Lyra was still standing in front of the screen displaying Dr. Varen’s face. All the sounds around her felt distant. She could think of only one thing.
Her mother.
For years, Lyra had believed her mother died in an ordinary accident. She had never imagined there was something bigger behind it.
“I don’t understand,” Lyra said softly.
Arka stepped closer.
“Lyra.”
“Why was my mother involved in all of this?”
No one answered right away.
Even Raven looked uncertain.
That only made Lyra more certain they were hiding something.
“You know something.”
Raven stared at the floor.
“Your mother was the first person to discover what Kronos was really doing.”
Lyra held her breath.
“She tried to stop it?”
“Yes.”
“Then why didn’t she tell me?”
Raven fell silent.
“Answer me.”
Raven finally looked at her.
“Because she wanted you to stay safe.”
Lyra smiled bitterly.
“Everyone always says that.”
She walked away.
“Everyone always thinks they know what’s best for me.”
Arka tried to approach her.
“Lyra.”
“No.”
Lyra shook her head.
“I want to know everything.”
The room fell silent.
Ezra looked at Raven.
“It’s time she knew.”
Raven took a deep breath.
“All right.”
He walked over to one of the computers.
“Eighteen years ago, the Kronos project wasn’t what it is now. At first, it was simply research into human memory.”
The screen displayed old documents.
“Your mother was one of the scientists who worked there.”
Lyra was stunned.
“My mother was a scientist?”
Raven nodded.
“She believed the research could help people who had lost their memories because of trauma.”
Nadia watched the screen.
“But then it changed.”
“Yes.”
Raven looked at the next set of data.
“Dr. Varen changed the project’s purpose. He didn’t want to help people remember. He wanted to control what they remembered.”
Lyra stared at a photo of her mother.
“And my mother tried to stop him.”
“Exactly.”
“Then why was I part of the project?”
Raven fell silent.
The question made everyone wait.
Finally, Raven answered.
“Because your mother discovered something.”
“What?”
“That Kronos needed someone with a certain ability.”
Lyra furrowed her brow.
“An ability?”
“Not the kind you’re thinking of.”
Raven pointed at the screen.
“You have an exceptionally strong memory. Your brain can retain details that normally disappear from other people’s minds.”
Lyra let out a quiet laugh.
“So that’s why I was made into an experiment?”
“No.”
Raven answered immediately.
“You were made a target because Dr. Varen wanted to prove that human beings could be completely controlled.”
Lyra clenched her fists.
“And my mother failed to stop him.”
Raven didn’t answer.
That answer was enough.
Lyra walked toward the computer.
“I want to see all the data about that night.”
Ezra immediately warned her.
“Lyra, be careful.”
“I can’t keep being afraid of something I don’t even understand.”
She opened the last file.
A video appeared.
The recording was different from the previous ones.
Darker.
More chaotic.
In the video, her mother stood in the same room.
She looked panicked.
“If someone finds this recording, it means I failed.”
Lyra moved closer.
The sound of her mother’s voice made her eyes begin to well up.
“I don’t have much time.”
In the recording, her mother looked toward the camera.
“Lyra, if you’re seeing this, I want you to know one thing.”
Lyra held her breath.
“I never left you.”
Tears began to flow before she even realized it.
“I left because I wanted to save you.”
The recording stopped for a few seconds.
Then her mother continued.
“Dr. Varen will try to make you believe that everything that happened was your fault.”
Lyra fell silent.
“But don’t believe him.”
Her mother’s voice began to tremble.
“You are not an experiment.”
The screen suddenly changed.
Words appeared.
ACCESS DENIED.
The video stopped.
“No.”
Lyra tried to open it again.
She couldn’t.
“It’s not over.”
Ezra looked at the system.
“Someone cut off access.”
Raven immediately looked up.
“He knows we found this.”
“Dr. Varen?”
Raven nodded.
Suddenly, the entire building shook.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
The alarm grew louder.
Nadia looked at the countdown.
22:15:30.
“We have to go.”
Lyra was still staring at the screen.
“I’m not finished.”
Arka placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Lyra, we’ll come back. But we have to get out now.”
Lyra looked at Arka’s face.
For a few seconds, she wanted to refuse.
But she knew Arka was right.
They moved toward the exit.
But just as they were almost there, all the automatic doors locked.
Dr. Varen’s voice rang out.
“You’re all the same.”
Everyone stopped.
“You think the truth can save you.”
Lyra looked at the camera.
“Come out and face us.”
Dr. Varen laughed.
“You still have your mother’s nature.”
“What does that mean?”
“Stubborn.”
Lyra clenched her fists.
“I’m different from my mother.”
“No.”
Dr. Varen’s voice grew more serious.
“You’re far more dangerous.”
The lights went dark.
Then a single screen lit up.
Dr. Varen’s face appeared.
An old man with a cold gaze.
“Finally, we meet, Lyra.”
Lyra stared at him with hatred.
“Why are you doing all of this?”
Dr. Varen smiled.
“Because I want to see whether human beings can truly defy fate.”
“I’m not your experiment.”
“No.”
Dr. Varen shook his head.
“You’re proof of my success.”
Lyra fell silent.
“For eighteen years, I’ve waited for this day.”
“For what?”
Dr. Varen looked at the countdown.
“To see whether you’ll choose to save the world...”
He paused.
“Or save the person you love.”
Lyra felt her heart stop.
Arka immediately looked at the screen.
“What are you doing?”
Dr. Varen smiled.
“The real game has just begun.”
The screen went dark.
And at the same moment, another door opened behind them.
Inside the room was only one thing.
A device with a blinking red light.
Ezra saw it, and his face changed.
“No.”
Lyra turned around.
“What is that?”
Ezra stared at the device.
“That’s the core of Kronos.”
Arka looked panicked.
“If it activates...”
Ezra didn’t finish the sentence.
Because everyone already knew.
They were running out of time.
And this time, Lyra’s greatest enemy was no longer the past.
It was the decision she had to make.