Cyberpunk 2077: V

Chapter 12: Distance

The nightmares were back.

Why were the nightmares back?

It was always the same. V found herself back out on the Plains, sprinting barefoot on the rock and sand, her threadbare Nomad clothes soaked with sweat. The dry air slashed at her throat, and she tasted blood on her tongue as her lungs heaved. She ran hard, pushing herself to her limit, desperate to escape.

Everywhere her foot touched, a dark inky blackness surged into the dirt and killed what little plant or animal life existed. Cacti withered and died around her. Grass shriveled up into dust, blown onto V's back by the rushing wind that pushed her forward. Overhead was a cloudless sky of endless blue, the sun beating down on her and burning her skin. But behind her...

Behind her was the Night. A black void devoid of everything except the cold burning eye of the full moon boring down on her. Everything that withered and died and faded into the void, feeding it, giving it more power. More strength. More speed.

But still V ran, terrified, heart beating so hard in her chest she could swear she felt it hitting her skin, throat raw, tears streaming down her face. But no matter how fast she ran the void came, until the ground began to crumble away under V's feet and-

V bolted upright in bed, a scream on her lips. It took a moment to register where she was, eyes darting around her bed nook and taking in the familiar cracked white plastic and piles of magazines and shard readers. Her chest heaved, heart pounding, cold sweat shining on her skin as if she had actually been running. She could almost taste dust on her tongue. 

And then she suddenly realized there was someone in bed with her.

V almost jumped out of her skin when a loud snore reverberated through the nook, and the figure shifted. V immediately relaxed when she recognized Jackie. The big idiot must have wandered in late last night and slipped into bed with her. He did that sometimes when he couldn't fall asleep at his own place. V would do the same sometimes.

V watched Jackie sleep for a moment, grinning to herself as a loud snore echoed out again and he smacked his lips before turning on his side to face the apartment. He was in his clothes, minus only his boots. She reached out and gently laid a hand on his shoulder. He was a living radiator, and the warmth and familiar smell of his cologne grounded V, soothing her racing heart and reminding her that the nightmare was just a dream. It wasn't real.

As V recovered from the reoccurring nightmare, she felt her brow furrow. What was Jackie doing here? He was supposed to be with Misty. Usually when he and Misty hung out, he stayed the night with her.

V carefully climbed over Jackie, bare chest brushing his shoulder as she eased herself out into the apartment. She padded over to her wardrobe as her morning diagnostic ran, and checked the time. Eight am. She got dressed, slipping on a black tank top along with her blue cargo pans and dark combat boots. With Jackie still snoring behind her, V brushed her teeth, combed her hair, and applied her tribal-esque metallic gold eyeliner again. Staring at herself in the mirror, V scrunched her nose and sighed. She realized that as cool as the metallic gold was, it just wasn't...her. She'd tried several mixes of clothing styles and makeup looks over the past few months, but she always seemed to default back to what was simple and easy to move in. She found that she liked wearing masks sometimes though, especially on stealth missions. Something to hide her identity. The white yokai mask with gold teeth she kept with her all the time matched the gold eyeliner, but V wondered if it would look better if she wore without the extra makeup.

The bruise on her jaw stuck out in a painful lump on her skin, the flesh blue and purple. V held a washcloth soaked with cold water to it, flinching in pain. The coolness was soothing a little, and after patting it dry she tried to move her jaw. Yep, still hurt. V then moved on to her hair, brushing it through and styling it in her side swoop. She'd just finished re-braiding her Bakker braid when she heard a snort and rustling from the bed. Leaning around the corner of the bathroom, she saw Jackie sitting up, his hairstyle squished on the left side of his head. He blinked wearily, then let out a loud yawn and stretched. She could hear his spine cracking from where she was standing.