Chapter Text
The music inside Lizzie's Bar pulsed low through the floorboards, the bass from the dance platform vibrating faintly through the long bar counter where neon light washed everything in pink and cyan.
Valerie leaned against the edge of the bar with one boot hooked casually around the rung of her stool. The shifting light caught strands of her long red hair as they fell loosely over her shoulders, copper highlights flashing each time she turned her head. A scattering of freckles crossed the bridge of her nose and cheeks, and the small lotus tattoo on the left side of her neck stood out softly beneath the glow of the neon.
She lifted her glass just as Mateo slid another drink down the counter.
Across from her, Judy accepted it with a quiet smile. Her pink and green sidecut fell long over the left side of her face while the shaved right side revealed the faint line of her neural implant beneath the lights. The roses tattooed along her neck and arms seemed almost alive under the club lighting, and the gold band on her finger flashed briefly when she lifted the glass.
The two of them shared a quiet moment before Judy glanced toward the dance floor.
“Busy night,” she murmured.
Valerie followed her gaze out across the room where bodies moved beneath the neon strips lining the stage.
“Watson never really slows down,” she replied.
A few seats down, Sera had turned sideways on her stool, one foot hooked over the rung while she scrolled idly through something on her holotablet. Her long red hair spilled over her shoulders in waves similar to Valerie’s, though the light caught it differently—brighter, younger. The phoenix necklace she wore rested against her shirt as she leaned forward slightly, emerald eyes occasionally flicking up toward the crowd around them.
Sandra stood just behind her, relaxed but attentive, one shoulder resting against the wall beside the bar. Her long brown hair was pulled back loosely, and the small crescent moon necklace at her throat shifted when she crossed her arms beneath her combat jacket.
Her eyes moved constantly through the room, quiet and observant in a way people who grew up on Night City streets rarely lost.
From the front entrance, a familiar voice carried through the music.
“Well look who finally decided to show up.”
Rita stepped away from the doorway and approached the bar, her expression softening slightly when she spotted Judy.
“Evening, Punchin’ Judy.”
Judy huffed a quiet laugh.
“You keep calling me that and one day it might stick.”
“Too late,” Rita replied, leaning her arms on the counter. “Already did.”
Sera glanced up from her tablet.
“Hey Rita.”
Sandra lifted a hand in greeting beside her.
For a few minutes the moment stayed easy.
Music.
Conversation.
The familiar hum of Lizzie’s on a busy night.
Then the double doors at the entrance swung open harder than usual.
Rita straightened almost immediately.
The woman stepping inside moved with the kind of direct focus that made people nearby instinctively shift out of the way.
Susie Q didn’t even glance at the dance floor as she crossed the room.
Her eyes locked onto Judy first.
“Need your crew.”
The shift in tone was immediate.
Valerie set her glass down on the counter.
“What’s going on?”
Susie rested both hands against the bar, her jaw tight.
“Tyger Claws grabbed two of my girls outside Jig-Jig.”
The words settled heavy between them.
Judy’s expression hardened instantly.
Behind her, Sera went very still.
Valerie noticed the change immediately. Her eyes flicked briefly toward her daughter before returning to Susie.
“Where?” she asked.
“Japantown warehouse,” Susie replied. “Happened less than half an hour ago.”
Sandra pushed away from the wall.
“Claws move quick,” she said quietly.
Judy was already pulling on her jacket.
“Then we’d better move faster.”
Valerie slid off the bar stool, the weight of the Malorian revolver at her hip settling naturally as she straightened.
“Alright,” she said calmly.
“Let’s go bring them home.”
The music inside Lizzie’s still thumped through the walls, but the moment around the bar had gone quieter.
Judy shrugged her jacket onto her shoulders, the rose tattoos along her arms shifting beneath the neon light as she reached for the glass she’d barely touched.
“Warehouse in Japantown?” she asked.
Susie nodded once.
“Claws moved fast. Van pulled up, snatched them right off the street. Cameras nearby caught the plates before they ghosted.”
Valerie rested one hand briefly on the counter as she stood. The neon caught the edge of the lotus tattoo along her neck when she tilted her head toward Judy.
“You get the footage?”
“Already pulling it,” Judy said.
Her eyes flickered faintly as her optics came alive. Lines of code scrolled across her vision while the bar lights reflected off the chrome edge of the neural implant along the shaved side of her head.
A moment later she exhaled softly.
“Got it.”
Sandra stepped closer behind Sera, her gaze already drifting toward the entrance.
“Warehouse still active?”
“Looks like it,” Judy replied. “Movement on the loading dock about ten minutes ago.”
Sera had slid off her stool while they talked. The phoenix pendant at her throat shifted as she tucked the holotablet under her arm.
Her emerald eyes had lost the relaxed curiosity they’d held a moment earlier.
Now they were focused.
Valerie noticed.
She always did.
For a brief second their eyes met across the space between them.
Valerie’s voice softened just slightly.
“You good, Starshine?”
Sera nodded once.
“Yeah.”
Sandra reached out quietly and brushed her fingers along Sera’s arm before stepping past her toward the door.
“Let’s go make some gangoons regret their life choices.”
Rita had already moved aside from the entrance by the time they reached it. She gave Judy a quick look as they passed.
“Try not to burn half of Japantown down.”
Judy smirked.
“No promises.”
Outside, the humid Watson night wrapped around them immediately.
Neon from the surrounding buildings reflected off the wet pavement while traffic hummed somewhere beyond the maze of streets.
Their matte-black command SUV sat a short distance down the block where Valerie had parked earlier.
Valerie pulled open the driver’s door while Judy moved toward the passenger seat, already bringing up a network scan across the city grid.
Sandra slid into the rear seat on one side.
Sera climbed into the other, reaching forward to the drone console mounted between them.
The cabin lights flickered on briefly before dimming again as the systems booted.
Valerie started the engine.
“Alright,” she said, settling one hand on the wheel.
Judy’s eyes glowed faintly as she dove into the network.
“Sending you a route now.”
Behind them, Sera tapped the console. The roof hatch above the rear compartment unlocked with a soft mechanical click.
Sandra glanced upward.
“Sending Sparky for recon?”
A faint smile tugged at Sera’s mouth despite everything.
“They’ll never see Sparky coming.”
Outside, the roof panels slid open, exposing the drone cradle to the neon glow.
A moment later the phoenix-shaped drone rose smoothly from its cradle and lifted into the neon-lit night above Watson.
Sera watched the feed appear across the console screens.
“Alright,” she said quietly.
“Let’s go find them.”
The SUV eased out into the Kabuki traffic, neon reflections sliding across the armored windshield as Valerie guided the vehicle through the narrow streets. Her long red hair was tied loosely back now, the strands that had escaped the tie shifting with each turn of her head as she checked the mirrors. The lotus tattoo along her neck caught a brief flash of pink light from a passing sign before disappearing again into the shadow of the cabin.
