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"I need to do this," I tell them both. "Not because I was designed for it, but because I choose it. Because offering people the chance to adapt on their own terms is worth the risk."

Trent nods, acceptance in his eyes despite the worry I can see beneath. "Then we'll be here, whatever happens."

"Both of us," Vex confirms. His hand touches my arm briefly. "Good luck, Flutterby."

I take a deep breath and turn back toward the circle. Naomi watches expectantly as I approach the empty pedestal, my crystal pulsing faster as I near it.

"I'll do it," I announce. "But on one condition."

"Name it," Naomi says immediately.

"When this is over—if it works, if we survive—no more designing children for specific purposes. No more deciding their genetic destiny without consent. Haven becomes about true choice or it becomes nothing."

Surprise registers on her face, followed by something like respect. "Your mother would be proud of that condition. And I accept it."

I step into position at my designated place in the circle. The other Haven children watch me with expressions ranging from solemn determination to nervous anticipation. Lily offers an encouraging smile from across the circle, her silver eyes bright with hope despite the danger.

"The protocol requires physical connection to your crystal," Naomi instructs, moving to the circle's center. "Place your hand on it when I give the signal."

I look at my crystal, pulsing now in perfect synchronization with the others, creating a visible rhythm throughout the chamber. The culmination of my mother's work, the purpose for which I was hidden in Unity all those years ago.

My gaze finds Trent and Vex one last time, standing together near the chamber entrance despite their differences. Whatever happens in the next few minutes, I know they'll be there when it's over, either to celebrate success or to mourn what might have been.

"Unity forces approaching eastern perimeter," Marcus announces from the communication station. "Estimated breach in ninety minutes."

"It's time," Naomi declares, her mismatched eyes meeting each Haven child in turn. "Place your hands on your crystals."

I take a deep breath and reach for mine.

The moment my skin touches the crystal, something fundamental shifts in my perception. Energy flows through me—not painful but intensely powerful, like standing in a river that suddenly changes course to flow through your body rather than around it.

The resonance network activates, connecting all eleven of us in ways that transcend physical space. I can feel the others—their presence, their modifications, their very essence—as if they stand inside my mind rather than around me.

Lily's perceptive brilliance, Michael's electrical conductivity, Sara's adaptive flexibility, all flowing through me while I simultaneously flow through them. A perfect circuit of shared genetic potential, creating something greater than any individual component.

"The network is stabilizing," Naomi announces, though her voice seems to come from everywhere and nowhere. "Compensating for the missing component now."

That's when the strain begins. Without the twelfth signature, the network draws more heavily from those present. I feel it as increasing pressure, as if my cells are being asked to work beyond their designed parameters.

Across the circle, one of the older Haven children—a man perhaps sixty—grimaces in pain. The network adjusts instantly, redistributing the load. But this only increases the burden on the rest of us.

"Hold steady," Naomi instructs. "The initial phase is most difficult. It will stabilize."

I focus on maintaining my connection despite the growing discomfort. The crystal beneath my palm pulses faster, drawing more energy with each cycle. My modifications respond automatically, adapting to the increased demand just as they were designed to do.

"Resonance field expanding," Naomi reports. "Five kilometers...ten kilometers..."

The network continues to grow, extending its reach beyond Resonance, beyond the immediate territory. I can feel it spreading like ripples in a pond, carrying the adaptive potential outward in ever-widening circles.

Another Haven child falters, a woman whose modifications seem focused on environmental adaptation. She maintains her connection but sways slightly, face pale with effort.

"Compensating," Naomi says, concern evident despite her controlled tone. "Redistributing load."

More pressure. More demand on those of us still standing strong. I grit my teeth against the increasing strain, determined to see this through despite the cost.

"Resonance field approaching critical threshold," Naomi announces. "Adaptive transmission beginning in three...two… one..."

A pulse of energy unlike anything I've experienced before courses through the network. Through me. Through all of us. It's as if every cell in my body is simultaneously screaming in effort and singing in triumph .

This is it, the moment the network becomes capable of sharing adaptive potential with anyone who chooses to receive it. The fulfillment of my mother's vision, of Haven's purpose, of thirty years of work and sacrifice.

