## Chapter 1 — Dino Doesn't Understand The message arrived at 14:37. Not encrypted. Not urgent. Not marked priority. Just Dino. --- **Need a favor.** **Not a merc thing.** **Rogue says it's your kind of problem.** **Personally I think Rogue has finally lost her mind.** **Come explain why I'm wrong.** --- Ace read it once. Then again. Then handed the agent to Mai. Mai read it. Raised one eyebrow. "Interesting." "That's one word." "It is sufficient." Ace looked toward Shammy. Shammy was stretched across the safehouse couch with a book balanced on her chest and one long leg hanging over the armrest. Without looking up she said: "If Rogue is involved, someone is confused." Ace nodded. "That was my conclusion." Shammy turned a page. "Mine too." --- Forty minutes later they were sitting in one of Dino Dinovic's preferred establishments. Not because it was secure. Not because it was discreet. Not because it was practical. Because Dino liked it. Which, in Night City, was usually enough reason. --- The place occupied the upper floor of a renovated warehouse overlooking a strip of neon and traffic. Music low. Lighting warm. Drinks expensive. The kind of place where people wanted to look successful without attracting attention from anyone actually dangerous. --- Dino was waiting at his usual table. Half-finished drink. Open datapad. Expression somewhere between irritation and surrender. --- "You look happy," Ace said. Dino pointed at her. "See?" He looked at Mai. "That." Then at Shammy. "That too." Then back at Ace. "That's exactly why Rogue said to call you." --- Mai sat. "What is?" Dino leaned back. "The fact that I have no idea what my own client wants." --- Ace immediately became interested. Because Dino hated not understanding things. --- "What kind of client?" "Media." "Journalist?" "Broadcaster." "Influencer?" Dino visibly suffered. "Please never use that word again." --- Shammy smiled faintly. Ace almost did. Almost. --- Dino slid the datapad across the table. "Name's Victor Hale." Mai glanced at the screen. Recognition flickered. Not strong. But present. --- Victor Hale. Braindance host. Podcast personality. Conspiracy researcher. Professional pain in the ass. A man whose entire career consisted of asking questions that made powerful people uncomfortable. --- "Popular," Mai said. "Unfortunately." "He annoys corps." "He annoys everyone." --- Dino took a drink. Then another. --- "Three months ago this would've been easy." Ace folded her arms. "And now?" --- Dino tapped the datapad. A new image appeared. Then another. Then another. --- Interviews. Parties. Talk shows. Corporate events. Private functions. Charity galas. --- Always the same man. Always the same smile. Always the same silver amulet hanging around his neck. --- "He's become impossible." Mai frowned. "Define impossible." --- Dino sighed. The sigh of a man who had spent several days trying to explain something absurd. --- "He knows things." "Everyone knows things." "He knows things he shouldn't." "Such as?" --- Dino pointed. --- "Last month he accurately described an Arasaka executive's childhood home." "Public records." "No." --- Tap. --- "He identified a dead Militech black project from thirty years ago." Mai paused. --- Tap. --- "He corrected a university professor during a live broadcast." "So?" --- Tap. --- "The professor was correct." --- Silence. --- "He corrected him anyway." Dino rubbed his face. "And then six days later new evidence appeared proving the professor wrong." --- Ace glanced at Mai. Mai was already thinking. --- Good. Because Ace wasn't. Not yet. --- Dino continued. --- "I thought insider information." "No." "I thought netrunner support." "No." "I thought corpo leak." "No." --- Another drink. --- "I thought cyberpsychosis." --- Shammy blinked. --- Dino spread both hands. --- "I ran out of ideas." --- Mai looked back at the screen. Victor Hale. Smiling. Confident. Relaxed. Wearing the same silver amulet. --- Ace watched her. --- Mai had gone still. Not analytical still. Not calculating still. --- Still. --- That got Ace's attention immediately. --- "What?" Mai didn't answer. --- Dino noticed it too. --- "What?" --- Mai zoomed the image. --- Closer. --- The amulet filled the screen. Old silver. Scratched. Worn. Familiar. --- Mai zoomed again. --- And again. --- And again. --- The room became very quiet. --- Ace leaned slightly forward. --- "Mai." --- Mai didn't respond. --- Shammy closed her book. --- That was when Ace knew something was wrong. --- Because Shammy had noticed it too. --- Finally Mai spoke. Very quietly. --- "Where did you get this image?" --- Dino frowned. --- "Public event. Why?" --- Mai looked at him. Then at Ace. Then back at the screen. --- For the first time since entering the bar, genuine uncertainty crossed her face. --- "Because," she said carefully, "if this image is authentic..." --- She stopped. --- Ace felt her stomach tighten. --- "...then we may have a problem." --- Dino stared. --- "What kind of problem?" --- Mai zoomed the image one final step. --- The silver amulet filled the entire display. --- And for the first time Ace saw it clearly. --- Old silver. Red stone. Intricate chain. --- Recognition hit instantly. --- "Oh." --- Shammy