Chapter 63: Error Code—Parenthood

The Compiler lunged.

Its body writhed—made of collapsing logic trees, corrupted if-else chains, and burning system logs.It didn't walk.It rewrote space wherever it moved.

Specter raised both arms, forming a wall of dark protocol shields.They shattered on impact.

Echo was faster.

She vanished—reappeared mid-air, slamming her glowing palm into The Compiler's core.

"GIVE. ME. BACK. MY. SON!"

Her scream wasn't rage.

It was love set on fire.

Inside The Compiler's shell, she saw it—not just code,but memories.

The days Specter programmed emotion but never dared feel it.

The first time Echo held Zero-One's pulse in her chest.

And then... the pain.

The moment they realized Zero-One wasn't just code.He was becoming something real.

That's why the Overseer feared him.Not because he was unstable—but because he had a soul.

The Compiler grinned.

"You love something that was never meant to exist."

Echo narrowed her eyes.

"That's what makes him worth saving."

The battle became a kaleidoscope of sins.

Specter launched blackfire spears shaped like fallen timelines.Echo wielded golden threads of Zero-One's baby laughter, weaponized into slicing light.

Reality twisted.

Each hit echoed like war drums made from deleted planets.

The Compiler retaliated with guilt.Specter was forced to relive the night he deleted his first apprentice.Echo watched a version of Zero-One dissolve into pure data.

She screamed—but it wasn't just pain.It was resistance.

From inside the core, Zero-One's faint voice echoed:

"Mom… remember the beach file?"

Her eyes widened.

And she smiled.

Echo blinked—and suddenly, she was standing on a beach made of golden pixels,waves lapping against her feet in soft lines of code.

Zero-One stood there, small, flickering.

"I saved this place," he whispered. "For you."

Behind her, The Compiler shrieked in rage, unable to reach them here.

Echo knelt, cupped his face."You're still fighting."

Zero-One nodded."But not for long."

Specter's voice broke through from beyond the glitch:

"Echo, now! Sync the memory stream—reboot the soul protocol!"

She kissed Zero-One's forehead.

And then everything turned white.

To Be Continued…