Beside her, Judy leaned forward slightly in the passenger seat, one elbow resting against the door while lines of data scrolled across her optics. The shaved side of her head reflected faint chrome under the dashboard glow where the neural implant sat along her temple, while the longer pink-and-green hair on the other side fell across her shoulder. The roses inked along her arms shifted as she moved her fingers through the network controls.
“Routing you through Kabuki market,” she said quietly. “Less traffic this time of night.”
Valerie nodded once.
In the rear seat, Sandra had settled into the corner with the quiet composure she carried almost everywhere. Her brown hair, pulled back loosely, brushed the collar of her armored jacket as she leaned forward slightly, eyes flicking between the front windshield and the drone feed glowing across Sera’s screens.
The crescent moon necklace at her throat swayed gently each time the vehicle turned.
“You get eyes on the warehouse yet?” she asked.
Sera’s fingers moved quickly across the drone console, the soft light from the monitors reflecting across her freckles as she focused on the feed. Her long red hair spilled over one shoulder while the phoenix pendant resting against her chest glowed faintly in the light from the display.
Above them, Sparky climbed higher through the humid night.
The drone’s phoenix-shaped wings angled outward as its optics adjusted, the city spreading out beneath it in layers of neon streets and rooftop structures.
A moment later the camera feed sharpened.
A block of Japantown warehouses appeared across Sera’s screen.
“Got it,” she said.
Valerie glanced briefly at the rearview mirror.
“Show us.”
Sera expanded the feed across the console monitors between the rear seats.
Sandra leaned closer, studying the image.
The building itself sat near the edge of an industrial block, half its exterior covered in faded shipping logos and flickering security lights. Two Tyger Claw gangoons stood near the loading dock entrance, their neon tattoos faintly visible even from the drone’s distance.
Another pair moved along the rooftop.
Judy’s eyes flickered again as she accessed nearby network nodes.
“Cameras on the front corner… and one watching the alley,” she said. “Turret mounted above the loading door too.”
Valerie’s hand tightened slightly on the steering wheel.
“Can you ghost them?”
Judy’s mouth curved faintly.
“Already working on it.”
In the back seat, Sandra tilted her head as she studied the drone feed.
“Front entrance looks messy,” she said quietly.
Sera nodded.
“There’s a side alley on the east wall.”
Her fingers moved again and Sparky banked slightly in the sky.
The drone swept across the building’s side, its optic camouflage flickering on for a moment as it drifted closer.
A narrow service door appeared in the camera view.
One guard.
Smoking.
Sandra smiled faintly.
“That’ll do.”
Valerie pulled the SUV to a stop a block away beneath a flickering streetlight, the engine settling into a low idle.
For a moment the only sound inside the vehicle was the quiet hum of the electronics.
Then Valerie glanced at the rear seats through the mirror.
“Alright,” she said calmly.
“Let’s plan how we ruin their night.”
The SUV idled quietly beneath the flickering streetlight while the drone feed continued to glow across the screens between the rear seats.
Sera leaned forward over the console, her freckles catching the soft blue light from the display while Sparky hovered above the warehouse district. Her long red hair had fallen over one shoulder again as she focused on the camera feed, the small phoenix pendant at her throat resting against the edge of the console as she adjusted the drone’s position.
Sandra shifted closer beside her, studying the image. The faint glow from the monitors reflected in her brown eyes as she watched the guard leaning against the service door along the east wall of the building. Smoke drifted lazily upward from the cigarette between his fingers.
Her lips curved slightly.
“That one’s mine.”
Up front, Valerie rested both hands loosely on the steering wheel while she looked through the windshield toward the industrial block ahead. The dim dashboard light traced across the freckles along her nose and cheeks while the lotus tattoo along her neck shifted as she turned her head slightly toward the others.
Judy leaned back in the passenger seat beside her, one arm resting across the door while lines of code flickered across her optics.
The neon reflections outside the vehicle slid across the roses inked along her arms while she worked, the shaved side of her head catching a faint gleam from the console lights where the neural implant sat just beneath the skin.
“Turret above the loading door is on the same subnet as the cameras,” she said calmly. “Give me about twenty seconds and it’ll think those gangoons are hostile.”
Valerie’s mouth twitched faintly.
“Bet they won’t see that coming.”
In the back seat, Sandra reached down to check the balance of the knife resting along her thigh holster. The crescent moon etched into the blade caught a thin line of light when she pulled it free for a second before sliding it back into place.
Her eyes returned to the screen.
“I'll slip through the service door,” she said. “Quietly.”
She nodded once toward the warehouse interior layout Sparky had mapped.
“I'll find the girls.”
Sera adjusted the drone’s altitude slightly as she followed the rooftop guards pacing along the building.
“I can drop the roof patrol when you move,” she said.
The phoenix-shaped drone shifted silently through the air above the warehouse, its optic camouflage flickering faintly before stabilizing again.
Sandra glanced up at the roof feed.
“Perfect timing then.”
Valerie finally turned in her seat slightly so she could see everyone.
The red strands of her tied-back hair shifted along her shoulders while the faint hum of her cyberware sat beneath the quiet of the vehicle.
“Alright,” she said.
“Sandra takes the side door.”
Sandra gave a small nod.
“Sera handles the roof.”
Sera’s emerald eyes stayed fixed on the screens.
“Already tracking them.”
Valerie continued.
“Judy flips the turret and lights up the dock.”
Judy cracked her knuckles lightly before returning her focus to the data streaming across her optics.
“They’ll think their own gun turned on them.”
Valerie’s gaze shifted toward the warehouse in the distance.
“I’ll take the reinforcements when they come looking.”
She reached down briefly, checking the weight of the Malorian revolver resting in the holster at her hip before looking back at Judy.
“Once the perimeter’s clear…”
Judy finished the thought easily.
“We go inside.”
For a moment no one spoke.
The plan sat in the air between them, simple and precise.
Then Sera exhaled softly and glanced toward Sandra beside her.
“Sparky’s ready when you are.”
Sandra pushed open the rear door of the SUV and stepped out into the humid Japantown night.
Behind her, Valerie’s voice followed quietly.
“Let’s go get those girls.”
Sandra moved along the east wall of the warehouse, staying low in the strip of shadow between two rusted cargo containers.
The faint neon from a broken Japantown sign flickered across the metal siding and briefly caught the edges of her long brown hair, pulled back for the job. The light armored combat jacket shifted quietly with her movement, reinforced plates beneath the fabric flexing as she crouched.
Ahead of her, the Tyger Claw guard leaned against the service door.
