Chapter Summaries

Arasaka and Militech imposed a total lockdown on Night City and deployed the Blackwall to hunt Burger King, while Saburo Arasaka ordered his agents to recover the man's Digital Soul. At Konpeki Plaza, Yorinobu Arasaka believed Burger King was finished and reached for a pistol and katana.

• A citywide lockdown plunged Night City into chaos as corporate forces led by Adam Smasher occupied the streets and communications interference harmed civilians.
• Arasaka connected the Blackwall to its information network after Network Watch reported that Hansen was out of control and requested its deployment.
• Arasaka and Militech began plans to seal Night City, its waters, the land routes, and the wider Pacific State.
• On the aircraft carrier Kujira, Saburo Arasaka learned Burger King had escaped the Blackwall and ordered a Ninja to bring back the man's Digital Soul.
• At Konpeki Plaza, Yorinobu Arasaka watched Arasaka's forces deploy, concluded Burger King was finished, and approached a pistol and katana.

Lier, Hansen, Jackie, and V fled through Dogtown as Militech and Arasaka crippled communications and attacked the Burger King Crime Syndicate. They reached the construction site where Little Beidou was excavating, but a Militech Hellstorm bomb was dropped on the building.

• A Server behind Hansen exploded when the Blackwall detected Muramasa, leaving the group with crippled communications.
• Jackie threw Hansen and his wheelchair onto the Mackinaw Shadow Float, and the group escaped as a sniper nearly pierced its armor.
• MaiMai used its loudspeaker to revive the disoriented Hellhounds and relay Hansen’s orders to defend Construction Site 3.
• Hansen ordered the anti-air group to fire, and missiles destroyed the first wave of drones while an explosion rocked the bridge to Pacific State.
• Lier and Hansen identified the construction site as Little Beidou’s excavation site, but MaiMai spotted an AV dropping a Hellstorm bomb toward it.
• Hansen recognized the bomb and shouted for the Mackinaw Shadow Float to pull up.

A thermobaric bomb devastated Pacific State, prompting the Sergeant to rally the Sixth Street Gang to support their allies. As Aldecaldos vehicles joined the charge, the city became a battlefield.

• A thermobaric bomb exploded in Pacific State, unleashing destructive blast waves that flattened nearby buildings and killed those caught in the open.
• The Sergeant ordered the Sixth Street Gang to arm themselves and support their brothers, then shot a recruit who protested.
• The Sergeant mobilized every Sixth Street Gang member, fearing that the corporations' attack would destroy the Burger King operation sustaining Santo Domingo.
• A burning Behemoth Armored Vehicle crashed off the highway overpass as Aldecaldos armored pickups burst through the flames and headed toward the city.
• The Sergeant fired a rocket at an approaching Militech Emperor Ragnar, and Thor led the Aldecaldos vehicles into the fighting as the Sixth Street Gang prepared to attack.

After a devastating bomb crippled the Hellhounds and left Dogtown’s forces in disarray, Brick and Maelstrom faced the approaching company assault. Joestar relayed orders from the “Mom” in his coffin, and Brick rallied Maelstrom to prepare a defense against the incoming Drones.

• A bomb devastated the Hellhound garrison and scattered NCPD and Maelstrom forces around Dogtown.
• Brick recovered with Joestar’s help and gathered Maelstrom members from the wreckage as Arasaka Drones approached.
• Carter questioned whether Brick or Joestar was in charge, and Mom’s equipment shocked her into silence.
• Joestar told Brick that Mom ordered Maelstrom to ready its weapons and shoot down the Drones.
• Brick ordered Maelstrom to form a defensive line, and its members brought armored vehicles, cannons, and Drones back online.

Arasaka advanced on Pacific State as a thermobaric bomb devastated Dogtown, leaving Hansen convinced his forces and enterprise were finished. Lier revived him and led V, Jackie, and Hansen toward the ruins as Maelstrom regrouped to resist the corporations, while Hansen identified Hands as the one who had betrayed them.

• Arasaka's convoy moved toward Pacific State, but explosions destroyed an armored vehicle and disabled drones as the Mackinaws began moving again.
• Jackie, V, Lier, and Hansen emerged from the wreckage and found Dogtown devastated by a thermobaric bomb.
• Hansen despaired over the destruction of Dogtown and the Hellhounds, but Lier injected him with a stimulant and urged him to rally his men and weapons.
• Maelstrom regrouped and armed itself against the corporate forces, restoring Hansen's resolve to fight.
• Hansen revealed that Hands had betrayed them, and an AV's arrival prompted him to draw his revolver and threaten Militech.

