Chapter 2

Lucas woke to the sound of muffled voices drifting through his bedroom door. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and stretched.

Yawning, he pulled on a t-shirt and shorts before heading out of his room. The inviting aroma of coffee and toast greeted him as he walked into the living room, where his parents were seated on the couch with the holo-screen on.

"...and in other news, a cyberpsycho identified as Lieutenant Colonel James Norris was involved in an incident in Corpo Plaza that was resolved with a single, precise shot to the head, leaving law enforcement officials baffled. Additionally, a military-grade implant is missing, and it is believed..."

His mother, Akane, a woman in her late forties, had a youthful appearance. Her dark hair was tied back in a loose ponytail. Cybernetic marks traced along her temples and down her cheeks, subtle reminders of the enhancements beneath her skin. She had piercing emerald green eyes that seemed to see through everything.

Akane immediately noticed Lucas. "Morning, honey. You sleep okay?"

"Slept great," Lucas replied with a yawn and walked over to the dining table. He poured himself a cup of coffee and grabbed a piece of toast from the table. He took a seat, casually glancing at the holo-screen where the news continued to play.

His father, John, a rugged man with a strong jawline and graying beard, looked up from his datapad. His face, etched with years of experience and a few battle scars, briefly showed curiosity. "Did you do that?"

Lucas shrugged, taking a bite of his toast. "Do what?"

John's eyes narrowed slightly. "The cyberpsycho. They said he went down with a single, precise shot. That's not something just anyone can pull off. And wasn't the place where he was killed right on your route from school to home?"

"Can't hide anything from you, can I? Yeah, it was me. Dude appeared out of nowhere and blew the brains out of a cop," Lucas said as he took a sip of his coffee. "Didn't want to take a detou, so I helped a little."

"You should've just left," Akane said matter-of-factly, but Lucas wasn't really surprised by her heartless comment. It was his mother where he inherited his cold and heartless attitude.

Contrary to their appearances, Akane had always been the more pragmatic and coldly logical of the two.

She was an orphaned street kid. She had seen enough of Night City's dark side to know that taking risks often led to fatal consequences. Her priority was always to keep Lucas safe, even if it meant making harsh decisions. "So were you seen?"

Lucas shook his head. "I checked for cameras and no one was paying attention to me, especially with a cyberpsycho on the loose. Left as soon as I decommished the guy. So, I don't know anything about the missing military-grade implant."

"Must be one of the paramedics. Or someone from the cleanup crew," John speculated. "Those implants are worth a year's salary."

"It's possible, but either way, it's not my problem," Lucas replied, before drinking his coffee in one go. His eyes widening from the caffeine rush, and he quickly stuffed the rest of his breakfast into his mouth. He stood up from the table, brushing the crumbs off his shirt. "Alright, I better get ready."

Lucas quickly went to his room, retrieved his school uniform from the closet, and changed. He walked over to the mirror and took a moment to assess his reflection. In the mirror was a young man with dark hair, slightly tousled from sleep, falling just to his neck and framing his handsome face. His piercing, sharp emerald green eyes looked back at him.

The school uniform fit him well, the black and red jacket with the Arasaka logo and dark trousers giving him a polished and disciplined appearance.

After adjusting the collar of his inner shirt and straightening his tie, Lucas left the room. He stepped back into the living room, where his parents were still going about their business. "I'm off now," he said as he made his way to the doorway and grabbed his shoes.

"Stay out of trouble, okay?" Akane said.

Lucas gave a small smile. "Yeah yeah," he replied before slipping on his shoes and heading out the door.

***

The morning air of Night City was a pungent mix of garbage, sweat, piss, and desperation. This pervasive stench was a constant presence, something every citizen had grown used to.

But for Lucas, with his heightened sense of smell, it was much worse and had taken him a long time to get accustomed to. He could have gotten a nose implant to filter the smell, but that wasn't possible. His body wasn't exactly normal, and he didn't trust any ripperdoc to tinker with it.

The risks were too high, and there were too many questions that could arise from such a procedure.

Even his universal interface plug and chipware socket he used for school was installed by his parents after learning the necessary skills themselves. This was why he didn't get anymore enhancements. Doing so would only trouble them and require them to learn even more complex procedures.

