Chapter 16: The Lightning Protocol
Neo had seen enough.
They tried to silence him.
They tried to isolate him.
They tried to erase the Silent Storm.
But storms don't retreat.
They electrify.
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### 06:00 — *Ignition Code: Lightning Protocol*
Neo stood in the command hub, his eyes locked on a rotating grid of data points.
> "We've mapped all seven Unit Zero operatives. But that's not enough."
He uploaded a secured program — one he hadn't touched since before Virelia.
> "We don't just intercept now."
> "We sever the shadows."
Lightning Protocol — a hybrid cognition-combat system designed to disrupt neural coordination.
> *An echo that fights back.*
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### 09:00 — *Lucid's Tactical Override*
Lucid had seen Unit Zero in action. She knew their methods.
Now she turned them against their creators.
> "Feed them false triggers. Let them burn their energy chasing phantoms."
> "Then isolate the real ones — when they're exposed."
She looked at Neo.
> "If we're doing this… there's no going back."
Neo:
> "We passed that threshold the moment truth became dangerous."
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### 13:00 — *The Strike Team Deploys*
Neo, Elin, Vina, Kaito, and Elias moved under total silence.
Each target was tracked to their hide zones.
- Neo faced Operative Theta — the strategist.
- Kaito intercepted Lambda — the disruptor.
- Elin tracked Sigma — the infiltrator.
Each confrontation was fast. Brutal. Precise.
No kill shots.
Just dismantling.
Neo didn't believe in silencing people.
He believed in revealing them.
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### 18:00 — *Reverb Unleashed*
In his final encounter, Neo activated Echo Step — but differently.
**Reverb**: an evolved cognition loop.
He didn't just read the room.
He read intentions. Anticipated deviations.
Theta moved to strike—
Neo was already behind him.
One blow. One whisper:
> "Storms don't ask permission."
Theta collapsed — disarmed in body and belief.
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### Midnight — *The Fall of Ghosts*
Lucid broadcasted the full data history of the Ghost Program to every academy.
Dark ops. Coercion. Mind conditioning.
Proof undeniable.
The Silent Storm didn't just win.
It uncovered truth.
And truth became lightning in every student's hand.
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*End of Chapter 16.*