The cold gleam of the underground chamber's walls reflected crimson warnings from every corner of the chamber. Red emergency lights strobed across shattered glass, toppled machinery, and blood—some dry, some still fresh.
Lin Chen knelt at the heart of the chaos, his hands trembling as they cradled a familiar body—too still, too cold.
"Li Chu…"
She hadn't moved since she collapsed. Her breathing was faint, heartbeat fluttering like a dying flame.
The system interface was still flickering above her like a phantom crown, displaying erratic warnings:
[Warning: Subject-0 Core Disruption Imminent][Emotional Resonance Reaching Terminal Threshold][Autonomous Defense Mechanism Engaged — Irreversible Damage Likely]
"No—no, no, no, stay with me." Lin Chen's voice cracked. "Don't you dare do this."
Suddenly, the display shimmered—lines of unreadable code began to overwrite system text. A voice echoed in his earpiece: fractured, but hers.
"I remember everything now…"
The voice was faint, strained, like it was traveling through broken glass.
"They made me watch when they implanted your system… You were screaming."
Lin Chen froze.
"I tried to stop them, but I was weak. They rewrote my emotions, made me forget you—made me forget myself."
Her fingers twitched slightly. Blood leaked from the corner of her mouth.
"I won't be their puppet again."
[System Alert: Subject attempting CHIP CORE SELF-TERMINATION — 3% COMPLETE]
"No, stop—!" Lin Chen tried to initiate override commands, but the system denied him access. Her chip had entered full lockdown. Only she could halt the process.
"Li Chu, listen to me—don't do this. We can remove it. We'll find a way. Together."
But she only smiled faintly, the kind of smile that always came before goodbyes.
"You're strong now, Lin Chen. Strong enough to fight them without me. But if I stay like this…" her eyes fluttered, "they'll use me again. They'll make me kill you."
[Self-Destruct Sequence: 18%… 29%…]
The energy surrounding her body began to fluctuate violently. It wasn't an explosion. It was a collapse. Her system core was devouring itself at the molecular level—shutting down every tether Erebus used to control her.
He held her tighter. "You're not a weapon. You're not expendable."
"I am," she whispered. "But I choose how I end."
[51%… 67%…]
Lin Chen's tears fell freely now. His system tried to issue secondary overrides, but it was too late.
"You think you're the only one who's been strong?" she murmured. "Let me be strong for you. Just once."
[92%… 96%… CHIP CORE COLLAPSE IN FINAL PHASE]
And then—silence.
All system displays vanished in a single white pulse. The residual energy exploded outward in a silent shockwave, flattening the lab and knocking Lin Chen off his feet. Dust, glass, and shredded circuitry fell like snow.
When he pushed himself back up, she was lying limp, her body glowing faintly, but all indicators gone.
The system scanned her vitals:
[System Interface: Disconnected][Emotion Module: Offline][Cognitive Chip: Irreparably Damaged][Vital Status: Comatose — Life Support Required]
She was alive.
But her system was dead. Her powers—gone. And her consciousness… flickering on the edge of permanent shutdown.
He crawled over, brushing the hair from her face, biting down the cry that wanted to tear his throat open.
"You idiot…" he whispered. "You didn't have to prove anything to me."
Around them, the Erebus facility began to crumble. Automatic failsafes activated as core systems failed.
But Lin Chen didn't move. He stayed there with her in the middle of it all, holding what remained of the girl who had chosen freedom over power, humanity over control.
In the distance, alarms wailed. The final defense protocols were coming.
But none of that mattered.
He stood at last, lifting her gently into his arms, eyes burning with a fire no power could match.
[System Alert: Core Alignment Shift Detected — Emotional Imprint Override Engaged][New Main Quest Unlocked: "Judgment — The Founders"][Objective: Annihilate Project Erebus R&D Headquarters]
The system's voice was cold. But his soul was not.
"You want a war?" Lin Chen whispered, glancing back once at the ruins of the chamber.
"I'll give you a reckoning."