The first warning came from ATLAS, its digital voice unusually tense in my neural interface: "Multiple quantum signatures detected. They're using our technology, Jack."
I felt them before I saw them - dimensional ripples in the facility's corridors that matched my own quantum shifting abilities. Six figures materialized through the walls, their combat suits sleek and familiar. Too familiar.
"They've reverse-engineered the technology from previous hosts," ATLAS explained. "Government black ops program designation: Mirror Warriors."
The lead soldier's helmet retracted, revealing a face twisted by partial nano-integration. "Subject Steel," he announced, "Stand down or be terminated."
I laughed, but there was no humor in it. "How many of your predecessors died trying to copy what I've become?"
"Enough to perfect the process," he replied coldly. "We are the next evolution."
The nanomachines within me surged, conducting instant tactical analysis. Their suits mimicked my basic capabilities - quantum shifting, enhanced strength, accelerated healing. But something felt off about their signatures.
"They're running unstable versions," ATLAS confirmed. "Approximately 47% of our current capabilities, but highly volatile."
I shifted into combat stance as they encircled me. "You're pale copies, running on borrowed power."
The first attack came from three directions simultaneously - they'd clearly studied my fighting style. Their quantum shifts were precise, coordinated. I barely dodged the first strike, caught the second with a reinforced forearm, but the third landed hard against my ribs.
Pain. Real pain. It had been months since anything had hurt me like this.
"Adapting defensive protocols," ATLAS announced. "Their weapons are calibrated specifically to disrupt our nano-structure."
I snarled, letting the nanomachines flood my system with combat enhancers. "Then let's show them what the original can do."
The battle transformed the facility's corridors into a quantum war zone. We phased through walls and floors, trading blows at speeds that would have pulverized normal humans. They matched my every move with practiced precision - but I could feel their limitations.
Their quantum shifts left energy traces. Their healing took precious seconds longer. Their strikes, while powerful, lacked the fluid adaptation of true nano-integration.
"Warning," ATLAS interjected as I grappled with two soldiers. "Their unstable integration is reaching critical levels. Recommend immediate distance."
The warning came just in time. One of the soldiers screamed as his quantum field collapsed, his body literally tearing apart at the molecular level. The sight was grotesque - a reminder of my own early days, when rejection had been a constant threat.
"You're killing your own men," I shouted at their leader. "This technology wasn't meant to be copied!"
"Acceptable losses," he replied, launching another coordinated assault. "We'll perfect it through iteration. Through you."
The remaining four pressed their attack with desperate intensity. They knew their time was limited, their borrowed power eating them alive. I took advantage of their deteriorating control, using their own quantum signatures against them.
One by one, their fields destabilized. Some I helped along with precisely targeted strikes. Others simply fell apart, their bodies rejecting the imperfect integration. It was almost merciful compared to what unchecked nano-rejection could do.
Finally, only the leader remained, his suit sparking with failing quantum energy.
"You could have been part of something greater," he gasped, blood trickling from his nose. "Could have helped us evolve humanity the right way."
I grabbed him by the throat, studying the corruption spreading through his system. "I am something greater. And humanity's evolution will happen on my terms."
His eyes widened as I interfaced with his suit's systems, absorbing what useful data remained before his quantum field collapsed entirely. He didn't scream like the others. Maybe he'd known how it would end.
"Data analysis complete," ATLAS reported as I let the body fall. "Their research provides valuable insights into governmental nano-integration attempts. But there's something else, Jack. The quantum signatures... they're not just copies of our technology."
I frowned, processing the implications. "What do you mean?"
"Some of the base code... it's Xynos. They're trying to merge our capabilities with alien tech."
The revelation hung heavy in the air as I surveyed the aftermath of battle. These weren't just pale imitations - they were hybrid abominations, cobbled together from stolen power and alien secrets.
"Track the source," I commanded. "Find me their research facility."
"Already triangulating," ATLAS confirmed. "But Jack... there's more. The alien code they used? It's active. And it's sending signals."
I watched as the fallen soldiers' bodies began to disintegrate, breaking down into familiar patterns. Patterns I'd seen before, on Invasion Day.
"They didn't just copy our power," I realized. "They opened a door."
The facility's emergency lights began to pulse red, and somewhere in the distance, dimensional barriers started to crack.