In Geneva, Rachel issued a lockdown of all third-party Phoenix APIs.

“We’re sealing the perimeter,” she told Richard. “No new feeds. No mirrored syncs.”

He nodded. “And internally?”

“Every senior login now requires double-biometrics and real-time approval.”

Richard exhaled. “Feels like we’re defending a sinking ship.”

Rachel straightened.

“No. We’re defending the survivors.”

Back in Hong Kong, Isabelle watched her terminal flicker.

“You’re sure about this?” one of her aides asked.

“I was once a god in this system,” she said. “It’s time I live like a mortal again.”

She picked up a flash drive and walked out of the building for the first time in months.

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