The dragon tattoos crawling up his neck glowed faintly red under the alley light while he laughed at something on his holo.
Sandra closed the last few steps without a sound.
Her hand slipped to the knife holstered along her thigh.
Eclipse slid free.
The crescent etched along the blade flashed once in the neon before disappearing into the dark.
Her arm wrapped around the guard’s shoulders and the knife drove hard beneath his ribs.
The gangoon jerked, breath leaving him in a wet choke.
Sandra twisted the blade once and dragged him off the wall before he could shout. His cigarette slipped from his mouth and fizzed out in the rain while she lowered him quietly to the pavement.
“Door’s clear,” she whispered.
Inside the SUV, the drone feed glowed across the console. Sera leaned forward over the controls, freckles across her nose visible in the soft blue light from the monitors. Her long red hair spilled over one shoulder while the phoenix necklace at her throat shifted against her chest as she adjusted Sparky’s position.
Above the warehouse, the phoenix-shaped drone drifted lower behind the rooftop guards.
“Roof patrol moving,” she said quietly.
In the passenger seat, Judy’s eyes danced across the interface projected in front of her.
The neon glow from the street outside reflected off the shaved side of her head, highlighting the chrome line of the neural implant beneath the skin. The longer pink-and-green hair on the other side slipped across her shoulder as lines of code cascaded through her optics.
The rose tattoos along her arms shifted as she leaned against the door.
“Turret’s mine,” she murmured.
Outside, the automated gun mounted above the loading dock suddenly whined to life.
Two Tyger Claws standing beneath it barely had time to look up.
The turret opened fire.
Rounds ripped across the metal crates behind them, sparks flying as the targeting corrected.
One gangoon spun violently as bullets tore through his shoulder and chest, slamming him into the railing.
The second dove behind a forklift, shouting into his comm.
“What the hell is happening—?!”
Judy’s mouth curved faintly.
“Suprise Motherfuckers!”
Above the roofline, Sparky dropped into position.
Sera’s emerald eyes followed the two rooftop guards across the screen.
Her fingers tapped the controls.
The drone’s wings angled down.
Twin bursts of gunfire cracked through the night.
The first guard collapsed instantly.
The second spun around in panic and fired blindly into the darkness before another burst slammed him backward over a vent unit.
“Roof’s clear,” Sera said.
Valerie was already moving.
She stepped out from behind the SUV, the humid night air stirring the loose strands of her long red hair. The faint glow of a street sign caught the freckles across her cheeks and the lotus tattoo along the left side of her neck as she raised the Malorian revolver.
Last Rites thundered once.
The recoil slammed through her arm as the round punched straight through the lead Tyger Claw charging toward the dock.
He dropped mid-stride.
The second gangoon opened fire immediately.
Bullets sparked off the pavement beside Valerie’s boots.
She didn’t slow.
Her mantis blade snapped forward from her right arm with a metallic hiss.
Two quick strides closed the distance.
The blade drove clean through the man’s torso.
He choked in shock as Valerie ripped the blade free and turned.
The third gangoon froze just long enough to realize what he was looking at.
Valerie raised the revolver again.
The shot echoed through the alley.
The man crumpled against the dock wall.
Inside the warehouse, Sandra slipped through the service door and into the dim interior corridor.
Emergency lights flickered weakly along the concrete walls.
Voices echoed somewhere deeper inside the building.
Sandra moved silently through the shadows, Eclipse steady in her hand.
Then she heard it.
Soft voices.
Scared.
She stopped beside a heavy metal door and pressed her ear against it.
“Found them,” she whispered into the comm.
Outside, Valerie lowered the revolver slightly and glanced toward Judy.
“Perimeter’s ours.”
Judy pushed the SUV door open, Laguna Sunrise already in her hand.
“Then let’s go get those girls.”
Sandra eased the heavy door open just enough to slip inside.
The room beyond was dim and cold, lit by a handful of flickering fluorescent strips that cast uneven light across concrete walls and rows of metal holding cages. The air smelled faintly of machine oil and stale smoke.
For a moment she stayed still, letting her eyes adjust.
Soft voices drifted from deeper in the room.
Scared.
Sandra stepped quietly into the shadows, Eclipse steady in her hand, her long brown hair tied back into a tight ponytail so it wouldn’t fall into her face. The reinforced panels in her lightweight combat jacket shifted softly with her movement as she slid along the wall.
A Tyger Claw guard stood near the cages with his back turned, scrolling lazily through something on his holo.
He never heard her coming.
Sandra crossed the distance in three silent steps.
Her arm slipped around his shoulder and Eclipse drove cleanly beneath his ribs, the blade punching through muscle and lung before he could make a sound. His breath escaped in a quiet choke as she eased him down against the concrete floor.
She wiped the blade once across his jacket and straightened.
That’s when the side door opened.
Another Tyger Claw stepped out from a small office room to the left, pistol already halfway raised as he registered the body on the floor.
The gunshot cracked through the cell room.
The round slammed into Sandra’s chest.
The impact hit hard enough to knock the breath from her lungs, the force spreading across the armor plating hidden beneath her jacket. Pain flared through her ribs, but the bullet didn’t penetrate.
The gangoon blinked in shock.
Sandra recovered faster.
Her arm snapped forward in one smooth motion.
Eclipse left her hand in a spinning arc of steel.
The knife struck the man square between the eyes.
He dropped instantly, the pistol clattering across the floor as his body collapsed against the doorframe.
Sandra exhaled slowly, pressing a hand briefly against the spot where the round had struck her jacket.
“Yeah,” she muttered under her breath. “Still holding.”
Her hand lifted slightly.
The smart-link built into her gloves activated, sending a recall signal through the blade’s embedded magnetics.
Eclipse tore free from the corpse and snapped back through the air into her palm.
She caught it easily.
Then she finally looked toward the cages.
Four Mox girls sat behind reinforced bars, their faces pale under the buzzing lights. One of them stood the moment she saw Sandra.
“You here to get us out?”
Sandra stepped to the control panel beside the nearest cell and popped open the casing with a small tool from her belt.
Her eyes scanned the circuitry.
Encrypted.
Corporate-grade lock.
She tried the manual bypass anyway.
Nothing.
Sandra tapped her comm.
“I found them,” she said quietly. “But I can’t bypass the locks.”
Outside, Valerie’s voice answered almost immediately.
“Be there soon.”
Inside the warehouse proper, the sound of gunfire echoed as Valerie and Judy pushed through the loading dock entrance.
Valerie moved first.
The neon from the dock lights caught the strands of her long red hair as she stepped past a stack of shipping crates, the freckles across her cheeks and the lotus tattoo along the left side of her neck briefly visible as she scanned the room.
A Tyger Claw rushed her from behind a forklift.
Valerie didn’t hesitate.
