But they didn’t want a tool, whispered a recorded message from Dr. Thorne. They wanted a weapon without guilt. So I hid you inside JUQ10—your memories, your empathy, your name. And I ran.

“You started believing you were someone else. A teacher. A soldier. A child lost in a mall. We had to wipe you.” He tapped a tablet. “But you—JUQ10—you’re stable. So here’s the mission.”

She walked. Her footsteps were silent. The voice belonged to a man behind glass: Administrator Vale.