Iris stood before a holographic map of the Draven Tower.
The base was a fortress.
Triple-layered biometric locks. Heat-sensor drones. Neural surveillance grids. And worst of all—a core security AI directly linked to Alec Draven's mind.
"We'll never get through undetected," Dorian muttered. "Alec's security is paranoid-level psychotic. Even a ghost couldn't slip in without raising alarms."
"Then we don't slip in," Iris said coldly. "We storm it."
Red Widow smirked. "That's more like it."
---
Phase 1: The Diversion
Red led the first strike team—code-named Phantom Six—toward the eastern drone towers.
As they rappelled from the chopper under cover of night, she gave her final command: "No noise. No mess. In and out."
Laser silencers. Smoke grenades. EMP bursts. The team moved like shadows.
One by one, the surveillance drones blinked offline.
Inside the Draven Tower, the AI flickered.
"Eastern quadrant cameras malfunctioning," the robotic voice announced.
Kira, sitting in the control room, frowned. "Send a sweep team."
But it was already too late.
That had been the plan all along.
---
Phase 2: The Entry
While Phantom Six engaged security, Iris and Dorian crept in through the old underground medical tunnels—abandoned since the institute's early experiments.
The air was thick with mildew and the scent of old chemicals.
Iris clutched her stun-blade, her pulse steady.
She wasn't the scared patient anymore.
She was the weapon now.
Suddenly, Dorian froze. "Motion sensor. Wait."
He pulled out a micro-beacon and tossed it down the hall. The sensor lit up—but nothing happened.
"Tripwire was deactivated. Someone's already been through here," he whispered.
"Who?" Iris asked, eyes narrowing.
"Only one guess..."
---
The Clone
The halls ahead were filled with blood.
Bodies of guards lay in twisted piles—every one killed with surgical precision.
At the far end stood a girl in black leather, her white hair soaked in red.
"Elara," Iris whispered.
The girl turned.
She looked exactly like her sister—same face, same eyes—but colder, sharper. A perfected version.
"You came," Elara-2 said.
"You remember me?" Iris asked.
"I remember her," Elara-2 said. "The original. Her memories... they haunt me."
"Then help me stop him."
Elara-2 tilted her head. "And why would I help you? I was created to replace you."
"You were created to obey. But you're more than that now. You broke out. You're killing his men. That means you want freedom."
Elara-2's eyes flickered.
Then she smiled—darkly.
"Freedom… or vengeance?"
---
Inside Draven Tower
Kira slammed her fist into the console. "We've got multiple breaches. They've already reached Sector C."
Alec stepped into the control room, calm despite the chaos.
"Let them come," he said softly.
"You're not worried?"
He stared into the monitors, watching Iris's face.
"She's exactly where I want her."
---
The Labyrinth
The trio—Dorian, Iris, and Elara-2—moved deeper into the tower, entering the core lab zone where Alec had stored years of research.
Rows of glass tanks lined the walls. Inside were failed experiments—half-formed clones, twitching limbs, distorted faces.
Iris flinched.
"God," Dorian whispered. "He wasn't building soldiers. He was building monsters."
Elara-2 barely blinked. "This is what he does to us. If we don't obey... we rot in here."
Suddenly, alarms blared.
A thick gas began flooding the chamber.
"Neurotoxin!" Dorian shouted. "He's flushing the lab!"
Iris grabbed an emergency mask, tossed one to Dorian, but Elara-2 stood calmly.
"I don't need it," she said.
She pressed her palm against a wall scanner.
The wall behind her slid open.
"Follow me."
---
The Core Room
They entered the mainframe chamber—the heart of Draven Tower.
In the center stood a massive crystalline core, pulsing with red light. Dozens of neural threads connected to the AI node, each one humming with data.
Iris stepped forward.
"This is it. Alec's digital brain."
Dorian moved to the terminal. "If I can inject the virus here, we can fry his surveillance, erase every patient file, and burn his neural backups."
"Do it," Iris said.
But Elara-2 held up a hand.
"Wait."
From the shadows, he emerged.
Alec Draven.
Not a hologram.
Not an illusion.
In the flesh.
Wearing his signature black suit. Calm. Collected. Cruel.
"Iris," he said softly. "You came home."
---
The Final Confrontation Begins
"I'm not yours," Iris snapped. "Not anymore."
He smiled. "Oh, but you are. You always will be."
He turned to Elara-2. "You're disappointing me."
She didn't move. Her eyes narrowed.
"I gave you everything," Alec said. "I made you stronger. Faster. Perfect. And yet... you still cling to her memory."
"I am her memory," Elara-2 whispered.
Then—she attacked.
Alec dodged, fluid and precise, catching her blade with his bare hand. Sparks flew.
"Predictable," he growled.
Iris lunged, slicing through his side.
He grunted but turned with an eerie smile.
"You forget, Iris. I trained you."
"I improved," she snarled.
---
A Dangerous Choice
As Alec fought both sisters, Dorian screamed, "I need thirty more seconds!"
Iris was bleeding. Her arm was nearly broken.
Alec slammed Elara-2 into the mainframe, sending sparks flying.
"You can't win!" he roared.
"You already lost," Iris hissed.
Then—she activated her neural chip.
And overloaded it.
The pain was blinding.
Her own body spasmed.
But the chip, linked to Alec's master key, sent a feedback loop straight into his mind.
He screamed—his body convulsing.
Dorian hit the final key.
"VIRUS INJECTED!"
The core exploded in light.
Alec fell to his knees—blood dripping from his eyes.
"I made you," he gasped.
"And I destroyed you," Iris said.
---
The Aftermath
Fire alarms rang.
Smoke poured through the tower.
Red Widow's team extracted the trio, barely escaping before the blast.
Outside, as the tower burned behind them, Iris stood silently, the wind whipping her hair.
Dorian approached. "He's gone. For real this time."
But Iris shook her head.
"No. Alec doesn't die that easily."
"What do you mean?"
She turned to him—haunted. "He always has a backup."