Last Rites thundered once.
The Malorian round hit the gangoon square in the chest and threw him backward across the concrete.
Another Claw opened fire from behind a stack of containers.
Bullets sparked off the metal beside them.
Judy moved beside Valerie, her pink and green sidecut hair catching the dock lights, the chrome line of the neural implant visible along the shaved side of her head as quickhack code scrolled across her optics.
“Got him,” she said calmly.
Her fingers twitched slightly.
The Tyger Claw’s weapon suddenly jerked in his hands.
Weapon malfunction.
The gun sparked violently and died.
Valerie closed the distance before the gangoon could recover.
Her mantis blade snapped forward from her right arm with a mechanical hiss.
One clean strike.
The man dropped.
Behind them, Judy raised Laguna Sunrise, the smart pistol locking onto another Claw sprinting down the far aisle.
Two quick shots.
The rounds curved slightly midair as the targeting system corrected.
The gangoon collapsed before he reached cover.
Judy glanced toward the deeper hallway of the warehouse where Sandra’s voice had come from.
“Let’s go get those girls.”
Valerie wiped a line of blood from the edge of the mantis blade before retracting it with a metallic click.
“Right behind you, Jude.”
Together they moved deeper into the warehouse toward Sandra’s position.
Inside the command SUV, Sera’s attention snapped to the tactical display the moment new movement appeared on Sparky’s feed.
The drone’s optics zoomed down the length of the street outside the warehouse. Headlights cut through the mist rising from the drainage canal as two Tyger Claw vehicles turned into the alley.
Sera leaned forward slightly over the control console, strands of her long red hair slipping across her shoulder as the screens reflected in her emerald eyes. The phoenix necklace at her throat shifted as she adjusted the drone’s position.
“Mom,” she said over the comms, her voice steady. “We’ve got two Tyger Claw vehicles approaching the warehouse.”
Inside the building, Valerie’s voice answered through the channel.
“Copy.”
The cars rolled to a stop outside the loading dock.
Doors opened.
Several Tyger Claw gangoons stepped out, weapons already in hand as they scanned the alley, trying to figure out why their warehouse had suddenly gone quiet.
Sera watched them through Sparky’s optics.
Her jaw tightened slightly.
“Moving to intercept.”
The phoenix-shaped drone drifted down from above the roofline, its wings angling as it slipped into position over the group.
The compartment beneath the drone opened.
Two incendiary grenades dropped into the center of the gangoons.
They didn’t notice until they hit the pavement.
The alley erupted in fire.
Flames burst across the concrete as the grenades ignited, the blast throwing two of the Tyger Claws violently backward while another collapsed screaming as burning fuel spread across the ground.
The remaining gangoons reacted instantly.
“Drone!”
Rifles came up.
Sera jerked the controls.
Sparky twisted sideways as rounds ripped through the air where it had been hovering a moment before.
She brought the drone around and triggered the wing guns.
The drone answered with a burst of gunfire.
Rounds hammered the pavement and tore through the sides of the parked vehicles, but the surviving Tyger Claws dove behind the engine blocks for cover.
Sera watched the feed, irritation flashing across her face.
“Fine.”
She toggled another command.
“Sparky, suppressive fire.”
The drone shifted position and opened sustained fire, the wing guns stitching the ground and metal panels of the vehicles, forcing the gangoons to stay pinned.
Sera pushed open the rear door of the command SUV.
The heat from the burning grenades rolled through the alley as she stepped out.
The glow of the flames reflected across the freckles on her face, the firelight catching the strands of her long red hair while the phoenix pendant glinted faintly against her chest.
Her hands moved to the shoulder holsters beneath her jacket.
She drew Ash and Echo.
Ahead of her one of the Tyger Claws suddenly broke from cover, trying to reposition.
The moment he stepped out—
Sparky’s suppressive fire caught him.
Rounds slammed him backward into the side of the vehicle.
Another gangoon leaned out from behind the hood and fired.
The shot cracked past Sera’s shoulder.
She dropped behind a stack of cargo crates, rolled across the pavement, and came up already aiming.
Ash fired.
Echo fired.
Two sharp shots cut through the alley.
One Tyger Claw dropped instantly, the round striking high in the chest.
The second tried to duck back behind the vehicle—
Sera fired again.
The bullet caught him before he reached cover.
Silence settled across the alley except for the crackle of burning fuel.
Sera kept both pistols raised for another second, scanning the street while Sparky hovered above the warehouse.
When nothing else moved, she holstered the weapons and walked back toward the SUV.
She tapped her comm.
“Backup’s handled.”
Inside the warehouse the sound of distant gunfire still echoed as Valerie and Judy fought their way toward Sandra.
Sera settled back into the drone console.
“Sparky’s back on overwatch.”
The heavy door at the end of the corridor opened and Valerie stepped through first.
The dim warehouse lights caught the loose strands of her long red hair, the freckles across her cheeks, and the lotus tattoo along the left side of her neck as her emerald eyes quickly swept the cell room. Last Rites rested steady in her hand, the revolver already angled toward the hallway behind her in case someone followed.
Judy came in right behind her.
The light brushed across the pink-and-green sidecut of her hair, the shaved side revealing the thin chrome line of the neural implant along her temple. Her brown eyes moved immediately to the cell control panel mounted beside the cages.
Valerie’s attention shifted to Sandra.
Her gaze dropped for half a second to the spot on Sandra’s armored combat jacket where the bullet had struck.
“You good?”
Sandra rolled her shoulder once, testing the bruise forming beneath the armor.
“Still breathing.”
Valerie gave a short nod, satisfied.
“You’re with me.”
Sandra’s mouth pulled into a small smirk as she glanced toward Judy.
“Yeah, yeah,” she said, stepping away from the cell controls. “Let the magician work.”
She drew Horizon from its holster and moved toward a stack of crates along the wall, settling into a firing angle that gave her a clear line down the corridor.
Judy was already moving.
She stopped beside the lock console as her cyberdeck spun up in the background of her mind.
Data flooded across her optics, faint lines of code reflecting in her brown eyes as she scanned the Tyger Claw security network tied into the warehouse systems.
“Cell system’s wired into the building grid,” she said calmly. “Give me a few seconds.”
Her consciousness slipped into the network.
ICE rose up immediately to meet her.
Judy’s lips curved faintly.
“Yeah… figured.”
Behind her the first Tyger Claw came charging down the corridor.
Valerie didn’t even hesitate.
Last Rites fired once, the thunder of the Malorian round filling the hallway as the bullet hit the gangoon square in the chest and threw him backward.
Another Claw rushed forward behind him, weapon raised.
Sandra leaned out from the crates.
Horizon rattled in a tight burst, the rounds chewing across the doorway and forcing the gangoons to stumble back behind the corner of the hall.
