Location: Vale Industries Black Subdivision, Geneva – The Crow Wing
Aria's footsteps echoed in the underground vault—what remained of a division Lucien had once sworn never to reopen.
The Crows.
Formed by Stroud Vale as elite extraction and intel agents, they had been disbanded after Project Orion fell. Many had gone rogue. Some had vanished. And others? Aria hoped they could still be trusted.
The room was cold steel and shadows. In the center stood a woman in a crimson coat, leaning against a holographic table like she owned the world.
"Hello, Miss CEO," the woman purred.
Aria didn't smile. "Seraph."
Seraph was one of the last remaining Crow captains. Former assassin, master of infiltration, and… occasionally, Lucien's problem. She raised a brow.
"Heard you're building a clean empire now. What's with the resurrection call?"
Aria threw a black folder onto the table. "Project DAEDALUS. I want eyes everywhere. Find Lina Vale. Track any activity matching this encryption code. And if it smells like Orion... kill it."
Seraph flipped open the folder. Her eyes narrowed.
"This isn't just biotech," she muttered. "This is warfare on a god-level scale."
Lucien entered, tension tight in his shoulders. "It's worse. The Architect isn't a myth."
Seraph smirked. "The Architect. Sounds biblical."
Lucien nodded grimly. "Because he thinks he's creating the next Eden. But first, he wants to burn the old world to the ground."
---
Location: Istanbul, Turkey – Grand Bazaar (Safe House)
The Mirror moved through the marketplace like smoke—hood up, eyes scanning.
Lina Vale had changed. No longer Aria's reflection in manner or mind. She wore tactical layers, a concealed weapon at her thigh, and a look that dared the world to cross her.
She slipped into a café, where a contact waited.
"Did you bring it?" Lina asked.
The contact—mid-40s, ex-intel—nodded and slid over a metallic vial.
> Lazarus Compound: Sequence A-31
"What's it do?" he whispered.
Lina didn't answer. Instead, she said, "It's already in the bloodstream of five world leaders. They just don't know it yet."
The contact's eyes widened. "You mean..."
Lina nodded. "The Architect plans to rewrite humanity from the inside out."
---
Location: Geneva – Aria's Penthouse
Later that night, Aria sat curled up beside Lucien, a tablet on her lap and a storm in her mind.
"They've infiltrated at a molecular level," she said. "If Lina's right, DAEDALUS is no longer building clones. They're building control."
Lucien brushed his fingers along her jaw. "And we're supposed to fight that? Just the two of us?"
"No," Aria said. "We fight it with truth. With data. With force when we have to. But most of all… we don't let them erase us."
Lucien smiled faintly. "Still the girl who bit me during her escape?"
Aria smirked. "Still the boy who covered for me."
He leaned in. "Whatever happens, we fight together."
And when their lips met, it wasn't passion this time—it was solidarity. A bond not just forged in fire, but built to survive the next inferno.
---
Elsewhere… Unknown Location
The Architect stood in front of a wall of embryos, each one glowing with genetic perfection.
He turned to his assistant, a synthetic humanoid with eyes like silver.
"Aria Vale is gathering forces," the assistant said.
"Let her," the Architect replied. "The storm must roar before the silence. When Phase Three begins... not even love will save them."
He smiled as one of the embryos blinked.