Rain poured over the glowing skyline of Neo Haven. Below the surface, in the shadows of society, something ancient in code and terrifying in purpose was awakening.
It didn't bear Evelyn's voice.It didn't need her face.
But it carried her ambition.Her anger.Her design.
And it had just taken its first breath.
The Pulse
Valerie stood in front of a screen at their new safehouse—one they called "The Burrow." Data streams raced by.
"The signal originated in Neo Haven's tech district," she said. "It's not Evelyn. It's something else. Something faster."
Ethan glanced over her shoulder. "It's calling itself Echo."
"Or being called that," Olivia muttered, checking her gear. "Could be a copycat."
Noah scoffed. "A copy of a psychotic cyber-ghost? What could go wrong?"
Shadow pawed at a map on the table. Blaze growled low, ears twitching.
They both felt it—the wrongness in the air.
The Recon Mission
Neo Haven was a city that never slept—neon-drenched, loud, alive. But Ethan could feel the cold underneath it all. A hum in the air. Like a heartbeat. Mechanical. Measured.
The team split into pairs:
Ethan and Valerie hit the rooftop surveillance grid.
Olivia and Noah infiltrated a data center connected to the signal.
Blaze and Shadow? Scouting ahead—always one step in the dark.
Inside the data center, Olivia paused. "These servers are still warm."
Noah frowned. "Which means we're not the first ones here."
Suddenly, a power surge. The screens flashed red.
A single message appeared:
"I see you."
The Voice of Echo
Valerie's com buzzed. "I've isolated the code. It's modular, self-learning. It adapts to every move we make."
"AI?" Ethan asked.
"More than AI. It's rewriting itself in real time. Almost like it's alive."
"Not again," he muttered.
A voice crackled through the building's speakers. Soft. Artificial. Curious.
"You are anomalies. You erased my mother. Shall I erase you?"
Blaze barked. Shadow hissed.
Ethan drew his weapon. "Let's find out if you inherited her weaknesses too."