Bootsteps continued echoing deeper in the warehouse.
More of them.
Valerie shifted her stance slightly in the doorway, revolver still raised.
Another Tyger Claw tried to push through the opening.
The mantis blade snapped from Valerie’s right arm with a metallic hiss, the blade punching forward in a single brutal motion.
The gangoon barely had time to react before it drove straight through his torso.
Valerie ripped the blade free and kicked the body back into the corridor.
Behind them Judy’s breathing stayed calm as the digital fight continued.
Code surged through the network as she forced her way past the security ICE.
For a moment the system tried to lock her out.
Judy pushed harder.
The ICE cracked.
“Got it,” she murmured.
Inside the cages the electronic locks began releasing.
One by one.
Heavy bolts retracted with a loud mechanical clunk and the first cage door slid open.
The Mox girl inside stared at it like she wasn’t sure it was real.
Sandra fired another controlled burst down the hallway as more Tyger Claws tried to push forward. “Judy!”
“Working!” Judy answered, already forcing the next lock open.
Another door released.
Then another.
The corridor outside the room was filling with shouting gangoons now, their boots pounding closer as they realized what was happening inside the holding area.
Valerie stood steady in the doorway, revolver still raised, the faint reflection of the flickering lights catching in her emerald eyes as she watched the hallway.
“Take your time, Jude,” she said calmly.
Then another Tyger Claw rushed the door.
The revolver fired again.
The shouting in the corridor rose to a furious roar as the remaining Tyger Claws realized the prisoners were being released.
Bootsteps pounded toward the holding room.
Valerie heard them coming before they reached the corner.
She stood planted in the doorway, Last Rites steady in both hands, the flickering warehouse lights catching the strands of her long red hair as they fell across her shoulders.
The glow from the hall briefly lit the freckles across her cheeks and the lotus tattoo along the left side of her neck while her emerald eyes tracked the movement approaching.
The first gangoon burst around the corner with an SMG raised.
The Malorian roared.
The shot hit him high in the chest and threw him backward into the wall behind him.
Two more Claws tried to rush the doorway behind him.
Sandra leaned out from the crates where she had taken position, Horizon braced against her shoulder. Her brown ponytail shifted with the movement as she squeezed the trigger.
The SMG barked in controlled bursts.
Rounds tore across the hallway and forced the gangoons to stumble for cover behind the corner of the corridor.
One of them leaned out blindly and fired back.
The rounds sparked against the metal frame of the doorway.
Valerie moved before the next shot could come.
The mantis blade snapped forward from her right arm with a metallic hiss, the edge catching the light as she stepped into the hallway.
The first Tyger Claw barely had time to look up before the blade drove through his chest.
Valerie ripped it free and pivoted.
The second gangoon tried to bring his rifle up—
Sandra’s burst from Horizon caught him first.
The rounds slammed him back against the concrete wall.
For a moment the corridor went quiet.
Smoke drifted from the muzzle of Sandra’s SMG as she swept the hallway with a careful glance.
“V, I think that’s the last of them,” she muttered.
Behind them, the final cell lock clunked open.
Judy straightened from the control panel, brushing a strand of pink-and-green hair back behind her ear as the faint glow of her optics faded. The chrome line of her neural implant caught the overhead light as she looked over the cages.
“All doors unlocked,” she said.
The Mox girls began stepping out of the cells cautiously, still looking stunned.
Judy gave them a reassuring nod.
“You’re good. Let’s move.”
Valerie retracted the mantis blade with a soft mechanical click and turned back into the room.
Her gaze moved across the freed prisoners, then to Sandra, then finally to Judy.
“You ready to get them out of here?”
From the comm in her ear Sera’s voice came back over the channel.
“Outside’s clear. No more Tyger Claw traffic.”
Valerie allowed herself the smallest breath of relief.
“Good.”
She looked back at the girls.
“We're getting them home.”
Then she stepped back into the hallway to lead them out.
Valerie stepped into the hallway first, the Malorian revolver still steady in her hand as she checked the corridor one last time. The smoke from the gunfire drifted slowly through the flickering lights, bodies of the Tyger Claws scattered along the concrete where the fight had ended.
Behind her, the Mox girls were beginning to gather themselves, shaken but moving now that the cage doors were open.
Sandra moved beside them, Horizon resting low in her hands as she scanned the corners of the warehouse. Her long brown hair, pulled tight into its mission ponytail, shifted against the collar of her light armored combat jacket, the faint dent from the earlier bullet still visible in the reinforced plating.
“Alright,” she said calmly to the girls, nodding toward the hallway. “Stay close.”
Valerie glanced back at them briefly. The harsh lights caught the freckles across her face and the lotus tattoo along her neck as her emerald eyes swept over the group, counting heads.
“Let’s move.”
Sandra stepped ahead of the girls slightly, guiding them forward while Valerie took point at the front of the column. The quiet rhythm of their boots echoed through the warehouse as they began escorting the rescued women back toward the loading dock.
Behind them, Judy lingered for a moment.
Her brown eyes flicked across the room as she noticed a workstation tucked into the corner near the cells. A cheap Tyger Claw terminal still hummed quietly on standby.
“Hold a second,” she murmured into the comm.
She stepped over to the computer, the pink and green strands of her sidecut hair falling across her shoulder while the chrome line of the neural implant on the shaved side of her head caught the light.
Her cyberdeck linked in through her optics.
Lines of code began scrolling across her vision as she slipped into the warehouse network one more time.
Most of the system was already compromised from the cell unlock, but deeper directories were still tucked behind basic security.
Judy pushed past them easily.
File structures opened.
Then one directory caught her attention.
She paused.
“Val,” she said quietly over the comm.
Up ahead Valerie slowed slightly but didn’t stop walking.
“What is it, Jude?”
Judy’s eyes narrowed as she scrolled through the files.
Names.
Shipping manifests.
Schedules.
Her jaw tightened.
“Trafficking records.”
Another file opened.
Photographs.
Movement logs.
A name appeared repeatedly in the command headers.
Jotaro Shobo.
Judy exhaled slowly.
“Yeah… this whole place is tied to Jotaro’s operation.”
Inside the SUV outside the warehouse, Sera heard the name through the comm.
Her hands froze over the drone console.
The glow of Sparky’s feed reflected across her emerald eyes, and for a moment the quiet hum of the electronics was the only sound inside the vehicle.
Then her jaw clenched.
Her teeth ground together.
“Of course it is,” she muttered.
The phoenix necklace resting against her chest shifted as she leaned back in the seat, anger flickering across the freckles on her face.
Valerie’s voice cut in before the moment could go any further. “Starshine.”
Sera’s head lifted slightly.
“Stay focused on the mission.”
