Chapter 58 — Prelude to the End
The Arasaka Tower wasn't just a building.
It was a monument — a skyscraper forged in greed, sealed in blood, and crowned by power.
And tonight… it would fall.
Alaric stood at the base of the service entrance, city lights casting long shadows around him. The skyline reflected off his armored jacket — dark chrome, sleek, predator-sharp.
Behind him stood his girls — his harem, his family, his edge.
Panam checked her rifle, rolling her neck with that familiar Badlands smirk. "So… we're really doing this."
Alaric met her eyes. "We've always been doing this."
Judy stood at his left, pistol in hand, defiant as ever. Her nervous energy was gone — replaced by something harder, forged in everything they'd fought through.
Evelyn smoothed her gloves, stepping closer to Judy. "I didn't come this far to let corps call the shots."
Rogue slung her custom SMG over her shoulder, casting a sideways glance at them all.
"Storming Arasaka with your girls in tow…" She gave a dark chuckle. "Classic Alaric."
Alaric smirked. "It's not a storm." He chambered a round. "It's a reckoning."
Footsteps echoed in the corridor ahead.
Takemura appeared — suit sharp, jaw tight, eyes shadowed with something darker than duty. Four Arasaka operatives fanned out behind him.
He stopped five meters away, voice a low warning.
"Alaric. Hanako changed the plan. You're to hand over the Relic. Now."
Alaric's grin dropped. His gaze locked on Takemura. "Betraying me, Goro?"
Takemura's hand ghosted toward his pistol.
"It's business."
The air thickened.
Before his fingers touched metal — Judy stepped forward, pistol raised, steady as a sniper's scope.
"You picked the wrong man to cross."
Takemura's eyes flicked, hesitated — and that was all it took.
Rogue fired.
The first shot snapped through Takemura's escort — a clean headshot that dropped the guard like dead weight.
The second slammed into Takemura's shoulder, forcing his gun to clatter to the floor.
He staggered back, breath hissing between his teeth.
Alaric walked forward — slow, deliberate, stepping over the fallen guard with a predator's calm.
He leaned in close, voice a low whisper.
"Consider this… my resignation."
Takemura didn't answer. His eyes flicked past Alaric — widening.
From the hall's far end… Hanako stepped into view.
Immaculate. Unshaken. Her Arasaka robes flowed around her like woven steel.
Her voice cut the tension with blade-edge precision.
"Stand down, Goro."
Takemura froze — duty, pride, and betrayal warring behind his eyes.
Hanako turned her gaze on Alaric — a slow, measuring look that lingered a heartbeat longer than expected.
She gave a faint nod.
"We go together."
A small chime echoed.
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[System Update — Hanako Arasaka — Bond +5 — Alliance Path Initiated]
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Alaric smirked, stepping back beside his girls.
"Then let's show Night City what happens when you push the wrong man."
Panam cocked her rifle. "After you, boss."
Evelyn and Judy fell into step — Rogue flashing a deadly grin.
And together… they walked into the belly of Arasaka Tower.
Not as mercs.
Not as pawns.
But as the reckoning Night City never saw coming.