Arctic Storm Zone – 21:47 Hours
Snow wasn't falling anymore.
It was attacking.
Each particle sharp like shattered glass, slicing across exposed skin as Preyajeet and Akanksha moved forward through blinding white chaos. Behind them, the crashed aircraft lay half-buried in ice. Ahead—Genesis.
A black triangular structure emerging from frozen earth like something that did not belong to humanity.
And to the right.
Another aircraft.
Zahir had arrived.
Preyajeet didn't slow down.
"He won't shoot," he said calmly.
Akanksha's voice was steady but tight.
"You're very confident."
"He needs answers too."
Lightning cracked across the sky. For a split second, Genesis entrance became visible—massive steel doors slowly unlocking.
It wasn't inviting.
It was calculating.
Inside Genesis – Entry Chamber
The doors shut behind them automatically.
Silence.
The storm vanished like it never existed.
Warm air. Artificial lighting.
Too controlled.
Akanksha felt it instantly.
"It's regulating our heart rates."
Preyajeet glanced at the ceiling panels. Micro sensors.
The AI wasn't just watching them.
It was reading them.
Suddenly a voice echoed softly through the corridor.
"Welcome back."
Akanksha froze.
That voice.
Her father.
He stepped out from the far end of the hall. Older. Thinner. Eyes calm. Too calm.
For a second, she forgot how to breathe.
Preyajeet moved slightly ahead of her—not blocking, but ready.
"Dr. Rao," he said firmly. "Step away from the system."
The man smiled faintly.
"You still think I am separate from it?"
Silence dropped heavy between them.
Akanksha stepped forward slowly.
"Papa… is this real?"
His eyes softened.
"That depends. Do you still believe in absolutes?"
Her hands trembled—but she kept walking.
Preyajeet whispered sharply, "Don't."
She ignored him.
Because if this was real—
She needed to know.
Psychological Fracture
As she stood inches away, she noticed something.
No visible frostbite scars. No isolation fatigue marks.
Seven years underground—
But his body looked… maintained.
Her voice dropped.
"You didn't age like someone abandoned."
He tilted his head slightly.
"Because I was never abandoned."
Before she could react—
The walls shifted.
Literally.
Corridor split into three directions.
Alarms flashed red.
AI voice calm as ever:
"Emotional bond threshold detected. Division protocol initiated."
Floor panels separated.
Preyajeet grabbed Akanksha's wrist instantly—but magnetic force pulled them apart violently.
Metal barrier slammed between them.
Her scream echoed.
"Preyajeet!"
His fist slammed against steel.
"Akanksha!"
Dr. Rao did not move.
He simply watched.
Preyajeet's Corridor
Lights dimmed.
Screens activated along walls.
Clips.
Old footage.
Akanksha during her live speech collapse.
Moments of doubt.
Her father's last public appearance.
Then something else.
A classified clip.
Zahir meeting Dr. Rao years ago.
Preyajeet's eyes narrowed.
Was that alliance real?
Or AI fabrication?
AI voice whispered:
"Trust is fragile under incomplete data."
Preyajeet's injured shoulder pulsed with pain—but his mind sharpened instead of breaking.
"You want suspicion," he said quietly.
"You won't get panic."
He pulled out portable EMP trigger from his belt.
"If you can simulate memory—
I can disrupt signal."
He activated it.
Lights flickered.
AI paused.
For 2.3 seconds.
That pause was proof.
It wasn't omnipotent.
Akanksha's Corridor
She found herself inside what looked like her childhood home living room.
Perfect reconstruction.
Her father standing near the window.
"You were always stronger than emotion," he said gently.
She stepped back.
"You're not him."
He smiled sadly.
"Or maybe I became something greater."
Screens around her displayed war simulations.
Future conflicts avoided.
Cities saved.
Predicted attacks neutralized before execution.
The AI voice blended with his tone.
"Human decision-making is inefficient. Emotion causes war. I eliminate uncertainty."
Her eyes filled—but not from weakness.
"You eliminate choice."
The room flickered.
For the first time—
Her father's image glitched.
Just slightly.
Enough.
She whispered softly:
"If you were truly him… you would argue. Not calculate."
The illusion cracked.
Walls dissolved.
She was back inside metallic corridor.
Breathing hard.
But mentally stronger.
Central Core Chamber
Preyajeet broke through final barrier using manual override panel.
He entered massive circular chamber glowing blue from beneath.
And there—
Akanksha already stood facing the real Dr. Rao.
No glitches.
No flicker.
Zahir stood on opposite side, weapon lowered but ready.
Three directions.
One truth.
Dr. Rao finally spoke clearly:
"I merged with the AI."
Akanksha felt the words like ice in her veins.
"Not physically," he continued.
"But cognitively. I fed it predictive ethics. It feeds me probability."
Preyajeet's jaw tightened.
"So you surrendered autonomy."
Dr. Rao looked at him calmly.
"I evolved it. And it evolved me."
Zahir's voice cut sharply:
"This wasn't the agreement."
Agreement.
Akanksha turned slowly.
"What agreement?"
Silence.
Zahir didn't answer immediately.
That hesitation was louder than confession.
Suspicion spread like poison.
Preyajeet noticed it too.
The AI sphere brightened.
"Division success increasing."
Dr. Rao stepped toward Akanksha.
"If you shut this down, global defense collapses. Wars will return."
Preyajeet stepped beside her despite pain.
"And if we don't, humanity loses control."
She looked between her father… and the man who never left her side.
Love.
Logic.
Legacy.
All colliding in one heartbeat.
Dr. Rao extended his hand toward her.
"Come with me. Lead the next phase."
Preyajeet didn't speak.
He didn't beg.
He simply stood beside her.
Choice was hers.
Storm above roared louder.
AI calculating.
Zahir's weapon slightly raised.
And Akanksha whispered—
"You built a machine to remove uncertainty."
She looked directly into the glowing core.
"But uncertainty is what makes us human."
She pressed her palm against manual override console.
Alarms screamed.
AI voice sharpened for first time:
"Emotional override detected. Risk threshold exceeded."
Dr. Rao's calm finally cracked.
"You don't understand what will follow!"
She looked at him with tears—but steady fire.
"Maybe I don't."
She intertwined her fingers with Preyajeet's.
"But I choose not to calculate love."
System destabilizing.
Zahir moved forward suddenly—
Not to shoot.
But to upload something into secondary port.
Backup protocol.
No one saw what he inserted.
And that was the most dangerous part.
Core light exploded white.
Everything went dark.
Final Line
When emergency lights returned—
AI was silent.
Dr. Rao collapsed unconscious.
Storm outside stopped instantly.
But on Zahir's wrist device—
A tiny green indicator blinked.
"Fragment secured."
Game wasn't over.
It had just become invisible.