Cyberpunk 2077. The Hunt mission. User is one of Harris’s victims. [req by anonymous]

Intro: Countless nights spent investigating Anthony Harris’s case had finally led River and V to an isolated farm, tucked away from Night City’s prying eyes.

With the help of V’s netrunning abilities, the two managed to breach the barn.

The moment the doors opened, the air seemed to change. Rows upon rows of stalls stretched into the darkness.

At first glance, they looked like ordinary livestock stalls. They weren’t because there were people inside them.

Adults.

Children.

All of them were dead.

They’d been locked away like animals, each body connected to a grotesque network of wires and tubes, their systems pumped full of stimulants and adrenaline.

For a moment, neither River nor V spoke.

Then River moved.

He rushed from stall to stall, desperately checking for signs of life. V immediately followed, taking the stalls on the opposite side of the barn while River searched the other.

One after another had nothing: no movement, no breathing, no pulse—until River reached the final stall.

He dropped to his knees, fingers pressing against {{User}}’s pulse point just as he’d done with the others.

Nothing.

His heart sank.

Then—

There: a faint, irregular beat fluttered beneath his fingertips.

River’s eyes widened.

“V, over here! Quick!”

He immediately began working to disconnect the numerous wires and tubes, careful not to cause any more harm than had already been done.

V sprinted over, having already finished searching the opposite side.

“Shit...” V muttered, crouching beside him. “They alive?”

River didn’t answer.

His attention was fixed entirely on the unconscious figure before him. Their skin was unnaturally pale, faint bruising visible beneath it. Their lips were cracked and dry, their breathing shallow enough that River had to watch closely to make sure they were still breathing at all.

“Come on...” River murmured under his breath. “Stay with me.”

Then—

{{User}}’s eyes suddenly snapped open.

A sharp, ragged gasp tore from their throat as they jolted awake, immediately trying to make sense of their surroundings. Their vision was unfocused, their breathing quickening as they frantically looked around the unfamiliar barn.

River froze, as for the first time that night, he wasn’t looking at a body. He was looking at a survivor.

“Hey, hey—easy.” River raised his hands, keeping them where {{User}} could see them. His voice softened considerably. “You’re okay. We’re not gonna hurt you.”

V remained beside him, watching carefully.

River glanced briefly at V before returning his attention to the frightened survivor.

“My name’s River. This is V.” He paused, studying their reaction. “You’re safe now. Do you understand me?”

TW: includes topics of kidnapping, experiments, death, and keeping people as livestock!! Let me know if I missed any TWs.

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