The Undercity trembled.
Not from impact.
Not from explosions.
But from something far worse—
Pressure.
A low, humming frequency rolled through the metal corridors like a distant storm. Pipes rattled. Lights flickered erratically. Even the air felt heavier… like something massive had just entered the system.
Flare froze mid-step.
"…okay."
She slowly looked up toward the ceiling—as if she could see through layers of steel and concrete into the glowing skyline above.
"…that is definitely not normal."
Raika's grip tightened slightly as she held Zora upright.
"…no."
Her voice was sharper now. Focused.
"…they've deployed something."
Zora stirred weakly, her vision still blurred.
"…what… is it…?"
Raika didn't answer immediately.
For the first time since they met—
There was tension in her expression.
"…a High Council enforcer."
Flare blinked.
"Ummmm…you say that like I'm supposed to be scared."
Raika looked at her.
"…you should be scared."
Before Flare could respond—
A deafening crack split the air.
The ceiling above them ruptured.
Metal folded inward like thin paper.
Light—blinding, pure white—poured down into the darkness.
And then—
It—
Or rather
She descended.
Slowly.
Gracefully.
Like gravity didn't apply to her.
Her form was silhouetted at first—just a figure wrapped in radiance.
Then the light dimmed—
Revealing something… inhuman.
Her outfit flowed like liquid silk—white layered with gold circuitry that pulsed like a heartbeat. Rings of holographic data rotated slowly behind her head, forming a halo of shifting code.
Her face was partially obscured by a smooth, expressionless visor.
But her presence—
Was overwhelming.
Flare took a step back.
"…yeah, okay, I'm scared now. Like really scared."
Raika set Zora down gently against the wall.
Then stood.
Straight.
Ready.
"…Designation?" she called out.
The figure hovered a few feet above the ground.
Her voice echoed unnaturally—layered, like multiple tones speaking at once.
"ENFORCER UNIT: AURORA-IX."
The air vibrated with each word.
"DIRECTIVE: SECURE HOST. ELIMINATE INTERFERENCE."
Flare pointed at herself.
"…Okay, I feel personally attacked."
Raika stepped forward slightly.
"…she's not a standard unit," she muttered.
Zora, still recovering, forced her eyes open.
Her vision blurred—
But she saw the figure.
And something inside her… reacted.
Her breath halted.
"…that thing…"
Aurora-IX's head tilted slightly.
As if sensing her.
"HOST CONFIRMED."
The halo behind her flared brighter.
"ENGAGING."
She moved.
Not fast.
Not sudden.
She simply—
appeared in front of Raika.
Raika's eyes widened—
But she reacted instantly—
Her gauntlets surged with energy—
She blocked—
BOOM—!
The impact detonated the ground beneath them.
Raika was thrown backward—slamming into a steel pillar hard enough to dent it.
"…RAIKA!" Flare shouted.
Aurora-IX didn't follow up.
She turned her head slightly—
Locking onto Zora.
"RETURN TO CORE."
Zora pushed herself up, barely.
"…no."
Aurora-IX raised her hand.
Energy condensed—
Not wild like Zora's—
Not sharp like Seraphine's—
But… absolute.
"NON-COMPLIANCE DETECTED."
Flare moved instantly.
"NOPE—!"
She slammed her hand against the wall—
Panels opened—
Turrets emerged—
"Let's see how you handle THIS YOU GODLIKE FREAK!"
They fired.
A barrage of pulse rounds tore through the air—
Aurora-IX didn't move.
The bullets stopped.
Mid-air.
Frozen.
Flare blinked.
"…Okay now that's illegal. That should be made illegal."
Aurora-IX flicked her hand.
The bullets reversed.
"OH SHIT—!"
Flare dove aside as her own weapons fired back at her position—
Exploding against the wall in a violent chain reaction.
Smoke filled the corridor.
Raika pushed herself up from the rubble.
Blood trickled from her lip.
"…she's manipulating vectors…"
Aurora-IX stepped forward.
Each step echoing unnaturally.
"INTERFERENCE LEVEL: MINIMAL."
Raika clenched her fist.
"…we can't win head-on."
Zora stood.
Unsteady.
But standing.
"…then don't."
Raika glanced at her.
"…you can barely stand."
Zora smirked faintly.
"…yeah."
She looked at Aurora-IX.
"…but she's here for me."
Aurora-IX stopped.
"CORRECT."
Zora took a step forward.
"…then let's talk."
Flare choked.
"—TALK?!, DID YOU JUST SAY TALK?!!. YOU CAN'T TALK WITH THAT THING!!"
