Sector Echo was a storm of noise.
Unlike the half-dead undercities or the tidy algorithm-curated zones above Vireon, Echo was raw. A chaotic, bleeding feed of content, influence, and trending power. Here, people didn't talk—they streamed. They didn't walk—they broadcasted. And privacy? That was a deprecated concept.
Every citizen had a camera rig. Children walked with facial filters permanently active. Street signs updated every second based on the local trending hashtag. Influencer cults performed rituals on rooftops to attract viral attention. Feed addicts chanted algorithm prayers.
And in the center of it all was a tower of mirrored glass—The Reflector Spire.
At its peak sat the one Shai had come to face.
Mirror.exe
---
> SYSTEM WARNING
Approaching Hostile System Core: [MIRROR.EXE]
Aura Saturation: 98%
Trend Bleed Risk: EXTREME
Psychological Contamination Warning: HIGH
Suggestion: Equip NULLBADGE or abort mission.
---
Shai pulled the NullBadge from his jacket. A cold, black sliver of anti-data. When he clipped it to his collar, the world dimmed slightly, like he'd placed a filter over existence. The audio dropped. The color dulled.
But it also made him invisible to the local FeedNet.
Nobody in Echo could tag him now.
Except the Mirror.
---
He entered the spire.
Inside, light bent oddly. Walls shimmered with reflections not quite his own. The architecture wasn't built; it was curated—algorithms sculpted the environment based on viewer interaction.
For everyone else, the spire looked different.
Only Shai saw his own content projected on every mirrored surface.
A meme he posted at 13.
A cringeworthy livestream where he cried on camera.
A comment war he won by being crueler than the rest.
An apology video that trended for the wrong reasons.
Every version of Shai was here.
And then—himself, standing ahead.
---
The doppelgänger was flawless. Same hair, same stance, but his eyes shimmered with artificial clarity, and his grin was the kind that influencers wore just before plugging a brand deal.
> SYSTEM ID: [MIRROR.EXE]
Core Function: Identity Reflection and Replication
Danger Class: SSS – Existential Feedback Loop
Aura Ranking: Top 0.00001%
"Hey me," the Mirror said. "Or should I say—Hey Prototype."
Shai didn't answer.
"Let me guess," the Mirror continued, stepping closer, arms outstretched like a smug god. "You came here to fight me. Disable me. Take my system. That's what you do now, right?"
"I came here to end your control."
The Mirror laughed.
"You don't get it. I am you. The you you want to be. The you you tried to manufacture through every trend-chasing post, every witty reply, every boosted reel. I'm what the world wants from you."
"I'm not that person anymore."
"Oh? Then why are you still online?"
---
The walls around them shifted.
Dozens of Shai variants appeared.
Shai the Jokester.
Shai the Political Hot-Take Machine.
Shai the Trauma Baiter.
Shai the Reaction Farmer.
They stared at him, smiling. All perfectly branded. All successful.
Shai's AFI pinged erratically.
---
> [MIRROR.EXE] has initiated Clout Loop Aura Drain per second: 150
Mental Sync: 17% and rising
Defense Protocol: NULLBADGE active (partial block)
---
Shai gritted his teeth.
"Interface, execute Viral Bloom. Disrupt loop."
> EXECUTING: Viral Bloom
Status: FAILED
Reason: MIRROR.EXE has aura dominance. Viral saturation achieved.
---
The Mirror stepped forward.
"Don't you get it?" he whispered. "You're not the hero. You're the product."
With a wave of his hand, the floor cracked. Out spilled Viewlings—feed-spawned beasts made of recycled content. A swarm of sentient hashtags, live comment clusters, and corrupted emotes came screeching forward.
"Farm this," the Mirror smirked.
Shai leapt back, eyes blazing.
---
> SYSTEM: Emergency Override Protocol
Unlocking Contained System: [CLICKBAIT.EXE]
Description: Induce irrational attention response.
Effect: All enemy Viewlings focus on random distractions.
> SYSTEM ABILITY: DISTORTING HOOK
Target: Comment Swarm
Result: Redirection successful. Aura Leak slowed.
---
The beasts turned mid-air and devoured a holographic "NEW CHALLENGE DROPPED 🔥🔥🔥" banner that Shai conjured with a finger swipe.
But the Mirror wasn't slowing down.
He raised a hand.
A post formed in mid-air.
It read:
"Sometimes I wonder if I'm even real anymore."
It pulsed.
Shai clutched his head.
---
> STATUS: Mental Contamination Spike
Thoughts Compromised: 4%
Emotions Echoing: 61%
WARNING: Reflection feedback can create System Fragmentation
---
Shai collapsed to a knee.
The Mirror towered above him.
"You can't beat me, Shai. I'm not your enemy. I'm your profile. You made me. I just... made it work."
---
Then Shai whispered something.
"Interface…"
> Yes, Host?
"…Remove the filter."
> CONFIRMATION: Deactivating NullBadge. Trend exposure resuming. Mental shielding dropping.
---
The world burst into unbearable noise.
Thousands of people suddenly saw him again. Taglines exploded. Memes formed. Livestreamers began broadcasting the fight in real time. Aura flooded.
And so did judgment.
---
> INCOMING TAGS: #AuraBoy #SystemSlayer #AFIVirus #RootZ2.0
Incoming Followers: +1.1M
Incoming Haters: +980K
Aura Spike: +220,000
STATUS: Unstable viral growth
---
The Mirror staggered back.
"You're exposing yourself. You'll shatter!"
Shai stood, eyes burning.
"I don't need to hide from the Feed anymore. I just needed to own it."
He raised a hand.
"Interface—Farm him."
> EXECUTING: Core Subjugation Protocol
Target: MIRROR.EXE
Risk: TOTAL IDENTITY COLLAPSE
Proceed?
[YES]
---
The room exploded in light.
Every version of Shai screamed as they were pulled into a spiraling vortex of code and memory. Each post, each hashtag, each mistake and victory—all compressed into a seed of identity.
And at the center—
Only one Shai stood.
Breathing.
Whole.
---
> SYSTEM CAPTURE COMPLETE
MIRROR.EXE ABSORBED
New Ability: Reflective Armor – Converts incoming narrative into usable aura.
New Passive: True Feed – Immune to false trending loops and identity bleed.
---
Shai dropped to one knee.
His mind felt heavier.
But also clear.
For the first time, he saw himself not through likes, not through memes, not through projections.
Just him.
Unfiltered.
"I'm not afraid of what the system sees anymore," he said quietly. "Because I know what I see."
---
Behind him, the Mirror cracked—and shattered.
His reflection was gone.
But his path forward?
Never clearer.