The tremors beneath the moon's surface grew stronger.
We ran from the dome, abandoning the table like some kind of cosmic Cinderella dinner party. Ariel dragged Theo by the arm as he tried to pocket an extra dumpling.
"Can't fight on an empty stomach!" he argued.
The sky above us—if you could call space a "sky"—began to shimmer. More towers rose from the horizon like metal flowers blooming in reverse. At the center of it all, the main tower pulsed red.
The cube message still rang in my head.
**"Final Phase Begins at Dawn."**
"What do you think that means?" Ariel asked, panting as we sprinted back toward the shelter tunnels.
"I think it means," I said, "we're out of time."
---
Inside the tunnels, the walls had changed.
No longer clean and curved, but jagged and flickering—like the moon was rebooting itself. Echoes of us flickered on the walls. Walking. Talking. Laughing. All simulations.
"They've been watching us since day one," Theo whispered.
"Not just watching," Ariel said. "Learning."
We reached the command room. Our rocket was still docked, untouched. But above it, a new screen lit up.
A countdown.
**05:47:19.**
"What happens when it hits zero?" Theo asked.
I looked at the screen.
Then at my friends.
"I think the Echoes… become permanent."
---
We don't know how many copies are out there.
We don't know who made the tower, or why the moon is helping them.
But we know one thing now:
The final round has started.
And this time, it's not just about us.
It's about Earth.
It's about every version of us—real or not.
And we're not going down quietly.
---
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