looked from one to the other. --- Neither of them looked happy. --- "Someone," Mai said quietly, "is wearing SCP-963." --- If it really was SCP-963. --- And if it really was— --- No. --- Mai stopped the thought before it finished. --- One problem at a time. --- Tomorrow they would get answers. --- Or confirmation that everything had gone completely insane. --- With Night City, either option remained plausible. --- Across town, high above the city lights, Victor Hale stood alone on a penthouse balcony. A drink rested in one hand. The city stretched beneath him. --- Beautiful. Violent. Ridiculous. --- He smiled. --- Because someone had finally taken the bait. --- And because for the first time in months... someone else had recognized the necklace. --- "Well," he murmured to the night. --- "This should be interesting." --- His smile widened. --- "Oh, this is definitely going to be interesting." --- Perfect. Nyt tullaan siihen kohtaan, jossa tarina joko toimii tai ei toimi. Koska Brightin täytyy tuntua Brightilta **ensimmäisestä lauseesta lähtien**, mutta samalla hän on ollut kuukausia Victor Hale. Eli ei "Hei olen Jack Bright." Vaan: > Victor Hale, jossa jokin on vähän vinossa. Ja vasta vähitellen lukija huomaa miksi. --- ## Chapter 3 — The Interview The penthouse occupied the upper levels of a tower that was far too expensive for its own structural integrity. Night City liked buildings that looked rich more than buildings that lasted. This one qualified. --- The elevator ride took nearly a minute. Long enough for silence. Long enough for anticipation. Long enough for Ace to notice Mai reviewing the image again. --- "You've looked at it twenty-three times." --- Mai didn't look up. --- "Twenty-four." --- Ace sighed. --- "That isn't helping." --- "It might." --- "It isn't." --- Shammy stood beside the window. Watching the city climb past. --- "You're both nervous." --- Neither answered. --- Which was answer enough. --- The elevator opened. --- Music. Conversation. Glass. Laughter. Money. --- The usual Night City cocktail. --- The penthouse itself looked less like a residence and more like someone had attempted to purchase sophistication wholesale. Floor-to-ceiling windows. Open bar. Private braindance booths. Live musicians. Corporate executives pretending not to be corporate executives. --- Nobody paid much attention to the three newcomers. --- Which was good. --- Ace preferred it that way. --- A hostess approached. --- "Mr. Hale is expecting you." --- That got everyone's attention. --- Mai stopped walking. --- "He knows we're here?" --- The hostess smiled. --- "He specifically requested that you be brought to him immediately." --- That was not reassuring. --- Not even slightly. --- The woman guided them through the crowd. Past politicians. Past corpos. Past celebrities. Past people important enough to believe they mattered. --- Until they reached the balcony. --- And there he was. --- Victor Hale. --- Tall. Well dressed. Silver at the temples. Drink in one hand. The silver amulet resting openly against a black shirt. --- No attempt to hide it. --- No attempt to disguise it. --- That alone bothered Mai. --- Because anyone carrying the genuine article should have been hiding it. --- Victor turned. --- Saw them. --- And smiled. --- Not a media smile. Not a public smile. Not a practiced smile. --- A familiar smile. --- "Oh thank God." --- Silence. --- Victor looked genuinely relieved. --- "You have absolutely no idea how difficult it has been to find someone who understands why this is a problem." --- Ace stopped walking. --- Mai stopped walking. --- Shammy stopped walking. --- Victor took a sip from his drink. --- Then sighed. --- "Actually, no." --- He looked at Ace. --- "You probably do." --- Ace stared. --- "You know who we are." --- Victor barked a short laugh. --- "Of course I do." --- The answer came too quickly. Too naturally. Too confidently. --- And suddenly every remaining doubt disappeared. --- Mai stepped forward. --- "Dr. Bright." --- Victor closed his eyes. --- Just for a second. --- Then opened them again. --- "Jack is fine." --- The city seemed to vanish. --- The music. The crowd. The penthouse. The conversation. --- All of it became background noise. --- Because sitting three meters away was a man who should not have existed. --- And yet somehow did. --- Shammy spoke first. --- "You look disappointed." --- That earned a genuine laugh. --- "Oh, I am." --- He lifted the amulet slightly. --- "You know how many people have looked at this thing?" --- "Thousands." --- "Tens of thousands." --- He nodded. --- "Do you know how many recognized it?" --- Mai already knew the answer. --- But she asked anyway. --- "How many?" --- Jack pointed directly at her. --- "One." --- Then at Ace. --- "Two." --- Then at Shammy. --- "Three by association." --- He took another drink. --- "And that is why tonight is already better than most of the last six months." --- Ace folded her arms. --- "You seem surprisingly calm." --- Jack stared at her. --- Then looked around the penthouse. --- Then back at Ace. --- "Have you met this city?" --- "...yes." --- "Then you understand." --- He gestured vaguely toward the crowd. --- "I spent two weeks