Into the Void

Plans

"You guys found Kasane's cube?!" SMG4 exclaimed. Jesse told him about the discovery as soon as he, Kai, Lilac, and GingerBrave went back to the truck.

"Not just her cube, but also her knives," Jesse replied.

"Jesse found them in a trash can," Kai added.

"So, does this mean...?" SMG4 trailed off.

"It means Kasane is indeed here in this world, and someone must have taken her," Jesse said, looking down at the glowing cube in his hand.

"Could it be Circus?" Lilac asked.

"Maybe."

Meanwhile, Falco pressed his hand against the steering wheel, making the truck honk. Doing so gave him the group's attention. "Let's get goin', choombas! We got work to do!"

With that, everyone went back to their seats as Falco continued the journey to Circus' hidden lair. As soon as they arrived, they saw that Maine's truck reached their destination before them. Everyone hid in the darkest area they could find, where Jesse showed the others his findings.

"Huh. No wonder why you guys took so long," Rebecca remarked with her hands on her hips.

"It was my fault," Jesse said with a guilty sigh.

"That means you guys have a functional cube to send the refugees to Planet Specter," Lucy said with a hand on her chin.

"Yeah, but we can't just leave Kasane! She's our friend!" GingerBrave replied.

"I never said you guys were gonna leave her," she retorted.

There was a brief pause within the group until N raised his hand and said, "Uh, before we start, can I ask you a question, Jesse?"

"What's up?" Jesse turned to look at the robot.

"I know you and your friends intend to send the refugees to Planet Specter, but what about everyone else in Night City?"

N's question caused everyone to look at him with wide eyes and raised eyebrows.

"When the Black Mass finally shows up to take over this dimension, what's gonna happen to the citizens here? Personally, I don't think we should leave them to the Black Mass' corruption. Can't we bring everyone here to Planet Specter, too?" N turned to Maine and his group. "You guys, too! We can take you to Planet Specter, and you all will be safe there until the MPS defeats the Black Mass. I'm sorry if I'm rambling so much. It's just my all-inclusive attitude kicking in again."

"Actually, we never thought about that," Zane said. "After all, our only goal here was to find the people stranded in this dimension and take them to Planet Specter. We never thought about everyone else in Night City at all."

"Well, I suppose we could do something for them as well," Lilac said with a finger on her chin.

With a nod and crossed arms, Jay said, "Yeah. Thanks for bringing that up, N."

"Now that I think about it..." Jesse turned to Maine and said, "Maine, you and your crew should come with us. It would do all some good if you-"

"We ain't leavin', kid," Maine replied, looking away from the brunette.

"What?" Jesse's eyes became wide.

"What do you mean?!" Rainbow asked, glaring at Maine. "Once the Black Mass comes, you guys will be defenseless against it! Your weapons and technology wouldn't stand a chance!"

"We appreciate the offer, we all do, but this is our home whether we like it or not," Kiwi said.

"There's no saving the people of Night City," Lucy interjected, leaning against a brick wall. "We're all a lost cause here."