Chapter 14 - THE SILENT BOARDROOM | "I Infiltrated the Trillion-Dollar Underground Auction... and Found Myself on the Bidding Block."
The Grand Alps Estate in Zurich was an impenetrable fortress of glass, steel, and armed security contractors. High above the snow-capped peaks, the world's most powerful billionaires, intelligence directors, and corporate oligarchs gathered in a subterranean auditorium.
They were there for the ultimate luxury item: IMMORTALITY.
Clara moved through the shadow of the server ventilation shaft above the main auditorium, wearing a black tactical suit, her eyes fixed on the center stage. Beside her, Julian monitored the facility's security grid on his hand-held cipher terminal.
On stage, a massive glass sphere filled with glowing blue nutrient gel was suspended from the ceiling. Inside the sphere was a human brain, connected to thousands of silver fiber-optic cables that pulsed like a artificial nervous system.
Standing beside the glass sphere was a man in a white suit—Director Harrison, the head of The Olympus Group.
"Ladies and gentlemen," Harrison’s voice resonated through the auditorium speakers. "What you see before you is the central engine of Project Lethe. Subject Zero. The mind of Dr. Clara Vance, preserved in perpetuity. Through this interface, we can rewrite the memories of political leaders, eliminate dissent, and offer our elite clients seamless consciousness transfer into flawless synthetic bodies."
Harrison gestured to a silver pedestal beside him. On top of it lay a polished chrome helmet connected directly to the central sphere.
"Tonight," Harrison announced, "we auction the first commercial vessel override. Bidding starts at two billion dollars."
In the shadows of the ventilation shaft, Clara felt her wrist light flare with excruciating heat. A whisper resounded inside her mind—not through her ears, but straight through her auditory cortex:
May you like
Seven... I am holding the security grid open for three seconds. Shoot the glass.
Clara didn't hesitate. She kicked through the metal ventilation grate, dropped twenty feet down onto the luxury marble catwalk, brought her assault rifle to her shoulder, and opened fire directly into the center of the suspended glass sphere.
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