The world was quiet.
Not dead, not empty — just waiting.
Adrian stood in the fractured remnants of the simulation, the world around him suspended in glimmering shards of code. Each fragment reflected parts of memories — his father's smile, Elena's laughter, the fire that ended it all.
And standing before him now, shimmering faintly like a candle in wind — was Elena Ward.
Her digital form pulsed, incomplete — her edges fading and rebuilding like static interference.
"Elena," Adrian said softly. "How are you here?"
She smiled faintly. "You shouldn't be surprised, Adrian. You're the one who brought me back… just not in the way you think."
His pulse quickened. "You're part of the Nadir data. The experimental archive."
Elena nodded. "After the explosion… I tried to find you. But the system collapsed. I was trapped in the data net when the backup activated. Half of me—" she looked down at her flickering hand "—didn't survive."
Adrian took a step closer, the floor rippling beneath his boots. "Marcus is gone. The echo won't hold."
"No," she said quietly, "he isn't gone. You only fractured him. You think you destroyed the architecture, but you just gave it a body."
Adrian's chest tightened. "A body?"
She nodded. "You."
The silence stretched, heavy and cold.
Adrian's mind reeled. "That's not possible—"
Elena stepped forward, placing a faint, shimmering hand over his chest. "When you merged with the system, Marcus's data signature fused with your neural field. You're sharing space, Adrian."
His breath hitched. "You mean… he's inside my head?"
Elena's eyes darkened. "Not yet fully. But every time you access the network, every time you use the Vance code, he grows stronger. You're rewriting fate — but you're also rewriting yourself."
Adrian looked down, hands trembling. "So, what am I now?"
Her gaze softened — a mix of pity and admiration. "You're both. Human and code. Flesh and ghost."
[Reality – The Subnet Hub]
Ava slammed a hand on the console. "I'm losing his vitals again! Neural interference's off the charts!"
Lydia's eyes widened. "Pull him out before—"
The screens flickered violently. Then Adrian's body arched — a wave of data energy pulsing through the neural links. The room's lights burst into static, papers fluttering to the floor.
Then, all at once, silence.
Adrian's eyes snapped open.
But they weren't the same.For a brief moment — his pupils flashed silver.
[Digital Plane]
"Elena," he whispered, struggling to focus. "How do I bring you out?"
She shook her head. "You can't. Not yet. My physical form's gone. The only way is to reconstruct my neural map… and that requires the original Nadir core."
Adrian frowned. "The core was destroyed."
Her expression darkened. "No. It was moved."
Adrian blinked. "By who?"
Elena hesitated — then said a name he hadn't expected.
"By your father."
The ground beneath them pulsed violently — the digital space beginning to destabilize.
"Elena—!"
She reached for him, her voice echoing as her form began to scatter like mist.
"Find the core, Adrian! It's the only way to bring me back—"
And then she was gone.
[Reality]
Adrian gasped awake, sitting up on the cot, sweat glistening on his forehead. Lydia rushed to his side.
"Hey, easy—"
He pushed her hand away gently, eyes unfocused. "She's alive."
Lydia froze. "Who?"
"Elena."
Ava turned from the console, her face pale. "That's not possible. The crash logs—"
"She's trapped in the data," Adrian interrupted, voice shaking but resolute. "But she's still there. And I'm going to get her out."
Lydia frowned. "Even if that's true, how? The Nadir core's gone."
Adrian looked up, his expression grim.
"My father took it."
Ava blinked. "Your father's dead."
Adrian stared out the cracked window, the city lights reflecting off his eyes like cold fire.
"Maybe not."
[Ward Mansion – Private Study]
Charles Ward poured himself a glass of whiskey, the amber liquid trembling faintly in the glass. The monitors on his wall displayed encrypted data streams — and among them, one feed showing Adrian's vitals from the subnet hub.
He smiled faintly.
"You found her. Good."
He took a slow sip, his gaze turning toward the hidden safe behind the painting on the far wall.
Inside, under layers of sealed titanium, a cylindrical device pulsed softly — engraved with three words:
Project Nadir – Core Prototype
And beneath it, a faint signature burned into the metal.
Raymond Vance.