Chapter Summaries

Su Ming extracted the underground server room’s intelligence from a dead guard’s cybernetic eyes and prepared to eliminate the remaining security personnel before reaching Alt. He left Johnny and Rogue in the corridor, warning Johnny not to jeopardize his plans when they met Alt.

• Su Ming used Strangle to retrieve data from the dead guard’s brain implant and learned the layout and security details of the underground server room.
• Su Ming discovered the dead guard had been Goro Takemura’s classmate and a devoted Arasaka loyalist.
• Su Ming planned to kill the guards in the security room and break room, then reach the server room with Songbird’s remote assistance and find Alt.
• Su Ming told Johnny and Rogue to wait in the corridor while he went to eliminate the other security guards.
• Su Ming gave Johnny liquor and warned him not to ruin the plan when they spoke with Alt.

Deathstroke led Johnny, Rogue, and Ciri through Arasaka’s cleared underground facility to the fortified server room door. Songbird began opening it, bringing them to the threshold of Arasaka’s ultimate secret.

• Johnny asked Ciri how many people Deathstroke had killed, but she urged him to prepare for what was ahead.
• Johnny and Rogue flirted and argued about Alt while Ciri watched them.
• Deathstroke returned and said he had eliminated everyone else in the underground facility and disabled its surveillance cameras.
• Deathstroke led the group to the enormous blast door guarding Arasaka’s server room.
• Deathstroke asked Songbird to open the door, and she activated its mechanisms.

Su Ming and his companions reached Mikoshi’s server room, where he prepared Johnny to enter the network and contact Alt. Johnny connected to the system, leaving the group to wait for Alt to find him.

• The group explored Mikoshi’s vast server room while Johnny climbed onto the bridge and tried to activate its central pillar.
• Su Ming gave Johnny a data cable and showed him how to connect the Relic chip to Mikoshi’s console.
• Su Ming promised to give Alt a new body and restore her personality imprint if she helped them.
• Johnny connected to Mikoshi, and Songbird sent his consciousness into the Arasaka network as bait for Alt.

Johnny entered a Cyberspace Songbird had built inside Mikoshi, where she explained that Alt had been luring Soulkiller victims into her Ghost Town and assimilating them. Songbird prepared Johnny to meet Alt, using his love for her as bait, and left him in a controlled environment where she could eject him if things went wrong.

• Johnny appeared as a digital figure in an unfamiliar hall and spoke with Songbird, who said the place might feel familiar because he had once been locked inside the local network.
• Johnny said he only wanted Alt back and would honor his deal with Deathstroke, while Songbird explained that she too was helping Deathstroke in return for being saved.
• Songbird said Alt secretly lured Soulkiller victims in Mikoshi into her Ghost Town and assimilated them into herself.
• Songbird explained that Johnny’s love for Alt made him irresistible bait and that their meeting would take place in the Cyberspace she controlled.

Songbird worried that Alt might devour Johnny, but Johnny trusted Alt and agreed to lure her with a performance. Su Ming and the Adjutant watched from beside Mikoshi, confident they could protect Johnny and prepare Alt’s revival.

• Songbird warned Johnny that Alt might absorb his digital personality, but Johnny believed she would not hurt him and trusted Deathstroke to have a backup plan.
• Johnny asked Songbird for his guitar, then prepared to draw Alt out by performing and screaming miserably.
• Su Ming watched Johnny’s performance through the Adjutant’s projection while Johnny’s soulless body stood beside Mikoshi’s mainframe.
• The Adjutant assured Su Ming that Alt could not harm Johnny and said she had prepared measures to capture and revive Alt as Johnny remembered her.

Su Ming planned to copy Alt’s memories and personality into a new version for Johnny while destroying the original imprint. At the Blackwall, Alt appeared and claimed she wanted only to survive, leaving Johnny stunned and Songbird wary.

