eyes and shot him a glare.
"You trying to pull some crap on me with a synthetic voice recording? Not funny."
She tossed the earpiece back, leaning back into her seat, and the last trace of amusement vanished from her expression.
"Pretty damn convincing though. I'll give you that. Must've put in some effort."
Roqi was dumbfounded. So… she didn't believe him. Not one bit.
"No, this Johnny—it's real."
His voice came out thin, his tone utterly unconvincing.
He glanced around, paranoid someone might be listening, then lowered his voice.
"Johnny, just say something only the two of you would know! She's about to toss me out on my ass!"
Then he backed off, watching her closely.
There was something oddly exciting about being in the middle of this kind of legendary reunion.
At first, Rogue's expression didn't change.
Then Roqi noticed the slightest twitch in her brow. Her eyes shifted. She scanned the room.
Then she bit her lip, exhaled hard through her nose, shot Roqi and Mower a glare—but it wasn't angry. She pushed herself upright.
"Enough!"
Her voice cracked like a whip, the air in the room turning tense in an instant.
Roqi and Mower flinched, thinking she'd snapped—until they realized she wasn't mad.
[What the hell, Johnny! What'd you say to her?! We're here to form an alliance, not start a damn feud!] Roqi hissed.
[You're full of crap all the time, but now you're suddenly shy?]
Whatever Johnny had said, he didn't send the audio to Roqi—so he had no way of knowing what secrets had been spilled.
[Just the usual man-and-woman stuff. I told you—Rogue never says no to me.] Johnny sounded mighty pleased with himself.
[Jesus, I've got a fuckboy living in my head.] Roqi rolled his eyes.
"Follow me."
Rogue stood and walked ahead.
Roqi and Mower exchanged glances, then followed.
They passed the moody bar, walked through a hallway where light and shadows danced across the walls, and entered a private room deep within Afterlife.
As the heavy doors shut behind them, the noise outside vanished completely.
The silence was eerie.
"I'm gonna ask one last time. You're not pulling my leg, are you?"
Rogue took a deep breath, stepped forward—and then backed off again.
"No way. No fucking way. How the hell are you still alive?"
[But I am. Still alive.]
After Johnny dropped some very private memories—stuff only the two of them could know—Rogue had no choice but to believe it.
"I need you to step outside. I wanna talk to him alone."
Rogue sat down, looking grim.
"…Alright."
Roqi handed her the PDA.
"Johnny's on the relic in the slot. Pulling it out could screw things up. Good luck with your talk."
Then he and Mower stepped out. The big merc at the door let them pass.
More than thirty minutes passed. Roqi and Mower sat side by side, probably force-feeding romance vibes to the poor bastard sitting next to them.
Then the big guy came over and gave Roqi a pat on the shoulder.
Time to head back in—whether the talk went well or crashed and burned, they'd find out now.
But when they walked in, the vibe in the room was way too… chill.
"Get Claire to bring a bottle," Rogue said to the merc. He nodded and walked off like a walking tank.
Booze?
Roqi's eyes lit up. He grinned.
[Damn, Johnny. That quick? You already won over the queen of Afterlife?]
He was impressed—even if Johnny's behavior screamed "certified heartbreaker."
"Take a seat."
Rogue gestured generously, her tone softer now.
"So… who else knows about this?"
She skipped the pleasantries—straight to business.
Roqi hesitated, glanced at her, then bit his lip.
[Johnny? Can we trust her?]
He had to be cautious. The last thing he needed was to walk into another trap.
[If anyone at Afterlife's on our side—it's Rogue. No contest.]
Johnny sounded confident. Calm and clear.
Roqi believed him.
Roqi, Mower, V, Jackie, T-Bug, Viktor, and Misty—those were the seven who knew. Goro Takemura didn't count—he was a total outsider, and Roqi had kept Johnny secret until Takemura left the scene.
Smart move, in hindsight.
Roqi and V were brothers from the nomad days. Jackie joined the fold later, turning them into a tight trio. Viktor was like a dad to V, and Misty was Jackie's girl—solid and trustworthy.
T-Bug? Less close. But she'd rejected Dex's bait and stood with them when it mattered. That counted for something.
"Alright then. But I'll verify everything myself—just to be safe," Rogue said. "Forget about that job you came here for. That deal's off the table."
"From now on… the roles are reversed."
She raised her glass and toasted him.
"Come on, drink up."
Roqi clinked glasses and downed the drink.
Whiskey, or something like it—burned all the way down. Not really his style.
"So… reversed roles? What's that mean?"
