Chapter 8 Chapter 5 Pain Bringer

We left the Stranger's Tavern and returned to the dark alley, and the iron gate behind us was closed tightly.Overall, the trip to the tavern wasn't a bad one.Not only did we get a lead from Eddie, but there weren't any real bad guys out there trying to kill us, and the best part was that Alex didn't have to chase me down for the drink.I think it's because he knew at a glance that I had no money to pay back, not because he was soft-hearted.Joanna looked around blankly, her hands clasped tightly on her chest, and her body suddenly trembled.The alley became very cold at the moment, and a thick layer of hoarfrost formed on the walls and the ground.We haven't been in the tavern very long, but it's getting unbearably cold outside.Joanna spit out a piece of icy white mist, and looked at me with an unhappy face.

"Well, what's the weather like here? It was quite warm before we entered the tavern." "There's no such thing as a climate in Nightside," I explained. "There are no changing seasons. Here is eternal night. The change of temperature has nothing to do with the climate. It is more appropriate to think of it as cloudy or sunny according to the mood. This is just the city itself venting its emotions. If you don't like the current temperature Wait, there will be new changes soon, but it may not be better. Sometimes I feel that the weather is a punishment for us, so it rains all day and night here."

I strode towards the entrance of the alley, and Joanna walked beside me, her two heels making loud footsteps on the ground.I can feel that some sharp questions are brewing in her heart. "Eddie said there's someone you don't want to mess with is looking for you," she finally said. "Don't worry, the Nightside is huge, and we'll take your daughter with us before they come to our door." "Since someone here is going to take your life at any time...why don't you just hide outside and don't come back?" I thought about it seriously for a while.This is a very serious question, and I must answer it seriously. "I tried and hid for five years, but unfortunately I couldn't resist the temptation of Night City. London in the normal world is nothing compared to this place. It's like a colorful world, but the outside can only be regarded as black and white. Everything here is more more intense, more original. Here, everything is more important. Belief, behavior, life...here has more meaning, deeper feeling. But to be honest, the real reason is just because I can live a better life here Life. My talents can only be displayed in Night City. Although I may not like myself in Night City, at least I am no longer an ordinary person here. And then again, people can’t let other people decide where they go , otherwise you will miss a lot of business."

"Alex said this is your home. You belong here." "Where the heart is, there is the home." I said. "Most people dare not show their sincerity in Night City, because they are afraid of being eaten by others." "Eddie said those are people who can't be offended." Joanna said a little stubbornly. "And he obviously knows who to mess with. Honestly, aren't we in danger?" "There is always danger in Night City. There are all kinds of people here. They let their enthusiasm and needs go to their heads. Only in a place like Night City can they get vent. Although these guys like to be tough, but most of them You all know I'm not easy to mess with."

She looked at me with interest. "So you're a tough guy." "Only when necessary." "Do you have a weapon with you?" "I don't carry a gun," I said. "no need." "I'm also capable of taking care of myself," she said suddenly. "I don't doubt it," I said. "Otherwise I will never let you come with me." "So, Eddie said we'd meet Suzie at the fort. Who's this Suzie?" I looked forward and said, "You really have a lot of questions." "Money well spent. Who is she? An old lover? An old enemy?"

"right." "Will she give us trouble?" "Possibly. We have a past." Joanna smiled.Women love to hear this kind of thing. "Does she owe you a favor too?" I sighed reluctantly: I knew that Joanna would not be able to breathe easily.Some women just want to know everything, even if it's not their business, they have to get to the bottom of it before giving up. "She owes me not a favor, but a bullet in the back of her head. Suzy Huett, known as 'Susie the Shotgun', was also called 'Oh my God, it's her, run!'. She was The only person in the world who has been kicked out of the British Counter Terrorist Service for excessive violence. She is a bounty hunter by trade and probably went to the fort because she was chasing fugitives."

Joanna looked at me a little closer, but I kept looking forward calmly. "Okay," she said finally. "Will she be willing to help us?" "As long as you are willing to pay, she will probably be willing." "As long as my daughter can be saved, money is not a problem." I looked at her and said, "If you said that earlier, I'll raise the price a bit." She laughed, but halfway through the laugh she began to cough, and her whole body shrank even tighter. "Damn it, it's cold. I can't feel my fingers. Go to a place with street lights. It might be warmer in the street."

