Too Broke For Afterlife

????????????????????????????????

It's exciting to finally reunite, especially after this victory. 

Slaying the dragon turned into a bloody battle and I almost died twice but in the end we conquered him without any of us respawning at the original camp. 

After that miniature war and reuniting the Elven king with his secret lover, Wal, Parker and I had approached Goldres to finally talk about the crystal on his chest. The centaur was very surprised but eventually sat us down.

We found out that he had been ordered by somebody unknown to wait for strangers to mention the symbol and ask for his connection to it. 

Next, he had pulled out a small linen bag with two white marbles inside, the same kind of marbles we had found on Mozart's grave back in Austria, right before we went to Heaven.

And with that we knew: Somebody is fighting on our side. Somebody is doing what they can to support our success. If only that someone would show themselves. It's good to know that we are not on our own but also can't know when and where to rely on that stranger's help. We can only wait and pray.

And I don't pray.

Of course there is also the possibility that this person is luring us onto a wrong track. What if these marbles are just props?

When we asked Goldres for the meaning of the marbles and what to do with them, he had one more piece of information that completed the message he was given.

"Go find the fortune teller in Always Night City right before sundown. Show her the marbles. And let her lead the way."

Our mission is clear.

Now we are all sitting around in the hideout, waiting for the sun to go down. 

Nobody seems to share the same emotion. Nox example is full of energy, pacing the room and figuring out how to best approach this situation. Parker is as quiet as a grave, he just stares out of the window, his eyes following the clouds. Judy is avoiding me for some reason, she is chewing her nails nervously.

And me? I'm not sure how to feel.

I can barely keep myself together. My body is shaking, just waiting for the panic to take over me and devour me whole. 

My mind is being a bit less decisive. In one moment it's calm and almost excited about the adventure and all the places we get to explore, people we get to meet. But then in other moments it joins my body and makes it impossible for me to keep it in.

Another set of thoughts that has been sneaking into my brain lately are the worries of what might be going on at home. My friends. My parents. My job. I lied to them but I'm sure that by now they have found out and are worried sick, not knowing where I am. Or maybe they are angry assuming I'm hiding in some spa hotel again.

Parker and Judy must feel similarly. They must be missing their people as much as I miss mine. But thinking and worrying about it only makes everything worse. I can't change the situation and I should leave all these thoughts for when I'm back on Earth.

If I'm ever back on Earth. The Mayor knows how to kill us. If she breaks free or sends her people, our fate is sealed. We can't run away forever. 

Right in this moment I wish there was a God after all. One I could pray to. One that would guide us the way to victory. One that would want to get rid of Priscilla Godwin and save Earth just as much as we do. 

But it's a godless life we are missing and godless people we are. Our fate is up to us, if we die it's through our own actions and when we cry at night, there is nobody to listen.

If only I was wrong.

"We should start getting ready. The sun will set within the next hour. Who volunteers?" Nox looks at us, waiting for bravery to take over.

Parker pulls his knees closer to his chest. "The last time somebody volunteered, we got attacked by psycho skeletons and I almost lost an arm. I'm out."

"Me too." Judy doesn't look up, still staring at the floor. "If we get caught on the way, I won't be able to fight back."

"Nobody will need to fight. And if you do, you can use this."

Nox pulls out her gun, the one that can paralyze others.

"Nobody here has this kind of weapon, only Prsicilla's little minions know about it."

I look at the blue and gold gun and wonder what it would be like to hold it. I've never held a weapon before and am not interested in ever using one.

But this one attracts me like a moth in the night.

Before I can stop myself, the words slip over my lips. "I'll do it."

"Really?" Clemens seems surprised. "Are you not worried?"

I check my feelings as I try to find the answer. And surprisingly, for the first time in way too long, fear isn't part of the mix.

"No, I'm not. I want to do this."

I look at Nox with as much determination as I can put into my eyes.

She hesitates at first but then she nods.

"Good. I'm impressed by your guts. We will equip you with an earpiece so that we can guide you through the city and tell you what questions you need to ask. But we cannot risk somebody stealing the marbles so instead you will be showing the fortune teller this digital photograph."

Nox presses a button on her wristband and a translucent screen expands in front of her face, showing the marbles next to the linen bag.

"Okay. Got it."

"Good." She turns off the hologram, takes off her wristband and hands it to me. 

"Be careful, concentrate on the mission and once you've got your information, get back here as fast as possible. Good luck."

The gun travels from her possession into mine. Once everything is stowed away safely, I throw a quick glance at my friends.

Judy looks at me as if I've gone completely crazy. The bewildered eyes stare at me, trying to process what's happening. 

Parker and Walter exchange a glance but both seem to have more trust in me than my ex girlfriend. 

That is a bit sad if I have to be honest.

Then the raven haired man gets up and walks over to me.

"Let me put it in." Walter pulls the communication device out of a small plastic bag and then fiddles it into my ear.

"You can hear us but we can't help you. If there's something you need to communicate, try with subtle gestures. You will need this as well."

I look at what he's holding. In his palm lies a tiny sparkly stone. A gem?

"It's a secret camera. I can just click it in…"

He presses the camera into my metal cheek. "...and voila! You're a secret agent now, congrats."

I smile at him, thankful for the spark of positivity. 

"I will not disappoint you."

"Of course not." A smile flashes across Nox' face but as always it's dead.

"Just follow my instructions and you'll be fine."

<<<

Walking through the streets of Always Night City is a challenge in itself. The people here look anything but friendly.

Cyborgs with colorful mohawks, plenty of piercings and openly carried weapons are either standing alone in a corner and staring at me, walking together in cliques like they are reshooting Mean Girls or threatening to fight each other.

And it's not even night yet! I have to get back before the moon has come out or I will definitely get approached by a stranger who either tries to attack or befriend me.

Nox' voice resounds brassy in my ear. "Go right and then right again. You're almost there."

I follow her directions and turn into a less lively alleyway. 

"Be careful around here."

The alley is pretty dark and somewhere to my left I hear a garbage can fall over.

"Hey, pretty lady! Looking for some fun?"

I ignore the man and speed up my steps but that seems to piss him off.

"How dare you run away, you little bitch?"

He jumps in front of me and I look into the face of a 6 foot 5 muscle pack dressed in leather and nylon.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

"Shoot him."

Oh, right!

I pull out the gun and the man watches me. He laughs.

"Oh, how adorable! What noob model is that? Never seen it before. Wanna check out my rifle?"

I take a deep breath and then pull the trigger.

Light blue flashes through the dark alleyway and the man freezes. He falls to the floor and starts spasming like a fish out of water.

Oh god, that's horrifying!

I quickly hurry away, ignoring his miserable attempts to speak.

I take the next turn right and am back on a bigger street.

"Good job. See that purple sign on your left? That's her shop."

I nod, hoping they identify the movement.

Once I've crossed the road, I look up at the sky.

The sun has almost completely disappeared. Now or never.

I open the door to the fortune teller's shop and push a bead curtain aside.

Dimmed warm light swallows me whole.