The Spire's door creaked shut behind them.
Mira held onto Elior's arm as he staggered, still unsteady. His glyph flickered, occasionally pulsing with the copy's residual code—he hadn't just defeated it.
He had absorbed it.
Broadcast from the Board
As they exited, every screen in the city lit up.
Not just terminals, but holograms in the air, glyph-beacons on rooftops, even the shimmer on the Veiled River.
A woman's voice spoke—calm, rehearsed.
"This is Overseer Juno of Veiled's Central Intelligence.
Effective immediately, Subject Aeon-01 is to be detained for repurposing."
Then, Elior's face appeared on-screen.
Not the real one.
The glyph copy's face.
"Do not approach. Do not assist.
Failure to comply will be considered treason."
Mira's jaw clenched.
"They flipped the narrative. You're public enemy one now."
Elior didn't answer.
He was staring at the flickering glyphs along his own arm.
The copy's code was writing over his. Slowly. Quietly.
"I don't have much time."
Secrets in Mira's Pocket
They escaped into an abandoned tram tunnel, Mira guiding the way. As they ran, Elior finally asked:
"Why did you really help me?
You knew about the Mirror Room. You knew my copy's designation."
Mira hesitated.
"I wasn't just a field agent."
She pulled something from her jacket.
A badge. Burned, scorched—but readable.
Aeon Division – Designated Handler: Mira C. Vale
Elior stopped running.
"You were assigned to me."
She nodded, not meeting his eyes.
"At first, yes. They told me to monitor your reactions. Track deviations."
"And after?"
"After you saved my life. After you broke your programming to feel something real…"
She looked at him now.
"I chose you."
Elior turned away, breathing sharp.
"So I was just a case file. A project."
"You were. But now you're a person. And I won't let them take that from you."
The Signal Beneath the City
Mira activated a hidden panel in the tunnel wall.
Behind it, a signal node blinked—untraceable, pre-ban tech.
"I know someone. He runs a rogue glyph lab under the old city.
If anyone can help stabilize your code, it's him."
Elior's glyph flared again—this time wild. For a second, his voice doubled, layered with the cold monotone of the copy.
He dropped to one knee.
"It's getting worse."
"Then we run."
"No more running."
Elior rose.
"We go underground. We fight back."
Phase Two Begins
Above them, the skyline shifted.
From the top of the Spire, a new construct launched into the air.
A massive glyphweb—spread across the city like a net of light.
"Project Aeon Phase Two initialized.
All deviants will be reclassified. All memories adjusted.
The city will forget."
Veiled wasn't just turning against them.
It was rewriting reality itself.