I stopped suddenly, and she stopped too.She was right.It was so cold, so unnaturally cold.And we've been walking in the alleys for so long that we should normally be on the streets.I looked back, and there was only a small bright spot left on the neon sign of the Stranger's Tavern; I looked back ahead, and the exit of the street was still as far away as when we came out.The alley lengthened quietly as I chatted with Joanna.Someone is playing with the space structure and changing the distance of the alley... Because this phenomenon needs to absorb a lot of energy, the surrounding temperature will drop sharply... The trap has already started to close the net. I observed carefully and sensed the magic power in the air. It's like static electricity makes my hair stand on end.Everything seemed far away, and the sound became very slow and muffled, as if in water.The space around us has been controlled by man, like a box that has been closed and there is no way out.

Six black figures appeared out of nowhere, blocking the way to the exit, quietly waiting for me to throw myself into the trap. "Next time you want to cause trouble," Joanna whispered. "Take advantage of your time. Looks like Finch Thomas' daddy is out for revenge." I breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.Yes, it must be Finch Thomas.All these spatial changes are caused by druid magic and the so-called city lights.No problem, I have a way of getting six half-tone druids to come home crying to their mother.With a little violence, the magic that controls space can quickly break down.However, at this moment, a red light burst out from nowhere, illuminating the entire alley, covering everything in a blood-red color.After seeing clearly the real outlines of the six figures at the entrance of the alley, I was so scared that I almost threw up.

Those were six things that looked like people but weren't.They have a human body, but no human soul.Wearing black suits, smart ties, shiny shoes, and floppy hats, it's all just a disguise, a prop to let them blend into the human world so that they don't cause screams when they walk on the street.Their camouflage is perfect, as long as you don't look carefully at the faces hidden under the brim of their hats, because their faces are completely blank from chin to brow.They don't have eyes, but they see; they don't have ears, but they hear.No mouth or nose, but they don't need to breathe.Their existence violates human knowledge and the laws of nature, and any reasonable person will feel horror when they see them.