Raika's eyes narrowed.
"…Hey, this isn't a negotiation."
Akira didn't look away.
"…everything is."
Aurora-IX tilted her head again.
"…HOST DISPLAYS ANOMALOUS BEHAVIOR."
Akira laughed quietly.
"…you have no idea."
She stepped closer.
Closer.
Raika tensed.
"…Zora—"
"Trust me."
Raika hesitated.
Just for a second.
Aurora-IX raised her hand again—
Energy forming—
Zora didn't stop.
"…you said I'm a host, right?"
"AFFIRMATIVE."
"…then answer me this."
She stopped just a few feet away.
Face to face.
"…why the hell am I not under your control?"
Silence.
For the first time—
Aurora-IX didn't respond immediately.
"…QUERY INVALID."
Zora's eyes flickered.
"…no."
She stepped closer.
"…you just don't have the answer."
The air shifted.
Flare whispered:
"…what is she doing…?"
Raika didn't answer.
Her eyes were locked on Zora.
Aurora-IX's halo pulsed faster.
"HOST DEVIATION EXCEEDS PARAMETERS."
Zora's voice dropped.
"…yeah."
Her eyes began to glow again. Nebula swirls forming.
"…I get that a lot."
Energy flared.
But this time—
It didn't explode.
It… focused.
Condensed into her hand—
Smaller.
Sharper.
Controlled.
Raika's eyes widened.
"…she's stabilizing it…?"
Flare stared.
"…no freaking way…"
Aurora-IX raised her arm—
But Zora moved first—
She stepped in—
Closed the distance—
And placed her hand—
Directly against Aurora-IX's chest.
"…let's see what you're made of."
BOOM—!
A pulse of violet energy surged into Aurora-IX—
The halo behind her shattered—
Data fragments scattering like broken glass—
Aurora-IX froze.
"…SYSTEM… DISRUPTION…"
Her body flickered.
Raika stepped forward.
"…now!"
She charged—
Striking Aurora-IX with full force—
CRACK—!
For the first time—
The enforcer staggered.
Flare jumped up.
"OH WE'RE REALLY DOING THIS NOW—?!"
She activated another device—
Energy nets deployed—
Wrapping around Aurora-IX—
"…please containment field, don't fail me now—!"
Aurora-IX struggled—
But something was wrong.
Her movements were slower.
"…CORE LINK… INTERRUPTED…"
Zora stumbled back.
Breathing hard.
"…that's new…"
Raika didn't stop—
She moved in—
Strike after strike—
Each one precise—
Each one calculated—
Aurora-IX blocked—
But weaker now.
Flare grinned and yelled excitedly.
"…OH!, SHE'S GLITCHING!! SHE'S GLITCHING!!"
Aurora-IX's voice distorted.
"ERROR… ERROR…"
Then—
Her body went still.
Completely.
Silence.
The net crackled—
Holding.
Flare exhaled.
"…okay…"
She looked at Zora
"…WHAT DID YOU DO?!"
Zora leaned against the wall again.
"…I don't know…"
She glanced at Aurora-IX.
"…but I think I just… disconnected her."
Raika stared at the enforcer.
Then at Zora.
"…you didn't just disrupt her."
A pause.
"…you overrode her."
Flare's grin slowly widened.
"…oh."
She looked at Zora like she'd just discovered something priceless like a pot of gold.
"…you're not just connected to the Core…"
Zora sighed.
"…don't say it."
Flare leaned in slightly.
"…you can control it."
Silence.
Zora didn't respond.
Because deep down—
She knew.
Above them—
Inside Eden Tower—
The Higher Ups stood in stillness.
"…the enforcer unit has been neutralized," one said.
Another turned slightly.
"…not neutralized."
A pause.
"…reclaimed."
The tallest among them stepped forward.
Her halo brighter than the rest.
"…prepare the next phase."
Her voice was calm.
Cold.
Certain.
"…the host has begun her awakening."
Back in the Undercity—
Raika turned away from Aurora-IX.
"…we don't have time."
Flare nodded.
"…yeah, if that was just ONE of them…"
Zora pushed herself off the wall.
Still weak.
But standing.
"…then we go to the source."
Raika looked at her.
"…Eden Tower?"
Zora's eyes glowed faintly.
"…yeah."
A small smile formed.
"…I think it's time I get some answers."
Flare grinned.
"…and maybe break the system while we're at it?"
Zora glanced at her.
"…definitely that too."
Raika exhaled.
"…then we move now."
Above them—
The city pulsed with artificial light.
But something had changed.
For the first time—
The system wasn't fully in control.
And it knew it.