INTERLUDE 5: The Witcher Returns to Night City

[Night City 2076, Top of Arasaka Tower]

"Look, Mom… I'm here. Very top of Arasaka Tower."

David knew he was gone at this point. A lost cause. He was riding the edge. So thrilling, so terrifying. Nothing could bring him back. Not really. But he still had one thing left to do before he let himself fade away to legend.

The view was brilliant from up here. Peaceful… Breathtaking… The whole city spread out before his flickering eyes. He only saw it half of the time.

Scenes flashed before him. Memories… And something more. He was there. He was really there. The past lay at his fingertips. If only he could reach out and change it… Would he even change anything…?

There with his mom in that damned car. Back before anything even truly started. Back before the chrome… the Sandy. Back before the running. Before he even knew his crew. Maine, Doria, and Pilar. It felt like he barely got to know them. Kiwi, even with her betrayal. Falco. Becca. Lucy…

Lucy. David's mind ping-ponged from past to present like a gonk with whiplash. Lucy. The view came back and with it, his doomed situation. Lucy. A flash of memory again, that final warning from Doc. Lucy.

In the end, it wasn't even a decision David had to make. It was Lucy… That fucking fixer Faraday had her! It was always Lucy…

David could feel his time ticking down. He was nearly out. Just enough to finish this. For good or for bad. Either way, he didn't see himself making it to morning. But Lucy would. He'd make damn sure of it.

"One last vial left, 'ey, Doc?"

David felt like he was laughing at himself. Something choked. Forced. Fake as a bitch. Could he even still laugh? Or was that just the world laughing at him?

"You were right. But there's no other way… Not for me."

As he went to plunge that last vial of military-grade immuno-blockers, a sound could be heard on top of the tower. A rip. A tear. One that penetrated even David's chromed-out mind. It stopped him at the last second. Right before that final plunge.

David's face scrunched up involuntarily. What the Hell was that? Clopping sounds? Hooves? Man, he was really losing it, wasn't he? Ain't no one ride a Goddamn horse in Night City. No one except…

"David…? David, is that you? My God! What happened?!"

Ciri came through her portal to a tortured scene. A man on the edge, both literally and metaphorically. She almost didn't recognize him. Didn't recognize her friend. He was so alien from when she'd left him, more machine than man now.

The blocky, sharp edges of his chrome — his Cyber-skeleton — silhouetted against Night City's lights. He was a great metal beast, more than doubled in size from the skinny, scrappy boy she knew. But he was no monster. Not yet. Merely oh-so-close, teetering on that edge…

"W-Witch Girl…? Another trip? Cyberpsychosis really digs deep, huh?" Even David's voice sounded so strained, barely holding on before the fall that awaited him.

"It's me, David! It's really me!" Ciri insisted.

She wasn't expecting to return in such a manner. Immediately, her emotions were sent running high. She dismounted her horse and rushed to him. She spun the great metal beast of her friend to face her, moving a few tons of chromed-out man almost negligibly.

The chrome beast still wore her friend's face. And though his eyes were shifting in and out of focus, Ciri could still see him in there. David still lived. She didn't know what had pushed her friend's situation in Night City to this edge but she'd be damned if she was going to let him fall even further.

Ciri's voice was intense, heavy with something more than mere emotion, "Talk to me, David. Tell me. What has happened?"

David chuckled a pained, tortured sound that pulled at Ciri's heart, his eyes flickering to the past, "Damn… It's… good to see you, Witch Girl… Becca said you'd come back… She believed ya know…?"

"Focus, David. Let me help you. I WILL help you."

"Heh… Not much left of me to help, choom. I'm… I'm a lost cause. Been one since… Mom died…"

"You are only lost if you give up faith. I know you, David Martinez. You do not give up. Never. I shall sooner see the stars go out than your light of determination, David Martinez."

David's eyes focused, just enough to smirk slightly, "Man… I missed your fancy talk, Witch Girl…"

The strained earnestness of such a simple statement struck Ciri to her core. Her emotions swelled. As did something else, her magic surging forth unto the material plane. Her friend was in so deep… The least Ciri could do was dive in after him.