Roqi relaxed, curiosity piqued.
"I've got a job for you."
Even though Rogue was older now, the fire in her eyes hadn't faded one bit.
"Let me guess. It's about Johnny?"
Roqi grinned, eyeing the PDA in her hand.
"Bingo. That asshole already spilled the beans."
She ignored Johnny's banter and went on.
"The relic's damaged. I don't know how you kept him alive in there, but right now we can't do anything with that bio-chip."
"Anders Hellman—I've already sent people to track him down." She pointed a finger, her tone approving. "You did good, kid. Noticing that private message in a hellhole like Konpeki Plaza? That takes skill."
That info was supposed to be a top-tier Arasaka secret. Hellman's identity as the relic's designer was known only to a handful.
"Thanks," Roqi said. "What did you know about Konpeki beforehand?"
"Only the basic rumors—Dexter's job, Saburo's murder, someone launched a SAM at an Arasaka AV, Takemura got blacklisted, Arasaka forces were wiped out, Saburo's ride was stolen and crashed in the plaza, and Adam Smasher showed up…"
She listed them off one by one. "So that was you—stealing the relic? You've got balls, kid. Only an idiot like Dexter would take that job, not knowing how deep Arasaka's eyes run."
Roqi thought about it. Yeah, she had a point.
Just Takemura alone had tracked down Dex's corpse overnight and found V's place the next morning. That wasn't just him—that was Arasaka's insane reach.
He remembered what Goro had said:
"In Night City… there's nothing Arasaka can't find!"
Sure, the accent had been a joke—but the truth behind it wasn't.
"And you—just offed a fixer like it was nothing. That idiot Dex still had some pull. Should I call you fearless, or just plain dumb?"
Rogue shook her head.
Her words sounded like scolding, but her eyes were practically glowing with admiration.
"That fat bastard was gonna sell us out the moment things went sideways. Just like two years ago? Not this time."
Roqi wasn't backing down—not when he'd been in the right.
Mess with a merc, you get the blade. Everyone on the street knew that was how it worked.
And a fixer screwing over a merc? That was just asking for it—unless you covered your tracks like a ghost.
"Worried about retaliation?"
Rogue asked, sipping her drink.
"Fall of the tree, scatter the monkeys," Roqi said with a smirk. "After what he pulled, I'm guessing half the people he burned are clapping right now."
"You're alright, kid. I like you."
She smiled and added a jab.
"Some folks might be old assholes, but at least they still know how to spot talent."
[Damn right—though I notice someone got a lot more secretive with age.] Johnny shot back smugly.
[Yep. Definitely still a chaotic duo.]
Roqi glanced at Mower—calm, stoic as ever—and felt a wave of relief.
"I need you for some jobs."
Rogue finally laid it out.
"Anders Hellman—based on your info, he probably designed the relic. He defected to Kang Tao. I need him. He knows everything."
"For Johnny?"
Roqi asked.
Rogue paused. The queen of Afterlife actually looked a little… off.
"Next up—the Voodoo Boys. I don't give a damn about whatever AI's hiding behind the Blackwall. But if they're using the relic to find that woman, they're up to something. Find out what. If it's bad—end it."
[Oh, look—someone's jealous. Just sayin'.] Johnny teased.
"So you are still hung up on her, huh?" Rogue snapped at the PDA.
Things got awkward for a moment.
But then she sighed and shook her head.
"Anyway, that's all just prep. We need to get this bastard out of the chip. He can't stay stuck in a PDA forever."
"You got a plan?"
Roqi caught something in her tone.
"Yeah, but not yet."
She studied both of them with sharp eyes that still cut like blades.
"How's the job sound? You and your merc friends could use the money. With Afterlife backing you, things should run smoother."
Roqi never thought it'd turn out like this.
He figured Johnny was just looking for help from an old flame—but this was shaping up to be a full-blown, decades-spanning romantic soap opera.
At this point, he had no idea what the "original timeline" might've looked like. All he could do now was keep walking forward.
Sure, the future was uncertain. But that just made it more exciting.
Most important of all: no one died at Konpeki Plaza.
They might be broke as hell, but as long as they were alive—there was hope.
Money. Fame. Power.
A new path had opened before them.
"Alright, I'll call them now."
Roqi pulled out his phone and dialed V, Jackie, and T-Bug.
For the four of them, this was the opportunity of a lifetime—and the perfect moment to bring T-Bug into the fold.
A job for Rogue? That was top-tier. Every merc in Night City dreamed of it.
.
.
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🤖 My Girlfriend's a Cyberpsycho—Who Knew?
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