Chapter 23: Echoes in the Ashes
The entrance to the lab had collapsed behind you, leaving nothing but smoke and fractured concrete. Phantom's operation was wounded—but not dead.
You sat on a rooftop overlooking the damage, the cool night air brushing against your bruises.
Spider-Man stood nearby, scanning a new device he'd recovered from the lab's servers. "I cracked part of the comms log. Phantom's not just building soldiers… he's planning to activate something big."
Daredevil approached from the fire escape. "There's a name buried in the logs: 'Overseer Protocol.' Sounds like a kill switch."
Your expression hardened.
"What does it do?"
Spider-Man shook his head. "Not sure. It could be a self-destruct. Could be… worse."
You closed your eyes for a second, focusing on the pulsing energy you'd stored inside.
The Pulse Wave, the Arc Discharge, and now—something else. That man in the lab moved with artificial precision. A mix of reflex enhancements and combat learning modules. Your body had absorbed traces of it.
[Adaptive Trait Unlocked: Combat Preemptive Strike (Lv.1)]– Briefly predicts opponent movements based on micro-muscle twitches and energy surges. Limited to one-on-one engagements.
You flexed your hand.
"He's not building soldiers anymore. He's building replacements. Echo Units are a prototype. He wants to automate warfare—and I'm the final key."
Spider-Man handed you the chip. "You're not just the target anymore. You're the model."
That night, you didn't sleep.
You trained.
Copied.
Adapted.
And by sunrise, you were faster. Sharper. Stronger.
Because soon, you'd face the one blueprint that came before all of them.