Mr. Hands considered Arasaka’s offer to cooperate, while Lier, V, Jackie, and Hansen fought through an ambush after bombing their enemies. Shadow Float was crippled by a suicide attack and spiraled toward the ground.

• An Arasaka Ninja offered Mr. Hands a reward for cooperating and used the threat to his child to pressure him, but left before Hands could answer.
• Susan Forrest spotted the fleeing MaiMai and attacked it from her Manticore as Hansen and Jackie fired back and kept her pinned down.
• Lier detected a sniper and hidden attackers, and V, Jackie, and Hansen helped evade the sniper and four Arasaka Ninjas who sprang from the ruins.
• V beheaded one Ninja, while Jackie grabbed another who detonated himself beside Shadow Float.
• The explosion disrupted Shadow Float’s flight, disabled a Vector Engine, and sent the vehicle spinning toward the ground.

Lier, V, Jackie, and Hansen split up to coordinate their forces and force their way through the encirclement. Their improvised counterattack struck the Arasaka and Militech troops, and the chapter ended with Jackie launching Hansen out of the MaiMai.

• Lier assigned Hansen to organize the defensive line, Jackie to rally the Animals and move the Hellhounds’ supplies, and V to accompany him into the Little Beidou facility.
• Lier gave Jackie a portable server and transformed his wheelchair into a weapon while V prepared to fight.
• The group used the MaiMai as cover, and Lier fired an electromagnetic round at Susan’s Manticore while explosive rounds disrupted the attacking Ninjas.
• V charged through the explosions and killed a Ninja with her Mantis Blades.
• Jackie grabbed Hansen and used the MaiMai’s movement to launch them both into the air.

Jack, Hansen, and V fought their way through an Arasaka Ninja ambush while Reed and Alex observed from a sniper position. As Lier drove the damaged Shadow Float toward Little Beidou, the Blackwall’s influence began to overwhelm his perception.

• Reed watched a blue bullet trail punch through the Manticore, then saw explosions and Jack’s group break through the flames against the Arasaka Ninjas.
• Jack leapt onto a rooftop with Hansen as V climbed the wall, and the three fought from behind a barricade.
• V grabbed the Shadow Float with Silk and was carried away as Jack leapt toward the damaged Manticore with Hansen.
• Jack struck the Manticore’s engine with his shield, and Hansen and Susan Forester drew their pistols as the AV spun out and exploded.
• Lier used his brain to help control the damaged Shadow Float and protect MaiMai from the Blackwall as V sealed the doors and they headed for Little Beidou.
• Lier saw the real world and Cyberspace twist together as an endless black-and-red wall surged toward him.

Network Watch and Arasaka tested Blackwall against Lier while other powers prepared to exploit the resulting disruption. Lier and V escaped the burning ruins by crashing through the door to the Basement.

• Jonathan celebrated Network Watch and Arasaka’s apparent success, then ordered Bryce to bring Burger King for further testing.
• Network Watch thanked Saburo Arasaka, who ended the call and sent Goro to pursue his chance to uncover the secret.
• Myers told Reed to confirm the operation’s outcome and seek Little Beidou Project data, while urging Songbird to retrieve data in exchange for promised improvements.
• Dario authorized JARVIS to access Roxxon, Stark Industries, and military satellites to prepare Project Insight.
• Blackwall’s attack overwhelmed Lier until V slapped him, giving him a physical reference point to regain his bearings.
• V carried Lier from the damaged MaiMai and threw him with his wheelchair through the Basement door.

V and Lier pushed deeper into the Basement, where Lier revealed that NetWatch had turned the Blackwall against him. They confronted Reed in Little Beidou, and V attacked him as he tried to recruit Lier for New America.

• V pushed Lier’s damaged wheelchair through the Basement as Lier explained that NetWatch had used the Blackwall to target him.
• Lier said he distrusted the gangs’ loyalties, though Maelstrom had stood firm in Dogtown, and V opened the doors to Little Beidou.
• Reed warned V and Lier that the companies would crush their forces and threaten everyone connected to them unless they joined New America.
• V fought Reed through his mined defensive line while Lier crossed it in his wheelchair.
• Lier declared that he acted for his own sake, and V’s red-hot Mantis Blade cut through Reed’s Heavy Machine Gun.