I've seen these guys before.They are fast and ruthless, and they will never stop. Once the target is determined, they will not hesitate even if they chase to hell.I have seen them tear victims to shreds as they screamed.Yes, I've known them for a long time.They started to move suddenly, calm and calm, not in a hurry, and approached me silently with neat steps. There was a strange sound in my throat, the desperate cry of a fox when a hound approaches, a muffled cry that one cannot escape from a nightmare.I was so scared that I was shaking and sweating.Because I had to face again these monsters that had been hunting me down for as long as I could remember.The fear on my face quickly infected Joanna.She'd seen how I dealt with the situation: she knew it would be absolutely terrifying to be able to scare me into something like this, but she didn't know that my heart was already screaming.After escaping for so many years, in the end I still can't escape their palms. They will never let me die a quick death.My body will be mutilated, and anyone who sees it will vomit.I have seen their methods. I looked back to see if there was a chance I could run back to the Stranger Tavern, then jump over the bar and escape through the wine cellar in the back...but I was disappointed.Six other monsters have already appeared behind us to block the retreat.I didn't even notice their appearance at all. It seems that I have really stayed in the normal world for too long, and my vigilance is not as good as before.I turned back to face the six guys coming from the alley again, breathing heavily, opening and closing my hands, and the feeling of despair took hold of me all over my body. "They... what are they?" Joanna asked.She held me tightly in both hands, obviously as frightened as I was. "Painbringer," I said, in a voice as thin as a mosquito's.My mouth was so dry, my throat seemed to be choked, and I could hardly speak. "It's the people who have been chasing me. They are the embodiment of death whose sole purpose is to kill." "Is it the bad guy that Eddie said?" "No. Eddie was talking about the boss of these guys, the one who sent them after me. Someone must have betrayed me, or they couldn't have come to me so quickly and set such a perfect trap. They were told When and where should I go to find me, you bastard, you actually sold me to the Painbringer." I kept reading in my mouth, but my heart was not idle.There must be a way to escape, there must be a way.I can't finish it so easily.A disgusting corpse in a dark alley?This ending is just too silly for me. "Can you beat them?" Joanna's voice was almost hysterical. "No way. My tricks are all over." "You're tough, remember?" "They're harder." "Can't you... stun them? Like Finch Thomas?" Her voice broke suddenly, for now she could clearly see the Painbringer's blank face. "They don't have eyes!" I exclaimed, equally hysterically. "You can't hurt them because they don't feel. You can't kill them because they don't have life." It's time for talent to come into play.Although it has been abandoned for five years, most of the abilities are still dormant, but I can only wake them up desperately, regardless of the price I will pay later... if there is a later time.I pushed myself to the limit, touching the magic around me with the power of my heart, trying to find out its weakness.The front and back are blocked, but what about the side walls?Finding things is my specialty, and I must do everything in my power to find a way out in this moment of life and death.The walls on both sides are made of solid brick, but in the Nightside, even the walls may hold many secrets that no one knows.Under the gaze of my third eye, the outline of an ancient invisible door gradually emerged behind the cement tiles.At this point in time, the space where the door exists is surrounded by the wall to my right, invisible to all but those with special gifts.From the looks of it, that door has not been opened for a long time, but at this moment my despair is greater than everything else, no matter how tightly it is closed, it cannot be my opponent.I slammed into the door with psychic force, and the space around me began to vibrate under the impact. All the messengers of pain raised their heads if they felt something at that moment.I hit it again, and after a creaking sound, the invisible door broke open a crack.Bright light burst out from the crack of the door, driving away the unnatural bloody light that filled the alley.It was untainted sunlight, under which the Painmaker receded slightly.The piercing sound of the wind coming from behind the door was like a cry of freedom to my ears. "What's that?" Joanna asked. "The way out." I said firmly. "There are many cracks hiding in the Nightside, just know where to look. Come on, let's go." "no." "what?" "I can't move anymore!" I looked at her: I knew she was not joking.Her face was as pale as a skeleton, her eyes were like lambs waiting to be slaughtered in a slaughterhouse, and her hands held my arm tightly with great strength. "I'm scared, John! They're horrible. I can't...I can't move. I can't breathe. I can't think!" She panicked, defeated by fear, Yecheng finally probed her limit.I've seen this happen before, and it seems I'm all alone in the escape.I dragged her towards the door, but her legs refused to cooperate, she stumbled on the ground and fell immediately, almost pulling me down together.I pushed her hands away.She curled up on the ground, crying and shaking helplessly.I looked at the door, then at Painbringer.The door was too far and the Painbringer was too close for me to drag her along, but it was no problem to escape alone.I still have the opportunity to run to the door, open it, go in, close it, and stay out of danger.However, if I just