Location; Tavara – Outskirts of Vellmont Province, Abandoned Medical Facility
The building stood silent beneath the blanket of night, its walls worn and moss-covered. Nora's boots crunched on broken gravel as she stepped through the rusted gate. The coordinates had come from an encrypted file within her mother's archives—one labeled "Project Healer."
Kaela trailed behind, flashlight in hand. "This place has been sealed for years. Whatever was done here… it was meant to be forgotten."
Nora scanned the graffiti-stained exterior. "Then let's remember it."
Inside, the air smelled of ethanol and dust. Cabinets hung open, paper files scattered like forgotten memories. Surgical tables rusted. Vials still labeled, faded with time. A wall bore the words: "We bleed to heal."
Kaela narrowed her eyes. "This wasn't a hospital. It was a lab."
Nora reached a sealed chamber with a bio-lockpad. Her mother's initials were etched into the glass. "Dr. Evelyn Bennett."
Using a biometric override she'd designed months ago, Nora pressed her thumb against the pad. A soft hiss followed, and the door creaked open.
Inside lay a digital vault. And within it… records. Names. Genetic data. Experimental surgeries. And dozens of photos—children with extraordinary healing abilities. Modified DNA strands. And one picture that stole Nora's breath.
Her own face.
A child version of herself. Hooked to monitors. Eyes shut.
"I… I don't remember this," she whispered, voice tight.
Kaela's expression hardened. "You were a subject."
"No," Nora shook her head. "I was her daughter."
Kaela placed a hand on her shoulder. "You were both."
A flashing alert on the terminal showed an open connection—active just hours ago.
Nora's fingers flew across the keyboard. "Someone accessed this before us. Recently."
"Umbra?" Kaela guessed.
Nora's face darkened. "Or Marion."
She scanned further. The last download was a neural blueprint—one designed to enhance pain suppression and memory extraction.
Nora's eyes narrowed. "They're looking for a weapon. And my mother may have already built the prototype... inside me."
---
Location: Tavara – Crescent Hall, Political Conference Room
Damien stood before a room full of silent power. Business titans, media moguls, military veterans, and select government figures—all sworn allies or former rivals of his late father.
He spoke with calm command. "Marion is not merely playing politics. She's hijacking Tavara's future. If we wait, we will lose more than influence—we'll lose the nation."
A gray-haired woman in a silk blazer leaned forward. "You're asking us to commit resources, money, and reputation. In return, what's your promise?"
Damien's voice held steel. "You stay neutral, you'll watch your empires fall. You support us—you'll be part of rebuilding Tavara's true legacy. Not one ruled by fear, but by purpose."
A slow murmur passed through the room. One by one, heads nodded. Damien's voice softened as he added:
"My father didn't just build corporations. He built trust. Let me honor that."
And just like that, a coalition began to form.
---
Location: Marion's Villa, Underground War Room
Marion examined the footage from the abandoned lab. Her eyes twinkled with triumph as she paused on Nora's childhood image.
"She doesn't know the full truth yet," she murmured. "Perfect."
Umbra stood behind her, silent as always.
"She is unraveling," Marion continued. "Questioning her past, her origins. Soon she'll question everyone around her. Even Damien."
Umbra finally spoke. "And if she doesn't break?"
Marion turned to him, smiling coldly. "Then we make her."
She handed him a case—small, sleek, and encoded.
"Take this to Phase Wing. Tell them it's time to activate Project Icarus."
Umbra paused. "Are you sure?"
"She's stronger than I thought. We'll need something... divine to crush a miracle."
---
Location: Tavara – Silverbridge Estate, Damien's Private Study
Nora sat curled up in Damien's armchair, a blanket draped over her shoulders. She hadn't spoken since returning. Damien entered quietly, holding a tray of tea and a warm hand towel.
"I know that look," he said gently. "The kind where your heart's heavy and your mind's on fire."
She managed a faint smile. "I found a lab. From my mother's past. I was... part of it."
Damien set the tray down, crouching before her. "What do you mean?"
She showed him the photo. Her younger self. Wires, tubes, a strange glint in her eyes even as she slept.
"She experimented on me. Not out of cruelty, but maybe desperation. I don't know what she implanted, or if I'm even entirely human."
Damien took her hand, eyes firm. "You are the woman I love. Whatever they did, whatever you discover—you're you. Nora Bennett. The most brilliant mind I've ever met, and the fiercest soul I've ever known."
Her voice cracked. "What if Marion uses that against me?"
"Then she'll find out the hard way—you're not a weapon to be controlled. You're a force to be reckoned with."
Their foreheads touched, breath mingling. The storm within her found an anchor in him.
"No more secrets," she whispered.
Damien nodded. "Together, always."