So as Lucas navigated through the crowded streets, he could only endure. He would hold his breath when he was around other people, especially around BD fucking junkies or homeless people who hadn't showered in weeks, maybe even months or years. Their stench was just on another whole new level.

Fortunately, the smell at the City Centre was somewhat more bearable. There weren't as many BD junkies or homeless people around, and air purifiers worked overtime to keep the atmosphere relatively clean.

As Lucas stepped off the NCART, he could finally breathe somewhat normally. Following his usual route to school, he frequently passed well-dressed corporate types. Eventually, he walked past the spot where he had killed the cyberpsycho. The area was cordoned off with holographic yellow caution lines, and police officers were still on the scene.

Lucas glanced at the officers and quickened his pace, hoping to avoid drawing any unwanted attention.

A few moments later, he finally reached Arasaka Tower, where his academy—a prestigious school for those with the potential to climb the corporate ladder—was located in one of the side buildings connected to the tower.

Lucas walked through the sleek, automated doors of Arasaka Academy and was greeted by the familiar sight of polished marble floors and towering glass walls. He made his way to his first class, walking pass groups of students clad in the same black and red uniforms.

Arriving at his first class, Lucas took his seat in the large classroom near the back, where he hoped to have a bit of privacy. He had just received a text message from Rita and was eager to open it. It was probably about their plans for the upcoming weekend. But before he could do so, a pesky little bug distracted him.

"Look who it is," a voice sneered after he had taken a seat.

Lucas turned to his side and saw three of his classmates. He ignored the short, and the fat one and focused on the slim-built student, the leader of the trio. Dermal implants were visible on the right side of his face. His hair was styled in a striking blue mullet-bowl cut, which did him no favors.

Katsuo Tanaka was the name of this upstart, the pampered son of a high-ranking Arasaka executive on the Academy board.

The little shit thought he was better than everyone else. He would often try to bully those with a lower status than him, flaunting his father's influence as if it made him untouchable.

Though that didn't really stop Lucas from fighting back. In the same way Katsuo had his father backing him up, he had his own. Just one call to mommy Akane, she was able to dig up some dirt on Katsuo's father or Mr. Tanaka using her connections during her mercenary days.

Turns out Mr. Tanaka was into some weird and disgusting shit. Illegal XBD's that could easily ruin the dude's life.

Of course, Lucas and his parents weren't exactly the justice type of people. Rather than reporting it to the authorities, they used the information to blackmail Mr. Tanaka into staying out of Lucas's affairs. It was a pretty reasonable request, so he had readily agreed, though the creep didn't really have a choice.

"What do you guys want?" Lucas asked, his voice filled with irritation.

"Follow us after school," Katsuo said in a commanding tone.

Lucas raised an eyebrow. "What? Planning to confess your undying love to me or somethin'? Hate to break it to you man, but I'm not into guys."

Katsuo's cheeks flushed with anger before one of his lackeys stepped forward. "Watch your mouth—"

At that moment, a young man with light brown eyes and dark brown hair, styled in a quaffed look with the sides shaved appeared.

The guy's name was David Martinez, and he was Lucas's only friend at the school. They had similar backgrounds, though Lucas was slightly more privileged as he had both parents. But despite this difference, it didn't really matter, and it wasn't hard for the two to get along.

"Get a load of these guys, David. They want me to follow them after school. Probably wants to test out their new chrome and try to beat me up again."

"Seriously, guys?" David turned to the trio.

This wasn't their first time trying to mess with Lucas. The last incident was just a month ago, where they had attempted a similar stunt and ended up getting beaten up instead.

"I- I just want to have a little chat."

Lucas rolled his eyes at Katsuo's blatant lie. He could also hear his heartbeat quicken, indicating a high chance Katsuo was lying. But with nothing better to do after school, he decided to play along. "Fine, I'll be there. But this better not be a waste of my time."

Katsuo's smirk returned as he nodded. "Oh, it won't be. See you then."

As Katsuo and his lackeys walked away and went to their seats, David shook his head. "Yeah, I don't like this, dude. Feels like a setup."

Lucas shrugged. "Probably is. But I'll deal with it as usual. By the way, did you get the new update?"

"Yeah, I got it last night from Doc."

"Sure there ain't any virus?"

"Relax, Doc's reliable."

"Uh—huh."