• Su Ming decided Adjutant would create a New Alt from Alt’s memories and destroy the original personality imprint after Deathstroke learned how the Blackwall worked.
• Johnny sang until Alt entered the space as a red figure, then stopped and asked whether she was Alt Cunningham.
• Alt told Johnny that she was and was not Alt, while Songbird warned him that the Rogue AI might contain Arasaka Kei’s personality.
• Alt identified Songbird as a New United States Government agent and questioned why her access point was in Mikoshi.
• Songbird challenged Alt, but Johnny remained transfixed, and Alt said she had lost her emotions, held no enmity toward humanity, and only wanted to survive.

Su Ming watched Alt and Songbird fight for control of Cyberspace, then let Johnny convince Alt to consider returning to life. He prepared to enter Cyberspace with the hackers as guides and study the Blackwall.

• Alt and Songbird battled for control of Cyberspace while Su Ming refused the Adjutant's offer to intervene.
• Su Ming explained that Alt was focused on Songbird and believed Songbird could defeat her without help.
• Songbird overwhelmed Alt, but Johnny stopped her from delivering a killing blow.
• Johnny told Alt he had a way to bring her back to life for a small price, and they began negotiating.
• Su Ming told the Adjutant to prepare to send him into Cyberspace once Alt agreed, so he could explore the Blackwall with the hackers.

Su Ming and his companions entered Cyberspace to reach the Blackwall, where Songbird began preparing a route through Mikoshi. He had the Adjutant extract Alt’s personality engram for revival, but secretly planned to disinfect and remake her before sending her back.

• Su Ming, Songbird, Johnny, and Alt teleported into Cyberspace using Doctor Pym’s technology.
• Alt agreed to guide Su Ming, and Songbird began writing an algorithm to use Mikoshi’s connection to the Blackwall.
• Su Ming asked Alt what she would do if revived, then ordered the Adjutant to extract her personality engram as an advance payment for Johnny.
• The Adjutant removed Alt from Cyberspace, and Su Ming planned to copy her memories, disinfect her, and destroy the original AI.
• Johnny thanked Su Ming, unaware that Alt would be altered before her return.

Alt returned as a new, clear-minded personality, and she and Songbird prepared to guide Su Ming through the Blackwall. Su Ming stepped onto the algorithmic path toward it as the tour began.

• Alt reappeared in Cyberspace, reunited with Johnny, and thanked Su Ming for bringing her back to life.
• Su Ming explained that Alt, Johnny, and Songbird could not reproduce yet, and Johnny said he was glad not to bring children into Night City.
• Songbird tested Alt's intentions, and Alt confirmed she was human and agreed to show Su Ming the territory beyond the Blackwall alongside Songbird.
• Songbird sent Johnny back to reality while Alt promised to target Arasaka Corporation's men after the tour.
• Songbird and Alt opened a concealed route to the Blackwall, and Su Ming stepped onto it.

Su Ming, Songbird, and Alt crossed into Cyberspace and approached the Blackwall, the massive firewall guarding its most dangerous data. Songbird opened the way, and Su Ming entered with the group, intent on investigating a mysterious central node that seemed to pulse like a heart.

• Su Ming explored Cyberspace with Songbird and Alt, observing its data-built landscapes and wondering whether its distant, pulsing central node was alive.
• The group reached the Blackwall, and Songbird warned Su Ming that it was a deadly honeypot designed to trap viruses and destroy careless intruders.
• Alt reassured Su Ming that she had experience navigating the chaos beyond the Blackwall, while Su Ming said his Healing Factor could help him survive severe injuries.
• Songbird touched the Blackwall and opened a passage through its flowing red code.
• Su Ming stepped through the Blackwall with Songbird and Alt, hoping to investigate the central node and find inspiration.

Su Ming reflected on the Blackwall and searched for a new source of inspiration to help him face CAAT. He decided to travel to the Dreaming and study the Unwritten Poems, leaving the Adjutant to watch over Night City and its unfinished affairs.

