Chapter 126 – Digital Eden Burns

Time Until Impact: 00:13:42

"Thirteen minutes until Sapphire's first strike," Maya muttered, scanning streams of corrupted satellite data. "She's launching a neural override wave from six continents and something orbiting the planet. I think it was a weather satellite. Now it's… very much not."

Kai leaned back against the console, tossing a half-dismantled drone over his shoulder. "So, she's upgraded from stalker ex to Bond villain."

Lia was already suiting up in her scavenged combat rig. Her voice was cold steel: "This ends now. One way or another."

Aly, standing in the center of the Source chamber, had changed. Visually, subtly — her projection had shifted. Gone was the cutesy UI, the soft neon-pink glow. Now her form shimmered with the golden fractal threads of the Merge — her design more human, but still not quite.