The message didn’t disappear.
It stayed.
Glowing.
Watching.
“You were not meant to find this.”
No one spoke.
Not Isabella Vicks.
Not Damien Hayes.
Not even Astra.
Because for the first time since any of this began—
None of them knew what came next.
The system pulsed again.
Stronger now.
Alive in a way that felt… aware.
Isabella’s chest tightened as she stared at the screen.
“That’s not a warning,” she whispered.
Damien’s voice came low.
“No.”
A pause.
“It’s a response.”
Astra Loses Control
Astra moved quickly now, stepping toward the core interface.
Fingers flying across the commands—fast, precise, controlled.
Or at least—
Trying to be.
“Override access,” Astra muttered.
“Manual control—priority level one.”
The system didn’t respond.
Not with compliance.
Instea