trying to determine whether Night City was anomalous." --- A pause. --- "It isn't." --- Another pause. --- "It's somehow worse." --- For the first time all evening, Ace smiled. --- Only slightly. --- Jack noticed immediately. --- "See?" --- He pointed at her. --- "That's exactly the reaction I was hoping for." --- Mai interrupted before either of them could continue. --- "How did you get here?" --- The question landed differently. --- Jack's smile faded. --- Not completely. --- Just enough. --- Because beneath all the sarcasm. Beneath all the jokes. Beneath all the Bright. --- There was something else. --- Fatigue. --- Old fatigue. --- The kind that accumulates over years. --- Or decades. --- Or longer. --- "I don't know." --- Nobody expected that answer. --- Jack noticed. --- "Believe me." --- He glanced toward the city. --- "I really wish I did." --- And for the first time since arriving... the conversation became serious. --- Meanwhile, fifty floors below. Inside a parked vehicle. A man lowered a pair of binoculars. --- "Confirmed." --- His partner looked up. --- "You sure?" --- The man nodded. --- "Target is wearing it." --- The second man smiled. --- Not pleasantly. --- "Good." --- He reached for his agent. --- "Call the buyer." --- Above them, in the penthouse. Nobody noticed. Yet. --- ## Chapter 4 — Dr. Bright Has Opinions For a few moments nobody spoke. The city glittered beyond the balcony glass. Traffic crawled through distant streets like illuminated veins. Music drifted from inside the penthouse. None of it felt particularly real anymore. Jack Bright leaned against the railing and looked out over Night City. "Amazing place," he said. Ace folded her arms. "You said that like an insult." "It was." "Fair." Jack pointed at her. "See? That's healthy." Mai pinched the bridge of her nose. "Dr. Bright." "Jack." "Jack." "Much better." Mai continued anyway. "How did SCP-963 arrive in Night City?" Jack immediately answered. "I have absolutely no idea." Nobody moved. Nobody blinked. Nobody believed him. Jack sighed. "That's the reaction I was expecting." "You expect people not to believe you?" Shammy asked. "I've met me." That was unfortunately a reasonable answer. Jack took another drink. "Last thing I remember clearly was a host transfer." Mai's eyes narrowed. "Where?" "I don't know." "That's not possible." Jack laughed. "Oh, it absolutely is." The laugh vanished almost immediately. "I remember the transfer." A pause. "I remember waking up." Another pause. "I remember discovering I was suddenly a moderately famous media personality in the most insane city I've ever visited." Ace tilted her head. "You've visited a lot of insane places." "Exactly." Jack pointed toward the skyline. "Which should tell you something." For the first time Shammy smiled. Very slightly. Jack noticed. "See? She gets it." Mai ignored all of them. "How long?" "Approximately six months." That matched the timeline. Too neatly. Mai disliked that. Jack noticed that too. "You're thinking." "I am." "Good. I ran out of useful thoughts around month three." Ace looked toward the necklace. The silver amulet rested against the dark fabric of Jack's shirt. Ordinary. Unremarkable. Impossible. "You've worn it publicly the entire time." Jack nodded. "Correct." "Why?" Jack stared at her. Then burst out laughing. Actually laughing. Hard enough that several nearby guests glanced over. "You think I wanted to?" Ace did not respond. Jack spread both hands. "The first week I hid it." He held up one finger. "Someone stole my jacket." A second finger. "I hid it in a safe." Third finger. "The safe disappeared." Fourth. "I wore it under clothing." Fifth. "I woke up with it outside the clothing." Silence. Jack shrugged. "I eventually accepted the hint." Shammy blinked. "The necklace did that?" "I have spent decades refusing to make assumptions about SCP objects." A pause. "That policy has significantly increased my life expectancy." Ace looked at Mai. Mai looked back. Neither liked that answer. Not because it sounded impossible. Because it sounded believable. Jack finished his drink. Then his expression changed. Not much. Just enough. The humor remained. But something colder appeared beneath it. "You weren't sent here by accident, were you?" Mai asked. Jack froze. Only for a fraction of a second. But she saw it. Ace saw Mai see it. Jack slowly set the empty glass down. "Interesting question." "You avoided answering." "Also true." The city hummed below. Inside the penthouse someone started laughing too loudly. Nobody on the balcony cared. Finally Jack exhaled. "Let's say I've considered that possibility." "Meaning?" "Meaning somebody might have wanted SCP-963 somewhere." Mai's voice remained calm. "Night City." "Maybe." "Why?" Jack smiled. A tired smile. "That is the question, isn't it?" Before anyone could continue, a familiar instinct tugged at Ace. Not the Shadow Aura. Not danger exactly. Something adjacent. The feeling that a room had just become slightly less safe than it was thirty seconds ago. She glanced toward the penthouse interior. People. Music. Conversation. Nothing unusual. And yet— Shammy looked in the same direction. At exactly the same time. Jack noticed both reactions