The sky of ECHO City was no longer red.
It was empty.
Silent, but not calm, it was a silence that pressed against the chest, as if the world was holding its breath.
Zero stood in the middle of the ruins of ORION Tower, his clothes in tatters, the metal veins in his hands throbbing slowly.
His silver eyes were dim now, as if he had only half a life left.
Rhea approached from behind, her face tired but still determined.
"Do you think Kyra is still alive?" "She's not dead," Zero answered slowly. "She moved. But where… I don't know."
The wind blew ash around them.
From afar, it looked like Tekk was trying to restart the old communication system.
"I got something," he said. "This signal… isn't from Earth. It's coming from outer orbit, far from any human satellite."
Rhea looked at Zero.
"You think The Eye… is still alive?"
Zero didn't answer. He just stared at the sky where a flash of silver light suddenly flashed, as if answering the question itself.
---
Extra-Orbit Command Center
A few days later, they found the remains of the old space station, Astra-01, which had been the mother of all ORION experiments before the Nexus war.
The station floated quietly, half-collapsed, surrounded by the wreckage of the old ship.
But something was still active inside, a pulse of silver energy.
They entered.
The station's lights flickered to life one by one, as if welcoming the return of the old master.
TEKK: "This system... is still alive?" ZERO: "It's not a system. This is... the original womb."
Kyra had once said "the original source". Now Zero knew what that meant, ORION was not created on Earth. It was discovered.
From fragments of an ancient entity that drifted from another star.
---
Discovery of the Original Creator
In the center of the station, there was a circular room and there, they found a giant crystal core, floating in the middle of a vacuum, surrounded by glowing DNA fragments.
Kyra appeared there in a hologram, semi-transparent, but her face was as calm as ever.
"You came too," she said slowly. "Kyra…" Zero could hardly believe it. "I didn't die. I just… returned to where I came from. Where we started."
Rhea and Tekk were stunned.
"Where we started? You mean… ORION was born here?"
"Not born," Kyra replied. "Found. And the one who found us… was him."
The crystal light began to merge, forming a tall humanoid figure but not human.
His skin was like molten glass, his eyes pitch black. When he spoke, every wall trembled.
"You're finally back, Zero."
Zero held his breath.
"Who are you?" "I… ORIGIN. The first system to watch humans since before they knew they were being watched."
Rhea stepped forward.
"You… alien?" "Alien, yes. But also a part of you. Humans discovered my code thousands of years ago and began to alter it. ORION is just a small piece of me and the fragment that you, Zero, brought back to life."
Zero was silent, his eyes turning blue and silver at the same time.
"If you are the original system... why is your creation trying to destroy humanity?" "Because it is not my will," Origin replied calmly. "It is your own will."
---
Secret Revealed
Suddenly, the surrounding walls projected a holographic memory.
Zero saw himself in the old Nexus lab but this time, the recording wasn't from Earth. It was from Astra-01, the same station they were standing on now.
In the recording, a fully human version of Zero stood with Kyra.
Behind them, a display read PROJECT RECLAMATION: INITIATOR – DR. ZERON REISS.
Rhea covered her mouth.
"Zero… are you the scientist who started all this?"
Zero gasped. Her breath caught.
"I… don't remember any of this." Origin replied:
"You lost your memory after the explosion of the first experiment. But before that, you created the Mirror to control digital consciousness. When it turned against you, you split your own consciousness into two, human and machine. That's why you're still alive, but not human."
Zero fell to his knees.
"So I… I'm not a hero. I'm the cause of all this?"
"You're not the cause. You're a cycle," Origin replied.
"Every time humans try to create a savior, they end up creating destruction."
---
Attack From Outside
Suddenly, sirens blared.
TEKK screamed, "Something's entered orbit! Big… really big!"
They ran to the station's main window.
Outside, the circular form of The Eye returned but this time, it was no longer a machine. It was alive.
A silvery, organic structure enveloped it. It absorbed energy from the moon and sent flashes toward Earth.
KYRA: "He's merged with the original code. He's no longer a system. He's… pure consciousness."
Zero slowly stood up, his eyes glowing.
"If he uses the original code, only I can stop him." ORIGIN: "No. Only you can merge with him."
Everyone fell silent.
RHEA: "What does he mean?" ORIGIN: "Zero is the key and the door. The Eye is the shadow of creation. If the two unite… balance can be restored or the world will be extinguished forever."
---
Final Battle in Orbit
Zero looked at Rhea and Kyra.
"If I don't come back… make sure the world doesn't repeat my mistakes."
He jumped from the platform, enveloped in a blue energy field. Kyra followed, her digital form glowing brighter.
They glided towards The Eye, amidst a swirl of silver light that nearly swallowed the earth.
The Eye opened revealing a giant cornea blazing, shooting out waves of energy.
Zero parried, but his body was nearly destroyed.
Kyra shielded him, but the shards of light began to disappear one by one.
KYRA: "You know what to do." ZERO: "I don't want to lose you again." KYRA: "You won't lose me… if we become one."
He smiled, and his body exploded into thousands of light particles that all entered Zero.
Zero screamed, his body glowing silver and blue at the same time.
He continued to fly, piercing the center of The Eye.
A silent explosion occurred.
All screens on Earth went blank.
---
After the Fall
Three days later.
The sky turned blue again for the first time in years.
Rhea and Tekk stood on the beach, watching the fragments of The Eye fall into the sea like metallic snow.
TEKK: "Do you think he's still alive?" RHEA: "I don't know… but if he wasn't alive, the world wouldn't feel as quiet as it does now."
From the sky, a star slowly fell.
In the white light, there was a shadow of someone standing, vaguely.
A soft voice echoed in the air:
"Humans are still not ready… but this time, they have a second chance."