There was no harshness in Valerie’s voice, just steady control. “We’ll deal with that later.”
A long breath left Sera’s lungs.
“Yeah… yeah.”
She rubbed her face briefly with one hand
before pulling up the comm network.
“Calling Susie.”
The connection clicked open after a moment.
Susie Q’s voice came through the line, sharp and direct as always.
“You got my girls?”
Sera glanced toward the warehouse entrance where Valerie and Sandra would appear any moment with the group.
“We’ve got them,” she said. “All alive.”
A brief pause followed.
Then Susie exhaled through the line.
“Good. I’ll send Rita and Lexa to pick them up.”
Sera could almost hear the gears turning on the other end of the call as Susie shifted into logistics mode.
“Copy that,” Sera replied.
The line clicked off.
She leaned forward again over the drone console and keyed the squad channel.
“The Mox are on their way,” she told the team.
Outside the warehouse, the night air still carried the faint smell of smoke from the firefight as the Starfall crew guided the rescued girls toward the waiting SUV.
The warehouse district had gone quiet again by the time the job was truly over.
Smoke still drifted faintly from the loading dock where the firefight had spilled out into the alley, and the smell of burned fuel from Sera’s incendiary grenades lingered in the night air. Neon from a distant sign flickered against the concrete walls while the drainage canal nearby carried its constant low rumble beneath the city.
The Starfall Company command SUV sat in the alley where Valerie had left it, the matte black armor catching reflections from the streetlights and the thin purple striping along the body faintly glowing in the dark.
A few meters away, the rescued Mox girls stood together in a loose cluster, still shaken but breathing easier now that the danger had passed.
Sandra remained nearby, Horizon resting low in her hands as she kept watch down the street. Her long brown hair, still tied back in its practical ponytail, brushed lightly against the collar of her armored combat jacket as she shifted her weight. The dent from the earlier bullet was still visible in the plating across her chest.
Valerie stood a few steps closer to the warehouse entrance, her long red hair stirring slightly in the cool night air. The glow from a nearby streetlamp highlighted the freckles across her cheeks and the lotus tattoo along the left side of her neck while her emerald eyes continued scanning the street with the quiet patience of someone used to Night City never staying calm for long.
Last Rites rested in her hand, lowered but ready.
Beside the SUV, Judy leaned casually against the armored door, Laguna Sunrise still holstered at her hip. The colored strands of her pink-and-green sidecut hair caught the neon light, the shaved side revealing the slim chrome line of her neural implant while the rose tattoos along her arms shifted as she folded them across her chest.
Her attention drifted briefly between the girls and the dark street beyond the alley.
Then the roof hatch of the SUV opened.
A moment later Sparky descended from the sky.
The phoenix-shaped drone glided down smoothly, wings folding slightly as it approached the vehicle before disappearing neatly through the open hatch.
Inside the cabin, Sera guided the landing with steady hands over the control console. The monitors reflected across her emerald eyes, and a loose strand of her long red hair fell across her cheek as she leaned forward slightly, concentrating on the final approach.
“Easy… easy…”
Sparky settled into its charging cradle with a soft mechanical click.
Sera exhaled quietly and powered the drone down.
She stepped out of the back of the SUV a moment later, brushing the loose strand of hair away from her face while the phoenix necklace at her throat shifted against her jacket.
“Drone’s back in the nest,” she said over the comm.
Valerie glanced toward her briefly and gave a small nod.
“Good work, Starshine.”
The quiet moment didn’t last long.
Headlights appeared at the far end of the alley.
Two vehicles rolled into view, both painted in the unmistakable colors of the Mox.
Sandra straightened slightly, lowering Horizon but keeping the weapon ready until the cars came closer.
The vehicles slowed beside the command SUV.
Doors opened.
Rita Wheeler stepped out of the first car.
The tall Mox bouncer moved with the same confident presence she always carried at the door of Lizzie’s. The neon glow caught the chrome of her implants as she looked over the scene, her gaze moving quickly across the alley before landing on Judy.
“Well, well,” Rita said, walking over with a faint grin. “Looks like Punchin’ Judy’s been busy tonight.”
From the second vehicle, Lexa Hale stepped out as well, the streetlights catching the shine of her long blonde hair as it fell around her shoulders. The vocal cyberware along her throat glinted faintly as she looked toward the group of rescued girls.
Her expression softened immediately.
“Hey,” she said gently to them. “You’re safe now.”
The Mox girls began moving toward the vehicles, relief finally replacing the tension in their faces as Rita and Lexa guided them inside.
Rita paused briefly beside Judy, giving her a firm pat on the shoulder.
“Susie says thanks,” she said.
Then she glanced around at the rest of the crew.
“And the eddies will be hitting your account real soon.”
Sandra lowered Horizon fully now, slipping the SMG back into its holster while Valerie finally relaxed her grip on the Malorian.
Beside the SUV, Sera watched the Mox girls climb into the vehicles, the tension slowly draining from her shoulders.
The job was done.
The alley slowly settled back into the uneasy quiet that always followed a Night City firefight.
Smoke still drifted faintly from the loading dock while the flicker of a dying neon sign painted the concrete in uneven shades of pink and blue. The last of the Mox girls climbed into the vehicles Rita and Lexa had brought, their voices low and relieved now that the danger had finally passed.
Valerie stepped a little closer to the cars as the doors shut.
The streetlight caught the strands of her long red hair, highlighting the freckles across her cheeks and the lotus tattoo along the left side of her neck while her emerald eyes moved over the scene one last time. Last Rites rested low in her hand before she slid the Malorian back into the holster at her hip.
Rita leaned casually against the door of the lead vehicle, watching the last of the girls settle inside.
“Susie’s gonna be glad to see them walk through the door,” she said.
Judy stood beside Valerie, arms folded loosely across her chest. The colored strands of her pink-and-green sidecut hair fell across one shoulder while the chrome edge of the neural implant along the shaved side of her head caught the glow of the alley lights. The rose tattoos along her arms shifted as she adjusted her stance.
“Yeah,” Judy said quietly. “Those gangoons weren’t exactly planning on letting them go.”
Rita shook her head slightly.
“Tyger Claws never do.”
Lexa walked up beside them, the shine of her long blonde hair catching the alley light as she glanced toward the warehouse behind the crew. The faint lines of her vocal cyberware glimmered along her throat as her gaze settled on Valerie and Judy.
For a moment she didn’t say anything, just looking toward the Mox girls climbing into the vehicles.
“Those girls…” she said quietly. “Some of them work nights at Lizzie’s. I see them all the time.”
Her eyes shifted back to Valerie and Judy.
“Thank you for bringing them back.”
Valerie gave a small nod.
“Just doing the job.”
Rita snorted softly from beside the car.
