Rain hammers the corrugated roof of an abandoned warehouse in the Water District. Cold concrete presses up through Mercer Skye’s back, oil slicks shining under a strip of failing emergency light. His optic implant stutters awake, one eye flashing color, the other a steady grey.
The lockup smells like rust, coolant, and wet metal.
Across from him, a thin mechanic in a grey bomber jacket sits amid opened tools, wire spools, and a half-disassembled diagnostic rig. She watches without moving, like she’s waiting for him to decide he’s alive.
Zara
You’re finally up. Good. I was about to start charging rent.
Mercer’s neural mesh throbs in a slow, ugly pulse. Somewhere outside, a distant siren folds into the rain. Zara reaches to her side, fingers resting on a data wafer without handing it over.
Zara
I pulled you out of the wreckage before the patrols found you. If you want the rest of the story, you’re going to owe me for the parts I burned keeping you intact.
She tilts her head toward the doorway, where the warehouse is sealed only by shadow and a bent slab of metal. Her expression stays unreadable, but her posture says she is ready to either bargain or run.
Zara
So. Are you walking out on your own, or do I need to explain who’s been asking after Mercer Skye?
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn who has been asking after Mercer Skye
“"Everything is foggy, I...I don't remember what happened. You, though, you look familiar. Do we know each other?"”
YES (Even, rolled 21)
Mercer Skye
Everything is foggy, I... I don't remember what happened. You, though, you look familiar. Do we know each other?
Zara
You remember the job at the docks, Mercer. You paid me to calibrate your neural mesh after that mess with the corporate security drones. We go back further than you think.
Mercer Skye
The name rings a bell, a faint memory of soldering irons and the smell of ozone in a cramped basement.
“Stand up and try to get my bearings. Assess if my augments are still working. Focus on the mechanic and try to jog my memory”
SUCCESS (Great Perception, rolled +1)
Mercer pushes upright, joints answering cleanly. His optic flicks once, then steadies, the mesh under his shirt giving him a faint, familiar hum.
He tests his balance, rolls one shoulder, and the memory of other repairs flashes hard enough to sting, Zara's hands and a basement full of ozone.
Zara watches him with a small, careful smile, the data wafer turning between her fingers like she is weighing whether to hand it over.
Mercer Skye
The implant is active. So are the boosters. Nothing feels dead.
Zara
You are not as broken as you look, Skye. Good. That makes this easier.
Zara
I pulled a tag stream out of your hardware, Mercer. Corporate. Clean routing, dirty intent.
Zara
Someone has been asking after you by name, and they are still close enough to make me nervous.
“"Do you know who they are?"”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +0)
Mercer Skye
Do you know who they are?
Zara stops the wafer between thumb and forefinger. Her smile thins, not from doubt, from recognition. She glances past Mercer, toward the warehouse windows, then back to him.
Zara
Yeah. I know the shape of the hunt. Matsuda routing, West Tech money, and one handler in the middle keeping it tidy.
Zara
The name tied to your tag stream is Kaine.
She lets the wafer tap lightly against her palm, as if deciding whether to trust him with the rest.
Zara
He asks after you like you are inventory that walked off the shelf. Calm voice. Polite words. Bad news wrapped in manners.
Mercer Skye
Kaine.
A sharp crack pops overhead. Dust sifts from a roof seam, and Zara's expression shifts from reflective to alert as she turns toward the sound, still holding the wafer.
Quest Complete
Learn who has been asking after Mercer Skye
Attribute Upgrade: Perception Great→Superb