The flames burned, casting a glow utterly unlike the neon glare of Night City.
Though already dying, they still spat waves of heat—defiant even as the cold night and its darkness prepared to swallow them whole.
Yet... somewhere else, the inferno still raged, twisting everything in its grip.
Inside the vehicle, a small figure slumped over the oversized steering wheel.
Rebecca looked lifeless...
Beyond the cracked windshield, firelight painted her hair a fierce orange, like the claw of a demon reaching to drag her into hell.
The glass itself was buckling under the heat, bleeding red as its strength melted away.
Then—suddenly—her blood-caked eyes snapped open. Her body jerked upright, spring-loaded.
In the flickering light, her face was drenched in crimson, strands of hair matted to it, sticky and unyielding.
Through the gaps in the flames, she thought she saw a towering black figure.
"That bastard..."
The thought ripped through her mind, her pupils narrowing to slits.
"That fucking bastard!!"
Blood smeared her teeth, turning their whiteness into a grotesque red.
Amidst the fire consuming the car, Rebecca slammed her fist onto the ignition.
Whether the vehicle might explode didn't matter anymore. There was no room left for fear, no time for hesitation.
She crushed the accelerator beneath her foot.
...
Arthur's reflexes bought him precious moments. Even before the attacker raised his hand cannon, Arthur was already moving.
His Gravity Bones roared to life, stripping his body of weight.
He crashed into the console hard, but stayed conscious.
Flames swallowed them whole. And Arthur knew—no way in hell that figure was walking away just yet.
One glimpse was enough: a monster, more machine than man. He had to act...
Grabbing the Giant at his side, Arthur's brow furrowed as he glanced at the inferno swirling around them.
An incendiary grenade... it could eat through bulletproof glass. It wouldn't take long.
Slowly, he pushed the door open. Fire surged through the crack like a living beast.
He moved fast—snatching the Swallow from his belt and hurling it into the flames.
This time, it dove straight into the ground.
And then Arthur followed—through the fire.
The blaze swallowed him whole, each lick of flame like knives slicing into his flesh, grinding against bone.
It seared every inch of him—his skin, his clothes, the Sniper Rifle clutched tight to his chest.
Vik had once joked she was a delicate girl. Arthur prayed she'd be strong this time—strong enough to endure with him.
The fire tore at him mercilessly. His skin shriveled, yellow then black, oil sizzling as it dried away.
Every nerve screamed in needlepoint agony. Only one thing remained—the faint, unyielding call of the Swallow.
Through the haze in his mind, his own hoarse voice screamed back at him:
"Push through..."
The underside of the car... that's where safety was.
...
Outside, the car was nothing but a fireball. The flames still raged, but the vehicle's silhouette was barely visible.
The glass, soaked in heat, glowed faint red.
"What a boring game..."
The monstrous voice muttered, metal buzzing beneath the words.
The giant stepped forward, finger tightening on the trigger.
Then—an engine sputtered. Weak, uneven... but real.
Like the last, ragged breath of a dying man.
He looked around in disbelief before realizing the sound came from the blazing vehicle itself.
It roared—like a man on his last legs making one final charge—hurling itself toward him, wreathed in fire.
Pathetic. A desperate last attack.
As laughable as a child throwing stones.
His eyes flashed with scorn as he calmly pulled the trigger of his strange gun.
The weapon spat blinding fire. A Cyberware implant on his back flared to life, casting a pale, terrifying glow.
In an instant, his hulking body vanished, springing over three meters into the air with a single crouch.
The burning car rumbled past beneath him.
Even so, the reinforced bulletproof glass held, blocking most of his shots.
...
But in his mind, it didn't matter.
Let the little insect bleed out. Let her die slowly, savoring every second of it. That was fine too.
The thought raced through his mind as he hung in the air. A cruel smile twisted across his stiff, pale face.
"Bzzz!!—"
A faint, strange sound reached his ears.
Below him?
Still smiling, he glanced down in mild confusion.
Just a corpse.
The body was scorched black, embers glowing red across the charred clothing. Flesh and fabric had fused together, indistinguishable.
The face was a landscape of cracks from which red light still flickered. His hat smoldered, tiny flames still clinging stubbornly to it.
But...
The smile froze on the attacker's face.
Because in the burned, blackened mask of flesh... two blue eyes still burned.