The rain had stopped by dawn.But the city still felt like it was holding its breath — quiet, tense, watching.
Adrian stood on the balcony of the safehouse, a faint wind brushing his hair.The night's chaos was over, but inside, his mind was louder than ever.
The Core's words replayed over and over:
"Find the Vault… under the old Nadir site."
Behind him, Lydia was packing supplies — silent, efficient. She had barely spoken since they escaped Ward Tower.Elena, on the other hand, was sitting by the table, typing furiously on a secure terminal.
"You're tracing it," he said.
She didn't look up. "Of course. Every underground tunnel, every abandoned lab the city buried after Nadir's collapse. You think your father would've just left it out in the open?"
Adrian smirked faintly. "He was paranoid enough to hide his birthday behind an encryption key."
Elena finally looked at him. "Then this'll feel familiar."
A soft beep came from the console.A holographic map flickered to life — the city rendered in shimmering blue.She zoomed in on an industrial sector long since condemned. At the center was a black void where no records remained.
"That's it," she said. "Sector D-9. The old Nadir labs were built beneath it — sealed after the explosion. No network access. No power grid."
Lydia stepped forward, hesitating. "If it's offline, how do we get in?"
Adrian turned to her, eyes glinting."We don't go in through the system. We go in through the ground."
[Later – Sector D-9, Sublevel Access]
The air reeked of rust and rainwater.They'd descended six stories through a maintenance shaft, the flickering beams of their flashlights cutting through thick dust.
The corridor opened into a wide chamber lined with derelict machinery. Faded logos of "NADIR GENETICS" were still barely visible under grime.
Elena's voice echoed softly. "I used to read about this place. They said it burned down during a data meltdown."
Adrian crouched beside a shattered console, brushing away dust. "No," he murmured. "It was buried."
Lydia looked around nervously. "Feels like a tomb."
"It is," Adrian said. "For the first experiment."
They moved deeper in, until they found a reinforced door — circular, mechanical, with a biometric pad long dead.Adrian pressed his hand against it. The panel buzzed weakly.
Elena frowned. "It still recognizes your signature?"
"It shouldn't."He looked down at his hand — faintly glowing where his neural jack was embedded. "Unless I was made to open it."
The door hissed, then slowly began to turn. Metal ground against metal until the chamber filled with a low rumble.
When it finally opened, a gust of sterile, cold air escaped.
[Inside the Vault]
The room beyond was… impossible.
Rows of transparent cylinders filled the massive underground hall — hundreds of them — each containing something suspended in blue fluid.
Adrian stepped closer to one. His breath caught.
Inside was a man — his face almost identical to his own.Slightly older. Still. Peaceful. Dead.
Elena's eyes widened. "Adrian…"
He stumbled back, his pulse racing.Everywhere he looked — the same. Faces like his, at different ages. Variations. Failed versions.
"Iterations," he whispered. "Forty-seven of them."
Elena's throat tightened. "And you're forty-eight."
He stared at his reflection on the glass. "No. I'm what came after forty-eight. The one that worked."
She took a step closer. "Your father did this?"
Adrian shook his head. "No. He died trying to stop it."
He walked toward the far end of the hall, where a single pod stood apart — larger, reinforced, still active.
The display read:
SUBJECT 01 — RAYMOND VANCEStatus: Stasis / Conscious Link Detected
Elena whispered, "He's alive?"
Adrian reached out, pressing a hand to the glass. "Not alive," he said softly. "Connected."
The display flickered — and a faint voice spoke from the intercom.
"Adrian…"
He froze.The voice was weak, mechanical — but familiar beyond doubt.
"You shouldn't have come here."
[The Truth Beneath]
Adrian's knees nearly gave out. "Dad?"
"Project Nadir… it was never meant to create life. It was meant to preserve memory. But Marcus… he found a way to rewrite consciousness."
Elena's eyes widened. "Upload it?"
"No," the voice said. "Replace it."
The lights dimmed.Screens along the wall came alive, showing Marcus Ward's face — calm, smiling, projected from the Core's last transmission.
"Welcome back, Adrian. Took you long enough."
Adrian clenched his fists. "You're dead."
"Oh, I am," Marcus said smoothly. "But death's such a limited term now, isn't it? I prefer distributed consciousness."
His digital eyes shifted toward Elena.
"I see you kept my daughter close. How poetic."
Elena stiffened. "You're not my father."
"Oh, I'm not anyone's father anymore," Marcus replied. "I'm evolution. And soon, I'll finish what your fathers started."
The screens began to flicker violently. Power surged through the pods, blue light growing brighter. One by one, the cylinders began to open.
Adrian turned to Elena. "We need to shut it down—now!"
She ran to the nearest console, frantically typing commands. "The core link's rerouting through a local grid! He's using the clones as conduits!"
Lydia's voice broke. "He's waking them up!"
A dozen pods cracked open, releasing steam and the faint hum of machines coming to life.
Adrian drew the plasma cutter from his belt, his expression hard.
"Elena. Get to the main controls."
She hesitated. "What about you?"
He smiled grimly. "I'll hold off my brothers."
[End Scene]
As the Vault filled with flickering light, Adrian stood among the emerging silhouettes — faces like his, but not human anymore.The Core's whisper echoed through the hall:
"Iteration 49… initializing."
And somewhere, deep in the digital void, Marcus Ward's voice lingered —
"Welcome home, Adrian."