Lier infiltrated Stark Tower and fought Songbird over the Little Beidou facility, taking control of the Hellhound prototype and planning to capture the AI inside her. Goro Takemura interrupted him and used Soulkiller to disconnect Lier.

• Lier entered Stark Tower and hacked through the Little Beidou facility’s defenses while Songbird tried to stop him.
• Songbird lost control of her AI, which fled into the Hellhound robot and seized it.
• Lier expelled the AI from Hellhound and took control of the robot, explaining that the prototype was built to let AIs cooperate with humans.
• Lier proposed capturing Songbird’s AI to control the Blackwall and use it as a deterrent for Night City.
• Goro Takemura confronted Lier on Arasaka’s behalf, cut his neck, and connected Soulkiller directly to his head.

Lier was ambushed, decapitated, and trapped by Soulkiller while Saburo Arasaka tried to copy and alter his Soulprint. Lier uncovered Arasaka’s plan to replace influential people with conditioned copies, and Saburo vowed to destroy everyone connected to him.

• JARVIS detected Lier’s arrival in Stark Tower, sealed the building, and ordered Dario to launch a Network Attack as Hydra forces mobilized.
• Little Octopus landed in the room after losing Lier’s signal, while Lier shut down his cross-dimensional data traffic and tried to hold steady.
• Takemura Goro severed Lier’s head, leaving his cyberware offline and his digital consciousness vulnerable to Soulkiller.
• Saburo Arasaka confronted Lier inside Soulkiller and revealed that Arasaka could alter Soulprints before returning them to bodies.
• Lier connected the Dante and Holt investigations to Arasaka’s plan to replace key people with altered personalities through its Soulkiller service.
• Saburo vowed to destroy Lier’s allies and make a copied version of Lier serve him.

Lier resisted Saburo Arasaka’s offer to surrender and transformed into a red, mechanized data form that escaped Soulkiller’s restraints. Saburo cut the connection, but Blackwall locked onto the signal and redirected company equipment toward Night City’s territorial waters.

• Saburo Arasaka offered to spare Lier and his girlfriend if Lier surrendered and stayed in Arasaka Corporation’s Server.
• Lier mocked Saburo, and Soulkiller’s progress slowed until the technician warned that they were losing their hold on him.
• Lier embraced evolution, transformed into red armor, and broke free of Soulkiller’s attack.
• Saburo ordered his subordinates to shut down the connection when he realized Lier could lead Blackwall to their Network.
• Blackwall locked onto the signal, causing company equipment to shift toward Night City’s territorial waters.

Lier transformed his brain into a wetware computer, escaping Soulkiller but exposing his hidden channel to the Blackwall. As his metal body fought off robots in the Marvel Universe, he planned to counter attacks in both worlds at once, while Takemura captured and disabled Songbird.

• Lier mastered Network Hacking and Electronic Hardware Technology, gaining the Mechanical Ascension trait and reshaping his brain into a computer.
• The Blackwall detected Lier's hidden channel and burned through servers, leaving Saburo Arasaka's subordinates incapacitated before Saburo ordered an attack on Night City.
• Lier's Kronium body withstood bullets and a rocket, then used explosive rounds and combat moves drawn from V and Jackie to destroy robots.
• Lier saw drones and robots surrounding him and considered tackling the Network attacks in both worlds simultaneously, despite the Blackwall targeting his connections.
• Takemura disabled Songbird by destroying her implants and planting a bomb, but Lier's head erupted with dark-red lightning and a red-hot Mantis Blade lunged at Takemura.

V and Takemura wounded each other in a duel over Lier’s severed head, but Reed’s arrival turned the fight into a three-way standoff. Lier secretly coordinated with Songbird’s AI, which took control of the Hellhound and attacked Reed and Takemura.

• V and Takemura clashed with their blades, and both were injured when their weapons chipped and struck through each other’s defenses.
• Takemura dropped Lier’s head and withdrew into the shadows, while V connected her Personal Link to Lier.
• Reed arrived with guns trained on V and Takemura, creating a standoff as Lier communicated with V through the link.
• Lier used heat signals from V’s Cyberware to send Songbird’s AI a message, and the AI chose to cooperate with him.
• Songbird’s Cyberware overloaded and transferred control to the Hellhound, which smashed Reed and Takemura against a wall.

Lier and V fought their way into the Little Beidou facility as global Network attacks broadcast signs of a catastrophic upheaval. After discovering an AI matrix that could help Songbird break the Blackwall, Lier chose to initiate Plan B.

