The morning light struggled through the drawn blinds of Kira's home office. She had been awake for hours, watching the digital avalanche destroy everything she had built. Her phone buzzed constantly, another client pulling out, another investor demanding answers, another social media notification she couldn't bear to read."Kira, we need to talk." Her PR director, Sarah, burst through the door without knocking, her usually perfect hair disheveled. "Have you seen the video?""I've seen it.""Then you know we're in full crisis mode. The phones haven't stopped ringing. Everyone wants to know your position on this... this thing."Kira replayed the cryptic video for the hundredth time. The child's face, streaked with tears and dust. Mazzle's scarred features fading in and out. The distorted words that seemed to echo from another world entirely."What position am I supposed to take?" Kira's voice was hollow. "I don't even know what it means.""That's exactly the problem." Sarah pulled up a

The Sinclair family administrative boardroom felt smaller than usual as Jackson stood at the head of the polished table. The morning light filtered through tall windows, casting long shadows across the faces of the assembled elders and legacy shareholders. He had called the emergency meeting with less than twelve hours' notice, ensuring Kira would receive word too late to prepare a defense."Ladies and gentlemen," Jackson began, his voice carrying the weight of authority, "we're here because the security breach at Kira's company has created an unacceptable risk to our entire operation."Elder Margaret shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "Jackson, she's family. We don't abandon family over business concerns.""This isn't about abandonment. It's about protection." Jackson activated a wall display showing news headlines about the cyberattack. "Data theft, customer information compromised, ongoing federal investigation. The association with our name is damaging our reputation.""What exact

The rain hammered against the floor-to-ceiling windows of Kira's penthouse as she padded barefoot across the marble floor, music still humming from the speakers she'd left on all night. Sleep had been impossible anyway. At her front door, she found a courier envelope that hadn't been there when she'd checked the locks at midnight.The wax seal was unbroken, marked with the Sinclair family crest, but beneath it was a sigil she didn't recognize—older, more weathered. The courier ID had been deliberately erased, no time stamps to make tracking impossible.Inside, her hands trembled as she unfolded a handwritten note written in careful script: "Some debts are too old for apology. But the truth must find you now. Ask your father about 'Echo-Seven.' Then decide if silence is still a virtue."Below the note was a worn photograph that made her breath catch. Her father, James Thompson, in military uniform—but not the Eastside National Guard uniform she remembered from his stories. This was som

Kira walked into her office that morning expecting the usual chaos of damage control, but what she found was something far worse. The bright morning light had been dulled by drawn blinds, and the atmosphere felt thick with tension that made breathing difficult."Ma'am, we have a situation," her assistant Patricia said, rushing toward her with a stack of termination notices. "Five more vendors pulled out overnight. Major ones, from our security firm, the data hosting company, even the coffee service."Kira stared at the papers. "What reasons did they give?""That's the thing. None of them would explain. They just cited contractual obligations and walked away."Her head of IT, David Park, approached looking pale. "It gets worse. Our business communication network is being throttled. Emails are bouncing back, security clearances are being revoked in real-time, and our financial dashboards keep freezing mid-access.""Someone's targeting our infrastructure," Kira said, sinking into her cha

The silence hit her like a physical blow.Kira stood outside her company's headquarters, staring at the glass doors that had once opened for her every morning for the past years. The building looked the same, still maintaining its sleek, imposing and untouched look. But something was wrong. The usual bustle of employees was absent. The lobby sat empty except for two security guards she didn't recognize.She approached the entrance, her heels clicking against the marble. The scanner beeped red as she pressed her badge against it."Ma'am, I'm going to need you to step back," one of the guards said, moving toward her."I'm Kira Sinclair," she said, holding up her ID. "I own here."The guard examined her credentials with the detachment of someone checking a stranger's documents. "I'm sorry, but your access has been revoked. You're not authorized to enter this building.""Revoked?" The word felt foreign in her mouth. "There must be some mistake. I need to speak with my staff—""Ma'am, plea