Chapter 65 - The Fracture of Aurelius
Aurelius Vance broke completely.
The realization that the woman he had betrayed and discarded fifteen years ago had orchestrated his total downfall through two schoolboys pushed his fragile sanity over the precipice. With a guttural, inhuman roar, he shoved Julian aside, grabbed a heavy titanium spanner from a maintenance rack, and charged straight at the primary holographic projector.
"I will not be erased by a ghost!" Aurelius screamed, swinging the metal rod with blind fury.
The blow shattered the outer optical glass, sending showers of blue and gold sparks showering across the deck. Elena’s projection flickered, distorting into static, but the core processing unit inside the pedestal remained intact, shielded behind the Blue Folder's quantum casing.
"Aurelius, stop!" Álvaro lunged from the ground, wrapping his uninjured arm around his father’s waist.
Aurelius spun, bringing the titanium spanner down across Álvaro’s back with sickening force. Álvaro cried out, collapsing onto the grating, but his fingers remained locked into the fabric of Aurelius’s coat.
"You worthless worm!" Aurelius spat, raining blows down upon his own son. "You were born weak! You raised monsters who destroyed my legacy! You should have rotted in the streets where you belonged!"
"Mateo! The purge code!" Marcos yelled, ignoring the violent spectacle and typing frantically. "The primary containment seals are failing because Aurelius smashed the optical distributor! If we don't complete the harmonic purge in thirty seconds, the emergency vents will jam!"
Mateo stepped toward the console, stepping deliberately over the shards of glass. He didn't look at Aurelius. He looked at the flashing input field.
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"Purge sequence requires twin-key synchronization," Mateo said with razor-sharp composure. "Marcos. Channel Alpha. I have Channel Omega."
Their hands met over the split interface. In perfect, symmetrical unison, the two prodigies began entering the definitive master code—a twelve-thousand-character mathematical poem designed by their mother to dissolve the Genesis Spire's operating architecture permanently.
