The silence in the aftermath was deafening.
Nemesis's lifeless body lay sprawled on the cold metal floor of the HelixCorp facility, its cybernetic implants flickering weakly as residual energy bled from its core.
Ethan's breath came in ragged gasps, his pulse pounding in his ears. His hands trembled, the residual energy from his pulse blade still humming faintly against his skin.
"Ethan," Lena's voice was soft, but the concern in her tone cut through the fog clouding his mind.
"I'm okay," Ethan murmured, but the words felt hollow.
Because he wasn't okay.
Crowe's memories were louder now, their presence no longer just a whisper in the back of his mind.
They were... closer.
Stronger.
Ethan's jaw clenched as fragments of Crowe's life flashed before his eyes—
The lab.
The betrayal.
The pain.
"Ethan."
Lena's touch was gentle as her hand brushed against his arm, grounding him back in the present.
"Breathe," she murmured softly.
Ethan forced a shaky breath, his jaw tight as he fought to push Crowe's memories back down.
"I'm fine," Ethan whispered, though the lie tasted bitter on his tongue.
Lena didn't look convinced, but she didn't press.
"Facility's clear," Dorian's voice echoed from the far end of the corridor, his tone calm but laced with an edge Ethan couldn't quite place.
Ethan's gaze snapped toward Dorian, who was scanning the lifeless body of Nemesis with cold precision.
"Comms are down," Dorian murmured, his cybernetic eyes narrowing as he analyzed the surrounding data streams. "We've got a small window before HelixCorp realizes what happened here."
Lena's jaw clenched. "Then we need to move."
Ethan's mind was still spinning, but he forced himself to focus.
"Did we get what we needed?" Ethan asked, his voice steady but strained.
Dorian's expression was unreadable.
"Not yet," Dorian murmured softly. "But we're close."
Ethan's jaw tightened.
"Define close."
Dorian's cybernetic eyes flickered as he pulled up a holo-display, revealing a complex data map of HelixCorp's neural network.
"This facility wasn't just testing combat protocols," Dorian murmured softly. "They were uploading data... transferring it to a secure location."
Lena's eyes narrowed. "Where?"
Dorian's gaze locked onto her, and for a brief moment, the air grew heavier.
"Nexus Central Core."
Ethan's pulse quickened.
"The Core?"
Dorian's expression hardened.
"HelixCorp's mainframe," Dorian murmured, his voice low. "Buried beneath Nexara's corporate sector. If they've transferred the data there..."
"They've secured the Codex's blueprint," Ethan finished softly, his jaw clenching.
Lena's expression darkened. "Then we can't let that happen."
Ethan's mind raced, Crowe's memories flooding his thoughts with fragmented plans and contingencies—
"Shut down the Core. Disrupt the network."
But before Ethan could speak, Dorian's voice cut through the tension.
"There's another way."
Ethan's eyes narrowed.
"Another way?"
Dorian's jaw tightened, his expression unreadable.
"There's a backdoor into the Core's system," Dorian murmured softly. "Old code. Buried deep in HelixCorp's framework. Crowe designed it... before they locked him out."
Ethan's pulse pounded.
"You're saying Crowe left a way in?"
Dorian nodded slowly.
"But it's risky," Dorian murmured, his tone laced with caution. "If we use it, HelixCorp will know we're inside. They'll send everything they have to shut us down."
Lena's jaw clenched. "So what's the alternative?"
Dorian's gaze flickered, hesitation flashing across his cybernetic eyes.
"We let them take the data," Dorian murmured softly, his voice barely above a whisper.
Ethan's breath caught.
"Excuse me?"
Dorian's expression was cold, calculated.
"If we let them transfer the data, we can track the signal," Dorian murmured. "Follow it straight to the Core without triggering any alarms."
Lena's eyes narrowed. "And let them secure the Codex's blueprint in the process?"
Dorian's jaw clenched.
"We'd have a chance to shut it down from the inside," Dorian murmured. "Permanently."
Ethan's pulse pounded in his ears.
"Trust is a dangerous thing, Ethan."
Crowe's voice echoed louder than ever, sending a chill down Ethan's spine.
"This is insane," Lena murmured softly, her eyes narrowing. "You're asking us to let HelixCorp win... just to get close enough to take one last shot?"
Dorian's cybernetic eyes locked onto Ethan's, and for a moment, the air grew heavier.
"It's the only way," Dorian murmured softly.
Silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating.
Lena's jaw clenched, her eyes flicking toward Ethan.
"What do you think?" she murmured softly, her voice barely above a whisper.
Ethan's mind was a whirlwind, Crowe's memories and his own instincts clashing violently.
"You can't trust them."
"They'll betray you."
"Dorian's hiding something."
Ethan's jaw clenched, his pulse pounding as the weight of the decision settled over him.
"Ethan," Lena's voice was softer now, her eyes searching his.
Ethan's grip on the data core tightened as his gaze flicked between Lena and Dorian.
"Protect the Codex."
But as Ethan looked into Dorian's eyes...
He saw something.
Something wrong.
"Wait," Ethan murmured softly, his voice barely above a whisper.
Lena's eyes narrowed.
"What?"
Ethan's jaw clenched as Crowe's instincts surged forward—
"Dorian's lying."
"Why are you so eager to get inside the Core?" Ethan murmured softly, his voice cold now.
Dorian's expression didn't change.
"I told you," Dorian murmured softly. "To stop HelixCorp."
Ethan's jaw clenched.
"Try again," Ethan murmured softly.
Dorian's cybernetic eyes narrowed.
"Ethan..." Lena's voice was laced with warning now.
But Ethan's instincts were screaming at him.
"Crowe didn't just leave a backdoor," Ethan murmured softly, his voice barely above a whisper. "Did he?"
Dorian's jaw tightened.
"He left... something else."
Dorian's silence spoke louder than words.
Lena's pulse pistol was already raised, her stance shifting instantly.
"Tell us the truth, Dorian," Lena murmured, her voice sharp.
Dorian's expression finally shifted—
And for the first time...
Ethan saw it.
Regret.
"I didn't have a choice," Dorian murmured softly.
Ethan's pulse spiked.
"Choice?" Ethan's voice was sharp now, his jaw clenched.
Dorian's cybernetic eyes dimmed slightly, his gaze dropping.
"HelixCorp... they got to me," Dorian murmured softly, his voice barely above a whisper. "A long time ago."
Ethan's blood ran cold.
Lena's jaw clenched, her finger hovering over the trigger.
"Dorian..." Ethan's voice was barely above a whisper.
"I tried to stop it," Dorian murmured softly, his expression distant now. "But... they locked me in."
Ethan's pulse pounded as the pieces fell into place.
"Dorian," Ethan murmured softly, his voice laced with quiet fury.
"You're compromised."
Silence fell over the room.
And in that silence...
Ethan realized something.
They weren't walking into a trap.
They had already been in one.
---