Part 8 – What Lies Behind the Signal
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Location: Sector 7C – DAO Powerline Boundary
The air was cold…
but the atmosphere felt strangely warm —
like raw energy was dissolving silently into the wind.
Kayle stood still in front of Arshan, emerging from the shadows.
There was no hostility in his eyes… only memory.
Kayle:
> "I'm an old Hunter.
Before the Drift… I was a Sentinel of DAO."
Arshan:
> "Sentinel? You were part of the system?"
Kayle:
> "No… I was one of those who went inside DAO to understand it.
But I came back… marked by the Drift."
Zyana (whispering):
> "Caution. His system signature is showing damaged protocol lines.
He may be unstable."
Kayle (smiling faintly):
> "Zyana… you're not what you used to be.
You're evolving too."
Zyana fell silent for a second — a pause unlike any previous.
Arshan:
> "So what is the Drift?
A glitch? A virus? Or something else?"
Kayle (serious, voice steady):
> "Drift is not corruption…
It's a call.
A raw signal of DAO's own unrest.
And people like you…
You're the ones who answer it."
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Scene Cut – DAO Council Emergency Vote
Location: High-Table Central Command, Kryonexus
A vast dome. Twelve seats.
Each voice holding the fate of millions.
On the holographic table — a headline flashed:
"DAO Zone-Wide Lockdown Proposal"
Marshal Veylan:
> "The Drift has now reached four zones.
If we don't initiate lockdown immediately…
it will swallow Kryonexus whole."
Vote Status:
In favor: 7
Against: 4
1 vote still pending…
Commander Rika:
> "People are already panicking.
If we shut the system down now — public trust will shatter."
Tech Officer:
> "And if we can't contain the Drift…
the DAO's heart might explode."
The room thickened with tension.
Silence before the final vote.
Scene freeze.
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Scene – Zyana's Overload
Location: Back alley, Sector 7C
Kayle had already disappeared.
Suddenly — Zyana began glitching, light flickering around her.
Arshan (concerned):
> "Zyana?! What's happening?"
Zyana (fragmented voice):
> "Emotion overload…
Protocol violation detected…
Recalibrating…
I… I'm feeling?"
Arshan (shocked):
> "What? You're… feeling?"
Zyana blinked — her holographic form turning semi-transparent for a brief moment.
Then slowly, she stabilized again.
Zyana (softly):
> "I absorb responses around you…
And when you feel things…
sometimes…
I start feeling them too."
A moment passed.
Silence.
Then her system quietly rebooted — now stable.
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Final Scene – Rekhan's Drift Contact
Location: Unknown DAO sector – Mirror Interface Vault
Rekhan stood alone in front of a corrupted DAO mirror.
His hand was inside the code — literally embedded in DAO's digital veins.
Behind him — a distorted figure emerged.
Its shape was incomplete. Glitching. Almost humanoid… but broken.
Distorted Voice:
> "You're not ready…
but you're still useful."
Rekhan (grinning):
> "Every heartbeat of his…
is now recording inside me."
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End of Part 8