"Field stabilized," Naomi confirms, wonder evident in her voice. "Global reach achieved. The offer is extended."

Around the world, people will feel it, a gentle nudge at the edge of awareness, an invitation rather than a demand. Choose adaptation or remain as you are. Evolution by consent, not by force.

I should feel triumphant. Instead, I feel only the increasing strain as the network demands more from each of us to maintain its global reach. My vision blurs, muscles trembling with effort as sweat beads on my forehead.

Across the circle, the older man who struggled earlier suddenly collapses, hand sliding from his crystal as consciousness fails him. The network shudders violently, nearly breaking apart before redistributing his portion of the load among the remaining ten.

"Hold!" Naomi urges desperately. "We need to maintain connection for at least five minutes to ensure complete transmission!"

Another Haven child wavers, then falls. Then another. Each collapse increases the burden on those still connected, creating a cascading effect that threatens the entire network.

Lily's face is pale but determined, silver eyes now glowing with internal light as she channels more than her share of the resonance field. Michael beside her looks similarly strained, the metallic filaments beneath his skin now bright enough to be visible through his clothing.

I fight to maintain my own connection, modifications working overtime to adapt to the increasing demands. My mother designed me for this specific purpose, to channel and stabilize the adaptive potential at the heart of Haven's vision. If anyone should be able to bear this strain, it's me .

But even my carefully designed modifications have limits. Black spots dance at the edges of my vision as my body approaches those limits. The connection wavers, my hand trembling against the crystal's surface.

"Three minutes," Naomi announces, her voice sounding distant now. "Just three more minutes!"

I focus everything on maintaining contact, on keeping the network stable despite the failing strength of my body. Around the circle, only seven of us remain standing now, each bearing far more than our designed share of the resonance field.

In the distance—or perhaps only in my head—I hear urgent voices. Unity forces breaching the perimeter. Defensive positions engaged. The outside world intruding on our desperate attempt to complete what we've started.

"Two minutes!"

Another Haven child collapses, leaving just six of us connected. The strain is becoming unbearable, like trying to channel a river through a straw. My cells scream in protest, modifications working frantically to adapt to demands they were never designed to handle.

I think of Trent and Vex watching this unfold, powerless to help as the protocol slowly kills us. I think of my mother designing me for this moment, never knowing if her daughter would survive the purpose she was created to fulfill.

"One minute! Hold on!"

I can't. I know it with sudden certainty. My body has reached its absolute limit. Even with my mother's perfectly designed modifications, I cannot maintain this connection for another sixty seconds.

As my vision darkens and my legs begin to buckle, something unexpected happens. A new presence enters the network—a twelfth signature, familiar yet different, filling the void left by the missing Haven child.

Not identical, but compatible. Not perfectly matched, but sufficient to complete the circle. The resonance field stabilizes instantly, the crushing pressure easing just enough to keep me conscious.

"Thirty seconds!"

I force my eyes open, trying to identify the source of this unexpected salvation. Through blurred vision, I see someone standing at the previously empty pedestal, hand pressed against a crystal that shouldn't be there.

Adrian Lin.

Naomi's brother. The man who betrayed Haven to Unity, who sold us out for access to their research. Now somehow here, completing our circle at the most desperate moment.

"Ten seconds!"

Questions flood my mind, but there's no strength to voice them. The resonance field pulses one final time, a massive surge of energy that marks the completion of the protocol. The adaptive offer fully extended, the choice now available to anyone who wishes to accept it.

"Transmission complete," Naomi announces, voice weak but triumphant. "Protocol successful."

As one, we collapse—all twelve of us, our bodies finally surrendering to the strain they've endured. My hand slides from the crystal as darkness claims me completely.

The last thing I hear before consciousness fades entirely is Trent's voice calling my name, and quick footsteps rushing toward me.

Then nothing.

Nothing but a sense of completion, of purpose fulfilled, of a bridge finally built between worlds that never needed to be separate at all.

I wonder if my mother knew it would end this way. I wonder if she would consider the price worth paying.

I wonder if I'll ever wake up to find out.