She reached out. Not just in body but in mind, magic, and soul. Ciri found herself within David's fracturing psyche. The world around them cracked and broke apart. David flickered between two places, past and present.

Here, at the top of Arasaka Tower. And a street that Ciri faintly recognized. She'd been there with David before. There was nothing special about it. Just another intersection in Night City. But what it represented to David was without match.

A crossroads and an end of the line. David knew his time was up. It broke Ciri's heart to see her friend so resigned. Alone on the streets of Night City within his own mind. Alone against the psychosis that was setting in.

Only a fraction of David seemed to remain. It was enough for Ciri to press forward, undeterred by his resignation. No matter how small, a part of David had yet to give up. And so Ciri REACHED for David, striving to pull him up so he might breathe again.

They moved as if underwater within David's mind. Within his sold and damned soul. David stood at the center of his crossroads, still as if he were just watching the world go by. Ciri descended from above, her hand extended. REACHING.

David saw her as an angel. One he didn't deserve. The distance between them lengthened as David subconsciously pushed her away. Ciri persevered. She reached deep, deep into David's psyche, seeking that which was almost lost. She would not be deterred by silly things like self-worth or sacrifice. David would live. On this, Ciri was hell-bent.

As Ciri REACHED, David could no longer shy away. He found he didn't want to. As much as he considered himself a lost cause, there was still a will to live. If not for himself, then for Lucy. To see her dream come to fruition together.

~REACH/CONTACT/CONNECTION~

With a great wrench of soul, emotion, and magic, Ciri pulled David from the depths of his mind. Chrome and psychosis met mind and out-of-context determination. Technology and Magic mingled as if they were always meant to be together. Pressing insanity was pushed back. The razor's Edge David teetered on was widened until he had space to walk, to run, to dance, to LIVE.

Ciri was no mage. Certainly not one trained enough to even begin messing with the soul. She was a Conduit. She didn't wield magic to do her bidding. She WAS magic. It worked through her, responding to her emotional state, to the very desires of her soul. And with her additional Elder Blood, Ciri was closer to magic than the vast majority would even dream of.

For once, something in this dystopian Cyberpunk future went right. David found his splintered soul 'bodily' dragged back together into his physical form and STRETCHED/EXPANDED/SWELLED to fit. No longer did the heavy chrome of the Cyber-Skeleton weigh on his shoulders.

A gasp. Air filled his Syn-lungs. He felt it as if they were the lungs he'd been born with. The line between man and chrome blurred, evaporating as if it was never even there. Cyber muscles flexed and tensed. Electricity — signals and responses — flashed before his mind like the stuff of blood, hormones, and nerves. For the first time since the Sandy, David felt as if he fit in his body.

"W-What…?"

"You WILL live, David Martinez," Ciri stated firmly, her voice echoing with something MORE. "You will live. And you will thrive. Just as you always have. So I have promised, so it shall be."

David chuckled, quick to accept what felt RIGHT and laughing genuinely for the first time in what felt like so long, "Damn, you do good work, choom. Better than any ripperdoc, that's for sure. Maybe I should start calling you 'Witch Doc' instead of 'Witch Girl'. How the Hell did you manage this?"

"My answer shall be the same as it always is," Ciri rolled her eyes fondly, happy to retread familiar ground between them. "Tis simply magic."

"Shit, I might just believe you this time! I ain't ever felt this preem!" David exclaimed. "Even working this heavy metal doesn't feel like anything!"

"I shall be truthful. I have no idea what I've done," Ciri admitted, a weight lifting from her chest as more and more pieces of her friend returned before her eyes. "But it does not matter. It worked. You shall not lose any more of yourself, David."

"Damn fucking straight!" David flexed his beastly metal muscles. "I could take on the fucking world like this! Just watch a gonk stand in my way!"

"Do not get used to it," Ciri chided seriously. "We shall see you restored to yourself once we've conquered whatever situation you've found yourself in. I will not have my friend become a monster before my eyes!"

"Sit-… Shit, Lucy!" David's eyes widened in realization.

"What has happened, David? Tell me. I will always lend a friend my sword," Ciri said, her conviction shining through like a beacon for David to latch onto.

