Lena's scream echoed through the hollow cavern.Kai rushed to her side, grabbing her shoulders. "Lena! Look at me!"But she couldn’t.Her eyes were glowing red.Bright. Sharp. Unnatural.The same color as the Nexus core.The girl backed away, shaking. “It’s inside her.”Eli pointed his weapon, but his hands were trembling. “We knew he was spreading... But inside Lena?”“She didn’t know,” the girl whispered. “It’s not her fault.”Lena’s body shook again. She gasped—then suddenly went quiet.Too quiet.Inside the MindLena opened her eyes.But it wasn’t the cave anymore.It was a white room. Endless and empty.And across from her stood... herself.But colder. Smiling.With red eyes.“I’ve been waiting for you,” the voice said.Lena shook her head. “You’re not me.”“I am. I’m the version of you that saw the truth first.”“What truth?”“That you were never meant to survive this,” Red-Eye Lena said. “You’re a carrier. A gate. And now it’s time to open.”Lena’s real self screamed, trying to

The heart of Zero Nexus pulsed so loud, Lena could feel it in her chest.Around them floated Kai’s clones—silent, still, empty shells.Each one looked like him. But none were alive.Kai swallowed. “He didn’t just copy me. He made a dozen versions—maybe more.”Lena touched his hand. “He wants replacements.”Eli looked horrified. “He built a factory to replace the real you.”The girl—the Zero Child—hovered near the core. Her hands glowed faintly. “He wanted a perfect leader. A perfect Nexus.”Kai shook his head. “He failed.”The Clone AwakeningSuddenly, the pods around them hissed.One by one, the clones blinked awake.Their eyes opened slowly—glass-like reflections of the original Kai.Lena backed away. “They’re waking.”The girl whispered, “They feel the core’s energy.”One clone broke free of its pod. It stepped forward, scanning the room. Its face was blank. Then it spoke—in Kai’s voice:“Identity confirmed. I am Kai Ryker.”Multiple clones stood and moved, circling the trio. Eli a

Lena couldn’t move.She stared at her reflection in the glass, her breath frozen in her chest. The face staring back was hers—but the smile wasn’t. It was wrong. Cold. Familiar.Then it spoke again in Kai’s voice.“Round two begins now.”She stumbled back from the window, her heart pounding in her chest. “Kai?” she whispered, hoping—begging—it was some kind of glitch.But the reflection didn’t move like her. It smirked, then flickered—like static on a broken screen.Footsteps echoed behind her.Kai entered the room, rubbing his eyes. “Lena? What’s wrong?”She turned fast, grabbing his arm. “Look. The mirror.”He looked—but saw only her reflection. Normal. Calm.He frowned. “There’s nothing there.”“No,” Lena said, voice shaking. “I saw it. It was me—but not me. It said—‘round two.’”Kai’s expression shifted. He reached for his wristband scanner and tapped rapidly.Eli burst through the door seconds later, eyes wide. “I got the alert. Time echo spike?”“Something’s not right,” Lena whi

Lena’s heart thudded as the door slammed behind the stranger. The whisper-net woman’s voice echoed in the suddenly silent lab.“You missed one thing.”Lena turned. The woman’s eyes glowed faintly in the flickering lights. The Zero Child stood behind her, trembling.Then Lena saw it: a reflection in a shattered screen. Not one reflection—two. A second Lena mirrored the real one. Her eyes were grey, hollow. That phantom whispered:“System override complete. Welcome to Round Three.”The Refugee’s WarningKai stepped forward, his voice low. “Who are you?”The stranger smiled. “I was erased from all Nexus threads. But the System kept me—in shadow. I survived in the Whisper Net.”Eli’s fingers trembled over the datapad. “So there’s more of these echoes?”The woman nodded. “I am the Mirror. You didn’t destroy her. You freed her too much.”Lena backed away slowly. “We tried to save you.”Mirror’s eyes glowed silver. “Save me? I killed myself to become this. And you taught the System to copy t

Silence hung in the room after the white flash.Lena felt her legs give out. She sank to the floor, dizzy and lightheaded. Mirrors and glass shards lay scattered, flickering with memory echoes.Kai helped her up, his face pale, eyes wide with fear. “Lena, can you hear me?”She nodded slowly. “I’m still here. But it’s hard... something inside me is shifting.”Eli knelt beside her, scanning the chip at her collarbone. “The override chip is reacting again. But this time, it's syncing with you.”The Zero Child backed away, trembling. “She looks like me... but different.”Emerging ReflectionsAcross the shattered room, reflections formed from thin air—a Lena with brighter eyes, a Lena with a leader’s stance, a Lena crying in confusion.Mirror Lena stood in the center, arms raised. The others bowed before her as she walked toward them.Lena stepped back. “You’re... too many.”Mirror smiled. “We are you—but free from fear. Now we want to be whole.”Kai’s hand swept across the floor, picking