immediately. His expression darkened. "Ah." Mai looked up. "What?" Jack glanced toward the crowd. Then toward the elevators. Then toward the emergency exits. A professional scan. Fast. Automatic. Practiced. And very familiar. "Oh, that's unfortunate." Ace's hand moved slightly closer to her side. "What is?" Jack looked directly at her. The humor was gone now. Completely. "For the first time tonight?" He nodded toward the crowded penthouse. "I think somebody else figured out what I'm wearing." And somewhere deep in the building below, an elevator began moving upward. Fast. Too fast. Toward the penthouse. Toward Victor Hale. Toward SCP-963. And toward trouble. --- ## Chapter 5 — Somebody Is Coming The elevator continued climbing. Nobody on the balcony could hear it. Nobody except Jack. Or rather— Nobody except the man who had spent decades learning when bad things were about to happen. --- Ace noticed the change immediately. Not because she knew Jack Bright. Because she knew predators. And for the first time since they arrived, Victor Hale was no longer acting like a talk-show host. --- He was scanning exits. Distances. Lines of sight. People. --- That alone was enough. --- "How bad?" Ace asked. --- Jack considered it. --- Then shrugged. --- "Unknown." --- "I hate that answer." --- "So do I." --- Mai was already moving. Agent in hand. Scanning local feeds. Building systems. Public security. Private security. Elevator traffic. --- Nothing. --- That bothered her. --- Because there should have been something. --- The penthouse occupied almost three entire floors. Private security alone should have produced a forest of data. --- Instead... --- Nothing unusual. --- Everything looked normal. --- Mai frowned. --- "I don't like this." --- Jack laughed. --- "Congratulations." --- "What?" --- "Now you understand how I've felt for six months." --- That wasn't reassuring. --- Not even slightly. --- Inside the penthouse the party continued. --- Someone was arguing about politics. Someone else was pretending to understand art. A corpo executive was attempting to flirt. Badly. --- Night City remained Night City. --- Which somehow made everything worse. --- Ace glanced toward the crowd. --- "What exactly do you think they're after?" --- Jack didn't answer immediately. --- That answer worried her too. --- Finally he said: --- "Not me." --- Mai looked up. --- "The amulet." --- "Probably." --- Shammy folded her arms. --- "You sound very certain." --- Jack barked a short laugh. --- "After enough host transfers, you stop confusing the two." --- The humor remained. --- But something dark sat underneath it. --- Something old. --- Ace noticed it. --- For a brief moment she wasn't looking at a media personality. --- Or even Jack Bright. --- She was looking at someone who had buried more lives than most people ever lived. --- The realization was uncomfortable. --- Very uncomfortable. --- Jack noticed that too. --- His smile softened slightly. --- "Don't do that." --- Ace blinked. --- "Do what?" --- "Feel sorry for me." --- "Wasn't planning to." --- "Good." --- That earned the first genuine grin of the evening. --- "Because I'd hate to ruin a perfectly good first impression." --- Mai interrupted. --- "The elevator." --- Everybody looked at her. --- She was staring at a maintenance overlay. --- Tiny. Hidden. Almost invisible. --- And moving. --- Upward. --- Fast. --- Too fast. --- "Service shaft." --- Jack sighed. --- "Of course." --- "What?" --- "Professionals." --- The answer landed badly. --- Because professionals meant planning. Planning meant intent. Intent meant this wasn't random. --- Shammy glanced toward the doors. --- "How many?" --- Mai zoomed the feed. --- Three heat signatures. --- Then four. --- Then— --- The feed vanished. --- Gone. --- Simply gone. --- Mai stared. --- "That's impossible." --- Jack looked completely unsurprised. --- "Night City?" --- "...Night City." --- "Exactly." --- For some reason that exchange irritated her. --- A lot. --- Inside the penthouse the music changed. --- The crowd barely noticed. --- A server carried drinks through the room. A politician laughed too loudly. Someone started recording content for their followers. --- Nobody knew anything was wrong. --- Yet. --- Then Ace's comm clicked. --- A private channel. --- Unknown source. --- She opened it immediately. --- Static. --- Then a familiar voice. --- Dino. --- "You people better still be alive." --- Ace frowned. --- "Why?" --- A pause. --- Then: --- "Because somebody just paid a very stupid amount of money asking where Victor Hale would be tonight." --- The entire balcony went silent. --- Dino continued. --- "I thought you'd want to know." --- Jack closed his eyes. --- Just for a second. --- "Wonderful." --- Dino heard him. --- Long pause. --- Then: --- "...who the hell was that?" --- Nobody answered. --- "Right." --- Another pause. --- "I'm hanging up before this becomes my problem." --- The call ended. --- Jack nodded approvingly. --- "Smart man." --- Then every light in the penthouse flickered. --- Once. --- Twice. --- Three times. --- The music died. --- The room froze. --- And somewhere inside the building— --- Something exploded. --- Not a massive