"What if your eyes were never truly yours?"
The question struck Elira as she stared at her reflection in the cracked mirror. The silver in her irises shimmered faintly even in the dim light, threading out like fine lightning veins from her pupils. Every blink felt heavier, like her body was adjusting to vision that belonged to someone else—or someone more.
But she didn't feel possessed.
She felt… aware.
Everything had shifted.
Safehouse – Bedroom
Kael stood by the doorway, uncertain. He hadn't dared speak since Elira woke. Not after her voice came through so calm, too calm—"I remember everything"—like it wasn't just her words, but a verdict. A sentence. Or a declaration of war.
She finally turned toward him. "You lied to me," she said, voice level.
Kael exhaled. "I did."
Jane leaned against the far wall, tense. "Here we go…"
Elira took a step closer. Her silver eyes didn't blink. "You let me believe it was just my memory breaking. That I was a victim of some accident."
"I needed time," Kael said quietly. "If I told you too soon—"
"You didn't trust me."
"I was trying to protect you."
"No," she said, sharp now. "You were trying to protect your plan."
Kael flinched. But didn't argue.
Flash Memory – Through Her Eyes
She saw it now—his version of events.
How Kael found her near the Reset Hub. How she had begged him to erase the memories that haunted her.
How he hesitated… but agreed. Because she looked so broken. So lost.
But he hadn't told her everything.
Hadn't told her that others were looking for her.
Hadn't told her what she used to be.
She remembered Christine now, too—whispers at the edge of beds, meetings in the quiet corners of the Reset Facility. And that name they once called her.
"Project Echoheart."
She clenched her fists. "I wasn't a girl. I was a test case."
Kael stepped forward. "You were more than that. You still are."
"But you still used me."
"I loved you."
His voice cracked on the word. It hung there like broken glass between them.
Silence. Then:
Elira turned to Jane. "You knew?"
Jane's jaw worked. "I suspected. Not all of it. But… enough."
"And you didn't tell me?"
"You were breaking apart, Elira. You were barely hanging on." Her tone wasn't apologetic, just firm. "I didn't want to be the final push that shattered you."
Elira sat on the edge of the bed. The room swam around her—old smells, faint echo auras clinging to the corners like ghosts. She looked down at her hands.
"Then why do I feel more put together now than ever before?"
Kael didn't answer.
She stood. Walked past him.
Paused.
"I'm not angry because you lied," she said. "I'm angry because you made me small. Because you thought the best version of me was the one who didn't know anything."
Kael's eyes were wet now, but he nodded. "I'm sorry."
Elira tilted her head. "Sorry doesn't change what's coming."
Scene Change — Unknown Location
A console screen blinked to life in the dark.
RECEIVED: REBIRTH PROTOCOL INITIATED
SUBJECT: ECHOHEART STATUS: AWAKENED
SLEEPER UNIT 03: ACTIVATING
Footsteps echoed down a metallic corridor.
A figure in a lab coat stood before a sealed chamber. Inside, a woman floated in a clear tank—hair like molten ash, arms tattooed with thread-like markings.
The scientist whispered, "She's awake. Then we wake her too."
The tank hissed. Lights flickered red.
Back to Elira — Rooftop of the Safehouse
That night, she stood at the rooftop, staring at the blinking city below. The wind pulled at her hair. Her senses were sharper. Sounds layered. Light broke into color patterns she didn't know she could see before.
The world wasn't new.
She was.
Kael stepped beside her. Gave her space. Just stood there.
"Elira," he said softly. "What do you want to do now?"
She thought about it.
"I want to stop running," she said. "I want answers. I want to remember who erased me. Who turned me into… this."
"And if they come after you again?"
She smiled. "Then I'll show them what Echoheart can really do."
Final Scene – Surveillance Room
Christine sat in front of a screen, watching Elira from afar.
A man in shadow approached behind her.
"She's destabilized," he said.
Christine shook her head. "No. She's clearer than ever."
"Then she'll be a threat."
"She's always been one."
The man narrowed his eyes. "Then activate the next cycle."
Christine turned toward him. "And Kael?"
The man answered coldly:
"Kill him."
Sleeper 03: Ashes Return
The second Echoheart—code-named Ashline—awakens. And unlike Elira, she remembers everything… including who betrayed them first.