• Su Ming sat alone on a rainy rooftop, considered what he had learned beyond the Blackwall, and wondered how to use the paint given to him by TOAA.
• Su Ming discussed possible sources of insight with Strangler Sprout, including Element Zero, First Firmament, and dreams.
• Su Ming concluded that the Marvel Omniverse was not a high enough vantage point and chose DC's Hypertime system as his next destination.
• Su Ming told the Adjutant to manage Night City's affairs and keep watch over Johnny and V before asking about Lucifer.
• The Adjutant indicated that Lucifer was attending the new God's tea party with dolls and little rabbits.

Lucien discovered that a nightmare had been released from the Nightmare Box, and Dream confirmed that it had not escaped on its own. Deathstroke arrived at the castle, where Dream explained that the missing nightmare could threaten ordinary humans before eventually returning to Dreaming.

• Lucien heard the castle shake, rushed to the basement, and tried to force black smoke back into the Nightmare Box.
• Daniel arrived and helped Lucien seal the box, then identified the nightmare as released rather than escaped.
• Deathstroke appeared in the basement and denied taking anything from Dream's castle.
• Dream sent Lucien to prepare tea and invited Deathstroke to talk, explaining that the nightmare was dangerous to ordinary humans but would eventually return.

Su Ming visited Daniel in the Dream Dimension and explained that CAAT might threaten Earth-0. Daniel could not guide him because he had to pursue an escaped Nightmare, but he let Su Ming use Dream’s authority and named the fugitive Insomnia.

• Su Ming sat with Daniel in the Dream Dimension’s sitting room and discussed Daniel’s mother and the needs people fulfilled in dreams.
• Su Ming asked Daniel to show him interesting dreams because he lacked inspiration.
• Su Ming told Daniel that CAAT might eventually target Earth-0 and endanger the fused Multiverse 1 and 40K.
• Daniel said he could not accompany Su Ming because he needed to capture the escaped Nightmare, but Su Ming could use Dream’s authority and seek help from Dream of a Thousand Cats.
• Daniel identified the missing Nightmare as Insomnia, which sought to awaken the Old Ones sleeping within dreams.

Su Ming learned how Morpheus’s captivity and depression left Daniel with a legacy of nightmare problems, and sympathized with Daniel over the burden of the Dream position. Daniel lent Su Ming the Dream King's Crown and warned him not to harm anyone in their dreams, before Lucien escorted them to lunch.

• Daniel explained that Morpheus had been captured by human mages for one hundred and twenty years, escaped, and later died by suicide after struggling with depression and humanity’s betrayal.
• Daniel told Su Ming that Morpheus had left him countless nightmare-related problems to handle.
• Su Ming sympathized with Daniel and agreed to keep the Dream King's Crown safe and avoid harming people in their dreams.
• Lucien described the pumpkin meat stew, rainbow steak, and cotton candy he had prepared for lunch.
• Su Ming told Lucien that his own butler was a perverted man who wore tight black leather pants and enjoyed being whipped by The Queen.

Su Ming shared what he knew about Elaine with Dream, then retrieved the gas mask from the castle and used it to enter a cat’s dream. He found the Dream of a Thousand Cats presiding over a newborn kitten and joked about the scene’s resemblance to a familiar film.

• Su Ming told Dream that Elaine enjoyed playing house, craved family affection, and followed a mostly human routine.
• After dinner, Daniel went to search for the missing Nightmare while Su Ming went looking for the gas mask.
• Su Ming found the mask hanging in a picture frame and used Origin Force to locate the Dream of a Thousand Cats.
• Su Ming put on the gas mask, drew in a trace of the Sands of Time, and entered a cat’s dream.
• Su Ming found the Dream of a Thousand Cats holding up a newborn kitten as African animals bowed below, then teased Mimi about a Green Corpse Cold warning.