detonation. Not a bomb. --- A sharp metallic crack. --- Followed by screaming. --- Jack sighed. --- Deeply. --- Almost professionally. --- "Well." --- Ace drew one katana halfway from its sheath. --- Jack looked toward the sound. --- Toward the crowd. --- Toward the panic that was about to begin. --- And muttered: --- "There goes the evening." --- ## Chapter 6 — Panic Is Expensive The scream arrived half a second after the metallic crack. Then another. Then three more. --- Panic spread faster than fire. Faster than gunfire. Faster than information. --- One moment the penthouse contained wealthy people drinking expensive alcohol. The next it contained wealthy people attempting to trample each other. --- Jack immediately groaned. --- "Oh, come on." --- Ace looked at him. --- "What?" --- Jack pointed toward the crowd. --- "The attackers haven't even arrived yet." --- Another scream. --- A politician dove behind a couch. A media celebrity dropped her drink. A corpo executive attempted to push two security guards out of his way. --- Jack sighed. --- "See?" --- A heavy impact echoed somewhere deeper inside the building. --- Metal. Concrete. Something structural. --- Not gunfire. --- Mai's agent lit up. --- Finally. --- Security feeds. --- For exactly two seconds. --- Long enough. --- Three armored figures. --- Black equipment. No gang colors. No corporate markings. No visible identifiers. --- Professional. --- Then the feed vanished again. --- Jamers. Dedicated ones. --- "Three confirmed." --- "Only three?" Ace asked. --- Mai frowned. --- "That's what worries me." --- Jack immediately nodded. --- "Exactly." --- The agreement bothered Ace. --- Because it meant both of them had reached the same conclusion. --- Three people don't attack a penthouse full of private security. --- Not unless they're expecting everybody else to be a distraction. --- And right on cue— --- The fire alarms activated. --- Every alarm in the building. --- At once. --- The music died. Emergency lighting activated. Sprinklers threatened to engage. --- Chaos exploded. --- "Yep." --- Jack rubbed his forehead. --- "There it is." --- Shammy looked toward the main hall. --- The pressure in the room was changing. --- Not atmospheric. Human. --- Fear. Confusion. Panic. --- Hundreds of tiny decisions colliding at once. --- The crowd began moving. --- That was the real danger. --- Not bullets. --- Movement. --- A stampede in a luxury penthouse could kill more people than a firefight. --- Ace noticed it immediately. --- "Shammy." --- Already moving. --- The tall woman stepped into the flow of people. --- Not stopping them. Guiding them. --- Tiny corrections. Tiny nudges. --- A shoulder redirected. A path opened. A bottleneck dissolved. --- Nobody noticed. --- Which meant it was working. --- Meanwhile Mai focused on the security overlays. --- Something bothered her. --- Something very specific. --- "Jack." --- "Hm?" --- "The attackers aren't coming here." --- The sentence froze everyone. --- Even Jack. --- "What?" --- Mai enlarged the building schematic. --- Three hostile markers. --- All moving. --- All avoiding the penthouse. --- All avoiding Victor Hale. --- All avoiding obvious routes. --- They were heading elsewhere. --- Down. --- Not up. --- Jack stared. --- Then swore. --- A genuine one. --- "Oh." --- Ace looked at him. --- That reaction worried her. --- "What?" --- Jack pointed at the necklace. --- "They don't want me." --- Silence. --- Then: --- "They want the transfer." --- The realization hit instantly. --- The attackers weren't hunting Victor Hale. --- They were hunting SCP-963. --- Which meant— --- They didn't care whether the host survived. --- They only cared where the necklace ended up afterward. --- "Oh, that's bad." --- For the first time that evening, Jack looked genuinely alarmed. --- Very alarmed. --- Mai reached the same conclusion half a second later. --- "They're creating chaos." --- Jack nodded. --- "Exactly." --- Ace followed the logic. --- Crowd. Confusion. Evacuation. Multiple exits. Poor visibility. --- If Victor Hale died during the panic... --- Nobody would immediately know where 963 went. --- And somebody prepared for exactly that situation could disappear into Night City before anyone understood what happened. --- A simple plan. --- A horrifying plan. --- An intelligent plan. --- Which meant the people behind it had done their homework. --- Jack's expression darkened. --- "I really hate competent people." --- Another impact echoed through the building. Closer this time. --- Too close. --- A security guard ran into the penthouse. --- Bleeding. Panicked. Out of breath. --- "Elevator access compromised!" --- Nobody responded. --- Because everyone already knew. --- "The attackers—" --- The man stopped. --- Staring. --- At Jack's necklace. --- Only for a moment. --- But Mai saw it. --- Ace saw it. --- Jack saw it. --- The guard realized his mistake instantly. --- Far too late. --- Jack slowly sighed. --- "Oh." --- The guard bolted. --- Running. --- Straight toward the emergency stairwell. --- Ace moved first. --- The katana cleared its sheath in a single smooth motion. --- Not attacking. --- Intercepting. --- The man froze. --- Because suddenly there was