Chapter 24 – Echoes of the Past

A deep hiss filled the chamber as the locks disengaged. The containment pod trembled, thick frost clinging to its glass walls before a burst of cold vapor spilled into the air. The soft blue glow of the facility's lights flickered erratically, as if the entire structure was reacting to this moment.

Ishizaki's fingers curled tightly around his knife, but his body felt heavy, like something unseen was pressing down on him. Why does this feel like déjà vu?

"Solus," he whispered. "What's happening?"

For the first time, Solus hesitated. "Uncertain. Host reactions… abnormal."

Kaede took a sharp breath, her eyes locked onto the pod. "It's them," she muttered. "I never thought I'd see them again."

The final lock clicked. The pod door began to open.

The Pod Fully Opens

Drax raised his hammer instinctively. "If it jumps out at us, I'm smashing it."

"Wait," Kaede said quickly. "We don't know—"

The door slid open, releasing one final burst of freezing mist. A silhouette stood within, motionless.

Hana whimpered, gripping Drax's arm. Ryo pulled Mei closer, eyes wide with fear.

Then, the figure stepped forward.

Ishizaki's breath caught in his throat.

The person before him was taller than him, their lean form wrapped in sleek, black cybernetic plating. Their skin—where visible—was unnaturally smooth, as if flesh and metal had fused together seamlessly. Energy veins pulsed along their arms and neck, faintly glowing with residual Q-Energy.

Then, they opened their eyes.

They glowed—a haunting, ethereal blue. The same color as Solus.

The Figure Inside

Ishizaki couldn't move. He could feel something inside him resonating with this person, as if an invisible thread connected them.

The figure blinked slowly, their movements sluggish, as if waking from a long nightmare.

"Designation…" Their voice was a fragmented echo, layered and distorted. "Unit… 01… Online…"

Drax tensed. "I don't like the sound of that."

Kaede's face had gone pale. "It's them," she whispered. "The first subject."

Ishizaki snapped his gaze to her. "First subject of what?"

Kaede exhaled shakily, her fingers twitching near the device in her chest. "Project Ascension," she said. "The same experiment that turned you into what you are."

Ishizaki's pulse pounded in his ears. That's impossible.

The test subject took another step forward, their head tilting as if struggling to focus. Their eyes locked onto Ishizaki, and something changed.

For the first time, their voice steadied.

"Brother…?"

Ishizaki's stomach twisted. "What?"

Questions, But No Time for Answers

"Host vitals fluctuating," Solus warned, but there was something off about its voice. Almost… hesitant.

The test subject clutched their head, staggering slightly. Their fingers twitched, and a surge of raw Q-Energy crackled around them, causing nearby consoles to flicker wildly.

"Facility—" they choked out. "—must be destroyed."

The alarms changed tone, shifting from a containment warning to full-scale lockdown. The walls hummed with energy, red lights flashing as mechanical panels slid open along the ceiling.

"We need to move," Kaede said urgently. "Right now."

But the test subject suddenly lurched forward, reaching for Ishizaki with an unsteady but urgent motion.

"Ishizaki," they gasped. "Don't—"

A shockwave of energy erupted from them, slamming into Ishizaki's chest. The force sent him staggering backward, his mind spinning as a flood of images assaulted him—memories that weren't his, voices whispering things he didn't understand.

He collapsed to one knee, gasping.

Drax grabbed him. "Kid! Talk to me!"

Ishizaki barely heard him. His vision swam, flashing between the present and something older—a different time.

A lab. A voice speaking in cold, clinical tones.

"Subjects 01 and 02—perfect synchronization achieved."

A child's scream. A scalpel. A blue glow.

Then, nothing.

Chaos Unleashed

Ishizaki gasped as he snapped back to reality, his chest heaving. His entire body ached, but worse than that—

He knew.

This person wasn't just another test subject.

They were connected to him.

Before he could speak, a deep, robotic voice boomed through the chamber.

"Unauthorized unit detected. Elimination protocol engaged."

The facility shuddered, and from the far end of the room, a massive mechanical guardian emerged—a towering enforcer designed for one purpose.

