The power in the Refuge flickered twice before stabilizing. The entire underground complex groaned as backup generators took over, humming faintly in the aftermath of the explosion. Smoke drifted through the corridor, carrying the metallic tang of burnt circuitry.
Ethan stood at the edge of the chamber, Maya still in his arms. Her breathing was shallow but steady, her skin faintly glowing in rhythmic pulses that matched the fragments of broken code scattered around them.
Dr. Myles arrived first, limping slightly, her lab coat streaked with soot. “What the hell happened down here?”
Ethan lowered Maya gently to the floor. “We stopped the node—but it wasn’t just a machine. It was alive. A copy of Adrian’s consciousness.”
Myles froze. “Adrian Vale? That’s impossible. He—”
“He didn’t survi