"Fucking bitch-made snake Faraday!" David cursed. "He's got Lucy. Gonna hand her to 'Saka!"

"We will get her back," Ciri reassured. "And what of the others? Maine? Becca?"

David laughed, the sound heavy with trauma and loss, "You've… You've missed a lot, Witch Girl."

Ciri nodded sadly, realizing the only thing that could mean and pushing it to the back of her mind, "As have you. We will have to share our tales over drinks when this is over. For now, we focus on the friends we can save."

David smiled. A small thing but genuine, "Yeah. Yeah, we will. We've gotta close our contract with that snake fixer first. Expect to go in loud. Fuck that Ninjitsu shit, choom. Hot LZ and everything. Extract Lucy and delta. Flatline anybody who gets in your way. Let me deal with the heavy shit. Ya got me crystal, Witch Girl?"

"Indeed. Men and monsters, both will fall," Ciri's lips quirked up in a slight smirk. "Let us show Night City that the Witcher has returned."

David matched her smirk with a vicious grin, "Ha! That's that shit, choom! Show these gonks how nova a 'Ganic can really be!"

Ciri prepared herself to go in hot. Potions were pulled from her belt and downed. She even doubled up on a few key ones. Her high emotions had barely waned. She could still feel her magic buzzing beneath the surface, itching to be let out in ways Ciri couldn't reasonably predict. That was fine. Her magic would not harm her or her friends. Only those who stood in their way…

Her time at the Dead End was not long enough to impart truly learned lessons. Just some advice that Ciri would try her best to heed. The words of a man she'd met and had yet to meet for the very first time echoed in her mind.

"You are more powerful than you know, Ciri. Your kind was one with magic before man had first tried to bend it to their will," Sean had said. "You are a Conduit. So CONDUCT/CHANNEL/CONVEY. Let Magic flow through you. Give up the iron fist of will and let true emotion reign. Direction and control will come to you naturally after that so long as you are true to yourself. It's not much but this is the best I can do for you in our limited time together."

It was more than enough. And it was not the only boon she'd received in the Dead End. Damned Dame Lucifer was the sole reason she was back here in Night City. And Lady Didi had even blessed her sword. Such a blessing was absolutely nothing that could be dismissed at all. Ciri's silver sword was now the DEATH OF MONSTERS…

Said sword was drawn and ready in Ciri's hand. Her potions were taking effect. Her emotions were unconstrained just as Sean had advised. It went against the training she'd had from the mages of her homeworld. But in a contest between them and Sean Caine, Ciri knew who she would choose to follow.

"Ready, Witch Girl?" David asked.

He had his own rituals that he usually went through before a job. Right now though, they simply weren't needed. He was still psyched. His contract with Faraday wasn't closed yet. The objective had simply shifted. And that snake bastard better watch the fuck out! David had never felt better!

With another fortifying breath, Ciri nodded, "I am suitably prepared, David. Take care of the men. I shall deal with any monsters…"

"Sounds like a deal to me. Let's get Lucy outta this joint! You best get to holding on tight, Witch Girl," David laughed.

Below them in an AV garage, Faraday — the fixer who'd set up David and his crew — and an Arasaka employee were having a bit of a standoff. Faraday had Lucy and wanted to get paid what he felt he was owed. Arasaka wanted the data on Lucy and the Cyber-Skeleton but wasn't about to cater to a slimy fixer like Faraday. Additionally, Arasaka had the guns and Faraday had the leverage. They'd come to something of an impasse.

Thankfully, they wouldn't have to work out their issues. They wouldn't get the chance. In a blur of boosted time, David slid into the top-story garage. Ciri was in his arms, holding on tight and only barely able to track the tech-boosted movement. She had just enough presence of mind to step down from David's arms as he came to a stop in front of Lucy.

David's mental implants overloaded the program that was keeping Lucy subdued and pacified in a sparking flash. Faraday was forced to let go of the young woman, his mind still trying to catch up with David's sudden entrance. The Arasaka private mercs were only slightly quicker on the draw.

"D-David…?" Lucy stuttered.