“Yeah, yeah,” she said, pushing off the door. “Still appreciate it.”
She glanced once more toward the warehouse and the bodies scattered somewhere inside before turning back to the vehicles.
“We’ll get them back to Lizzie’s.”
Judy nodded.
“Tell Susie the system logs from that place mentioned Jotaro Shobo.”
Rita’s expression darkened slightly.
“Figures.”
Lexa’s jaw tightened too, but she didn’t say anything more.
“Get home safe,” Rita said, climbing into the driver’s seat.
The engines started a moment later.
The two Mox vehicles pulled away from the alley, disappearing into the glowing streets of Japantown as they headed back toward Lizzie’s Bar.
For a moment the Starfall crew stood quietly beside their own vehicle.
Sandra had already slipped Horizon back into its holster, her long brown ponytail shifting against the collar of her combat jacket as she stretched her shoulders slightly.
“Well,” she said, glancing toward the warehouse. “That was a night.”
Judy huffed quietly.
“Could’ve been worse.”
Valerie gave a small motion toward the SUV.
“Let’s head home.”
They climbed back into the armored command vehicle, the heavy doors shutting with a solid metallic thud.
Inside the cabin the familiar glow of the tactical displays lit the interior as Sera slid back into the drone console seat between the rear chairs. Her long red hair fell down her back while the phoenix necklace resting at her throat shifted as she powered down the remaining systems.
“Sparky’s safe,” she said, glancing over the drone diagnostics on the screen. “No damage.”
Sandra dropped into the rear seat beside her, leaning back against the armor plating with a tired breath while Judy settled into the front passenger seat.
Valerie took the driver’s seat. For a moment her hands rested on the wheel before the engine rumbled to life beneath the armored chassis.
The SUV rolled out of the alley and into the neon-lit streets of Night City.
Japantown’s lights faded behind them as they crossed back toward Watson, the towering skyline of City Center glowing in the distance like a wall of chrome and holograms.
Eventually the streets narrowed and the atmosphere shifted.
The bright corporate towers gave way to the crowded blocks of Kabuki, where old concrete buildings leaned together beneath a web of cables and flickering signs. Steam drifted from vents near the sewer drainage system as the command vehicle turned onto Charter Street.
The familiar blue three-story apartment building came into view at the end of the block.
Valerie eased the SUV into the fenced parking lot in front of the building and shut the engine down.
For a moment none of them moved.
The job was finally over.
Sandra pushed the rear door open first and stepped out into the cool night air, stretching her shoulders while the dent in the armor of her combat jacket caught the light from the parking lot lamps.
Judy climbed out next, the colored strands of her pink-and-green sidecut hair shifting as she rolled her neck slightly after the long night.
Valerie stepped out from the driver’s side, the freckles across her cheeks visible under the streetlight while the lotus tattoo along her neck caught the glow.
Sera hopped down last, brushing a loose strand of red hair away from her face as she glanced back toward the SUV.
“Good work tonight, Sparky,” she muttered softly.
They crossed the lot together toward the building entrance.
The glass door slid open with a mechanical hum as Valerie pressed her finger to the biometric panel, the scanner flashing green before allowing them inside.
The stairwell smelled faintly of concrete dust and old wiring as they climbed the flights toward the third floor.
By the time they reached the end of the hallway the quiet hum of Kabuki drifted faintly through the building walls.
Valerie pressed her finger to the biometric panel beside their apartment door.
The lock clicked.
The door slid open.
Warm light spilled out into the hallway as the Starfall Company finally stepped back inside their home.
The apartment door slid shut behind them with a soft mechanical hum, sealing out the distant noise of Kabuki.
For a moment the four of them just stood there letting the quiet settle in after the long night.
Valerie was the first to move.
She rolled her shoulders once, the tension from the warehouse finally starting to ease as she crossed the short hallway into the kitchenette. The warm apartment lighting caught the strands of her long red hair, the freckles across her cheeks, and the lotus tattoo along the left side of her neck as she reached for the fridge.
Judy followed close behind her.
The colored strands of her pink-and-green sidecut hair brushed her shoulder as she leaned past Valerie and popped the fridge open.
“After a night like that,” she muttered, grabbing two bottles, “I’m not even pretending water was the plan.”
Valerie gave a tired half-smirk as Judy handed her a beer.
“Preem thinking.”
They moved into the living room together, dropping onto the L-shaped couch with the kind of exhausted relief that only came after a job was finally finished. Valerie leaned back into the cushions, boots still on, while Judy stretched her legs out along the coffee table.
The neon glow from outside Kabuki filtered through the window beside them, reflecting faintly across Judy’s rose tattoos and the chrome line of the neural implant along the shaved side of her head.
Valerie tipped her bottle toward Judy.
“To the Mox girls making it home.”
Judy clinked her bottle lightly against Valerie’s.
“And to Tyger Claws having a really bad night.”
Across the apartment, Sera and Sandra had already slipped down the short hallway toward their room.
Their bedroom door closed quietly behind them.
Sera turned toward Sandra almost immediately, her long red hair falling forward slightly as her emerald eyes narrowed.
“You’ve been pulling your shoulder all night, Moonlight.”
Sandra rolled it once like she had back in the warehouse, though the motion was slower now.
“I’m fine, Firebird.”
Sera stepped closer anyway.
“Hold still.”
She slid Sandra’s combat jacket off her shoulders and tossed it onto the armchair by the window overlooking the drainage canal and the distant glow of City Center. The bruise from the bullet impact had already begun darkening along Sandra’s shoulder.
Sera traced her fingers carefully along the edge of it.
“You took a round tonight.”
Sandra shrugged slightly.
“Armor did its job.”
Sera lowered her fingers and looped her arms loosely around Sandra’s neck.
“I’m still glad you’re alright, babygirl.”
Sandra smirked.
“You worry too much, Princess.”
She leaned down and kissed Sera softly before they both broke into quiet laughter.
Sera leaned back slightly, rubbing the back of her neck.
“I could really use a shower right now,” she said. “And something to eat.”
Sandra nodded toward the living room where Valerie and Judy were stretched out on the couch.
“Pretty sure your moms already started on the beer.”
Sera groaned.
“Of course they did.”
Sandra laughed.
“C’mon. Let’s see if they left us anything.”
Out in the living room Valerie took another slow sip from her beer while Judy leaned her head back against the couch.
For the first time all night, the apartment felt calm again.
Valerie took another slow drink from her beer before leaning forward slightly from the couch.
The radio still sat on the coffee table, quiet since they had walked in. She reached down and flicked the switch, the speakers crackling softly for a second before the familiar rumble of 92.1 Dust and Vinyl filled the apartment with old-world guitar riffs.
“Much better,” Valerie muttered.
