Chapter 13: The Truth Beneath the Surface

Evelyn Pryce stood in the doorway, her silhouette framed by the dim, flickering lights of Athena Station. Her presence seemed to warp the air around her, a combination of commanding intellect and unsettling calm. The faint glow in her eyes was not just unnatural—it was wrong, a mark of someone who had gone far beyond the boundaries of humanity.

Atlas rose slowly, his fingers twitching toward his rifle. But something in Pryce's expression stopped him. It wasn't fear she radiated—it was confidence, the certainty of someone who had already won.

"You have no idea what you've stumbled into," she said, her voice measured but cold.

"Then why don't you enlighten us?" Mari snapped, her blade still dripping with the metallic ichor of the fallen Enforcers. She stepped forward, but Pryce held up a hand, and the air in the room seemed to thrum with energy. Mari froze mid-step, her expression twisting in confusion.

Pryce's faint smile widened. "You're predictable, like all the others. Always charging in, swinging your weapons, thinking you're more than what I made you."

"What are you talking about?" Atlas demanded, stepping between Mari and Pryce.

Pryce tilted her head, studying him. "Still clinging to the idea that you're a free agent, Atlas? That your choices are your own? That any of this—" she gestured around the room, "—wasn't precisely orchestrated to bring you here?"

Atlas clenched his fists, his mind racing. "You're bluffing. You didn't plan for us to destroy the command node. You didn't plan for us to infiltrate your station."

"Didn't I?" Pryce stepped further into the room, her presence pulling focus like gravity. Behind her, a faint hum grew louder. Atlas glanced past her and saw a group of Enforcers entering the corridor, their movements slower but purposeful.

Kael swore under his breath, stepping back toward the terminal Atlas had used earlier. "Whatever you're doing, stop her now. Those systems will reboot any minute!"

Evelyn didn't seem concerned. Instead, she gestured to the pods lining the walls. "You've only seen the surface of my work. The Genesis Protocol was never about survival or preservation. It was about evolution, about building something greater than human fragility. And now, thanks to your interference, you've helped me perfect the process."

"You're insane," Mari spat, finally breaking free of whatever held her. She advanced again, blade ready. "We're shutting this place down."

Pryce raised her hand, and Mari stumbled as if struck by an invisible force.

"You're welcome to try," Pryce said, her tone mocking. "But first, let me show you what you're up against."

---

The room's lights dimmed further, and the pods lining the walls began to glow. One by one, the figures within stirred. Tubes detached, releasing them into the liquid. With a sharp hiss, the pods opened, and the clones emerged, dripping with viscous fluid but standing unnervingly tall and poised.

Mari readied herself, but Atlas grabbed her arm. "Wait," he said.

The clones stepped forward as a single unit, their translucent skin now glowing faintly. Their movements were fluid, almost hypnotic, and their eyes—identical to Pryce's—focused on the trio.

"They're not just machines," Pryce said, her voice carrying a note of pride. "They're not just clones. They're hybrids. The perfect blend of synthetic precision and organic potential. They are me, multiplied a hundredfold."

Kael cursed under his breath. "We're dead. We're so dead."

Atlas's mind was spinning. This wasn't just about defeating Pryce—this was about understanding how she'd gone so far. "You used the Genesis Protocol to rewrite yourself," he said, the words falling from his lips as he pieced it together.

Pryce smiled, the glow in her eyes intensifying. "I didn't just rewrite myself. I perfected myself. And now, I'm offering you the same opportunity."

---

The clones began to circle, and Pryce stepped back, giving them room. Mari lunged, her blade arcing toward one of the figures. It caught the clone's arm, slicing deep—but the wound closed almost instantly. The clone retaliated with a speed that defied comprehension, its hand striking Mari's shoulder and sending her sprawling.

"Fall back!" Atlas shouted, firing his rifle. The shots tore through one clone's chest, and it staggered but did not fall. Kael lobbed an EMP grenade, the blast shorting out the lights and momentarily disrupting the clones.

In the chaos, Pryce's voice cut through like a knife. "You can't win by destroying them. They are part of the station, as much as I am. Their strength comes from the network you've already infiltrated."

Atlas's mind raced. If the clones were integrated into the station's systems, then severing their connection might neutralize them. But it would also mean destroying the station itself—and any chance of salvaging the technology Pryce had created.

"Mari, Kael, cover me!" he shouted, rushing toward the main console.

---

Atlas's hands flew over the keys as he accessed the station's mainframe. Pryce seemed unfazed, her attention divided between the fight and his efforts.

"You think I didn't account for this?" she said, her voice sharp now. "You're just a shadow of what you could be, Atlas. Let me show you what you're capable of."

Suddenly, the terminal interface shifted, displaying lines of code Atlas didn't recognize. The screen glowed brighter, and his head throbbed. He tried to look away, but something compelled him to keep reading. The symbols felt alive, pulsing with meaning just out of reach.

"Atlas!" Kael's voice broke through the haze. "What's happening?"

"She's trying to overwrite him," Mari said, slashing at another clone. "Fight it, Atlas!"

Atlas gritted his teeth, focusing on the code. Pryce's voice was in his head now, whispering promises of power, of purpose. But beneath it, he heard something else—something familiar. A fragment of the protocol he'd studied for years, buried within the corrupted system.

He seized on it, isolating the code and redirecting it. The station's hum changed pitch, and the clones faltered.

"What are you doing?" Pryce demanded, her calm façade cracking.

Atlas didn't answer. He typed the final command and slammed his fist against the console.

---

The pods began to overload, sparks flying as the clones collapsed mid-step. The station trembled, alarms blaring. Pryce staggered, clutching her head as the glow in her eyes dimmed.

"You don't understand," she said, her voice desperate now. "This isn't just about me. It's about survival. Without my work, humanity is doomed!"

Atlas stared at her, his expression grim. "Humanity isn't yours to decide for."

The ground shook violently, and Kael grabbed his arm. "Atlas, we have to go! This whole place is coming down!"

Mari led the way, clearing a path through the collapsing corridors. Behind them, Pryce's voice echoed one last time, distorted and fading.

"You think you've won… but you've only delayed the inevitable…"

The trio burst into the open air just as Athena Station collapsed into the canyon, a cloud of dust and debris rising into the night sky.

Atlas looked back, his chest heaving. Pryce was gone—at least for now. But the questions she'd raised lingered, heavy in his mind.

What if she was right?