David just grinned reassuringly, "Hey, Lucy. Hold tight, yeah? We're gonna get you out of here."

"W-We…?"

"Be calm, Lucy my friend," Ciri soothed, holding a healing potion to her lips. "Drink. Drink and do not worry. For I have returned and we are here for you. Always."

The potion did wonders, bringing Lucy out of her dazed state of mind in a mere instant, "Ciri?! W-What-? How are you here? Is David okay?!"

"Calm, Lucy. Let yourself heal. And perhaps we should duck first. It might be more prudent than asking and answering questions in the current… 'sitch'," Ciri smirked.

"Wha-? Oh, shit!"

While Lucy and Ciri had their short, healing heart-to-heart, the rest of the garage finished registering their presence. David made for a more than intimidating sight, all dark metal and chrome. Standing there in front of Lucy and Ciri like a loyal protective golem. He dwarfed everything else in the room, almost matching even the AV — flying vehicle — in size.

The Arasaka Lieutenant didn't even have to say a word. Which was a good thing since he was currently struck speechless by the intimidating chrome on display. The mercs around him — surrounding the garage and David from nearly all sides — acted on long-engrained instincts. A necessity in their line of work.

Their guns raised to aim at David. His presence demanded nothing less. Even for the hardened corpo mercs, more than a few hands shook, gun barrels unsteady. Not a single one of them got the chance to pull the trigger. David's eyes narrowed. The threat to him was negligible, practically nonexistent. The same couldn't be said for Ciri and Lucy.

His Cyber-Skeleton frame hummed to life. Huge electromagnets spun up within the skeleton's chrome. Before any of the professional mercs could react, the guns were ripped right from their hands. The weapons flew to David, sticking to his frame. He stole the decision to pull the trigger out of the mercs' hands just as literally as he stole their guns.

In front of David — shielded by his bulk — Ciri and Lucy ducked. David opened fire, blasting the garage with a generous application of lead and brass. The cacophony of gunfire was deafening. The effects were just as devastating.

None of the mercs lived past the first second of gunfire. They were all blasted to gory, visceral pieces by high caliber 'self-defense'. Tracers filled the enclosed space, leaving only destruction in their wake. But just as the Arasaka Lieutenant was about to meet the same fate as his guards, the bullets intended for him were blocked by a chrome beast to match David and his Cyber-Skeleton.

The new opponent went unnoticed by David for a moment. Instead, his attention turned to the snake who set him up and almost took Lucy from him.

"Faraday. Don't be goin' nowhere. We're due for a long talk," David growled.

David's Cyber-Skeleton whirred again. A heavy hum filled the air, seeming to weigh down physically on the world. The gravity around Faraday condensed harshly. He collapsed. His limbs gave out, bursting into mists of sheer blood and gore. He could barely even scream as the weight of the world slammed down on him.

"S-Smasher! Do something! Do your job, you fucking merc!" Faraday strained to shout.

Adam Smasher's voice was deep, gravelly, and harshly mechanical — akin to the thundering roar of a great metal beast, utterly unable to be tamed by a mere 'snake', "Who the FUCK are you? My business is with the kid."

Now, David finally turned to notice Smasher. The infamous domineering 'Borg stood taller than David even with his Cyber-Skeleton. David wasn't one for cowering before infamy. Not anymore. Even after Ciri set his mind straight, he was fearless to the point of recklessness.

David got right up in Smasher's face without hesitation, "So you're Adam Smasher? In the chrome? Not much for the NC boogeyman of legend."

Smasher stared him down, returning the favor without giving an inch, "You're packing some pretty heavy artillery for your size, boy. How the fuck are you this lucid? Arasaka told me you were going 'psycho already. But I can't see a hint of it."

"Guess I'm just built different," David shot back, his smirk smug and dangerous.

"You feelin' special, punk?" Smasher asked with a menace that could not be understated.

"Who the fuck still says 'punk', choom?" David's face scrunched up in confusion despite the current situation.

"Me," A strange, strangled sound echoed from Smasher's voicebox, only vaguely recognizable as a chuckle. "I'm on old, old man, kid. I'm not 'down' with the 'lingo', 'you feel me'?"

