The tunnel was pitch dark.
Only the flickering light of the old emergency bulbs overhead illuminated the path. The sound of dripping water echoed through the tunnel. The vibrations from the previous explosion were still felt in the walls.
Aarav and Ishani ran nonstop.
"Kabir…" Ishani's voice broke.
Aarav looked at her, but said nothing.
Both knew—that was a sacrifice.
Underground City
A few minutes later, the tunnel widened. A massive metal door appeared before them, illuminated by a faint blue light.
Above the door was written:
MEMORIA CORE – Restricted Zone
Aarav took a deep breath.
"This is it."
Ishani asked, "Will your bio-signature work?"
"If they haven't completely removed my access yet… then yes."
He went to the door.
He placed his palm on the scanner.
A few seconds of silence.
Then—
Access: Conditional
Agent Status: Compromised
A soft alarm sounded.
"Quickly!" Ishani whispered.
The door opened halfway.
The two of them entered.
Memory Bank
The view inside was incredible.
A vast hall.
Thousands of transparent capsules—each one glowing with digital lights.
These were people's memories.
Laughter.
Pain.
Secrets.
Everything captured in code.
Tears welled up in Ishani's eyes.
"That's where I saw your file..."
Aarav stepped forward. His eyes scanned the screen.
He saw his name.
AARAV VERMA – Archive Locked
His heart began to pound.
File of Truth
He turned on the terminal.
Password?
He didn't remember.
But as soon as he touched the keyboard—
his fingers started moving on their own.
"Your brain still remembers the training," Ishani said.
The screen opened.
The file played.
The real deception
The same white room as in the video.
But this time—
There was another face.
Director K. Rao.
"Subject Aarav showed unexpected resistance," a scientist said.
"Remove the girl from his memory," Rao said.
"Emotional bonds are weakness."
"Sir, what about Ishani Sen?"
Rao's eyes went cold.
"Monitor her. She may lead us to future resistance cells."
The video ended.
Ishani stepped back.
"Do you mean... they deliberately left me alive?"
"So that I could reach you someday," Aarav gritted his teeth.
"And they can follow us."
Just then—
The hall lights turned red.
The Director Arrives
A glass platform descended from above.
Standing on it was Director K. Rao.
White hair, calm face, hands clasped behind his back.
"I was wondering how long it would take you to get here," he said.
Ishani's anger exploded.
"You stole her life!"
Rao smiled.
"No. I gave her purpose."
Aarav picked up his gun.
"Capturing people's memories isn't the purpose."
Rao clapped his hands.
Suddenly, guards appeared from all sides.
"You don't understand, Aarav," Rao said.
"Memories are the most dangerous weapon. If we don't control them... chaos will spread."
"So you've become God?" Aarav shouted.
"No," Rao said calmly.
"I'm the editor. The editor of history."
The Final Plan
Ishani whispered,
"The core server is down. If we overload it…"
"Then all the imprisoned memories will be released," Aarav finished.
"And chaos will spread across the city," Rao laughed.
"People will know the truth. Governments will fall."
Aarav looked him in the eyes.
"A system that fears the truth must fall."
Rao's face hardened for the first time.
"You must be eliminated."
The Bullet and the Code
The guards opened fire.
Aarav took cover.
Pushed Ishani toward the terminal.
"Find the core access!"
Amidst the gunfire, Aarav stepped forward.
He pointed his memory gun directly at the main control panel.
"If this system can erase memories…"
he muttered.
"Then it can erase itself."
Ishani yelled,
"Aarav! Back!"
Rao took out his pistol.
A shot rang out.
Aarav's shoulder was hit.
He fell.
A moment of silence.
It was as if time stopped.
Ishani ran towards him.
Rao came down.
"See?" she said calmly.
"Emotions are weakness."
Aarav smiled through the pain.
"No... strength."
He took out the small data chip from his pocket—the one Ishani had shown him earlier.
"What is this?" Rao furrowed his brows.
Ishani replied—
"Kabir's last gift."
The data chip was already connected to the core.
The countdown began on the screen.
Memory Liberation Protocol – Activated
10...
9...
Rao's face filled with fear for the first time.
"You're crazy! The entire system will crash!"
Aarav grabbed Ishani's hand.
"People's memories will return."
3...
2...
Rao shouted, "Wait!"
1...
A bright light filled the entire hall.
Capsules began exploding one by one.
Data streams flashed in the air—like millions of fireflies being set free.
The city lights flickered.
Memories buried in the minds of every citizen of New Tokyo began to return.
Reality was returning.
Amidst the light—
Aarav and Ishani looked at each other.
But was the system completely destroyed?
Or is there still something left?