🌑 Episode 44
Awakening
The laboratory lights flickered violently.
Screens blinked on and off.
Rows of data streamed across the monitors faster than Lena could track.
Ryan turned to Ariba.
"What did you do?"
Ariba stared at the glowing screens.
Her voice was low.
"I… didn't touch anything."
But deep inside, she could feel something shifting.
Fragments of memory.
Fragments of herself.
The cold white room.
The glass chamber.
Her father's voice.
And another voice—
The Architect.
"She adapts faster than expected."
Ariba's breathing became sharp.
More images flashed in her mind.
Scientists running tests.
Machines connected to her arms.
Pain.
Fear.
Then darkness.
Victor looked at the system panel.
"It's not just glitching."
Lena stepped closer.
"The whole network is responding to her."
Ryan frowned.
"That makes no sense."
Ariba slowly lifted her hand toward one of the terminals.
The moment her fingers touched the screen—
⚡ SYSTEM LINK ESTABLISHED – SUBJECT A-17
Everyone froze.
Lena whispered,
"It recognizes your bio-signature…"
Victor's expression hardened.
"You're the master key."
The Architect's voice echoed again, smoother than before.
"Now you understand why you were always important."
Ariba clenched her jaw.
"You used me."
The Architect's face appeared across every screen.
"No."
His eyes locked onto hers.
"I preserved you."
Ryan stepped forward angrily.
"She's not your project."
The Architect smiled faintly.
"She is the final result."
Ariba's head pounded again.
More memories rushed back.
A younger version of herself.
Standing in front of a mirror.
A scientist saying—
"Subject A-17 shows extraordinary cognitive synchronization."
Lena turned pale.
"Synchronization…"
Victor looked at her.
"What does that mean?"
Lena swallowed hard.
"It means her brain can interface with the Phoenix system."
Ryan stared at Ariba.
"You can control it?"
Ariba's eyes slowly moved to the central console.
"I think…"
"…I can shut it down."
Silence.
The Architect's smile disappeared for the first time.
"Careful, Ariba."
His voice became colder.
"If you destroy this network…"
"…you destroy the truth about yourself."
Ryan looked at her gently.
"You don't need him to know who you are."
Victor nodded.
"Take the system down."
Ariba looked between them.
Then at the screens.
Then at the chamber.
Her voice became steady.
"I'm done letting him decide who I am."
She placed both hands on the central console.
⚡ ACCESS LEVEL: OMEGA
The lab trembled.
Every monitor turned bright white.
Warning alarms screamed through the facility.
Lena shouted,
"You're triggering a core reset!"
Victor grabbed Ryan.
"Get ready to move!"
The Architect's voice suddenly echoed louder.
"You still don't understand!"
The main screen flashed—
A hidden file opened automatically.
SUBJECT A-17 – PHASE 2
Ariba's eyes widened.
"Phase 2?"
Ryan looked at the file.
"It says… activation."
Before anyone could react—
A loud metallic sound came from behind the glass chamber.
The chamber door slowly opened.
Inside—
A second figure stepped out.
A girl.
Same face.
Same eyes.
Same age.
Ariba froze.
Ryan whispered,
"…What the hell?"
The girl looked directly at Ariba.
And smiled.
"Hello."
Her voice was identical.
The room went silent.
Lena stepped back in shock.
"There's another Ariba…"
Victor's voice dropped.
"This is bigger than we thought."
The second girl took one step forward.
And said softly—
"I've been waiting for you."
To Be Continued…
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