"Fucking scary-ass gonk like you, how'd you end up being a corpse, huh?"

"Simple. Corps pay the best. And they let me do what I love. KILL JUMPED UP LITTLE SHITS LIKE YOU."

"Eat my 'Ganic dick, choom! You ain't all that!"

"I AM. I literally am 'all that'. And more than you could know, boy."

"'All that', my ass! You're just a fucked up Chrome Jock like the rest of us!"

"You have real potential, you know. Spunk. Moxie. Hate to see it go to waste. But oh well… WHAT CAN YOU DO?"

"Whatever, choom. You want me dead? You're gonna have to flatline me yourself!"

"THAT'S THE PLAN."

"W-We've gotta help David!" Lucy gasped, watching the two 'Borgs verbally clash with concern clear in her eyes.

"Have faith, Lucy," Ciri reassured. "He is himself again. He will not be lost. Never again. This, I promise you."

Ciri's words did little to diminish Lucy's freak out, "You don't understand! That's Adam fucking Smasher! The fucking boogeyman, Ciri! We can't beat him! Not even with David and his Cyber-Skeleton! We just… can't…"

"And yet, we shall," Ciri was resolute. Utterly undaunted. "Do not be so quick to dismiss hope, my friend. David is better than he ever has been. And I am here. We shall persist. The end will not come so soon."

"H-How can you be so calm?" Lucy asked, her tone frantic.

Ciri turned to glance at Smasher and David, the two goliaths facing off as if nothing else in the world mattered, "He may have been a man once. But now? He is nothing more than a monster. And I KNOW monsters… With my sword, we have nothing to fear. Nothing but fear itself."

"T-Trauma Team!" Faraday called out in the background.

He was much worse off than he might have been in a certain timeline without Ciri's intervention, without a David who was in his right mind. All of his limbs were gone as if they'd never been in the first place. He was nothing more than a torso — a nugget of a man — unable to even crawl to his salvation.

Night City's fast-response Trauma Team had been called the moment he was injured so grievously. And for a high-paying customer like Faraday, they were pulling out all of the stops. Faraday's call distracted David for a moment. But not enough that he took his eyes off Smasher.

David and the Trauma Team had a history. He still remembered them leaving his mom to die. Ironically, Trauma Team had caused him more trauma than perhaps any other group in the city. But much more reasonable than he might have been without Ciri's intervention, David didn't immediately lash out at those who were technically innocent of his wrath.

That didn't mean he'd be letting Faraday get away though. Without even looking behind him, the Cyber-Skeleton's anti-grav generators spun up. The overwhelming power of gravity was surprisingly controlled, squashing Faraday and Faraday alone. The Trauma Team was forced to abort their mission as the client expired on the spot.

"Impressive," Smasher said, sounding almost casual with his robotic voice. "But can you afford the distraction?"

"More than you can, choom," David spat back.

"WE'LL SEE."

Faster than any organic human could reasonably react, Smasher's big gun raised to point at David's guts. David didn't even flinch, batting the weapon away as if fired. The enormous recoil of the specialized firearm didn't even buck in Smasher's grip as its misdirected shell obliterated a member of the Trauma Team as pure collateral damage.

David smirked, "Gonna have to be faster than that, gonk."

He blurred into motion. A two-ton punch powered by his Sandy blasted toward Smasher's metal 'Borg face. The chrome-fueled super speed was no-sold instantly as Smasher leaned out of the way. His wieldy gun came back around to align with David's face and spit high caliber shotgun fury.

David was already moving out of the way. He hadn't forgotten his original mission here. GET LUCY OUT. By any cost necessary. Then he could focus on the other 'Borg and have some fun. The world flashed a familiar green, after images following David's path.

He grinned despite himself. He was untouchable! Match that, you 'Borged-out bastard!

Smasher did, blurring into motion with a Sandy of his own…

David scowled but didn't panic. That fucker was just asking to get the hurt put on him. But first, David had to get Lucy out of the danger-close zone. Ciri was only barely able to react as David came at her and Lucy, pulling the other girl close so David would have an easier time grabbing them both.

