Location: Tavara Capital – Grid Control Nexus (Post-Explosion)
Smoke curled from shattered consoles, and flickering sparks danced like dying fireflies through the air. A suffocating silence settled over the control room, broken only by the steady hum of backup generators struggling to kick in.
Damien knelt beside Nora, her body limp in his arms, her skin pale as porcelain.
"Nora…" he whispered, brushing a soot-smeared lock of hair from her face. "Please—wake up."
She didn't stir.
Victor stumbled over, a bloodied cut across his brow, scanning the ruined interface. "The override worked," he muttered, voice hollow. "The Dominion grid has collapsed. Their satellite link is down. We've cut them off."
But Damien wasn't listening. His focus was entirely on the woman who had sacrificed everything for this moment.
"She needs help," he growled. "Now."
Raven dropped to her knees beside them, extracting a stim pack from her utility belt. "She's still breathing. Faint, but alive. Her neural system took a full arc pulse—she needs med-evac immediately."
Victor turned toward the corridor. "Sloan, I need the med-pod prepped. Priority one! We're getting her out!"
---
Location: Dominion High Altitude Surveillance Cruiser – Command Deck
Caine stood alone, the tactical map before him now completely dark—Tavara's core offline.
A Dominion general approached cautiously. "Sir, the EMP wave failed. Their grid was firewalled. Localized damage, but no permanent suppression."
Caine didn't turn. "And Prototype-03?"
The general hesitated. "Destroyed in the Nexus explosion. We lost all synthetic feeds."
A deep, controlled breath. "Then we bring the war to the surface."
He turned slowly. "Commence Phase Omega."
---
Location: Tavara Capital – Phoenix Medical Base
Hours later, the air was thick with antiseptic and the low whirr of machines. Nora lay unconscious inside a cryo-stabilization pod, suspended in deep regenerative sleep.
Damien stood outside the glass, fists clenched at his sides.
Victor approached silently, handing him a tablet. "Status report. Dominion's trying to spin the city-wide blackout as a terrorist attack. We've sent encrypted footage to Tavara NewsNet. Public opinion is tipping."
Damien didn't look up. "She gave everything to save this city."
Victor nodded. "And she's not done yet. Sloan's analyzing her genetic override. That sequence—Blazing Sovereign—it's not just a failsafe. It's a command key."
Damien's eyes narrowed. "Command key for what?"
Victor hesitated. "Not just the grid. For Project Elysium."
The room seemed to still.
"I thought Elysium was a myth," Damien said. "A failed bio-initiative from the old Empire."
Victor's tone was grave. "Not failed. Buried. Hidden in plain sight. And Caine's trying to awaken it."
---
Location: Dominion Deep Core Bunker – Undisclosed Coordinates
Caine descended a spiral staircase deep into the belly of the earth. The chamber before him pulsed with eerie, organic light. Rows of cryo-capsules lined the walls, each housing humanoid forms—some mechanical, some disturbingly human.
At the center of the room stood a sealed pod, darker than the rest, its glass frosted with age.
Requiem joined him silently. "All preparations complete. Project Elysium awaits the final key."
Caine placed a single, black-crystal drive into a terminal socket. "Victor Kane thinks this is over."
The pod hissed, unlocking in a slow, ominous exhale.
"We've only just begun."
---
Location: Phoenix Medical Base – Nora's Recovery Room
Night had fallen again.
Damien sat beside the bed, his head bowed as Nora's fingers twitched faintly.
Her eyelids fluttered. A soft moan escaped her lips.
Damien rose instantly. "Nora? Can you hear me?"
She blinked slowly, eyes hazy, then locked on his face. A weak smile touched her lips. "You came back."
"I never left," he said softly, voice thick with emotion.
Her hand found his. "Did we win?"
Damien nodded, his throat tight. "You saved the city."
Tears welled in her eyes, but before she could speak again, an alarm sounded in the hallway. Red lights began flashing across the walls.
Victor burst into the room. "They've activated something under Sector 9. We just picked up a pulse matching the Elysium frequency."
Nora sat upright, ignoring the pain. "He found it…"
Damien looked between them. "Then we stop him. Together."