Run.
The Citadel groaned beneath them, its core systems overloading from the force of the Mirror Merge. Energy sparked across shattered tiles as Elira led Kael and Ashline through what was once the memory facility's inner sanctum.
"Emergency override initiated," an automated voice repeated in cold monotone. "Collapse sequence: irreversible."
Kael looked over his shoulder. "Christine's gone for now—but if Jane's her fallback host, then she's not done."
"She never was," Elira murmured. "And neither am I."
Ashline stumbled. Elira caught her without flinching.
"You good?" she asked.
Ashline nodded, gritting her teeth. "Just… burned."
They pushed forward through collapsing corridors until they reached a safer zone—a low-lit chamber where the alarms hadn't breached yet.
Elira halted, her breath sharp and fast, but not panicked.
Her eyes shimmered with fragments of silver.
Memory Storm
She saw everything now. Not just her memories—but everyone's.
Not just what happened—but what could've.
Alternate paths. Failed loops. Aborted resets.
In one cycle, she and Kael were lovers. In another, Christine never betrayed her.
In another still… she had no name at all.
And in every version, she always ended up at the edge of remembering.
Until now.
"Elira?" Kael asked, watching her stare into nothing. "Are you still with me?"
"I'm with all of you," she whispered.
Kael stepped closer. "That's… not comforting."
The Fracture in Jane
Back in the reset chamber, Jane's body convulsed under the weight of her forced integration.
Christine had wired her into the leftover neural thread of the prototype vessel—Project REVIVE.
Jane screamed as silver lines traced down her arms, branding her like circuitry.
Christine's voice crackled through an unseen comm.
"You shouldn't have doubted me, Jane. Loyalty is such a flexible concept, isn't it?"
And somewhere beneath Jane's screams, Christine whispered a name.
"Liora."
The same name that now echoed in Elira's soul.
Safehouse: Temporary Refuge
Elira and the others reached an old data refuge Kael had once used—hidden beneath the ruins of an abandoned metro hub.
Ashline collapsed onto a bench. Kael began securing the door with makeshift locks.
Elira walked to the corner and stared at her reflection in the flickering panel.
Her face hadn't changed—but her eyes had.
She looked like someone who knew too much.
"What happens now?" Ashline asked quietly.
Elira didn't answer right away.
Then—
"We find Jane."
"And if she's not Jane anymore?" Kael asked.
Elira turned, eyes steady.
"Then we do what we have to."
Memory Echo: Kael's Past
That night, Elira sat by herself near an old terminal. The system flickered—then, without warning, replayed an echo.
A boy—young Kael—crying in the rain.
A woman in a white coat kneeling beside him.
"You'll remember for them, Kael. That's your gift."
"But it hurts…"
"Good. Pain means it's real."
Elira reached out and touched the glass.
Kael walked in behind her. "You saw it?"
"Yeah," she said. "Your thread is heavier than mine."
He chuckled dryly. "You carry lives. I carry the truth. Sometimes I wonder which is worse."
She didn't say anything.
But her hand reached out—and took his.
A silent gesture.
She was still here.
The Final Map
Later that night, she pieced together fragments from her newly restored memory.
Christine had once tried to use Elira to locate the Source—the original reset vault where all tethered identities were first harvested.
But it wasn't just a place.
It was a person.
Someone Elira once knew.
Someone she had trusted.
A masked figure. A woman with a soft voice and empty eyes.
Her mother?
Or a handler?
Only one way to know.
Ashline's Secret
While Elira mapped out memory strings on the cracked wall, Ashline stood alone at the entrance, hand on her pulse.
She felt… off.
Like her own tether had shifted.
And when she blinked, she swore she saw someone—herself—standing across from her.
Watching.
Smiling.
But when she turned, it was gone.
Twist – Jane Speaks
Back in the Citadel, Jane's eyes snapped open.
But they weren't hers anymore.
They glowed silver-white.
She sat up, ignoring the restraints.
A guard ran in.
"Subject 9—stand down!"
Jane tilted her head.
Then smiled.
And in Elira's voice, she whispered:
"Reset complete."
Elira sat back against the terminal, her pulse finally steady.
But her eyes widened when a message blinked across the screen—an untraceable signal.
"HELLO, Liora."
"READY TO COME HOME?"
"THE THREADKEEPER AWAITS."
Kael turned to her. "What is it?"
Elira's hand trembled slightly.
"We found the Source."