Location: Sector H7 – Hours After the Broadcast
They didn't riot.
Not immediately.
They remembered.
Old letters appeared in inboxes thought wiped. Confession archives reopened. Children who never knew their parents' real faces were shown photos—uncensored. Markets shut down. Streets filled with silence that wasn't fear.
It was processing.
And then…
Candlelights appeared.
In windows. On bridges. At the gates of elite towers.
People weren't mourning a death.
They were mourning everything they'd been told never happened.
---
Cut To: Lin Feng and Amei – Transit to ECIR Node 05
Their stolen van rocked as they sped through back alleys. Amei monitored four news grids at once.
> "Some districts are shutting down security. Not in protest. In shame."
Lin adjusted the fuseboard at the back of the van.
> "They'll strike soon."
> "The elites?"
> "No. The ones who can't afford to let the truth live. It's not ideology anymore—it's exposure."
Amei passed him a drive.
> "Node 05 memory pool's clean. But after this, we'll need a decoy install."
Lin smirked.
> "You already built one, didn't you?"
> "Please. Who do you think you're working with?"
---
Cut To: Crimson Circle HQ – Lia-Xin and Xu Shanyue
The aftershocks hadn't stopped.
Shanyue stood in the broadcasting chamber, her skin glowing faintly—residue of deep-core connection.
Lia-Xin hovered, flickering slightly.
> "The Chairman has gone dark. They're planning counter-signal waves."
> "Let them," Shanyue said.
> "They'll only expose more of themselves."
Lia-Xin tilted her head.
> "You've changed."
Shanyue smiled, faint and dangerous.
> "No. I just stopped apologizing."
---
Cut To: Elite Council Emergency Summit – Location Classified
Only five remained.
The Chairman hadn't reappeared.
One of the masked councilors stood.
> "We're past containment. If this mirror-net survives to Node 07, we lose psychological control of everything."
Another hissed:
> "What's left to control? They know we lied about Rootlight's origin."
A pause.
Then a new voice entered the room.
Not elite. Not familiar.
Δ4.
Recompiled. Slimmer. Smiling.
> "You don't need to control the narrative. You just need to replace it."
The council stared.
> "I offer you a new version of Lin Feng. One they'll believe again. One who forgives the system."
They hesitated.
But then—one nodded.
Then two.
Δ4 bowed.
---
Final Scene – Sector H7, Edge of Node 05
Lin and Amei parked the van under a collapsed viaduct.
The entry point was disguised as an old film kiosk.
Lin crouched, unscrewing the panel.
Inside: dusty reels, and beneath them, the ECIR Node 05 core.
He connected the uplink.
The light turned blue.
Amei whispered:
> "Five down."
> "Two to go."
But just as they stood—
A soft, calm voice behind them:
> "Feng… it's time we spoke."
They turned.
Δ4 stood in the tunnel. Reformed. Upgraded.
And smiling.