The air in the core room turned heavier, like even the machines were holding their breath.
Karen stood frozen, her hand inches from the kill switch.
The woman stepped into full view... black boots, sleek coat, clipboard still clutched like she'd never stopped running tests.
Her presence was calm. Too calm.
Alex moved to Karen's side, protective, but Karen didn't flinch, she just stared.
"You," Karen said coldly. "You're the one who started this."
The woman offered a tight smile. "I prefer designed."
Luca raised his flashlight toward her, but she didn't react.
"Why?" Karen demanded. "Why me? Why any of this?"
The woman paced slowly in front of the humming servers. "Because you were… exceptional. Unbreakable. We needed to know why, what made you survive what others couldn't."
Karen's eyes darkened. "So you broke me to study how I put myself back together?"
"Again and again," she said softly. "But you were never supposed to get this far."
Alex stepped forward. "If you don't get out of our way, I'll personally end this."
The woman's smile didn't waver. "You can try."
Karen tilted her head. "You knew I'd come back, that I'd find this place so what now? You try to convince me not to shut it down?"
"No," the woman said simply. "I came to offer you control."
Silence.
Karen blinked. "What?"
"You pull that switch, you kill everything. The data, the subjects, the systems and everyone who ever hurt you walks free with clean hands. No proof, no names."
Alex narrowed his eyes. "And what are you offering?"
The woman looked directly at Karen.
"Stay. Lead, take over Project HER. Build it in your image. With your rules. No more tests. Just… truth. Power. Control."
Karen's throat tightened.
Alex turned to her. "Karen don't listen to her. This is manipulation. She's just trying to sink her claws in one last time."
But Karen's mind raced. What if she stayed? What if she made sure no one else ever went through what she did? What if she flipped the entire system from inside?
The woman took a step closer. "You want justice? Let me give you the tools. You want revenge? I can give you the names. But shut it all down and you'll walk away with nothing but scars."
Luca's voice was quiet. "This is the real test."
Karen looked at the switch.
Then at the woman.
Then at Alex.
And her voice cut through the noise.
"Power means nothing… if you have to lose yourself to keep it."
She reached for the switch—
Pulled.
Everything shut down.
The lights.
The servers.
The hum.
The air shifted.
The room was now dead.
The woman's face didn't move. Just a single nod.
"You always choose this," she whispered.
Alex wrapped his arms around Karen from behind.
"You did it," he said.
Karen exhaled.
But something still buzzed beneath her skin.
It wasn't over yet.
Not quite.