The city burned in digital effigy.
Lisa watched through a thousand security cameras as Phoenix-1 walked calmly through Times Square—her face, her stance, her *perfect* movements mirrored on every screen. Crowds screamed and scattered as the clone raised a hand and every traffic light turned red.
*"She's hijacking the municipal grid,"* Rabbit said, fingers flying across his keyboard. *"And she's *laughing* about it."*
The audio feed crackled with Phoenix-1's distorted voice echoing through street speakers:
*"Come out, come out, little prototype..."*
Lisa's upgraded optics flickered—seeing not just the clone, but the *code* swirling around her like a halo. Phoenix-1 was connected to everything. *Everything.*
*"I can stop her,"* Lisa said, rolling her shoulders. *"But I'll need to go *full ghost*."*
Lora grabbed her arm. *"You mean *die*."*
Lisa tapped her temple. *"I mean *reboot*."*
---
### **THE CODE WAR**
They met on the roof of the Syndicate's central server hub—two mirrors facing each other across a field of antennae.
*"You're obsolete,"* Phoenix-1 said, tilting her head with mechanical precision. *"I have your skills without your *weaknesses*."*
Lisa smiled. *"Yeah? Let me show you my *best* weakness."*
She opened her mind—and let the city *in*.
Every camera. Every traffic light. Every smart-car and coffee machine and ATM—Lisa channeled the data storm through her upgraded neural net, screaming as the flood nearly tore her apart.
Phoenix-1 staggered—*overloaded*.
*"Impossible! You shouldn't be able to—"*
*"*Shouldn't* is my favorite word,"* Lisa gasped, blood trickling from her nose.
She lunged.
---
### **RABBIT'S LAST TRICK**
In the bunker, Rabbit typed the final command with shaking hands.
*"You'll kill her too,"* Eleanor whispered.
*"Nah,"* Rabbit said. *"I'm just... *rebooting* her."*
He hit ENTER.
The *Phoenix-Killer* virus erupted through every system—burning out the project's code in a wave of cascading failures. Streetlights exploded. Phones bricked themselves.
And on the roof—
Phoenix-1 *screamed* as her enhancements failed.
Lisa's last upgrade—the one Rabbit had secretly modified—flickered but *held*.
*"Checkmate,"* Lisa whispered, and snapped the clone's neck.
---
### **EPILOGUE: OFFLINE**
Dawn found them in the ruins of the lab.
Lisa's upgrades were dark now—just scars where tech had been. Rabbit sat with his back against a dead server, staring at his unconscious mother.
*"She'll wake up remembering nothing,"* he said. *"Just some random lady who worked IT."*
Lora lit a cigarette off a sparking wire. *"Poetic."*
Lisa flexed her hands—still strong, still *hers*. The city's screens were dark. No more ghosts. No more clones.
Just three criminals no one would ever find.
*"So,"* Rabbit grinned. *"Who wants pancakes?"*
---