The air was colder in the underground tunnels beneath Sector 7.
Ethan felt the chill seep through his jacket, but the discomfort barely registered. His mind was elsewhere—trapped in an endless loop of doubt and second-guessing.
Dorian walked a few paces ahead, his steps steady but his shoulders weighed down with the burden of unspoken guilt.
Lena was silent beside Ethan, her eyes scanning every shadow in the narrow corridor. Her usual confidence was strained—like she was standing on a razor's edge, ready to strike at the first sign of betrayal.
Ethan didn't blame her.
Not after what had happened.
"You should've killed him."
Ethan's jaw clenched. Crowe's voice had been a whisper at first, but it was louder now—persistent.
"You gave him another chance. And now?"
Ethan tried to push the voice away, but it lingered at the edges of his mind, a constant reminder that his decision to spare Dorian could cost them everything.
"Core's ahead," Dorian murmured, his voice barely above a whisper.
Ethan's focus snapped back to the present.
They had reached the entrance to HelixCorp's Central Core—a fortified underground facility that housed the corporation's most sensitive data.
A single reinforced door stood in their way, secured by a biometric lock and layered encryption protocols.
"Can you crack it?" Ethan asked, his voice low.
Dorian nodded, his fingers already moving across the holo-interface projected from his cybernetic implants.
"I'll need a minute," Dorian murmured, his tone devoid of the usual confidence.
Lena didn't speak, but her eyes never left Dorian's hands.
"You're still watching him."
Crowe's voice echoed again, sharp and calculating.
"Smart. Because if he turns on you... it's over."
Ethan forced himself to breathe.
Not now.
Dorian's Hands Moved Faster.
"Got it," Dorian murmured, the holo-display flashing green.
The door hissed open, revealing a dimly lit chamber lined with data terminals and processing units. The air was cool, almost sterile, but beneath the hum of machinery...
Ethan felt it.
A pulse.
"The Core."
Crowe's voice was almost reverent now, echoing softly in Ethan's mind.
"This is where it all began."
Ethan stepped inside, his senses immediately on high alert.
Rows of data servers pulsed with blue light, the faint glow illuminating the vast expanse of the chamber.
Lena's eyes narrowed as she scanned the perimeter, her finger hovering near the trigger of her pulse pistol.
"Where do we start?" she murmured.
"Crowe's encrypted files," Ethan replied softly, his gaze locked on the central terminal at the far end of the chamber.
"Everything we need... is in there."
But the Pulse Was Stronger Now.
Ethan's steps faltered for a moment, his vision blurring slightly.
A faint tremor ran through his hands.
"You feel it, don't you?"
Crowe's voice was smoother this time. Less urgent.
"The Codex... it's waking up."
"Ethan?"
Lena's voice pulled him back.
He blinked, forcing the haze away.
"Yeah..." He cleared his throat, his voice steady. "I'm fine."
But he wasn't.
Something was wrong.
Dorian Approached the Terminal.
"Give me a minute," Dorian murmured, his hands already moving across the holo-interface.
Ethan stayed back, his eyes scanning the chamber as tension coiled in his muscles.
But the pulse was growing stronger now.
"It's starting."
Crowe's voice was almost... amused.
"You can't stop it, Ethan. The merge has begun."
Ethan's jaw clenched as his body tensed involuntarily.
A sharp, tingling sensation ran down his spine—like static electricity building up just beneath his skin.
His pulse quickened.
"Almost there," Dorian murmured, his eyes narrowing as lines of encrypted data scrolled across the holo-display.
But Ethan barely heard him.
The World Felt... Different.
The glow of the Core's servers was brighter. The faint vibrations of the data streams echoed louder in his ears.
And then—
A voice.
"Authorization detected... Codex protocol engaged."
Ethan's breath caught.
"Dorian..." Ethan's voice was strained now, his eyes locked on the holo-display.
Dorian's fingers hesitated.
"What is that?" Lena asked, her eyes narrowing.
"An internal protocol," Dorian murmured, his voice barely above a whisper. "Buried deep in the system."
But Ethan knew what it was.
"It's you."
Crowe's voice was a whisper now, but its presence was undeniable.
"The Codex is recognizing you, Ethan."
Ethan's DNA Was Reacting.
His vision blurred again, and for a split second...
He wasn't standing in the Core anymore.
Flashes.
Rows of genetic data.Sequences rewriting themselves.And at the center of it all—
Him.
"Ethan?"
Lena's voice was sharper now, pulling him back.
Ethan blinked, his grip tightening on the edge of the terminal.
"I'm fine," he murmured, but the words felt hollow.
Because deep down...
He knew he was lying.
"You're changing, Ethan."
Crowe's voice was barely a whisper now...
But it was louder than ever.
"Got it," Dorian murmured, his voice breaking the silence.
The holo-display flashed, revealing a series of encrypted files.
"Crowe's original protocols," Dorian murmured softly. "They're all here."
Ethan's heart pounded in his ears.
Lena leaned in, her eyes narrowing as she scanned the data.
"This..." she murmured softly. "This is bigger than we thought."
Ethan's gaze locked on the files.
And he felt it again—
The pulse.
"This is only the beginning."
Crowe's voice echoed softly in Ethan's mind.
"The Codex isn't done with you yet."
Ethan's jaw clenched.
Because deep down...
He knew Crowe was right.