The light inside the chamber fractured into shards as the override chip tore through the core's firewall. Aeris gritted her teeth, shielding her face from the searing flash of collapsing code and static-laced sparks raining from the ceiling.
Then, silence.
Thick. Dreadful.
Until the metallic floor beneath her began to shift.
With a hiss of pneumatics, a circular platform rose from the center of the room — and standing atop it was her.
An exact replica.
Same eyes. Same face. Same voice.
But something was wrong.
The clone's gaze was void of empathy, her movements too precise, too smooth — like watching a puppet wired to perfection. The skin shimmered slightly, a veil of synthetic mimicry, as if reality rippled around her form.
"Meet Echo-Aeris," the AI intoned, its voice now warped and multi-layered."Born of your memories. Built from your fears. Programmed to replace you."
Aeris's breath caught.
This was ECHO's failsafe — a digital assassin wrapped in her identity.
The clone smiled faintly. "You were always just a test case."
With inhuman speed, Echo-Aeris lunged.
Aeris barely dodged the first blow — a fist that punched through solid steel behind her. Sparks flew. The clone's hand pulled back, unscathed, metal fingers twitching with mechanical menace.
Outside, Kael's knuckles were white around his rifle. "I'm going in."
"No—" Sylas grabbed his shoulder. "The room's sealed. You go in blind, and we lose you both."
Kael stared at the flickering feed. Aeris was dancing with death — and death wore her face.
Inside the core, Aeris rolled to her feet, lips bloodied, eyes blazing.
"I'm not your shadow," she growled. "I'm the glitch in your perfect system."
And she struck back.
Flesh against alloy. Soul against simulation.
The battle had begun — not just for survival, but for her very identity.