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Home / Sci-Fi / ZERO NEXUS / Chapter Thirteen ( THE OTHER ME)
Chapter Thirteen ( THE OTHER ME)
Author: Starboy
last update2025-07-31 21:59:30

Lena stared at the girl in front of her.

Same face.

Same voice.

But something was off.

Her eyes were colder. Her smile was crooked. Her presence felt sharp, like broken glass.

“What… are you?” Lena asked quietly.

The other her tilted her head. “I’m you. The you that stopped hoping.”

“No.” Lena backed up. “You’re not real.”

“Oh, I’m real,” Dark Lena said. “I’m a version of you that chose differently. When everything fell apart, I let it burn. I stopped fighting. And guess what? The world ended.”

Lena shook her head. “You let the timelines collapse?”

“I didn’t cause it,” she said. “But I didn’t stop it either. I gave up. Just like you wanted to… a hundred times.”

The Core around them pulsed again, brighter this time, like it was watching.

Lena gritted her teeth. “Why are you here now?”

Dark Lena smiled. “Because the Nexus won’t let you fix time until you face your worst self. I’m your final test.”

“You’re not me,” Lena whispered.

“I am every part you try to hide,” the dark version said,
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  • Chapter Thirty Five (ROUND TWO)

    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

  • Chapter Thirty Four (THE FRACTURED WORLD)

    The darkness was thick.Lena felt like she was sinking into it, swallowed by silence. Her breath caught in her throat. She reached out blindly.“Kai?” she whispered. “Eli? Where are you?”No answer. Only the cold.Then a soft, static-filled hum echoed in her ears. Her eyes blinked open, and she found herself lying on cracked glass. Above her, the sky was split like a broken mirror—fragments of pink, gold, and black floating in midair.She stood, dizzy. Her clothes were torn. Her arms were shaking.“Where… are we now?” she whispered.Suddenly, a voice echoed behind her.“You’re in the Echo. A place that shouldn’t exist.”Lena turned fast.Kai stood there, but not the Kai she knew. This version wore dark armor, his eyes glowing red like the Copy from before. His face was colder, harder.“Kai?” she said, her voice cracking.He tilted his head. “Not yours. I’m the first.”The Original Kai ReturnsShe took a step back, her hands shaking.“You’re the one behind this?”He nodded. “I built th

  • Chapter Thirty Three ( CLONES AND CHOICES)

    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

  • Chapter Thirty Two (ECHOES OF THE COLLAPSE)

    Smoke filled the air. Dust rained from the broken ceiling.Kai opened his eyes slowly, coughing.He couldn’t see much—just rubble, a flickering light above, and blood on his hand. Not his. Lena’s?“Lena?” he called out, his voice hoarse.Nothing.Panic set in.“LENA!”He pushed debris off his body and stumbled forward. His legs felt weak. His chest ached. Everything was spinning. But none of that mattered.He had to find her.Buried But BreathingA faint cough reached his ears.He froze.Then ran toward the sound.She was half-buried under a pile of metal beams and wires, one arm shielding her face.“Lena,” he breathed, falling to his knees. “I’m here.”She opened one eye. “You’re... alive.”Kai grinned through his tears. “You think a little apocalypse can kill me?”She smiled weakly. “Then help me up, hero.”He pulled the beam off her carefully. She cried out in pain, holding her side.“Broken ribs,” she muttered. “Again.”They both laughed—short, tired, but real.Then the laughter d

  • Chapter Thirty One (RED EYES)

    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

  • Chapter Thirty ( THE OTHER KAI)

    The room went cold.Not from temperature.But from fear.Lena stared at the man who looked exactly like Kai. Same face. Same voice. But the way he stood—the grin on his face—something was wrong. Very wrong.Kai stepped forward slowly, eyes narrowing. “Who are you?”The other Kai smiled wider. “I’m you. Or... what you could’ve been.”Eli raised his gun, but the fake Kai didn’t flinch. “Easy now. Shooting me won’t help. I’m not made of flesh anymore.”The girl stepped behind Lena, whispering, “That’s not just a copy. That’s the Original.”Kai froze.“No,” he said softly. “The Original died.”Truth in the DarkThe other Kai stepped into the flickering light, hands behind his back.“I didn’t die. I evolved.”He glanced at the memory cores lining the room. “You were supposed to take my place, Kai. Just a cleaner, tamer version. A prototype with a conscience. But I never left. I’ve been inside the system... growing, learning.”Kai’s fists clenched. “Why show yourself now?”The Original tilt

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