He dashed for the edge of the garage, carrying delicate cargo now. Lucy was back in his arms where she belonged. Everything was right in the world. Even Ciri was back in the picture, though she didn't fit in his arms as perfectly as Lucy did. Didn't matter. The crew was back together and everything was right as David leaped from the top floor of Arasaka Tower.

An explosion followed his leap. The offending rocket splashed against the bulk of David's Cyber-Skeleton. He felt the impact his his bones and metal chassis. Bullshit, choom! Who the fuck slots in rockets?! David could only grit his teeth and bear as the explosion sent them all tumbling through the air faster than they could fall.

Lucy clambered up to mount David's chest mid-freefall. The world fell away. Nothing else mattered but her. David grinned.

"Hey, Lucy."

"Oh, David…" Emotions and tears welled up in Lucy's eyes as she stared at him. "You installed it."

"Yeah."

"'Course, you did. Knew you would. And I knew you would die if you did. I didn't want any of this. I didn't want to watch you die…"

David laughed, a soft, gentle thing that he hoped to Hell was comforting, "I ain't dying today, Luce. We're getting outta this one. You better fuckin' believe it."

"How are you not going psycho?" Lucy asked just as softly.

"Heh, I was. Witch Girl came back right in time to do that voodoo shit of hers. She might actually be magic, Luce. How crazy is that?"

Despite the emotional scene between her two friends, Ciri couldn't help but roll her eyes, sitting casually off to the side on one of David's massive arms, "I've made my magic no secret. I've told you it is such since the very beginning. This is simply the first time you've believed the truth."

"Hard as fuck," David praised. "Sorry for not believing you before, Ciri."

Lucy laughed, sounding almost surprised by the sound, "I still don't believe you. But I can't deny you did something. Something for David… Thank you, Ciri. Thanks for coming back."

"I would not abandon my friends. I was merely displaced for a time by uncontrollable circumstances. They have since been resolved for good."

"Yeah?" David asked. "Those grim reaper-looking motherfuckers? You got 'em for good now?"

"I was lucky enough to stumble upon exactly what I needed. At first, I thought it was just another stop on my journey. It turned out to be a Dead End for those who chased me," Ciri smirked at some inside joke.

"Good riddance," Lucy shuddered subtly. "Those fuckers wigged me the fuck out."

"I believe that was by design," Ciri commented.

David smiled and chuckled softly, "Man, look at us, huh? Who would have thought Witch Girl would be the first one to solve her problems?"

Lucy couldn't help but giggle, snorting slightly in humor, "Especially considering the dramatic way she left in the first place. I mean, really, Ciri? They were calling it the start of the Fifth Corporate War but no one knew which corp used fucking horses~!"

Ciri looked away to hide her blush, "That is entirely Rebecca's fault. I did not ask for nearly that many explosives…"

"Though that does remind me that I'll need to retrieve my steed from the top of Arasaka Tower after all of this is done," Ciri muttered to herself as an afterthought.

"Well, what do you say we keep up the tradition? Let's have them calling tonight a war as well," David smirked. "Hold tight, girls. Looks like we're coming into a hot LZ again."

Bundling both of them safely in his arms, David took control of their tumble from unreachable heights. The Cyber-Skeleton folded into an almost airtight ball around them. They landed on top of a flying vehicle, destabilizing it as they rolled down its length. Smasher — the fearless 'Borged bastard — somehow caught up to them, sliding and shooting down the impromptu ramp behind them, hesitating at the last moment before he could immediately follow David.

Below them, the last two members of David's crew held out behind a barricade of trucks. Corporate mercs and NCPD officers alike joined forces to shut the rampaging Edgerunners down. Becca and Falco huddled away from the gunfire, feeling that the end was near and not willing to give an inch before it came calling.

David made his entrance in style. His anti-grav thrusters ignited to set him down almost gently atop the truck Becca and Falco were hiding behind. The weight of the Cyber-Skeleton still trashed the truck's suspension in an instant. Bullets — large and small caliber — pinged off his bulk as he grinned down at his crew.

"Told ya I'd make it."

