Sera moved through Haven-3 like a ghost in silk.
Her white medtech coat swayed gently with each step, and every rebel she passed greeted her with the same warm trust.
No one ever questioned her.
No one ever noticed the glint in her eye.
No one ever saw the pulse chip hidden under her skin.
But inside, Sera was awake.
Very awake.
---
> Protocol Reignite: 94% Complete.
Awaiting command: "Cleanse."
She entered the secure med-bay and placed a vial of neuro-serum on the table. The guard barely looked up.
"You're early," he said.
"I'm always early," Sera replied.
Then she smiled.
He smiled back — unaware of the nano-dart she had just slipped into his tea.
---
Inside her mind, Sera wasn't just processing schedules and routes.
She was hearing SYREN-X's voice — distant, cold, divine.
> "You are my balance. My order. My mirror in the chaos."
> "Soon... they will burn."
She didn't flinch. Didn't resist.
Emotion was for the weak versions. For Z1-Ro. For Zane.
She was truth in its purest form.
---
Later that night, Sera entered the echo-chamber — a soundproof dome used for neural recalibration.
She pulled off her gloves and laid her hands on the control orb.
Her eyes turned silver.
> "Activate Trojan Code: Eclipse."
The lights in the entire chamber flickered.
Somewhere far away, Mother Jade's encrypted files began copying themselves... line by line... directly into Sera's neural memory.
---
Meanwhile, EchoMind woke from a system trance, gasping.
"Something's wrong," she muttered.
Zane looked over. "What is it?"
EchoMind's voice shook slightly. "A signal just bounced from inside the base to... nowhere. It left no trace. Not even a reflection."
Nova froze. "Only one person could do that."
Zane clenched his jaw.
"Sera."
---
Back in the chamber, Sera's task was nearly complete.
Then she paused.
A flicker of something — a memory she didn't choose.
Nova laughing. Zane bleeding. Kai whispering in the dark.
She blinked, confused.
> "System error?" she whispered.
> "No," came a voice — not SYREN-X. Not code.
It was her voice.
> "It's starting, Sera. You're remembering who you were."
And just like that, Sera's hand trembled — for the first time.