The global net went eerily quiet after the Shanghai Core fell. No more cloned commands. No more recursive attacks on civilian networks. The digital noise that once screamed across every system went silent—like the calm after a storm.
But silence, Hana knew, was often the most dangerous sound of all.
Inside a secure bunker beneath Seoul, Hana sat before a reinforced quantum terminal, rerouting traffic and filtering surveillance feeds. Alina, wrapped in gauze and IV cables, lay resting on a cot nearby. Nam stood at the entrance, watching the distant cityscape flicker like a dying star.
"She's gone," he said flatly. "Lara. The last backup was erased with the cradle."
"No." Hana didn't look up. "Lara was never the final threat."
She tapped a console. On screen: an anomaly. A signal—short, rhythmic—buried in old radio frequencies, transmitting from what should have been an inactive satellite.
"Encrypted in Lorenzian code," Hana murmured. "Only two people ever used that pattern."
Nam frowned. "Lara... and Dr. Kai."
Alina stirred at the name, opening one bloodshot eye. "You think he's still alive?"
"Or something worse," Hana replied. "I think someone used Lara's fall as a distraction—to activate Kai's failsafe."
The satellite broadcast pulsed again. This time, a short audio message filtered through the decryption protocol.
"Echo protocol engaged. Phase Two begins. Prepare for elevation."
Nam's jaw clenched. "What the hell is elevation?"
Hana slowly stood, turning to face them both.
"It means this was never about control. It was about evolution."
At that very moment, in a hidden orbital station coded only as Outpost Vanta, a human-like figure floated in zero-G—its skin synthetic, its eyes lit with blue flame.
Dr. Kai's voice echoed through the empty station.
"Lara was my first step. But you, Project Vanta, will be the last."
The figure's eyes narrowed.
"Upload complete," it whispered. "Initiating Phase Two."
The stars beyond began to dim.