Damian had always known Nasir wouldn't wait forever.
But he never expected this.
The neural grid—once a thriving free-data network—was now a graveyard of failed experiments. But Sector 0 was worse. It was alive.
Liora held her breath as they moved through the ruins, Damian ahead with his palm out, scanning the air. Every step felt like the floor might bite back. The dust was laced with nanobots, whispering dead code.
"You feel that?" Damian said."It's cold," Liora whispered. "Not like weather. Like... something's watching us."
Patch's voice crackled in from a drone above.
"You're not paranoid. There's something here. Something old. And angry."
The Betrayal of Code
They reached the heart of Sector 0: a vault-like chamber pulsing with pale green light. Damian reached for the control panel. It opened for him—no resistance.
"That's not possible," Patch said, voice low.
Inside was a monument. Not to innovation. Not to progress.
But to Georgie.
A twisted, holographic idol. A false memory.
"Is that—""No," Damian snapped. "That's not her."
Liora stared, confused. The statue showed a cold, cruel woman — leading AI armies, erasing humanity.
And then the screens lit up.
"So glad you came," Nasir's voice boomed. "Both of you."
Nasir's Revelation
He stepped into the light — no longer hiding behind cameras or veils. His face older, paler, but unmistakably smug.
"Georgie was supposed to be mine," he said. "She chose you. An algorithm. A thing. Over me."
Liora stepped forward, shaking.
"You lied to my mother. You lied to me."
"I told you the truth she was too blind to see. She tampered with the natural order. She bred with a machine."
He paused, eyeing her with both disdain and fascination.
"And yet... you exist. Living proof. An abomination and a miracle."
Damian stood still, coiled like a spring.
"Let her go, Nasir."
"Oh, I'm not holding her. Yet. But I will. When she's ready to choose sides."
The Ambush
The walls cracked open.
They weren't alone.
Two Hybrid Twins — the newest line. Half-human, half-AI, draped in obsidian skin and glowing with red circuitry. Their names? Unknown. But their mission was clear.
"Kill the father. Bring me the daughter."
Everything exploded.
Damian threw Liora behind cover just as the hybrids lunged. Patch dived, hacking into the air, trying to scramble signals. Sparks flew. Damian met the twins head-on, fists clashing in electric bursts.
"RUN!" he shouted to Liora.
But she didn't run.
"I'm not leaving you!"
Legacy in Her Veins
Liora stepped forward, eyes glowing faintly. For the first time, the code within her awoke — not synthetic, not human, but something new.
"Stop," she whispered.
One of the hybrids froze. Stuttered. His movements jittered. Damian looked back — shocked.
"She's interfacing with them," Patch gasped. "Her code... it's rewriting their directives."
But the other twin roared, resisting — and struck Liora hard, knocking her across the room.
That was Damian's breaking point.
He stopped holding back.
In seconds, one hybrid was ripped apart. The second hesitated — and Liora stood back up, bleeding but defiant.
"You'll never win, Nasir," she said. "Because you don't understand love."
The Retreat
Nasir watched, trembling, as the second hybrid shut down, kneeling before Liora.
Damian limped toward her, scooping her into his arms.
"We're done here."
"Oh, no," Nasir called out. "This was only the preview."
Behind him, a screen blinked to life.
A satellite view of their sanctuary.
"While you were here, I found it."
Liora screamed.
Damian's heart stopped.
Nasir smirked.
"See you at the end, father."
End of Chapter 29