Rain blurred the city skyline as Lena stared out her window, clutching the strange letter.
"Project Mirrorman has many faces. And one just arrived in your city."
Jay paced behind her. "It's a trap."
Lena turned to him. "Or a warning."
He stopped. "Either way, it means they're not done with us."
They didn't have to wait long.
By afternoon, Lena received an email no sender, no subject. Just a video attachment.
She hesitated.
Clicked.
A surveillance feed flickered to life. A coffee shop. Downtown.
And sitting at the corner table…
Her.
Same face. Same coat. Same nervous sip of tea.
Except Lena was standing in her kitchen.
She whispered, "That's not me."
Jay leaned over. "That's your mirror."
The next frame cut to a lab. Flashing screens. Charts filled with her brainwaves.
And a voiceover.
"Subject M-19 has reached city zone. Monitor behavioral deviations."
Jay clicked pause.
"They sent one of them here. One of you."
Lena backed away. Her hands trembled.
She had faced fear before. But this this was something else.
A version of herself she didn't control.
They drove to the café.
It was empty, except for a young woman sitting by the window.
She looked up.
Lena's breath caught.
Same eyes. Same hair. But colder. Sharper.
The girl smiled. "You came."
Jay stepped forward. "Who are you?"
She stood.
"I'm what Lena was supposed to be if she hadn't fallen in love."
Jay moved protectively between them, but the girl raised her hand.
"I'm not here to hurt you."
She looked at Lena. "I came to warn you. They've activated the final phase. You weren't supposed to survive."
Lena's voice shook. "Then why help me?"
"Because I'm starting to feel what you feel. And they call that a defect."
Lena stepped closer. "You're not a defect. You're human."
A flicker passed across the girl's face.
A tear. Just one.
Then she turned. "They'll come for me. And you."
She slipped something into Lena's coat pocket.
"Find the truth before they erase it again."
And with that she vanished into the street.
Back home, Lena pulled the object from her pocket.
A USB drive.
She plugged it in.
One folder.
"FinalLayer_Mirrorman."
Inside: video logs, recordings, test files.
At the bottom one document:
"Death Protocol – Subject J."
Jay leaned over, face pale. "They planned everything. Even my accident."
Lena's fingers hovered over the file.
"Then it's time we end this. For real."