Sophia stormed into the safe house’s main room, her tablet clutched tightly, a stack of reports balanced precariously in her other hand. She slammed them onto the table with a sharp thud, her eyes blazing with urgency.“You’re not going to believe this,” she announced.Julian didn’t look up, his focus glued to the laptop screen displaying the ominous countdown: 46:15:22... 46:15:21...“What now?” he asked, his tone heavy with exasperation.Sophia tapped on her tablet, bringing up an interactive map. Red markers littered the globe like a rash. She turned the screen toward Julian and Madeline, who had just entered the room, a steaming mug of coffee in her hand.“These markers?” Sophia said, her voice sharp. “They’re for individuals believed to be dead—warlords, corrupt CEOs, political power players, and even leaders tied to scandals over the last decade. Every single one of them vanished under mysterious circumstances. But now...”Madeline’s brows furrowed as she leaned in. “They’re bac

The Arctic wind howled through the jagged opening of the hidden facility, stinging their faces like frozen needles. Julian led the way, his footsteps careful on the frost-slicked floor. Behind him, Madeline and Artemis followed, their breaths visible in the freezing air. The entrance descended sharply into the icy abyss, the dim lighting casting eerie shadows on the steel walls. “Everyone stay sharp,” Julian muttered, his voice low but firm. Artemis stopped at a narrow corridor that stretched ahead like the maw of a waiting predator. She raised a hand, motioning for silence. “This is it. The labyrinth begins here. Every inch of this place is a trap—pressure plates, lasers, thermal sensors. If you breathe wrong, it’ll know.” Madeline glanced down the corridor, spotting faint red beams crisscrossing the floor. “Great. Just great.” Julian nodded. “We stick to the plan. No unnecessary risks. Move like your life depends on it—because it does.” The team advanced, each step calculated.

The Arctic wind howled, biting at Julian and Madeline as they trudged through the endless expanse of snow. Behind them, the smoldering remains of the facility painted a grim backdrop. The silence between them was louder than the distant echoes of the explosion.Julian adjusted his grip on the fractured AI fragment, its edges jagged and lifeless. “We bought the world some time,” he muttered, breaking the oppressive quiet. “But it’s not over. Not even close.”Madeline kept her gaze forward, her lips pressed into a tight line. The usual fire in her eyes was replaced with a storm of emotions—guilt, fear, and something Julian couldn’t place.Finally, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. “Julian… there’s something I need to tell you.”Julian slowed, the weight in her tone stopping him in his tracks. He turned to her, searching her face. “What is it?”Madeline hesitated, her breath visible in the frigid air. Her hands trembled as she pushed strands of loose hair from her face. “I was

The dim glow of the safe house's single lightbulb flickered overhead, casting long, jittery shadows on the cracked walls. Julian paced the cramped space, the faint hum of the AI fragment clutched in his hands filling the silence like a ticking time bomb. Across the room, Madeline leaned against the table, arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her eyes followed Julian, every step heightening her unease. Finally, she couldn’t hold back. “Julian,” she said sharply. “What’s the plan?” He stopped mid-step, turning to face her. “The plan?” His voice carried an edge, frustration and exhaustion warring within him. “The plan is survival, Madeline. Everything else comes second.” “Survival?” she snapped. “You’re holding a piece of an AI that nearly ended the world, and the only thing it’s telling us is to find the ‘Omega Protocol.’ Does that sound like survival to you?” Julian sighed, running a hand through his hair. “What do you want me to say? That I have all the answers? Because I don’t.

The desert was merciless, the wind whipping up swirls of sand that seemed to mock their every move. Julian and Madeline stood at the edge of a vast wasteland, the sand stretching endlessly before them. In front of them, half-buried in the earth, was a rusted hatch. Julian’s fingers gripped the handle, muscles straining as he tried to pry it open.“This isn’t just a satellite operation,” Julian muttered, his voice low and urgent, the harsh desert wind nearly drowning him out. His words were sharp, piercing the silence as his breath formed visible clouds in the cold air. “It goes deeper—literally and figuratively.”Madeline, ever pragmatic, looked over the hatch. Her gaze was wary, but there was something more: a certain tension that had settled in her bones since the escape from the Arctic. “If this was hidden so carefully, what do you think they were protecting?” she asked, her eyes flicking to the horizon as if expecting enemies to emerge from the dunes.Julian didn’t answer. His min