The light from beneath the cathedral floor pulsed like a heartbeat. Cold, white, and unnatural.
Leonard stepped forward first, scanning the panel's edge. A faint breeze, sterile and metallic, wafted upward—a familiar scent to those who had once walked sterile hallways in hidden labs, where humanity was broken down and rebuilt from code and serum.
Alina's fingers curled tightly into fists as she stared into the depths.
"This is it," she whispered. "The vault. The real one."
Selena and Rafe nodded grimly, weapons drawn, faces taut with readiness.
"No uplink," Rafe muttered. "No GPS. We go dark the moment we descend."
Leonard glanced at Alina. "You don't have to do this."
She met his gaze with unflinching resolve. "Yes. I do."
Then, without hesitation, she stepped onto the platform.
It dropped in silence.
The descent took nearly two minutes—long enough for the anxiety to become suffocating. Walls of white titanium slid past them, lined with faded inscriptions: chemical formulas, numbers, Latin phrases.
At last, the platform stopped.
They emerged into a chamber unlike anything Alina had ever seen.
Spherical. Vast. Gleaming.
Dozens of capsules floated mid-air, suspended in magnetic fields. Inside them—human forms. Men, women… and children.
Leonard cursed under his breath. "My God."
"They were building an army," Selena said, her voice hollow. "These aren't just clones. These are hybrids."
A low chime echoed through the chamber.
Then a voice—calm, smooth, and cold.
"Welcome back, Subject A."
Alina's heart stopped.
Elara's voice.
A figure stepped out from the far end of the chamber. Dressed in black leather, long blonde hair tied behind her head like a queen entering court. Her eyes glowed faintly, pupils unnaturally dilated.
Elara smiled.
"You brought the whole family," she said. "How poetic."
Leonard raised his weapon. "Step away from the console, Elara."
"You won't shoot me," she said simply. "Not with your precious daughter's future in my hands."
Alina stepped forward. "She's not yours."
Elara tilted her head. "She was never just yours, either. You know that."
Her hand waved toward one of the floating capsules. Inside, a child that looked nearly identical to Lily.
Alina's breath caught.
"Clones," she whispered. "You copied her."
"Improved her," Elara corrected. "Do you really think I'd invest all that time in a single, fragile organism? Lily is the key, yes—but a key can make many doors open."
Selena fired a shot. It struck a kinetic barrier between them.
Elara didn't flinch.
"You're too late, Alina. Ascension has already begun. The moment your daughter linked to you psychically—she triggered the protocol. Her DNA is rewriting as we speak."
Leonard growled. "You're lying."
Elara smirked. "Check the data. I'll wait."
Rafe pulled up the local node. His face paled.
"She's not lying," he said. "Lily's neural patterns are shifting into Tier 5 resonance. That's… post-human classification."
Alina felt her knees weaken.
"She's still just a child."
"Not anymore," Elara said, stepping closer to the barrier. "She's becoming something more. Something divine. You should be proud."
"You don't get to define her," Alina spat.
"Don't I?" Elara's expression hardened. "I made her."
The lights in the chamber dimmed. From the center, a pulse rippled outward—followed by a low hum.
"She's connecting now," Elara said, smiling wider. "Her mind is reaching out. In minutes, she'll be here. Physically—or through the link. Either way, I'll complete what I started."
Alina's heart pounded.
No. She would not lose her daughter. Not like this.
Back at the safehouse, Lily stirred in her bed. Sweat dotted her forehead. Her eyes were open—but blank, glowing faintly gold.
Her lips moved.
"Mommy…"
Then her body convulsed.
The necklace Alina had left beside her lit up with the same golden hue, as though some invisible current connected them.
Alina dropped to one knee as a burning sensation shot through her chest. She gasped—eyes wide. Inside her mind, a voice echoed.
"Mommy… where are you?"
"I'm coming, baby. Hold on."
Her pulse synced with Lily's. She could feel it. The bond—the link.
Leonard rushed to her side. "Alina! What's wrong?"
"She's… trying to reach me. I can feel her."
Selena scanned the area. "Whatever Elara triggered—it's pulling Lily's consciousness here. She's bridging space."
Elara raised a hand. "And when she arrives—she'll see me first. Her creator. Her ascension guide."
Alina stood slowly, eyes burning with fury.
"You will never lay a hand on my daughter again."
Elara's smile faded. "And what will you do? Fight me with a gun? You're still operating on rules that no longer apply."
"You're right," Alina said, stepping toward the barrier. "I was afraid of what you turned me into. Afraid of what I could be."
She pressed her hand to the kinetic wall. "But if that's what it takes to save her… then I'll become it."
She closed her eyes.
And opened the door inside her mind.
The psychic realm was unlike anything she'd experienced. A sphere of light and sound—waves of memory, emotion, DNA strands twisting in glowing threads.
At its center: Lily.
Floating. Suspended in energy. Her small frame flickering between human and something more—her skin luminous, eyes void of pupils.
"Lily," Alina called.
Her daughter turned toward her. "Mommy?"
Alina rushed forward, reaching out.
The closer she came, the more the light burned. But she pushed through.
Wrapped Lily in her arms.
"I'm here, baby. You're not alone."
"She told me I had to change."
"You don't. You're perfect just as you are."
"But… it hurts."
"Let me help."
Their bond surged. Light exploded around them.
And in the real world—Elara screamed.
"No—NO!"
The kinetic wall shattered.
Alina's body lifted off the ground, her veins glowing gold, eyes pure light. She landed before Elara—no longer just human. No longer only Subject A.
But something more.
Elara backed away. "You don't know what you're doing. If you sever the connection now—you'll erase the neural matrix. She'll lose all the enhancements."
"Good," Alina said coldly.
She raised her hand—and with a single motion—cut the tether.
The lights exploded. The capsules fell from the air. The clones inside them melted into organic sludge.
And Elara—
Vanished in the shockwave.
Hours later, Alina awoke in the ruins of the vault. Leonard sat beside her, holding her hand.
"You're alive."
"Lily?"
"Safe," he said. "And still her. You did it."
Selena walked over with a tired smile. "We've secured the facility. All data destroyed. No backups left."
Rafe added, "Elara's body wasn't found—but we'll keep looking."
Alina sat up slowly.
"No more running," she said. "If she comes back—we'll be ready."
Leonard nodded. "Together."
That night, back at the safehouse, Lily curled beside her mother in bed, her tiny fingers wrapped around Alina's.
"Mommy?"
"Yes, baby?"
"Are you still glowing?"
Alina smiled softly. "Just a little."
"Will I glow too?"
"You already do," Alina whispered, kissing her forehead. "Just in your own way."
And in the dark, warm silence of that moment—
The war felt… finally over.
But far in the shadows beyond the city, in a cold chamber not yet found—
A heartbeat pulsed.
And golden eyes opened once more.