#emmaadams

Jack’s POV 

9:30pm Monday:

“Welcome to Blue Remedies Medical Clinic, we are currently cl-” Joi, the clinic’s AI appeared and began to give her speech about the clinic hours and currently being closed. 

“Yeah, yeah, shut up, Joi. It’s just me.” Jack stumbled into the clinic in a disheveled mess. His button up shirt had started to work its way up, leaving a little duck tail in the back.

 Climbing his way up the stairs, he gripped onto the railing tightly in fear of falling. In this current  drunken state, it was very well possible. Stumbling to the right and into his bedroom, he had begun to strip off and put on just a pair of sweats. Rolling himself down onto his bed, turning over and looked at his side table, with a picture of Mara, a Fifth of Centzon Totochtin, and a small figurine of a wrestler, Jack loved growing up, a gift from Mara when they were kids. Something he’d treasured all these years. 

Grabbing the fifth, he unscrewed the lid and began to position himself up just right to be able to drink with little hindrance and began to take a couple swigs when his internal agent displayed a notification. 

1 Message from Emma Adams:

Just saw Mara bring in a couple of her new “chooms” in pieces to Med Center. You really need to keep a closer eye on her. Don’t worry. I’ll be delivering her home safe.

He felt anger grow in his chest, he wasn’t sure how much more he could do to keep an eye on Mars and keep her safe. Whatever life she was living with this new output she has, isn’t really her. He knew it. She was only going to get herself killed if she kept on the path she was going down… Or worse..

2058

An alarm starts blaring to inform the crew inside the AV that there was a call nearby. A collective groan came out of everyone. It had been a long and exhausting night for TTI Flight Crew 406, but at the very least this would be their last call. 

The AV horns began to blare.

LANDING  STAND CLEAR   INITIATING SECURITY PROTOCOL  FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS

The automated message looped as they started to land. Everyone was getting in positions. Jack looked over at Mara from the back of the team. They were the Medics, the ones to grab the patient and begin medical protocol and return to the AV.  

The moment the doors opened, a familiar sound that everyone on board had heard more than a few times were the death shrieks of a woman, there were also the sounds of people arguing and suddenly shots began to ring out.

 The Vanguard pushed forward and allowed Jack and Mara to move forward to the patient.

It was understood between the two that Mara would provide the cover with her shield, while Jack got the patient loaded up and ready to move. 

Looking around the room it was something that was a common sight of a scavenger's makeshift den, though it was looking like they had been posted here a while. Which meant they got careless and targeted the wrong person for cyberware.

 According to the ping it was the person on the table at the moment, the woman screaming. Mara was too busy providing cover for Jack and helping push back the Scav’s. Whatever this girl had, they wanted. When Jack got close enough to the woman screaming to begin his work and laid eyes on her face, which only made his stomach drop. He knew who this was.. However it was too late for Jack to try and get the patient's oxygen mask on to somewhat cover their face. The Scav’s had retreated in fear of NCPD, and Mara was now sheathing her shield on her back and turning around.

To Mara’s horror, she saw a close friend of hers from childhood laid on a makeshift medical table, Jennifer Costa. There was blood everywhere, her cyber limbs had been removed, but that wasn’t all. Her abdomen was open, her entrails were exposed, from first glance you could see where they had crudely cut her open and began to remove her kidneys, one of them at least because it hung from her body… All while she was still conscious. Panicked, Mara got to Jennifer’s side and Placed her hand to the back of her head with one hand, and the other rubbing her cheek, and Jack could tell she was crying and saying something in portuguese.

Despite all of Jack’s attempts, there wasn’t a shot in hell that she was going to make it no matter how fast the team had responded to the call. Having to pry Mara from her friend's body had to have been one of the hardest moments he had ever had to face. She was unwilling to leave her body behind, but no matter how empathetic the crew tried to be, they were still antsy to get back to the station and clock out. It took all of Vanguard to get her back into the AV. 

He’d managed to get Mara to her apartment at 5:20am, and exhausted as he was, there was no way he felt safe enough to travel..

“Hey, Mars, I’m gonna crash on the couch, that okay?” Jack was now sitting down on the couch and was kicking off his boots to prepare himself for an uncomfortable couch nap. When Mara came from the bedroom still in uniform. 

“You and I both know we’re too big to sleep comfortably on that tiny couch. Come take a nap in my bed, it’s plenty big enough for us to have our own space.” Mara had paused for a moment, and her face changed into deep sorrow. “Plus I don’t want to be alone right now.” Shifting her gaze to Jack, she awaited his response. 

Feeling his heart skip a beat, it was a bittersweet feeling. Something he’d waited for so long was right in front of him, but the circumstances were all wrong. Nodding, he stood up and walked into the bedroom. Mara had already laid out a pair of old sweats down onto the bed for him.

By the time the both of them had crawled into bed and started drifting to sleep, the sun was filling the room with light. Reaching over Jack, Mara pulled the curtain in front of her bed closed. Half asleep, she just laid herself against Jack’s chest and snuggled up close. 

Jack lifted his free hand up Mara’s cheek and went to caress it with the tips of his fingers, when he jerked them back for a moment in doubt… No, it was fear. What if She…  Pulling his hand back, he just leaned his head back against the pillow and allowed himself to just enjoy this moment before falling asleep.