Love In The Static Cold Start

Int. Memory Chamber – Unknown

Location – Night

Lyra (124, light-skinned, strawberry blonde, slim but healthy) gasps awake.

Her eyes dart around, disoriented.

Her body trembles as she sits up slowly. A GREEN HUD flickers above her in the air.

Her breath shakes. She touches her arms–goosebumps rise. A mirror panel across from her reflects confusion.

She whispers:

Lyra Rotn

(whispers) Where... am I?

Her gaze drops to a CODE on the slab beneath her:

| [CLASSIFIED: EXTRACT SUBJECT – 019A] |

She staggers to her feet, barefoot on dark tiles. The room vibrates faintly with hidden machinery.

A WALL TERMINAL

Text appears–typing itself.

| "WELCOME BACK, LYRA. RUN WHILE YOU STILL REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE." |

Her breath catches.

Lyra Rotn

(confused, alarmed) How do you know my name?

The room responds.

Alert System (V.O.)

ALERT: Unauthorized subject awake. Memory Lock compromised. Evac protocol initiated.

Lights FLASH RED. A SIREN wails.

Lyra Rotn

(panicked) No. No, no–

A CAMERA in the ceiling TURNS. It BEEPS softly.

Lyra BOLTS.

Int. Corridors – Continuous

Dim hallways. Flickering lights. Wires hang like vines.

Lyra sprints barefoot. Her breathing sharp, ragged.

Along the walls–deactivated TERMINALS, shattered screens.

She passes: • A locked door labeled VERITAS CORE • A stasis pod filled with withered flowers and a child's drawing • A glass panel covered in smeared BLOODY HANDPRINTS

She skids to a stop beside a dead body still wired into a chair–mouth frozen in a smile.

Lyra Rotn

(staggered breath) What is this place?

Int. Observation Platform – Minutes Later

Lyra collapses beside a broken window. Through the fractured glass –

The Cityscape:

She stares.

Lyra Rotn

(softly) This isn't... my world.

Something pulses in her chest. A faint sound, electronic and distant.

| You have to find her, Lyra. |

Lyra stiffens.

Lyra Rotn

Who said that?

No answer. Just the hum of distant machines and her own heartbeat.

Int. Memory Chamber – Same Time

Back in the chamber, the terminal flickers again.

| DATA EXTRACTION INCOMPLETE SUBJECT: ERIS STATUS: LOST |

| BEGIN RETRIEVAL PROTOCOL |