Becca grinned back at him, "Sure took your sweet time, gonkbrain."

"We picking up strays from Arasaka's top floor now?" Falco asked goodnaturedly.

Ciri tutted just as fondly, "Doest thou not recognize me, Falco?"

Becca gaped up at her, "Ciri?! No shot! Witch Girl, is that really you?! When the Hell did you get back in town, girl?!"

"At precisely the moment I was most needed," Ciri simply said.

"Yeah, she set me straight for damn sure," David snorted.

Becca turned her gape onto David, "Damn, choom! You're straight-up lucid! No psycho?"

"No psycho," David nodded.

"Hell yeah!" A wide grin spread across Becca's face.

A bullet pinged off the truck, too close for comfort and interrupting the crew's touching reunion. David spun and sprayed into the crowd, "Shut the fuck up!"

"Tsk, they're being rather rude, aren't they?" Ciri asked rhetorically. "Perhaps someone should teach them some manners."

Even in their blood-pumping situation — or maybe because of it —, Ciri was riding high. Adrenaline raced through her veins and her emotions rushed like that one 'rollercoaster' Becca had taken her on. Her magic matched her state of mind, coming as easy to her as a wave of the hand.

With said wave of the hand, a large portal appeared in the middle of Corpo Plaza behind the crew. Ciri worked entirely off instinct and feel. The other side of the portal connected to someplace deep, dark, and heavy with billions of pounds of pressure. The effect was instantaneous, great gouts and torrents of sea water spraying forth from the portal like a pressure washer to sweep away the crew's opposition.

Everyone stopped to simply stare at Ciri, their mouths open wide in shock and disbelief. The portal closed and with it, the sideways geyser disappeared as if it was never there.

Ciri chuckled awkwardly, "Heh, that may have been a bit much…"

"What… the… fuck…?" Lucy could barely find the words to say that much.

David just nodded, "I'm telling ya', Luce. Magic. Deadass. She really is a Witch Girl."

Becca stood and did a little gremlin-like jig at the devastation, "Fuckin' NOVA~! Did you see that shit, choom?! Holy shit, those corpo pricks just got TRASHED~! Fuckin' ANNIHILATED~! Goddamn, choom-!"

A strange whistling noise from above interrupted Becca's excitement, drawing her attention upward. From there, everything happened quickly. Much too quickly to stop. Much too quickly to do anything at all.

Becca pointed her gun skyward and fired without care, "Man, Can't you see I'm having a moment here-?! Fuck you-!!"

The boom that followed seemed to shake the world. David, Falco, Lucy, Ciri, none of them could do anything but watch in horror as if frozen in place. Smasher descended like a lightning bolt from the heavens, smashing Becca into the ground.

It didn't even seem real. Ciri saw the scene replay before her mind's eye. Over and over, Becca — Ciri's first friend in Night City — was smashed. Obliterated. Savaged by a falling MONSTER. Her body was left lying there, destroyed and eviscerated in a horrific scene that surpassed even the greatest terrors Ciri had ever seen.

Ciri's mind stopped working, stopped processing anything but Becca. Her ruined corpse. The world froze with the destruction, tinted black and white by sudden overwhelming grief. Ciri heard a roar in her ears, drowning out everything else. Blood and Magic surged, a hurricane of Emotion and Power. And with the traumatic ravaging of Ciri's heart…

THE WORLD REWOUND.

"-Can't you see I'm having a moment here-?!" Becca was alive again. Screaming at the heavens. Unaware she'd even died.

She wouldn't meet the same fate again. Ciri wouldn't let her. Emotion and Power, Blood and Magic still screamed within Ciri. Screamed out of her with a cry that shook the fabric of reality itself.

"NO! NOT AGAIN!"

Quicker than thought, Ciri blasted forth to intercept the falling Smasher. Her sword flashed, carving him in twain. Grief propelled her forward, rage empowered her strike. By the sheer force of Ciri's Emotion and Magic, causality was overwritten in the slash of a silver sword.

An explosion that wasn't quite real sent the top and bottom half of Smasher flying out of his path. Becca was left untouched and blinking in surprise. The others watched the scene for the first time with similar reactions. Only David knew something different had happened, his expanded soul remembering the brief trauma of Becca's rewritten death.