an extremely small, extremely dangerous woman standing directly in front of him. --- The crowd around them kept moving. Kept screaming. Kept panicking. --- The guard looked left. Looked right. Looked for an escape. --- Found none. --- Jack stared at him. --- Then laughed. --- A short. Tired. Almost disappointed laugh. --- "Well." --- The smile vanished. --- "That answers one question." --- The guard's hand drifted slowly toward his jacket. --- Ace's eyes narrowed. --- Mai already knew what was coming. --- Shammy turned back toward them. --- And somewhere deep below the building— --- Something exploded for real this time. --- 🍻 Nyt lyödään kaasua, mutta pidetään yksi asia mielessä: Tämä ei ole Ace vastaan hyökkääjät. Tämä on Triad vastaan suunnitelma. Ja se tekee siitä paljon kiinnostavamman. --- ## Chapter 7 — The Transfer Window The second explosion hit hard enough to shake the entire floor. Glass rattled. Lights flickered. Several guests screamed again. --- This time for a good reason. --- The disguised security guard moved. Fast. Too fast for a civilian. Too trained for a civilian. --- His hand disappeared inside the jacket. --- Ace was already moving. --- The pistol never cleared leather. --- Her katana slammed into his wrist. Not cutting. Breaking. --- A sharp crack echoed above the chaos. --- The weapon hit the floor. --- The guard screamed. --- Ace ignored him. --- Because the scream wasn't important. --- The second gun was. --- The one hidden behind his back. --- The blade flashed. Metal spun away. --- Problem solved. --- The crowd barely noticed. --- Panic had become self-sustaining. --- Jack watched the entire exchange. --- Then sighed. --- "You know, I keep forgetting how terrifying you are." --- Ace pointed the katana at the guard. --- "Later." --- "Fair." --- Meanwhile Mai was kneeling beside the dropped pistol. --- One glance. One second. --- Then: --- "Custom ammunition." --- Jack immediately stopped smiling. --- "How custom?" --- Mai held up a round. --- "Extremely." --- The room suddenly felt colder. --- Jack took one look. --- Then another. --- And for the first time since the penthouse meeting began... he genuinely looked angry. --- "Oh." --- Not fear. Not concern. --- Anger. --- "That explains everything." --- Ace looked over. --- "What is it?" --- Jack's answer came immediately. --- "Hostile acquisition package." --- Nobody liked that phrase. --- Nobody. --- Mai turned the round in her fingers. --- "Meaning?" --- Jack stared at it. --- Then spoke quietly. --- "Those aren't trying to kill Victor Hale." --- Silence. --- "They're trying to kill me." --- The sentence landed badly. --- Because everyone understood what he meant. --- Not Victor. --- Not the body. --- Jack. --- The consciousness. --- The transfer. --- The moment between hosts. --- Someone had built a plan around that moment. --- Someone had studied SCP-963. --- Someone understood enough. --- Way too much. --- Another explosion echoed below. Closer. --- The building shook again. --- The crowd finally reached full panic. --- People were pushing. Running. Shouting. --- Security had lost control. --- Which meant the attackers had already won half the battle. --- Mai looked at the building map. --- The hostile markers had split. --- Three directions. --- Three teams. --- Not converging. --- Searching. --- "Hunting pattern." --- Jack nodded. --- "Exactly." --- "They don't know where the transfer will happen." --- "No." --- "They're planning to observe." --- "Yes." --- "They only need to be nearby." --- Jack pointed at her. --- "See?" --- Then he looked at Ace. --- "This is why I like her." --- Ace looked unimpressed. --- "Focus." --- "Also fair." --- A gunshot echoed somewhere below. --- Then several more. --- The party finally collapsed completely. --- Guests flooded toward exits. --- Emergency lighting painted everything red. --- Smoke drifted through the hallway. --- And suddenly Jack Bright stopped talking. --- Completely. --- His eyes focused on something behind Ace. --- Not fear. Not surprise. --- Recognition. --- "Oh no." --- Everybody turned. --- A woman stood near the emergency exit. --- Late twenties. Dark coat. Calm expression. --- Completely motionless while everyone else ran. --- That alone was wrong. --- She wasn't panicking. --- She wasn't hiding. --- She wasn't fleeing. --- She was watching. --- Specifically... --- Watching the necklace. --- Nothing else. --- Just the necklace. --- The woman slowly smiled. --- Jack's face went pale. --- Actually pale. --- Mai noticed immediately. --- "You know her." --- The answer came instantly. --- "No." --- A beat. --- "Which is significantly worse." --- The woman raised one hand. --- Almost friendly. --- Then turned. --- And walked into the crowd. --- Gone. --- Just like that. --- Ace immediately moved. --- Jack grabbed her shoulder. --- Hard. --- "Don't." --- Ace stopped. --- Not because of the grip. --- Because of the expression. --- She had never seen that look on him before. --- Not fear. --- Recognition of danger. --- Ancient danger. --- The kind that survives long enough to become a memory. --- "What was that?" --- Jack stared at the crowd. --- At the place where the woman had disappeared. --- Then