Chapter 17: Echo of the Self
The double stood motionless.
Same jacket, same boots, same narrowed eyes that mirrored Zayn's own expression. It was like staring into a corrupted mirror—one that remembered too much.
Zayn didn't speak at first. The crystal beacon hummed softly behind him, its fractured light flickering across the chamber walls.
Max whispered, "Tell me that's some weird illusion."
Iris didn't blink. "No. It's something deeper. A full behavioral mimic."
The double took a step forward, hands raised slightly. "You're slower than I was," it said in Zayn's exact voice. "Weaker too. I had already activated the beacon by now."
\[System Message:
Entity Classification – Echo Variant: Z\_Prototype\_001
Behavioral Profile: Mirror Combatant / Memory-Infused]
\[Threat Level: High – Adapts Based on Player's Combat History]
Zayn kept his gaze steady. "What are you?"
The double tilted its head. "I'm what's left when the system forgets to delete the last save."
A flicker of blue light danced across its form.
It charged.
Zayn barely raised his weapon in time, deflecting a blade strike aimed at his throat. The force knocked him backward, sliding across the floor.
Iris reacted instantly, throwing a stun charge.
The device exploded mid-air—but the Echo leapt through the smoke, unharmed.
"Not like the others!" Iris shouted. "This one *remembers* your tactics!"
Max opened fire, shots echoing through the chamber. The Echo spun mid-run, dodging with mechanical precision. Every movement it made was too familiar.
Zayn rolled and drew his Signal Knife.
\[Signal Knife: Durability – 2 Uses Remaining]
He waited. Let the Echo close in.
Then struck low.
Steel met steel. The knife scraped against the Echo's own blade—an identical one.
\[Warning: Combat Sync at 91% – Echo Adapting]
The fight blurred. Zayn was locked in a dance with himself—every move predicted, every strike mirrored.
Iris circled wide, trying to flank. "We can't hit it head-on!"
Max tapped into his gear inventory. "Then maybe I don't need to aim *at* it."
He deployed a Pulse Mine near the wall, timed to Zayn's movement.
"Zayn! Drive him left!"
Zayn feinted high, then cut sideways—forcing the Echo toward the mine.
It stepped—
And froze.
\[Echo Sync Disrupted – Stability Faltering]
A burst of electric light engulfed it.
For a second, it glitched—flickering, losing shape. Its face twisted into something wrong—stretched too wide, hollow-eyed.
It screamed.
Zayn surged forward, thrusting his Signal Knife into its exposed core.
The light inside dimmed.
Then faded.
\[Entity Terminated: Echo Variant Z\_Prototype\_001]
\[Recovered: Data Key Fragment x1]
\[Behavioral Analysis Uploaded to Core System]
The chamber returned to silence.
The real Zayn collapsed to one knee, breathing hard. "Was that… me? Or just code?"
Max crouched beside him. "It moved like you. Thought like you. But it wasn't *you.*"
Iris picked up the glowing fragment left behind. "If the system's spawning Echoes based on player data… we'll see more of these. And not just of you."
\[Data Key Fragment Recognized – Synchronizing with Beacon]
\[Do you wish to begin restoration?]
\[Yes] \[No]
Zayn stepped toward the crystal.
"Let's do it."
He tapped **Yes**.
The beacon pulsed.
Blue light surged outward, scanning the chamber, then upward through the tunnel they had descended.
\[Data Beacon Restoration Initiated – Signal Stabilizing]
\[Zone\_7 Map Integration: 24%]
\[New Fast Travel Point Unlocked: Hollow Nexus – Layer One]
Max exhaled. "That's progress, right?"
The room shook.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
\[New Threat Detected: Zone\_7 Core Awakened – Hostile Response Likely]
\[Timer: 10:00 Until Zone Recalibration Begins]
Zayn turned to the others. "This place isn't done with us."
Iris nodded. "Then we get ready. Heal up. Reload. Because whatever's next... it's reacting to what we just woke up."
They gathered around the beacon, its hum now steady. It didn't feel like a victory.
It felt like a door opening.
Deeper into the dark.