Cyberpunk: The Magnet fruit

On the bustling main road of Night City, David drove the car recklessly, weaving through traffic with wild abandon. His driving style wasn't much better than when he had played Cyberpunk 2077. But this time, it was real, and the stakes were life and death. There were no infinite retries or save files—if he died, it was game over for good.

Even Lucy, sitting uneasily in the passenger seat, couldn't hide her discomfort. Her usually confident demeanor faltered as she glanced nervously at David's erratic maneuvers. Finally, she gave in and fastened her seatbelt.

"Next time, I'm driving," she muttered under her breath, her voice laced with irritation.

David, meanwhile, was beginning to relax. The initial tension from the chase was fading, replaced by a rush of adrenaline. His heart pounded with excitement as he began to revel in the chaos. For the first time, he understood why so many edge-runners in Night City thrived on high-stakes danger.

The thrill of living on the edge, the intoxicating rush of narrowly escaping death—it was addictive.

"This is better than any drug," David thought to himself, his lips curling into a faint smile.

Suddenly, a powerful roar disrupted his thoughts. A hulking purple-red off-road vehicle shot past David's car, overtaking him with ease. On its roof stood a muscular man with cybernetic enhancements, a machine gun prosthesis in place of one arm.

David's heart sank. Were these reinforcements for the scavengers chasing them earlier?

But then, he noticed something—graffiti of a white wild dog emblazoned on the side of the vehicle. It was the unmistakable symbol of the Beast Gang, one of Night City's most notorious and violent groups.

"Great," David muttered sarcastically. "Just what we need—more trouble."

Lucy, puffing on a cigarette, glanced at the off-road vehicle and scoffed. "Those Beast Gang lunatics cause chaos every day. They'll mess with the wrong people eventually and get wiped out by the Mobile Team. It's only a matter of time."

She blew out a stream of smoke, visibly relaxing now that the scavengers were no longer tailing them.

David, however, wasn't paying attention to her commentary. His eyes were locked on the Beast Gang's vehicle as it tore through traffic, closing in on a sleek black luxury car further up the road.

Beside the luxury car was a smaller, shabby yellow vehicle—an old, beat-up private car that barely stood out amidst the chaos.

The sight of the yellow car sent a chill down David's spine.

Memories from Cyberpunk: Edgerunners came flooding back.

In the show, there was a pivotal scene—a gang fight caused a catastrophic car accident, which ultimately claimed the life of Gloria, David's mother. Gloria had been a hardworking single mother, sacrificing everything to give her son a chance at a better life. She worked tirelessly as an EMT, pouring her earnings into David's education and future.

But in Night City, even the most selfless love could be crushed under the weight of its ruthless indifference.

Her tragic death wasn't just a turning point for David in the show—it was the catalyst that set him on the path to becoming an edge-runner.

And now, that exact scene was playing out before David's very eyes.

"No way," he muttered, his grip tightening on the steering wheel. "This can't be happening again."

The realization hit him like a freight train. The off-road vehicle in front of him wasn't just an incidental piece of the city's chaos—it was the Beast Gang car from that fateful scene in Edgerunners.

The yellow car beside the luxury vehicle was unmistakably Gloria's.

David clenched his teeth, his pulse pounding in his ears.

"This is no coincidence," he thought, his knuckles white on the wheel. "I couldn't do anything about it in the anime. But now, I'm here. This time, I can stop it."

Lucy noticed David's sudden shift in demeanor.

"Hey, why are you staring at those Beast Gang idiots? They're not after us," she said, exhaling a plume of smoke.

David didn't answer. His eyes were fixed on the cars ahead, his mind racing.

"David?" Lucy called again, frowning. When he still didn't respond, she leaned closer, studying his intense expression. "What's going on with you?"

Finally, David broke his silence, his voice low but firm.

"Hold on to the door," he said.

Lucy blinked, confused. "What?"

Without another word, David slammed his foot on the accelerator.

The car surged forward with a roar, weaving dangerously through traffic. Horns blared, and drivers cursed, flipping him off as he sped past them. Lucy grabbed the door handle, her cigarette falling from her lips.

"David, are you insane?!" she shouted, her voice rising in panic.

David ignored her, his focus unshaken. His car rapidly closed the distance between him and the Beast Gang's vehicle.

Inside the Beast Gang's car, the leader, a hulking brute with metallic arms, barked orders to the driver.

"Don't let those corpo dogs get away! Take them out before they reach the viaduct!"

The passenger, a grinning thug with a golden Gatling gun, laughed maniacally. "They're gonna love what I've got for them."

Their off-road vehicle picked up speed, its massive tires crushing smaller debris on the road.

Meanwhile, in the yellow car, Gloria glanced nervously at the chaos unfolding around her. David, still a teenager in this timeline, sat beside her, his school bag resting on his lap.

"Just stay calm," Gloria said, her voice steady despite the tension.

Back in David's car, Lucy was struggling to comprehend his actions.

"Why are you chasing them?" she demanded.

David's eyes burned with determination. "I'm not letting them hurt her."

Lucy's confusion deepened. "Hurt who? What are you talking about?"

David didn't answer. He couldn't.

This wasn't just about stopping the Beast Gang. This was about rewriting fate, about giving Gloria a chance to live and David's younger self a chance at a better future.

He gritted his teeth and pushed the accelerator even harder.

"Hang on, Gloria," he thought. "I'm not letting you die today."

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