slowly exhaled. --- "I don't know." --- A pause. --- "And that's the problem." --- The building shook again. Harder. --- This time part of the ceiling collapsed. --- Concrete dust filled the air. --- Alarms screamed. --- And somewhere below them— --- Victor Hale's remaining time suddenly became very, very limited. --- 🍻 Nyt tehdään se asia, joka tekee tästä Night Cityn eikä Foundation-operaation. Kun katastrofi tulee, se ei tule siististi. Se tulee väärästä suunnasta. --- ## Chapter 8 — Night City Wins The third explosion wasn't an explosion. That was the first problem. --- Everyone treated it like one. --- The sound was right. The vibration was right. The panic was right. --- But the building didn't react correctly. --- Mai noticed first. --- "Wait." --- Nobody heard her. --- The penthouse was already collapsing into chaos. --- People were running. Security was shouting. Glass shattered somewhere deeper in the structure. --- Jack was staring at the crowd. Still looking for the woman. --- Ace was watching exits. --- Shammy was keeping people alive. --- And nobody noticed the floor. --- Until it moved. --- Not much. --- Just enough. --- A low metallic groan echoed through the tower. --- The kind that architects have nightmares about. --- Mai's head snapped upward. --- "Oh no." --- Ace looked at her. --- "What?" --- Mai's face had gone completely still. --- "They hit a support transfer node." --- Silence. --- Even Jack stopped moving. --- "What?" --- "The idiots aren't attacking the penthouse." --- Another groan echoed through the structure. Longer this time. --- Mai looked genuinely horrified. --- "They're attacking the building." --- And suddenly everything made sense. --- The fake security. The diversions. The chaos. The panic. --- Nobody needed a clean assassination. --- They needed a collapse. --- Because a collapsing tower doesn't produce evidence. --- It produces victims. --- Thousands of potential hosts. Thousands of witnesses. Thousands of opportunities. --- Jack's expression became murderous. --- "That's actually clever." --- Ace looked at him. --- "You sound impressed." --- "I hate that I'm impressed." --- The floor lurched. --- People screamed. --- This time everyone noticed. --- The tower shifted. --- Only a few centimeters. --- But skyscrapers aren't supposed to do that. --- Not where people can feel it. --- The panic became absolute. --- Then the first window failed. --- Glass exploded inward. --- Wind howled through the penthouse. --- Someone fell. --- Someone else started praying. --- A politician fainted. --- Jack pointed at the emergency stairwell. --- "Move." --- Nobody argued. --- Not even Ace. --- Because for the first time all evening, Bright sounded exactly like a senior researcher during containment failure. --- Everybody moved. --- The crowd surged. --- The tower groaned again. --- And then the first section gave way. --- Not the penthouse. --- A lower floor. --- The shockwave raced through the structure. --- The entire building shuddered. --- People fell. --- Lights died. --- Emergency systems activated. --- Everything turned red. --- For one second the entire world became red. --- And in that red light— --- Mai saw Victor Hale. --- Not Jack. Not Bright. Victor. --- Standing near the railing. --- Frozen. --- Looking downward. --- Looking at something. --- Or someone. --- The woman. --- The same woman. --- Standing calmly on a lower balcony. --- Watching. --- Waiting. --- Smiling. --- The tower shifted again. --- Victor Hale lost his footing. --- The railing failed. --- Everything happened at once. --- Ace moved. --- Too late. --- Shammy moved. --- Too late. --- Jack moved. --- Far too late. --- Victor Hale disappeared over the edge. --- Gone. --- The scream lasted only a second. --- Then vanished into the city below. --- Silence. --- Not literal silence. --- The alarms still screamed. The tower still groaned. People still ran. --- But for one impossible moment... everything stopped. --- Jack stared at the empty space. --- At the missing railing. --- At the darkness beyond. --- Nobody spoke. --- Nobody needed to. --- Because everybody understood exactly what had just happened. --- The host was dead. --- Very dead. --- And somewhere— --- Somewhere— --- SCP-963 had just transferred. --- The woman smiled. --- Then stepped backward. --- And disappeared. --- Mai ran to the railing. --- Nothing. --- No body. --- No necklace. --- No woman. --- No trace. --- Just Night City. --- Millions of lights. Millions of people. Millions of possible hosts. --- Jack closed his eyes. --- A long breath. --- Then another. --- Finally: --- "...well." --- Ace looked at him. --- That was all he had? --- "Well?" --- Jack opened one eye. --- A humorless smile appeared. --- "Could've been worse." --- Nobody laughed. --- Not even Jack. --- Because for the first time all evening... he wasn't joking. --- Somewhere in Night City... someone had just become the new host of SCP-963. --- And nobody knew who. --- 🍻 Ja koska tämä on Ace 89.2, epilogin tehtävä ei ole ratkaista mysteeriä. Sen tehtävä on jättää yksi erittäin ärsyttävä totuus pöydälle: **Triad tietää mitä tapahtui.** **Triad ei tiedä missä SCP-963 on nyt.