"YOU HAD ME AT HELLO"

Thursday – 4:08 P.M. | Deserted Motel Outside City Limits

Rain pelted the broken neon sign of the half-collapsed motel where the trio holed up. Kael sat at a rusted desk, memory drives connected to his portable terminal, fingers flying over a cracked keyboard. Rick leaned against the wall, arms crossed. Ava watched the storm through the window.

"They'll trace us here," Rick muttered.

"I'm using five proxies and bouncing signals off of obsolete satellites," Kael said. "We're ghosts right now. For about twelve more minutes."

From his screen, a familiar voice echoed across every channel.

Hollow Bridge Emergency Broadcast – Live Feed

Director Widow stood poised, hair immaculate, suit pristine.

> "This is a message to all citizens. Earlier today, a terrorist cell led by a high-risk genetic weapon named Rick Fyer attacked a dormant government facility known as Echo."

> "This was not an act of rebellion — it was a declaration of war."

> "Fyer, along with two known accomplices, Ava Shire and Kael Drix, are to be considered armed and dangerous. They are infected with unstable synthetic code and must be apprehended immediately."

> "For your safety… turn them in."

Rick stared at the screen.

His hands curled into fists.

"She's rewriting everything."

Motel Room – Quiet Breakdown

Ava shut off the screen.

"She called me an accomplice like I'm some kind of criminal."

Rick sat beside her.

"She called me a weapon."

Silence.

Kael kept typing.

"Look, we've got more than just that recording. These drives contain raw data on Project Phoenix… and something called REVERB."

"What's REVERB?" Ava asked.

Kael turned the screen.

Lines of code swam. Graphs. Test logs. Brain scans.

Then a single phrase:

> REVERB: Neural duplication via residual echo signature. Memory cloning. Identity fracture.

Rick's eyes narrowed.

"They've been cloning minds."

Flashback Fragment – Unknown Memory

A vision — but not Rick's.

Fire. Screaming. Metal tools clashing.

A man strapped to a chair.

Another Rick. A copy? A broken mirror version.

Eyes blank. Voice synthetic.

> "I am Rick Fyer. I am... the perfect result."

Present

Rick staggered back. Ava grabbed his arm.

"What did you see?"

He didn't answer.

Kael looked up.

"Widow isn't just rewriting public perception. She's rewriting you."

Elsewhere – Widow's Laboratory

Director Widow stared at a glass tank. Inside floated a boy — identical to Rick, but with eyes that glowed faintly.

Her assistant read the monitor.

"REVERB Subject 09 stabilizing. Mental patterns within 3% of target host."

Widow smiled.

"Release him tomorrow."

"Let the world meet the real Rick Fyer."

Back at the Motel – Final Moments

Rick stood at the doorway, rain washing over him.

Ava approached from behind.

"If she's using your face to control the narrative… how do we stop her?"

Rick looked over his shoulder.

"By reminding everyone who I really am."