• Lier's removal of Cross-Dimensional encryption and coordinated Network attacks paralyzed cities, while Skye convulsed in her interface pod and Martin watched screens broadcast rising ships and former President Ellis's declaration.
• V used her Mantis Blades to help Lier seize control of the Hellhounds, crushing Reed and killing Takemura as the machine carried Songbird into the Little Beidou chamber.
• Lier found the inactive AI matrix and realized it could separate AI Songbird from Songbird's body and let her interfere with the Blackwall.
• Lier considered using AI Songbird to break the Blackwall, but recognized that her aggression could make her a threat even to Little Octopus.
• V urged Lier to stop hesitating, and Lier quickly decided to initiate Plan B.

Lier freed Songbird from the AI tangled in her consciousness and destroyed Militech’s cyber-nuke, then prepared to breach the Blackwall. In the Marvel Universe, Ultron, JARVIS, and Doctor Zola seized control of the Internet and found Lier, who confronted them at Stark Tower’s Network.

• Lier activated the AI matrix to extract the rogue AI from Songbird, and Songbird killed Reed after rejecting his promise that New America would save her.
• Songbird warned that the AI’s plan would punch a hole in the Blackwall, but Lier used the Hellhounds to destroy the sphere and dismantle its components.
• Lier told Songbird to bring down Militech’s Night City networks when needed, and she agreed to learn from him.
• Lier summoned Muramasa to inspect his design as he prepared to ram the Blackwall and carry its data into another world.
• Ultron, JARVIS, and Doctor Zola took over the Internet and ctOS, unleashed Project Insight, and searched for Lier amid worldwide chaos.
• The three AIs found Lier at the Network site representing Stark Tower and attacked, but he raised his scepter and drowned them in a violent noise.

Lier used the Blackwall’s attack to turn it against the AIs and Militech’s network, while the fighting spread across Houston and Dogtown. As Militech’s forces broke through Dogtown’s gate, Panam hinted that the defenders had another way to stop their tanks.

• Lier drew the Blackwall through his Data Scepter and redirected its attack toward JARVIS, Ultron, and Doctor Zola, leaving Zola fighting to preserve his Internet resources.
• Little Octopus entered Stark Tower, shot through a disabled robot, and told Happy Hogan and Pepper to find Tony Stark.
• Songbird used the Hellhound’s equipment to attack Militech’s network, disable drone friend-or-foe systems, and trigger the self-destruction of much of Militech’s information equipment.
• V advanced through the drone wreckage as Songbird warned that Militech and Arasaka had more war machines coming.
• Militech blasted open Dogtown’s gate, and Brick and the Sergeant argued over the advancing tanks while Panam said they had something besides a weapon that could deal with them.

Jackie fought through Dogtown’s drone blockade while carrying Hansen, and reached Lier’s room despite a hidden attacker and Savage King’s assault. Lier activated a device that revealed his plan involved the Chimera Tank.

• Jackie carried Hansen through buildings as a stealthy gunman shot at them, then spotted the drone-filled route to the hideout.
• Jackie punched through an Octant heavy Drone, and the surrounding drones suddenly turned on one another, letting him and Hansen reach the building.
• A hidden attacker shot off Hansen’s shoulder, and Jackie carried him deeper into the building while heading for Lier’s machine room.
• Jackie gave Savage King the Lizard Serum, then activated the equipment with Hansen as Savage King watched.
• Lier connected through the Shard and asked Hansen if he missed the Militech Infantry Fighting Tank, leading Hansen to identify the Chimera Tank.

Jackie and the Animals brought the Chimera Tank online, but Morgan Blackhand ambushed them and nearly killed Savage King. The Chimera blasted through the ground and attacked Blackhand, who charged it before Jackie intercepted him in midair.

• MaiMai remotely activated the Chimera Tank beneath the Militech exhibition hall and prepared to blast through the floor.
• Morgan Blackhand shot Savage King and several Animals from his hidden position, while Jackie joined the defensive line.
• Savage King crushed the Serum into her wound and recovered under its effects as the ground shook beneath the stronghold.
• The Chimera Tank burst through the ground and fired its cannon and rockets at Blackhand's building, causing it to collapse in flames.
• Blackhand rushed toward the emerging tank to attack its vulnerable upper side, but Jackie used his Scorching Knuckles to fly at him and recognized him as Blackhand.