Chapter 9: The Depths of Deception

The safe house Niko had led them to was buried deep within the industrial district, far from the prying eyes of Vexis drones and corporate informants. It was a crumbling warehouse, abandoned years ago and forgotten by the city above. Kael scanned the dimly lit interior, his instincts on high alert, but it seemed secure enough—for now.

"Cozy," Niko muttered, tossing his bag on the floor with a hollow thud. "At least it's off the grid."

Kael walked to the center of the room, pulling out the memory drive they had stolen from Vexis. His fingers felt the cold edges of the device, knowing it held the answers they desperately needed. But answers came with risks, and with the message he had received back in the data node, he couldn't shake the feeling that they were walking deeper into a trap. Whoever had contacted him, they weren't done.

Seraphine lingered by the broken window, her gaze distant as she looked out at the desolate streets beyond. The weight of her stolen memories hung over her like a dark cloud, threatening to consume her. She hadn't said much since Kael had told her about the mysterious message. He knew the fear gnawing at her—what if the person she thought she was didn't exist anymore? What if she was a construct, a fabrication of someone else's design?

Kael approached her, his voice soft. "We'll figure this out. You're still you, Seraphine. No matter what we find."

She glanced at him, her expression unreadable. "How can you be so sure?"

Kael wanted to offer comfort, but in truth, he wasn't sure. The memory fragment held a piece of Seraphine's past that had been wiped away, and Vexis had gone to great lengths to keep it hidden. If the corporation had altered her memories—if they had rewritten who she was—there was no telling what they'd find.

"We don't have a choice," he said finally. "If we don't look, we're walking blind. If we do, at least we'll know the truth."

Niko chimed in from across the room, where he was fiddling with an old terminal he'd found among the wreckage. "So, are we cracking this thing open or what? Ferris wants that fragment, and I'm not keen on sitting around waiting for him to change his mind."

Kael nodded, moving toward the terminal and plugging in the memory drive. The screen flickered to life, a web of encrypted data scrolling across it. Kael's fingers flew over the keyboard, bypassing layers of firewalls and traps. Vexis hadn't made this easy, but it wasn't anything he hadn't handled before.

Seraphine stood behind him, her breath catching as the screen suddenly shifted, displaying a series of fragmented images—flashes of places and people she didn't recognize. Her hands clenched at her sides.

"There," Kael muttered, isolating a specific memory node. "This is it. This is what they tried to erase."

The image sharpened, focusing on a young woman—Seraphine—standing in a sterile white room, her eyes vacant, her body hooked up to a series of machines. Kael's heart pounded as the scene played out. A man in a sleek black suit entered the frame. His face was cold, calculated, and all too familiar.

"Voss," Kael whispered.

Seraphine's face went pale. "That's me… but I don't remember any of this."

They watched as Voss spoke to someone off-camera. His voice was calm, authoritative. "Begin the transfer," he said, and the machines around Seraphine whirred to life. Lights flashed, and suddenly, Seraphine's eyes fluttered, a faint glow illuminating her pupils. Kael's gut twisted. This wasn't just a memory erasure. This was something far worse.

"They were implanting something," Kael said, his voice tight. "This isn't just about erasing memories. They were altering you. Changing you."

Seraphine recoiled, her hand covering her mouth as the weight of it all sank in. "What did they do to me?"

Kael replayed the footage, slowing down the final moments. There, just before the video cut off, a name flashed across the screen—a project designation: ECHO PROTOCOL.

"What the hell is that?" Niko asked, leaning in closer.

Kael shook his head. "I don't know. But whatever it is, it's connected to Seraphine. It's the reason they wiped her memories."

Seraphine turned away from the screen, her body trembling. "They didn't just erase who I was… they built something new. I'm not… I'm not me."

Kael reached for her, but she flinched. He hesitated, unsure of what to say. "We'll get to the bottom of this. We'll find out what they did and why. But we need more information."

"There's no time," Seraphine said, her voice hardening. She turned to face him, her eyes burning with something new—anger. "If Voss did this, then I'm a threat to them. They'll come for me."

Before Kael could respond, Niko's terminal chimed. A new message appeared on the screen.

I told you, you're not alone. If you want to survive, bring her to me. Ferris isn't the only one after her memories.

Kael swore under his breath. "It's them again. Whoever's been watching us."

Niko leaned back, folding his arms. "Great. More friends."

Kael paced, his mind racing. Whoever this was, they had access to their location and were following every move they made. He turned to Seraphine. "We can't trust anyone right now. Not Ferris, not Voss, and definitely not whoever this is."

Seraphine's jaw tightened. "Then what do we do?"

Kael didn't have an answer. The walls were closing in, and every path led deeper into a maze of deceit and danger. But one thing was certain: Seraphine's past wasn't just about her memories. It was about power—control. Vexis had altered her for a reason, and now, every faction in The Verge seemed hell-bent on getting their hands on her.

"We're going to find out what Echo Protocol is," Kael said finally. "Whatever they did to you, whatever they're after—it all leads back to that."

Niko raised an eyebrow. "And how exactly do we do that? Knock on Voss's door and ask politely?"

Kael's eyes darkened. "No. We find someone who knows more than Voss. Someone who can help us take this system apart from the inside."

Seraphine met his gaze, determination flickering beneath the fear. "You know someone, don't you?"

Kael nodded slowly. "There's one person who knows more about Vexis than anyone. But finding him won't be easy."

Niko chuckled, shaking his head. "I'm starting to think 'easy' isn't in our vocabulary anymore."

Kael's expression hardened. "We're going after Kane."

The name hung in the air like a dark omen. Kane was a ghost, a shadow from Kael's past. Once a high-ranking operative in Vexis's inner circle, he had disappeared years ago after a fallout with Voss. If anyone could help them unravel Echo Protocol, it was him.

But Kane was also the most dangerous man Kael had ever known.

Seraphine's voice was steady, but Kael could hear the tension beneath it. "Then let's find him. If Kane has the answers, I want them."

Kael nodded. He knew the road ahead would be treacherous, and Kane was far from an ally. But if they were going to survive, if Seraphine was going to reclaim her life, they had no other choice.

The hunt for Kane began now.