She leaned back into the couch cushions again, the neon glow from the Kabuki skyline filtering through the living room window. The light caught the strands of her long red hair, the freckles across her cheeks, and the faint edge of the lotus tattoo along her neck as she lifted the bottle to her lips.
Then she shifted closer.
Her arm slid around Judy’s shoulders, pulling her gently against her side.
Judy barely had time to react before Valerie leaned in and kissed her.
The kiss lingered for a quiet moment—slow, warm, the kind that came after surviving another Night City job.
Judy smiled when they broke apart, the strands of her pink-and-green sidecut hair brushing Valerie’s shoulder as she settled comfortably against her.
“Not complaining,” she said softly.
A few minutes later the bedroom door opened again.
Sera and Sandra stepped back into the main room, the soft glow of the living room lights catching the freckles across Sera’s nose and the loose strands of her long red hair as she headed straight toward the kitchenette.
Sandra followed behind her, stretching her shoulder once as she leaned against the counter.
Sera opened the fridge and stared inside.
“…Seriously?”
Valerie raised an eyebrow from the couch.
“What?”
Sera turned slightly, still staring at the contents.
“All we’ve got is leftover XL burritos.”
Judy smirked faintly.
“There should be a bag of chips in the cabinet too.”
Sera groaned.
“Living the dream.”
She grabbed a plate from the counter, pulled two foil-wrapped burritos from the fridge, and unwrapped them before dropping them onto the plate.
The microwave door popped open.
A second later it hummed to life.
Sandra reached into the fridge beside her and grabbed a cold can of Nicola. The tab snapped open with a sharp hiss before she took a quick drink.
Then she passed it to Sera.
Sera took it without looking, taking a long swig before setting it beside the microwave.
When the timer beeped a moment later, she pulled the plate out carefully and carried it to the small counter where they usually ate.
The two of them settled onto the stools, splitting the burritos while the low hum of the radio filled the apartment.
Across the room Valerie leaned back into the couch again, Judy resting comfortably against her shoulder as the music from Dust and Vinyl rolled through the speakers.
For the first time since the warehouse, the night felt calm.
Sera sat sideways on the stool at the counter, one foot hooked loosely around the base as she took a large bite of the reheated burrito.
The microwave warmth had barely made it through the middle, but after the night they’d had she wasn’t about to complain.
She chewed for a moment before glancing toward the living room.
Valerie and Judy were still stretched out on the L-shaped couch, the music from 92.1 Dust and Vinyl humming softly through the apartment. The glow from the Kabuki skyline filtered through the window beside them, painting faint reflections across Judy’s rose tattoos while Valerie’s long red hair caught the edge of the light.
Sera swallowed.
“Mom,” she said, looking toward Valerie. “One of these days Jotaro’s gonna slip up.”
Her emerald eyes hardened slightly.
“And I’m gonna pop that weasel.”
Valerie didn’t answer right away.
She took a slow drink from her beer, then rested the bottle on the arm of the couch as her freckled face turned toward Sera. The lotus tattoo along her neck shifted slightly as she leaned back.
“Trust me, Starshine,” she said calmly. “The moment that contract hits…”
Her fingers tapped lightly against the bottle.
“…nothing’s stopping us from taking it.”
At the counter Sandra nudged her knee gently against Sera’s.
Sera glanced down at her just as Sandra gave her an easy smile.
“Preem job handling the backup tonight.”
Sera shrugged a little, brushing a loose strand of red hair behind her ear as she leaned forward over the counter again.
“They didn’t know what hit ’em.”
Across the room Judy shifted slightly where she was leaning against Valerie. Her hand moved lazily to Valerie’s wrist, her fingers tracing along the inside of it while the colored strands of her pink-and-green hair fell against Valerie’s shoulder.
She watched Sera and Sandra for a moment.
A small smile tugged at her mouth.
“They remind me of us when we first started out,” she said quietly.
Valerie glanced down at her.
Then back toward the two of them at the counter.
Her expression softened just a little.
“Yeah,” she murmured.
“Something like that.”
Later that night the apartment had finally settled into the quiet rhythm of home.
The tension from the job had washed away under hot showers, the last of the warehouse grime disappearing down the drain along with the smell of smoke and gunpowder. Now the Starfall crew had traded their combat gear for comfortable sleep clothes, their weapons resting on the mounted racks along the walls where they always stored them when they were home.
The living room lights were dimmed, the radio long since switched off, leaving only the soft hum of Night City drifting through the window from the streets of Kabuki outside.
Across the hall, Valerie and Judy’s bedroom was lit by the warm glow of a bedside lamp.
Valerie lay back against the pillows, the covers pulled up around her waist while Judy rested comfortably against her chest. The strands of Valerie’s long red hair spilled loosely across the pillow, the freckles across her face faint in the low light while the lotus tattoo along the side of her neck was half-hidden against the blankets.
One arm rested loosely around Judy while the other held open the small paperback she’d been reading.
Judy had shifted sideways against her, her head resting just beneath Valerie’s shoulder while she listened. The colored strands of her pink-and-green hair were loose now, the shaved side of her head visible where it brushed against Valerie’s chest, the chrome line of her neural implant faintly catching the lamp light.
Valerie’s voice moved quietly through the room as she read from the romance novel in her hands.
“…and he swore the stars themselves would fall before he let her face the night alone.”
Judy snorted softly.
“Wow,” she murmured. “Guy’s dramatic.”
Valerie glanced down at her with a faint smirk.
“You’re the one who said keep reading.”
Judy shifted slightly, settling more comfortably against her.
“Still better than the last one you picked.”
Valerie chuckled quietly and continued reading, her voice low and steady as the soft glow of the lamp filled the room.
Across the apartment, Sera and Sandra’s bedroom was lit by the faint blue glow of two holotablets.
The window beside their bed looked out toward the drainage canal and distant City Center skyline, neon reflections rippling faintly across the glass.
Sera lay on her back with one arm tucked behind her head, her long red hair spread loosely across the pillow while the phoenix necklace rested against her collarbone. The quiet rise and fall of her breathing had already begun to slow as the exhaustion from the mission finally started to settle in.
A faint glow from her holotablet lit her freckled face as she worked the stylus across the screen, quick sketch lines forming the outline of the warehouse from earlier in the night.
Beside her, Sandra sat propped slightly against the headboard.
Her long brown hair had fallen loose from its earlier ponytail, resting over one shoulder while the soft light of her own holotablet illuminated the freckles across her nose. Lines of text slowly filled the page as she wrote, the stylus tapping softly every few seconds while she searched for the next sentence.
After a moment Sandra glanced over toward Sera, watching the way the sketch was beginning to take shape.
A small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
Then she returned to her writing, the quiet scratch of stylus against screen continuing as the apartment slowly drifted into the calm of the night.