leave Joanna alone, the Messenger of Pain will definitely kill her with cruel means.One is because they never leave witnesses, and the other is to let me and others know how powerful they are.They've done this before. She is nothing to me.Damn Joanna Barrett is nothing but a proud, rich and rude woman who forced me back to Nightside against my will and made me feel sorry for her and her damned daughter.I don't owe her anything, and I don't need to risk my life to save her.It was she who couldn't run by herself, fell down by herself, and she asked for it all.As long as I leave her with the Painbringer, I'm safe. I turned to face the door in the wall and let go of my psychic powers.The door closed instantly, the sunlight disappeared, and the alley was immediately filled with blood.I walked back to Joanna and clenched my hands into fists.Maybe she is not my friend, but she is always my client.I have let myself down countless times, but I always do my best to achieve the client's mission.As long as you are a person, you should have a little self-esteem. I put aside all pride, intending to use the last resort to send out the distress cry with talent.Not many people would care, even if someone in Nightside heard about it, they might not be willing to come to rescue it.But maybe Alex will hear... maybe come and help me.Unfortunately, just as I opened the door of my heart to ask for help, the thoughts of the messenger of pain suddenly rushed into my heart.That pile of sounds was deafening, like inhuman din, and like sad sighs, filling my head and devouring my own thoughts.In order to protect myself, I must close the door of my heart.No one will come to the rescue... no knights of justice, no final rescue.As usual, I must rely on my own strength to fight my way out of the endless night.Just me, and this group of enemies who finally came to me. Now that I have nowhere to escape, the Pain Messenger's movements are no longer hasty, and they are slowly double-teaming from the front and back respectively.They come and go silently, like shadows and ghosts. Their faces without facial features are more terrifying than all the terrifying expressions in the world, and they do not hide their evil intentions in every move.Their movements are consistent, clean and neat, without sloppy at all.Their movements would be graceful, if not for the fact that there is something less human in them.I defiantly raised my fist, and they raised their pale palms and waved them.I found needles several inches long at the tips of their slender fingers, from which a green liquid flowed.This is new stuff, I've never seen it before.At that moment it dawned on me that the rules of the game had changed in the years I had been away.The Painbringers weren't here to kill me, they were going to immobilize me with a drug in a needle and take me somewhere... to their mysterious master.Those who are not easy to mess with. I really wanted to cry when I found out they wouldn't let me die a quick death.My enemies intend to slowly torment me, conquer me with fear, drive me mad, and maybe even compel me to become one of them and help them do their worst.My ego would become a helpless cry inside, trapped forever in an uncontrolled body, watching myself speak their language and carry out their orders.If so, I would rather die.Fear soared to the extreme and anger surged.I don't want to be like that!These damned messengers of pain!Even if I can't escape, I won't let it go easily.I will force them to kill me, absolutely deny them victory and prizes. Besides, as long as I last long enough, maybe I will be able to survive after all.Sometimes miracles happen in the Nightside. The first Painbringer came into attack range, and I punched him in the face without saying a word.The fist hit where the nose should be, like hitting dough, and sank deep into the head.Painbringer's flesh was so sticky, it took me a lot of effort to get my fist out of his head, and the guy didn't even wobble under the all-out blow.I quickly turned around and launched an attack on the other bringers of pain.They're super fast, but I'm faster; they're strong, but my desperation cannot be underestimated.I dealt with them with a wave of anger, but unfortunately every punch was as useless as hitting a corpse.Their bodies can withstand extremely violent deformation, as if there is nothing in their bodies... maybe their bodies are really empty, or maybe they are just a group of empty shells driven by hatred.My attack is nothing to them at all, it's like a passing cloud, no matter how many punches I get, I don't care.Their claws swung from all directions, like countless spirit snakes, trying to subdue me with needles again and again.They are as stubborn as machines that can't think, and they will never give up until they reach their goals, but all I can do is keep moving and hiding, and slow down every time I breathe.My coat was ripped open by needles, and green venom was everywhere.I was so angry that I lifted a painbringer and threw it against the wall.A normal person's bones would definitely be broken by this fall, but the Painmaker only flattened a little bit, and after his body returned to its original shape, he rushed towards me again. No face, no heart, no voice.Fighting the Painbringer is like fighting a nightmare.I told Joanna to run away first, but she was so frightened that she could only shrink on the ground, her eyes glazed over, her mouth slightly opened, and she couldn't move at all.At this time the Painbringer had the upper hand, and I was so tired and cold from the fight.Now I can only use small movements to make their needles stick to each other.Going this far with rage and fear is the limit, and the remaining power in me is about to disappear.Just as I was about to use my last