\+/ PRESENT \+/
The flick of Brian's lighter is heard on the front steps of Nicholas' apartment complex... car horns blare out amongst booming music and chaotic street activity. An NCPD squad car in hot pursuit of a fleeing Cortes screams by with stray gunshots being exchanged without so much as a flinch from preoccupied pedestrians. Just a watered down version of yesterday's events with iron of a much smaller caliber... not serious enough to even react to in this part of town as it screeches by headed toward Heywood. Brian psychologically numbed to the chaotic nature of his environment takes a heavy drag of his smoke as he glances up the street. The heavy booted footsteps of the woman in black thump down the stairs behind him as she exits onto the porch causing Brian to look back at her. While doing this, he watches her remove her black leather facemask for the first time.
His instinctual thought reaction: "Shes beautiful." The rays of the sun hit her fair skin illuminating her face in a light Brian has yet to see her in revealing a deep scar along the side of her neck and jawline. Resting in the exact same spot in which he just got sliced by the Tyger Claw mantis blade the prior night... the coincidence of the placement perplexes him... it was a matching scar. To Brian, her scar compliments whom he's grown to understand her to be in their limited time together... with so many fleeting questions left unanswered and hanging in the air. Instinctually, he can't help it... his curiosity peaks... what would an operator of this caliber be doing getting chased around in Santo Domingo? Her recklessness is clearly pointed... but what would the cause be? He quickly checks himself before allowing his subconscious to poke and delve into places he'd rather not involve himself in. The slippery slopes of Night City often end in blood and betrayal... broken trust... and barren promises... these are realities that Brian knows all too well.
The woman not paying attention to Brian at all lowers her mask in one hand and runs her fingers through her long black hair with the other. Clearly rattled by the interaction with Nicholas she stares down in deep thought. She's definitely not one used to being seen... let alone understood through the observations of strangers. She grabs one of her cigarettes before looking for her lighter... before shes able to start really looking, Brian lights her smoke for her. She glances at him before looking back down, taking a drag and putting her hand on her forehead. The two of them share a silence for a bit smoking as the ambience of the neighborhoods various activity rings out... the silence of their proximity to each other working as good enough company. The woman begins to speak but glances up to see Brian promptly walking away up the street at a steady pace. Surprised, she flicks her cig and follows after him up the sidewalk matching his speed.
"W-Where are you going?"
"Home."
"Wha-? But... you know 6th street right? This is your neighborhood."
"Trust me... barely at all." He says continuing to walk at a steady pace occasionally glancing back at her trying to keep up.
"Well listen, I don't know these people... i... i don't know Arroy-"
"Not interested." He raises his voice dismissively
"I need your help." She proclaims.
Brian quickly stops and turns around as her momentum trying to catch up to him puts her right in his face as he looks her deep in her eyes.
"I CAN'T!" He says in a whisper forcefully through his teeth before turning back around and continuing to walk away leaving her standing there.
"Y'know... your record wasn't completely spotted. Not hard to piece together when you think about it a bit." Brian ignores her and continues walking.
"THIS WHERE YOU WANTED TO END UP?!" She yells cracking her gruff, feminine voice, getting him to stop in his tracks. He hears the tone and emotion in her voice in a way he never has before without any interference from her mask. She continues while slowly walking towards him.
"Look... I see where you were... and I see where you are now... I just don't understand... why? Its almost like... you put yourself here. Even though this isn't where you wanted to be."
Brian turns around to face her standing right in front of him. Looking at her directly makes him glance away almost as if its hard for him to do. "I don't even know you..."
She lowers her eyebrows and responds. "You think that-"
"And what about YOU hm..? You got the spec on me but let me take a couple guesses." Brian cuts her off as he locks in, looking directly at her face to face speaking in a raised tone but quietly so only the two of them can hear.
"Car chase through Arroyo, shootouts, body count, collateral damage, and for what? You don't even have what you were after... AND!-" He stops abruptly to look over his shoulder to see if anyone's listening to them before looking back at her and checking his tone. "And you don't know where it is."
As the frustration increases, his voice lowers. He pauses before shifting subject and squinting his eyes..
"And where the fuck did you get that Sandy hm? ...Who do you have up your ass trying to rip that out of your back these days..? tch... as capable as you are-"
He looks her up and down as he steps in, leaning toward her. "You're lost."
The woman looking at him breaks eye contact... she looks down and away before he continues in a lighter tone while turning and walking away.
"Go get your chooms to help you... you've got your lead."
"What chooms..?" The woman replies cracking her voice. Brian instinctually turns back around toward her hearing the distress in it. She continues.
"You think i'd be fucking around in Arroyo if I had reliable help..?"
Brian at a loss for words takes a deep breath before looking down.
"I'm... my name's Zaunya."