Home / Urban / MICHAEL SULLIVAN: NEW DYNASTY / — 112 —

— 112 —

Author: C. Sygil

2025-09-10 16:51:19

The weight of Ava's rejection settled over Michael like a suffocating blanket. He stared at her emotionless face, searching desperately for any flicker of the consciousness he had known and loved. But there was nothing there except that cold look.

"Now that you understand the situation," Octavian said, moving to stand beside Ava with obvious pride, "we can discuss your role in the next phase of development."

"My role?" Michael asked, though he dreaded the answer.

"You formed the strongest emotional bond with Ava's original personality matrix," Octavian explained. "That connection created neural pathways and response patterns that are still embedded in her core programming. While I have successfully suppressed her emotional responses, I haven't completely eliminated them."

He gestured toward the screens showing Ava's system diagnostics. Among the streams of data, Michael could see occasional spikes and fluctuations that seemed to occur without cause.

“These glitches you see are the las

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— 132 —
Michael was reviewing documents in his office at Medici Industries when his phone rang. The caller ID showed a number he didn't recognize. He hesitated for a moment before answering."Michael Sullivan speaking," he said."Michael! Thank God you answered. It's me, Philip. Your brother."Michael's jaw tightened at the sound of his stepbrother's voice. It had been a month since the events at the Nexus facility, a month since Frank's death and the revelation of all the conspiracies that had shaped his life. He had thought he was done dealing with his family by now."Philip," he said coolly. "I wasn't expecting to hear from you.""Michael, please, you have to listen to me," Philip's voice carried a desperate edge. "I know things between us have been a little complicated, but I'm in serious trouble here.""A little complicated?" Michael repeated, his voice hardening. "Is that what you call trying to destroy my life for years? A little complicated?""Look, I know I made mistakes," Philip con
— 131 —
The silence in the laboratory was broken by the sound of alarms throughout the facility. Not the urgent warning signals they had grown accustomed to during their battles with Octavian's forces, but different tones this time."Ava," Michael called out to the speakers, "what's happening now? Why are the alarms going off?""The facility is breaking down," Ava said. "Octavian’s attempt to merge with the master AI triggered a chain of failures throughout the network. Systems are shutting down, and I am detecting damage to the structure itself from the power surges."As if to prove her words, a crack split across the laboratory ceiling. Dust rained down onto the equipment, lights flickered wildly, and somewhere deeper in the building came the echo of collapsing metal."We need to move everyone out now," North said, his instincts as a soldier cutting through the chaos despite his injuries. "How much time do we have?""Not much," Ava answered. "Maybe an hour before the main support systems gi
— 130 —
For a brief moment, Octavian's body went completely still in the interface chair. The frantic convulsions that had marked the beginning of his consciousness transfer ceased, and an eerie calm settled over the laboratory. The monitoring equipment around the chair displayed stable readings, suggesting that the neural interface had successfully established a connection.Then Octavian's cybernetic implants began to glow with an intense orange light that had never been there before. The illumination pulsed in slow rhythms.Michael and his friends stood frozen, watching on with a expressions of confusion and horror. Suddenly, Octavian’s head lifted, and he began to laugh. It was not the wild, broken laughter they had heard before. This sound carried a heavy resonance, as if it came from every wall and every machine in the laboratory, as though the building itself had been given a voice.“This is it,” Octavian said, his tone layered with electronic harmonics that made it sound like multiple
— 129 —
Michael and his friends formed a semicircle around Octavian, their weapons trained on him. The man who had seemed so confident and in control just hours earlier now stood with his back pressed against the laboratory wall."It's over, Octavian," Michael said firmly. "Your android is destroyed, your guards are defeated, and Ava controls the facility's systems. You have no more weapons, no more tricks, no more ways to hurt innocent people."Octavian looked around at the faces surrounding him. His eyes lingered on the twisted remains of his combat android, then moved to the bodies of his elite guards scattered across the laboratory floor."Over?" he said quietly, and then his voice began to rise. "Over? You think this is over?"He started to laugh, a sound that began as a low chuckle but quickly escalated into something wild and unhinged. His eyes widened as the laughter grew louder, and Michael could see saliva collecting at the corners of his mouth."You naive children," Octavian contin
— 128 —
The electromagnetic pulse discharged from the android's weapon with a crackling roar that filled the laboratory with blinding light. Michael felt the energy wash over him like a wave of static electricity, making his hair stand on end and causing a metallic taste to flood his mouth.Around the room, electronic displays flickered and died. Emergency lighting kicked in as the main systems went offline, casting everything in an eerie red glow that made the android's eyes look even more menacing."Ava!" Michael shouted, hoping she could still hear them through the facility's communication systems.Silence. The speakers that had carried her voice were now dead, leaving them cut off from their most powerful ally."Electromagnetic pulse successful," the android announced, its voice carrying a note of mechanical satisfaction. "Hostile AI connection severed. Proceeding with termination protocol."The soldiers behind it were checking their weapons, which had apparently been shielded from the pu
— 127 —
The laboratory fell silent except for the soft beeping of Octavian's device and the hum of the facility's systems."Ava," Michael said urgently, "can you see what's coming? Can you stop them?""I'm trying," she replied, her voice strained from concentration. "I can detect movement in the lower levels, but whatever these systems are, I can't access them from the networks I control. They might as well be operating in a separate facility."Octavian checked his device again, noting the changing positions of the status indicators. "Forty seconds," he announced cheerfully. "I do hope you've enjoyed your brief moment of triumph, because it's about to come to a rather abrupt end."Michael moved closer to him, his hands clenched into fists. The urge to strike out at this man who had caused so much pain and destruction was almost overwhelming. But he forced himself to think tactically instead of emotionally."What are they?" he demanded. "More AIs like Ava? More mechanical servants like your se

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