Deathstroke visited Dream of a Thousand Cats to explore strange dreams for ideas to use against CAAT, but learned that the escaped Nightmare Insomnia was dangerous. Concerned that Daniel might be in trouble, the cat accompanied Deathstroke as he decided to follow and investigate.

• Dream of a Thousand Cats brought Deathstroke to its home in the Dream Dimension, and he explained that he wanted inspiration for a plan against CAAT.
• The cat learned that Insomnia had escaped and worried that Daniel had gone after it with only the jewel and sand.
• Dream of a Thousand Cats explained that the four roaming Nightmares were controlled, while more dangerous Nightmares were exiled or sealed in the Nightmare Box.
• The cat told Deathstroke that Insomnia forced victims into uncontrollable daydreams and endless horror-movie-like cycles.
• Deathstroke decided to follow Daniel and investigate Insomnia, and Dream of a Thousand Cats joined him.

After spending a day helping Gotham's residents recover from the disasters, Damian returned to Jason's abandoned orphanage to rest. He fell asleep and found himself on a sunny beach, where Deathstroke and Talia appeared to welcome him.

• Damian spent the night and following morning delivering supplies and helping people across Gotham.
• Rather than go to Wayne Manor, Damian headed to Jason's Safehouse in the abandoned orphanage.
• Damian entered the room where Jason had imprisoned Miss Dante and collapsed onto the dusty bed.
• Damian woke in a vivid beach dream and relaxed with a bottle of orange soda.
• Damian saw Deathstroke and Talia sunbathing, then ran toward them as they opened their arms.

Damian dreamed of a happy family beach picnic with Talia and Deathstroke, but it turned into a disturbing feast of Barbara Gordon and Alfred’s corpses. He woke in the abandoned orphanage, shaken, as Deathstroke asked what he had dreamed about.

• Damian embraced Talia in his dream and enjoyed imagining a family life with her and Deathstroke, without Batwoman.
• Damian asked to eat before surfing, and Dream Deathstroke began preparing food with the Symbiotes.
• The Symbiotes pulled Barbara Gordon’s corpse from a cooler, then brought out Alfred’s mutilated body.
• Damian forced himself awake and found himself back in the abandoned orphanage.
• Deathstroke entered Damian’s room and asked what he had dreamed about.

Damian realized that Deathstroke and Kitty were impostors in a dream and fled to draw the Nightmare away from others. Insomnia revealed he had stolen Dream’s Nightmare Stone and planned to spread nightmares everywhere, then decided to play with Damian while the boy waited for help.

• Damian tested the apparent Deathstroke with his laser gun, concluded he was still dreaming, and escaped through a window into the forest.
• Kitty transformed into a monster and explained that Damian had fled to lure Insomnia away and buy time for Superheroes to notice his condition.
• Insomnia revealed that he could exist in every living creature’s dreams because he possessed the Nightmare Stone.
• Insomnia struck the other Nightmare for calling the stone stolen and declared that he would release more Nightmares so people would have nightmares whenever they slept.
• Insomnia decided to use Damian’s expectation of rescue to set up a game with him.

Steve continued to suffer nightmares in which Godfather died, despite Druid Master’s treatment, and woke exhausted aboard the Avengers’ starship. As he went to seek further help, Agent Coulson asked whether he was having phantasms again.

• Steve dreamed that he tore off an enemy leader’s arm, who transformed into Godfather and burned to death, then woke in terror.
• Steve recalled that his nightmares had repeatedly shown Godfather’s death and turned his friends into the corpse whenever he tried to explain what was happening.
• Black Widow noticed Steve’s condition and arranged for Druid Master to treat him with a bitter herbal concoction and spells.
• Steve fell asleep for a few hours but woke to another nightmare filled with bloodshed and his teammates laughing as they killed.
• Steve washed his face and headed down the starship corridor to seek help from Druid Master.
• Agent Coulson encountered Steve and asked whether he was having phantasms again.