The test subject turned toward it, energy crackling around their hands.

Then they looked back at Ishizaki.

"Run.

The ground shook as the guardian unit stepped forward, its massive frame grinding against the facility's steel flooring. Gleaming black armor covered its body, reinforced plating overlapping like the hide of some ancient predator. Its head—an angular construct with a single, blazing red eye—scanned the chamber, locking onto its targets.

"Elimination protocol engaged."

Ishizaki clenched his fists. Move. Move, damn it.

But his legs wouldn't respond. His mind was still spinning from the vision—the voices, the flashes of another time. Unit 01… my brother?

Drax yanked him back just as a plasma-coated blade erupted from the guardian's wrist, carving through the space where he had been standing.

"Snap out of it, kid!" Drax bellowed. "This thing's trying to kill us!"

Ishizaki's heart pounded. Focus. Fight. Survive.

The Guardian Attacks

Kaede's fingers flew over the device in her chest. "Solus, what the hell are we dealing with?"

"Designated: Facility Executioner. Purpose: Neutralization of rogue subjects."

Drax swung his hammer, aiming for the guardian's head. CRACK! The impact sent a deep vibration through the chamber—but the guardian barely flinched.

"Seriously?!" Drax growled, stumbling back.

The guardian lunged, its other arm transforming into a cannon-like weapon. A moment later, a pulse of concentrated force erupted from its core. The group scattered, barely avoiding the explosion as the floor cracked apart beneath them.

Kaede cursed. "We can't brute force this! We need a plan!"

Desperate Combat

Unit 01 moved.

In an instant, they were gone—then reappeared mid-air, Q-Energy crackling around their body. Their fist collided with the guardian's chest, sending a shockwave through the chamber.

The guardian staggered.

Drax whistled. "Okay, that's new."

Unit 01 landed, their glowing blue eyes flickering. Their voice was hazy, fragmented. "Error… Rebooting system…"

Ishizaki forced himself to move, stumbling forward. "Are you helping us or trying to kill us?"

Unit 01's gaze snapped to him. For a moment, something flashed in their expression—recognition? Confusion?

Then the guardian roared.

The temperature in the room dropped sharply as the machine's armor shifted, revealing a layer of white-hot plasma vents underneath.

Kaede paled. "It's adapting."

The guardian raised its cannon again.

The Fight Turns Against Them

Ishizaki lunged toward the guardian, knife glowing, but something went wrong.

The moment his energy flared, a violent feedback pulse erupted around him. He cried out as his mind split apart—images flashing too fast to process.

"You were the contingency plan."

"Unit 02 synchronization incomplete—"

"He shouldn't exist."

His vision blurred. He collapsed to one knee, his breathing ragged.

"Kid?!" Drax turned toward him, only to be slammed aside by the guardian's massive arm.

Kaede's face twisted in frustration. "We need to disable it!" She slammed a hand against a nearby console, overriding the system. The room's lights flickered wildly as defenses across the facility powered down.

The guardian shuddered, its red eye blinking erratically.

Unit 01 took the opportunity.

They charged, a massive surge of Q-Energy wrapping around their arm like a spiraling vortex.

With a roar, they punched straight through the guardian's chest.

The machine froze. Its core fractured, red energy leaking out like spilled blood.

Then—

BOOM.

The guardian self-destructed, sending a pulse of force through the room.

A Last-Minute Revelation

As the dust settled, the group stared at the wreckage.

Unit 01 stood among the remains, unmoving. Their breathing was heavy, their body sparking with unstable energy.

Then they turned to Ishizaki.

And they smiled.

"You were meant to replace me."

Ishizaki's stomach dropped. "What?"

Unit 01 took a slow, shuddering step forward. "They made you because I failed," they murmured, almost to themselves. "I was supposed to be the perfect weapon. But I wasn't enough."

They lifted a trembling hand, placing it against their own chest.

"So they started over. With you."

The room shook violently. Kaede's device flared, warning of imminent system failure.

"Facility power levels are unstable," Solus said. "Catastrophic collapse in—"

The lights died.