The technical specifications Chimera developed for neural interface technology.If I can reverse engineer the control protocols, introduce cascade failures into the system…She paused, her face creasing with concentration.It’s going to be dangerous.To disable something this sophisticated, I’ll need to interface directly with the system.
What does that mean?Conall asked warily.
Log in to it with my own implant.
Conall snarled, his wolf hovering just below the surface.No.Absolutely not.After what that thing did to you—
It’s the only way,Nadine said firmly.The neural interface Gregory implanted gives me the access I’ll need to reach the system’s core programming.I can introduce corrupted data directly into the network but only from inside.
The interface is still active?Quinton asked with obvious concern.
Yes.Gregory’s death disrupted some of the behavioral modification programming, but the technology itself is still functional.
Gregory frowned.Will that be true for everyone who has an implant?
Nadine’s hand moved unconsciously to her neck, where the injection site was barely visible.I assume so.I don’t know about anyone else, but I can feel it, like static at the edge of my thoughts.
Her discomfort permeated the mate bond—the constant low-level irritation of foreign technology integrated with her nervous system.But underneath it, Conall sensed something else: her determination to use Gregory’s final violation of her autonomy as a weapon against his conspiracy.
How long do we have?Conall asked.
Another forty minutes for Anders’s team to arrive.But if any other Prometheus Group leaders realize Gregory is compromised, they might try to activate the protocol early.Nadine was already connecting herself to the central command system, cables snaking from her terminal to the interface port Gregory had installed.This can’t wait.
What can we do?Quinton asked.
Monitor the download progress.If the cascade failure works, it should propagate through the entire network within minutes.But if something goes wrong, if the system tries to take control of the interface…She met Conall’s gaze.I’ll need you to physically disconnect me.Whatever the cost.
She was asking him to potentially kill her to prevent the Omicron Protocol from turning her into its primary weapon.
Oh, fuck no.Nadine—
Promise me,she said, her hand finding his.If I become a threat to pack safety, if the interface takes over, you’ll have to do what’s necessary.
She was willing to sacrifice herself to protect the shifter communities Gregory had targeted.The same selfless courage that had driven her to close their mate bond and face Gregory alone.
How could he do less?
I promise,he said, the words grinding like glass in his throat.
Nadine nodded and turned back to her terminal.Beginning interface connection.Quinton, monitor system responses.Conall…She paused, glancing at him one more time.If this works, if we can stop the protocol, it means every asset Gregory placed will be free.Dozens of shifters will remember who they really are.
Then she closed her eyes and activated the connection.
The change was immediate.Nadine’s body went rigid as the interface established its link to the Omicron Protocol’s control network.Conall felt her consciousness expand, touching digital pathways that carried the programming patterns of dozens of other minds.
On the screens around them, data began flowing in torrents.The central display showed a map of North America with red dots representing active neural interfaces—far more than any of them had imagined.
Jesus,Quinton breathed.There are hundreds of them.
Conall watched Nadine’s face, noting the microexpressions that indicated her ongoing struggle with the system.Her breathing had become shallow and rapid, and sweat beaded on her forehead despite the laboratory’s cool temperature.
Through their bond, he caught fragmentary impressions of what she was experiencing—other minds, other personalities, artificial behavioral patterns layered over natural shifter consciousness like sediment over bedrock.
Beginning cascade introduction,she said, her voice distant and strained.The system is resistant.It’s trying to activate dormant programming in response to the intrusion.
The red dots on the display began flickering as Nadine’s corrupted data propagated through the network.Some began going dark—interfaces going offline as their programming failed.But others pulsed brighter, and through the bond Conall felt the system fighting back.
It’s working,Quinton reported, monitoring the technical displays.Interface failures are cascading through the network.But the central hub is trying to compensate, rerouting through backup systems.