INN – RESEARCH BRIEFING ROOM – NIGHT
The room is sealed.
Soundproofed glass.
Dim overhead lighting.
Holographic projectors idle in standby, casting faint geometric shadows across steel walls.
AGENT JAXON STEEL stands near the center, arms folded tight across his chest.
His blue Neuro-Link is dormant—but not quiet.
Nearby:
Dr. Iris Kade, composed but visibly exhausted
Dr. Susan Thomas, alert, observant, standing closer to Jaxon than protocol requires
Agent Paul, silent, jaw clenched
Agent Lara Storm, arms crossed, eyes sharp
At the far end—
PROFESSOR MICHAEL MORGAN (58)
Calm.
Upright.
A man who has buried too many discoveries to be impressed by fear.
A hologram activates.
Four rotating color spectra bloom into the air.
Blue. Red. Green. Violet.
Morgan doesn't look at the projection yet.
He looks at Jaxon.
MORGAN(quiet, deliberate):You survived something last night that should've killed you.
Jaxon doesn't respond.
Morgan finally turns to the display.
MORGAN:The Neuro-Link isn't a weapon system.It's a philosophy made executable.
He gestures—
The colors separate, hovering like distinct entities.
MORGAN:I gave them names.
Not for drama.
For clarity.
The room stills.
MORGAN:Blue… I call The Shield.
The BLUE spectrum stabilizes.
MORGAN:It protects the human inside the system.
Limits power.
Preserves choice.
(looks at Jaxon)
That's why you hesitate.
And why you're still you.
Jaxon's jaw tightens.
Susan glances at him—not pity. Understanding.
MORGAN:Red is The Blade.
The RED spectrum spikes—jagged, unstable.
MORGAN:It cuts away doubt.
Emotion becomes fuel.
Memory becomes instruction.
(pause)
That's what Hydra did to Lopez.
A subtle shift ripples through the team.
MORGAN:Green… is rare.
The GREEN spectrum pulses softly.
MORGAN:I call it The Key.
It doesn't fight.
It opens.
No one speaks.
Then—
The VIOLET spectrum ignites.
The light is calm. Perfect. Controlled.
MORGAN:And Violet…(voice lowers)…is The Crown.
The room feels smaller.
MORGAN:Violet doesn't override the host.
It aligns with them.
He pauses—just long enough.
A heavy silence.
AGENT PAUL:So Red beat Blue because—
MORGAN:—because Blade beats Shield in close quarters.
(then)
Unless the Shield stops fighting like a weapon
and starts thinking like a man.
Jaxon looks away.
Susan steps closer, grounding him without touching.
SUSAN:(low, steady)You didn't lose becauseyou were weak.
Morgan nods.
MORGAN:You lost because you refused to kill your brother.
That lands.
Hard.
HYDRA BASE – MEDICAL CONTROL CHAMBER – NIGHT
Dark.
Sterile.
Red light veins crawl across the walls like exposed nerves.
AGENT MARCO LOPEZ stands upright now.
No chains.
No restraints.
His eyes glow RED—steady, controlled.
Hydra technicians move around him with surgical efficiency.
A monitor replays fragments of the fight.
Jaxon's face.
Blood.
Impact.
Lopez watches.
Expression blank.
Then—
A flicker.
A memory fractures through.
FLASH BACK— JAXON & LOPEZ (PAST)
Laughter.
Training room.
Brotherhood.
Lopez's breath catches.
For half a second, his eyes soften.
A whisper escapes him.
LOPEZ:Jax—
The RED surges.
Pain floods his nervous system.
A Hydra control node pulses.
Lopez straightens.
The softness vanishes.
HYDRA HANDLER:Good.
Focus restored.
Lopez nods.
LOPEZ:(flat, convinced) Jaxon Steel is compromised.
He turns away from the screen.
LOPEZ:I will neutralize him if required.
He believes it.
That's the tragedy.
INN – OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE HALL – DAY
Chaos wrapped in decorum.
Cameras.
Officials.
Civil oversight banners lining the walls.
Arguments overlap.
COMMITTEE MEMBER #1
Unauthorized Neuro-Link deployment—
COMMITTEE MEMBER #2
INN has lost operational transparency—
COMMITTEE MEMBER #3
This is no longer a defense organization—
Behind the glass—
INN agents watch.
Divided.
Tense.
Whispers ripple.
Trust fractures.
INN – CHARLES LIVINGSTON'S OFFICE – NIGHT
Dim.
Quiet.
Controlled.
CHARLES LIVINGSTON stands alone, jacket off, tie loosened.
The city lights of New Atlantis glow faintly through reinforced glass.
His secure phone vibrates on the desk.
Once.
He looks down.
The screen lights up.
CALLER ID:INN NEXUS CITY – PRIORITY LINE
Charles doesn't move.
His face hardens—not fear.
Calculation.
History.
Weight.
The phone vibrates again.
He exhales slowly.
Doesn't answer.
The ringing stops.
Silence returns.
But something has already shifted.
Charles stares out at the city.
CHARLES:(under his breath)What have we opened…
The office becomes small.
The city vast.
The consequences inevitable.
TO BE CONTINUED...