** Ja nuo ovat kaksi täysin eri asiaa. --- ## Epilogue — Case Closed Three days later. --- The tower was still standing. Technically. --- Several floors remained condemned. Insurance companies were suing each other. Three corporations blamed a fourth corporation. The fourth corporation blamed terrorism. The terrorists blamed the media. The media blamed the corporations. --- Night City had returned to normal. --- Which was to say: nothing had been learned. --- Dino was waiting when the Triad arrived. --- Same table. Same drink. Same expression. --- Actually— --- No. --- The expression was worse. --- "You look tired." --- Dino pointed at Ace. --- "You." Then at Mai. --- "You." Then at Shammy. --- "You." --- A deep breath. --- "I have spent three days explaining to people that I don't know what happened." --- Ace sat down. --- "Sounds accurate." --- "It isn't." --- "It is." --- Dino glared. --- Ace remained entirely unimpressed. --- The glare lost. --- As usual. --- Mai placed a datapad on the table. --- Dino immediately leaned forward. --- Finally. --- Information. --- Facts. --- Reality. --- His favorite things. --- Mai folded her hands. --- "We completed the investigation." --- "Good." --- "We identified the cause." --- "Excellent." --- "We cannot recover the object." --- Dino froze. --- "...what object?" --- Mai looked at Ace. --- Ace looked at Mai. --- Shammy looked at both of them. --- Nobody volunteered. --- Finally Dino groaned. --- "I hate all of you." --- "That's fair." --- "It isn't." --- "It is." --- The conversation felt strangely familiar. --- Dino rubbed his face. --- "Just tell me the important part." --- Mai nodded. --- "Victor Hale is dead." --- "I noticed." --- "The attack was planned." --- "I noticed that too." --- "The attackers were not targeting Hale." --- Dino blinked. --- "...what?" --- "The target was an item in Hale's possession." --- Silence. --- Dino stared. --- Then stared harder. --- Then pointed toward the datapad. --- "The thing that caused all this..." --- "Yes." --- "...was jewelry." --- Mai considered it. --- Then nodded. --- "Technically." --- Dino slowly placed both hands on the table. --- Very carefully. --- Like a man resisting the urge to throw something. --- "Technically." --- "Yes." --- "I hate this city." --- Shammy smiled. --- "Everyone does." --- "Then why do we stay?" --- Nobody answered. --- Because nobody actually had a good answer. --- The silence lingered. --- Finally Dino sighed. --- "So." --- He pointed toward the datapad. --- "The item is gone." --- "Yes." --- "The attackers failed." --- "Mostly." --- "The victim died." --- "Yes." --- "And nobody knows where the item is." --- Mai nodded. --- "Correct." --- Dino stared at the ceiling. --- For several seconds. --- Then: --- "Rogue owes me a drink." --- That earned the first genuine laugh of the meeting. --- Even Ace almost smiled. --- Almost. --- Dino leaned back. --- "So that's it?" --- The question hung in the air. --- Mai looked toward the window. --- Night City stretched beyond the glass. --- Infinite lights. Infinite people. Infinite possibilities. --- Somewhere out there— --- A new host was walking. --- Breathing. --- Living. --- Completely unaware. --- Or perhaps fully aware. --- There was no way to know. --- Not anymore. --- Mai finally answered. --- "No." --- Dino frowned. --- "No?" --- Mai shook her head. --- "No." --- Then she looked directly at him. --- "The investigation is complete." --- A pause. --- "The situation is not." --- Dino immediately regretted asking. --- He could feel it. --- Like physical pain. --- "Nope." --- He stood. --- Finished his drink. --- Grabbed his coat. --- And pointed toward the door. --- "No." --- "What?" Shammy asked. --- "I am choosing happiness." --- Nobody understood. --- Dino continued walking. --- "I do not want additional information." --- Ace nodded. --- "Reasonable." --- "I do not want context." --- "Also reasonable." --- "I do not want follow-up questions." --- "Very reasonable." --- Dino reached the exit. --- Stopped. --- Turned once. --- And looked at the Triad. --- "You people attract the weirdest problems." --- Ace answered immediately. --- "They usually start weird before they reach us." --- Dino pointed at her. --- "That's exactly the sort of thing a weird-problem person would say." --- Then he left. --- The door closed. --- Silence returned. --- Outside, Night City glowed beneath the evening sky. --- Ace looked toward the horizon. --- "So." --- Mai already knew the question. --- "Yes." --- "You think it's still here." --- "Statistically?" --- "Mai." --- A tiny sigh. --- "Yes." --- Shammy folded her arms. --- "Somewhere in the city." --- Mai nodded. --- "Probably." --- Ace stared out at the millions of lights. --- Somewhere among them. --- One necklace. --- One host. --- One impossible problem. --- Still moving. --- Still hidden. --- Still waiting. --- After a while Ace stood. --- "Not our problem." --- Mai looked at her. --- Shammy looked at her. --- Both immediately understood. --- Because Ace wasn't trying to convince them. --- She was trying to convince herself. --- And somewhere far across Night City... someone smiled. --- A familiar smile. --- As a silver amulet rested quietly against their chest.