"Shit, good catch, Ciri," Falco praised.

Becca laughed, only slightly shaky on her feet, "Yeah, Witch Girl~! Thanks! I thought I was a goner there for real!"

Ciri didn't hear or acknowledge them in her rage, simply stalking over to the still-living top half of Smasher's body. Surprisingly enough, he didn't resist her presence. Didn't try to fight back at all.

He merely stared up at the night sky, watching the moon, "Done in by an organic without an ounce of chrome. HOW IRONIC…"

Ciri stood over him — her blade leveled before his forehead and her voice something beyond intense, "No chrome? I think you're missing something, Monster. My silver sword shines and shimmers with the best of them. DIE."

With that single word, she thrust, stabbing downward and pinning the 'Borg's head to the ground beneath. And so was the death of a boogeyman. The DEATH OF A MONSTER…

"Goddamn, choom," Becca muttered, coming up beside Ciri. "You just zeroed the boogeyman."

Ciri — emotions running higher than they'd ever been — let out a steady breath. She tried to exhale her rage with said breath. It worked. To a certain extent. The fact that the MONSTER was dead also helped quite a bit. Of course, with her burning, driving rage gone, Ciri's worry and not-so-irrational grief took over.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she hugged Becca tightly to her bosom, almost completely engulfing the smaller woman in her embrace, "I'm so glad you're okay! I-I-… I don't know what I would have done! I just got back! It wasn't fair! Not fair at all!"

Becca — of course — struggled within Ciri's embrace, "What the Hell, choom?! Lemme go, lemme go~! I'm fucking fine! The fuck are you crying for?!"

"Never…" Ciri muttered a promise to herself with lone tears tracking down her cheeks. "Never again."

Even after Ciri managed to regain control over herself, she didn't let go of Becca for a second. And though Becca struggled, she wasn't nearly as against being hugged by her friend as she made herself seem. Over the wreckage of Corpo Plaza and the corpse of a MONSTER, a touching reunion was finally able to take place.

It seemed the crew were getting off scot-free this time. At least, for now. A timeline that never took place was averted. The crew was battered, almost broken, and greatly diminished. But they were together. And they'd even gotten back someone they thought they'd lost.

The corpo mercs and NCPD officers were scattered to the wind, washed completely away from Corpo Plaza by the effect of Ciri's portal. It also left the crew standing in a small puddle of water but that was inconsequential. And with Smasher dead at the crew's hand, no one would be fucking with them any time soon.

David was sure of that much. It was just how things worked in Night City. They'd have to lay real low for a while though, especially with the magic voodoo that Ciri pulled. But David was more confident than ever that they'd be fine — him in his right mind and Ciri back in action. Tonight would make them all real Night City legends. Ciri most of all. The name 'Witcher' and the fate of Adam Smasher wouldn't fade from memory any time soon.

Falco smiled at the scene of Ciri and Becca, casually lighting up a cig now that everything was over and done with. Lucy came over, leaning onto David's bulky side. David himself was torn between enjoying the moment and dwelling in the grief of a moment that NEVER WAS.

"David?" Lucy nudged him out of his half-remembered trauma. "C'mon, let's delta. No need to stick around so the idiots can try to throw another wave of fodder at us."

"Yeah…" David said slowly, shaking off the moment that NEVER WAS. "Yeah. Let's dip. We've got better shit to do than stick around here."

"Like unslotting that damned Cyber-Skeleton," Lucy frowned.

"Eh, I don't know. It's starting to grow on me," David joked, flexing a huge metal-chrome arm.

"You're uninstalling it, David," Lucy put her foot down firm with a slight pout. "No chrome that makes it impossible for me to cuddle with you."

That statement brought David up short for a moment, "Well when you put it that way…"

Falco scoffed fondly at their antics, "Let's get rolling, friends. Lord knows I could use a damn strong drink after all that trouble."

Ciri practically carried Becca as she joined them, her lips quirking up slightly at Falco's 'request', "Well, you're in luck. I happen to know just the place…"