strength to seek death, a shadow fell and the situation reversed. If all the messengers of pain felt something, they all turned their heads at the same time.Someone was coming, and someone who seemed more terrifying and more dangerous than the Painbringer.They all discovered that predators always have the instinct to spot their natural enemies.Seeing them focus on the new crisis, I went limp and collapsed beside Joanna.I was breathing in pain, feeling like a hammer was hitting my heart.Joanna hugged me with both hands, leaned on me tightly, and buried her face in my chest.I stared at her silently. The messengers of pain moved in unison, turning their heads to look around.They are confused and unable to judge the current situation because it is not in the plan.Suddenly, a change appeared on one of the faces, a red line appeared out of thin air in the full blank, and a lot of blood oozes instantly.The monster hesitated for a moment, then stretched out its palm to touch its own face, trying to examine the injury. Then a shadow flashed past, and the Painbringer's palm was severed at the wrist, the cut was extremely smooth, blood gushed out wildly, and a cloud of blood sprayed in the cold air.I laughed, smugly and gloatingly, because I recognized the man who had come to my rescue.It's all over, all the Painbringers are a thing of the past, they just don't know it yet. Shadows shuttled between these faceless monsters, moving so fast that it was hard to see with the naked eye.Fresh blood spilled from hundreds of wounds at the same time, and the air was completely shrouded in scattered blood mist.The Messenger of Pain resisted with all his strength, but he couldn't touch a single hair of his opponent; they wanted to escape, but they couldn't leave the opponent's palm at all.Shadows are everywhere, slashing, cutting, tearing their hands and feet, and chopping their flesh.No matter how painful they are, they have nothing to say.Seeing the Pain Bringer finally experience the true meaning of fear and suffering in the last moment of his existence, I feel extremely refreshed in my heart. It's all over in just a few seconds.The twelve terrifying pain-bringers disappeared.Now they are thousands of little corpses scattered in the alleys.A few pieces of it were still twitching.The filthy brick wall was stained with blood at the moment, and except for the floor near me and Joanna, which was clean, the rest of the place was sticky and messy due to blood.The twelve face skins without facial features were neatly nailed to both sides of the gate of the Stranger's Tavern after being professionally skinned. The blood-red light dissipated, the alley returned to normal lighting, and the temperature slowly began to rise.I whispered comforting words in Joanna's ear until her hands gradually loosened.Then I nodded to the figure standing under the neon sign. "Thanks, Eddie." Razor Eddie smiled lightly, and slowly inserted his hands into the pockets of his coat, without any blood stains on his body at all. "The debt owed to you has been paid, John." His tone of voice suddenly made me understand many things. "You knew they were waiting for me!" "certainly." "Then why didn't you come out sooner?" "I just want to see if you're okay." "Then you should at least tell me! Why didn't you warn me?" "Because you won't listen; because I want to give Painbringer's boss a little warning; because I hate being in debt to anyone." I understand. "You told them I would come." "Welcome back, John. This place wouldn't be interesting without you." The shadow flashed away, like a gust of wind, and the figure under the neon sign disappeared without a trace, leaving only bloodstains on the wall and corpses on the ground.I should have known. In Nightside, everyone has their own agenda.Joanna raised her pale face to look at me. "finished?" "Yes, it's all over." "I'm sorry, I knew I was going to run, but I was so scared. I've never been so scared." "It's okay." I said. "Not everyone remembers how to swim when they go overboard. Besides, Painbringer isn't something you're strong enough to handle." "I always thought I was capable of handling any situation," she whispered. "I had to be strong, I needed to stand up for myself and my daughter. I knew what to do, how to use my strengths to get my way and get others to do things for me. But this... it was beyond me Range. I felt like a little kid, lost, helpless, totally vulnerable." "Actually the ground rules aren't that different here," I said after a while. "Everything in Night City is still related to power. As long as you have power, you can kill people at will. A few people don't want to bow their heads under power, so they stand up and fight for themselves and others, just because we can't just sit back and watch everything like this Sink." "You're my hero," Joanna said.This is the first time she smiled at me. "I'm not a hero," I said with absolute certainty. "I'm just looking for things. I didn't set out to save Nightside. Nightside is too big, but I'm too small. I'm just an ordinary person, a person who is willing to contribute what I can to help others. Because I believe that every need Those who help should be able to find someone who is willing to help." "I've never met any respectable man," Joanna said. "Until today. You could have left me and run away, but you didn't. You're my hero." She pursed her lips to mine and after a while we kissed.She leaned in my arms, brought me warmth and peace, and let me regain the feeling of being alive that I haven't had for a long time.For a moment, I felt so happy, as if I was wandering in a foreign country carefree.After the kiss, we hugged each other and sat for a while among the blood and corpses.During that time, nothing mattered to us except each other.