\+/ PAST \+/
The pitter patter of rain on the megabuilding's window provides a white noise in the room... the warm atmosphere of the cozy apartment contrasts the cold harshness just outside and desperate to get in. Marilyn on her 3rd smoke remains in deep contemplation as she stares out of the window with tonight being a bit different than most others. Tonight... she understands full well what's being asked of her... it carries risks and stakes higher than anything shes taken on in the past and she feels it. The experience shes gained... the skills that shes acquired over the course of her evolving person have lead her to this moment as she bares the weight of it. She buries her nervous energy expertly as she mentally prepares for the edge. The bright neon glow of Night City cascades outward away from the window shes staring out of... the wet buildings and pavement grab ahold of the light making them shine and reflect with a glossy neon soaked finish.
Several attempts to get her attention have now passed as Marilyn hears Judy's voice in her head: "The truly lost ones... set no limits for themselves... They're committed to the edge..."
"Mare.."
"...They're committed to the edge..."
"Mare."
"...They're committed to the edge..."
"Mare!" Brian says a final time snapping Marilyn out of her thoughts. She looks over at him and nods... Brian then looks over at graves and nods his head up at him. Graves understanding the signal gets up and promptly leaves the apartment. Marilyn looks on confused before sitting up on the couch and resting her elbows on her knees... putting her hands on her forehead. The door slides closed leaving the two of them alone... Brian understanding her tense, nervous energy breaks the silence, speaking in a softened tone.
"Do you remember... when we first met?"
"Jig Jig street." She says taking a final drag of her smoke before flicking it in the room.
"What were you doing there that night..? I never asked."
Marilyn pauses, crosses her arms and shifts her weight in her seat before responding in a calm tone.
"My sister... She'd been trying to get me to leave NC for a while at that point.. I guess... the deeper she got into the merc world the tighter her grip on me became."
She gets up off the couch and starts pacing around the room. "Shes more like a mom to me than she ever was a sister... Can't blame her though... things weren't easy when we were young... Shes never seen me as someone who could become...well... me." Brian listens on with a serious look of admiration on his face. She continues.
"She came at me with a fucking one-way to Oregon. THAT SAME NIGHT! To our AUNT'S HOUSE OF ALL PLACES! That crazy bitch... she hated our mom." Marilyn pauses briefly. "Tch.. Ev knew it wouldn't have worked... Hate seeing her when shes desperate."
"What did you say to her?.. Why not leave?" Brian asks while sitting down on the now free couch.
"I just... ran." Marilyn pauses. "And i didn't stop running..." Marilyn makes her way to the window by the couch near Brian. She gazes out into the neon cityscape with a sense of awe and mesmerization... the towering, cascading cityscape stares back at her with an intimidating and silent glow. The power of Night City's beautiful allure on full display and undeniable... creating sensations in those who gaze into it rarely able to explain. She places her hand on the window firmly... looking past her emerald green eyes in her reflection. "I don't know... This City... it calls to me... I feel it at the core of my being."
She stares deeply into the city as the pattering of rain keeping the glass windows cold takes over briefly...
"Can you feel it Varga?" She asks in a whispered tone of awe.
"I do..." He whispers back in a deep tone as he closes his eyes.
Marilyn takes her hand off of the glass while continuing to stare at the city... she finally looks down before finally stepping away from the window and continuing.
"Ended up on Jig Jig street... talking to some.. joytoy about.. nothing. The music was too loud to hear her anyway. Bouncers had just finished cleaning up a barfight... sweeping up glass and dragging some unconscious, lead head gonk out the front door to make way for the next batch of loud bar hoppers. It felt... familiar. Warming... Like home."
She continues to pace around the room. "Eventually we went outside for a smoke... she insisted we walk down toward the storage tunnels away from the bar... It was a pretty slow night that night and didn't carry much foot traffic through the back streets. It was late enough that most people had already decided to delta. That's when they grabbed me... Scavs... I was... so overwhelmed... the only thing i could do was... scream." She looks over at Brian who picks up on it.
"When i heard your scream I... I didn't even think about it. I just came running... to be honest... I heard the fear and desperation in your voice more than anything." Brian pauses before glancing out the rain filled window. "3 shots, 3 dead scavs. ... Flatlined em all. ... 'cept one." He looks over at Marilyn. "Do you remember."
"The one you were wrestling with on the ground? Yeah."
"And what did you do Mare." Brian asks leading while making that eye contact with her that she craves. She looks away... visualizing the events of a night that would change her life forever:
The joytoy that lead Marilyn down into the storage tunnel entrance pulls iron and places it at the back of Brian's head. Marilyn wraps her arm around the joytoy's neck from behind and yanks back... making her misfire and send the gun flying out of her hand. It slams onto the tile and skids across the sewer grates causing a loud echo in the tunnel. The joytoy struggling to get Marilyn off of her is off balance and flailing her arms trying to turn around and face her. Marilyn moves with her momentum, never letting go of her neck causing the both of them to fall. The joytoy falls face first onto the hard tile floor of the storage tunnel... splattering blood with Marilyn riding her back.. allowing her grip to sink in even tighter. The Joytoy struggling to breath puts both of her hands onto Marilyn's forearm gripping it tightly while kicking and flailing her legs around. Marilyn buries her head behind the joytoy's head closing her eyes tight and squeezing as hard as she possibly can. The joytoy goes limp while Marilyn continues to squeeze as hard as possible.. letting out a blood curdling scream through her teeth. The pressure Marilyn is applying causes the joytoy's body to twitch uncontrollably before finally stopping lifeless.
The area has long cleared of stray bystanders as Brian goes to grab Marilyn, struggling to pull her off of the dead joytoy. Marilyn stumbling to gain her balance grabs ahold of Brian's jacket before looking up at him. He sees her cut up, bruised and bleeding face while holding onto her shoulders... they lock eyes for the first time. Strangers with a kinship being forged through violence... where life and death hang in an uneasy balance for all. The moment is suddenly broken as their attention is turned toward deeper into the storage tunnel by a shout.
"FREEZE!!! NCPD!" 2 badges yell while running toward them in the storage tunnel with iron drawn. Brian grabs Marilyn and yanks her closer to his chest as he points his Nue in the direction of the badges. He fires a shot that hits a climate control unit causing sparks and the fan blade to fly directly at them before sending several more shots their way causing them to take cover. The pair of them then take off back toward the north entrance to Jig Jig street fleeing the area.
Marilyn looking down and finishing the recollection looks back up at Brian... He stands up and walks toward her... she meets him in the center of the warm apartment. He hands her the wreath and the BD before gently placing her forehead onto his. They both look down... embracing each other in their arms in the center of the room as the rain on the window leaves behind only their silhouettes.