Code X: Human Upgrade- Episode 9 – The Betrayal

By- AK

RECAPE-

After learning that Code X is erasing their memories to gain full control, Zayel, Kai, Dex, and Lira take a bold step. They develop and upload a secret program called the Rebel Code — designed to break the system and protect their identities.

The mission is dangerous. They sneak through the facility under heavy security and fight off defense drones while Zayel distracts Dr. Varin through the system interface. With just seconds to spare, Kai installs the code into the main control terminal.

The result? A massive system glitch. Old memories begin to resurface. Surveillance files flash across screens. The teens feel their real selves returning.

But as the group escapes, they don’t realize that Dr. Varin allowed it to happen. He watches calmly as everything falls apart, saying:

“Perfect. Phase Three begins.”

The freedom they just earned might be part of something far more dangerous.

EP-9 BEGGINING-

Smoke filled the hallway.

Zayel, Kai, Dex, and Lira ran through flashing red lights. Sirens echoed behind them. The Rebel Code had worked—it caused a system-wide breakdown. But it wasn’t over.

Zayel gripped his wrist console tightly. “How far to the safe zone?”

Dex replied between breaths, “One floor down. Storage Room 13. Unused and off-grid.”

They reached the stairwell and began to descend.

Zayel’s heart pounded—not from running, but from fear.

He could feel it.

Something wasn’t right.

Inside the dusty storage room, they sealed the door and sat down, catching their breath.

“We bought ourselves time,” Kai said. “The system’s still trying to reboot.”

Zayel nodded. “We hit them hard. But Dr. Varin is still out there. Watching. Planning.”

Lira looked pale. “He let us do it, didn’t he? Part of some bigger game?”

Dex shrugged. “Maybe. But now we’ve got a weapon—freedom of memory.”

They sat in silence.

Then suddenly, Kai looked around. “Wait… where’s Dex’s bag?”

Everyone turned.

Dex’s satchel—the one with all his tools—was gone.

Zayel stood up, tense. “Dex… where’s your gear?”

Dex didn’t answer.

“Dex?” Kai repeated, her voice sharper now.

Dex looked down. “I… left it during the upload. In the core room.”

Zayel narrowed his eyes. “You never leave your gear.”

Dex slowly stood. “I didn’t have a choice.”

Then, from behind his back, he pulled out a small device.

A tracker.

Zayel froze.

“You… what is that?”

Dex didn’t meet their eyes. “They promised me freedom. No more memory loss. No more testing. Just a clean escape… if I gave them your location after the breach.”

Kai’s eyes widened. “You betrayed us?”

Lira stood up, trembling. “We trusted you.”

Dex's voice cracked. “I didn’t mean to hurt anyone. I thought… if I helped them once, I’d be safe. But they lied.”

He tossed the device on the floor and crushed it with his foot.

“I want to fix it. Let me make it right.”

But it was too late.

Outside, metal boots echoed in the hallway.

Zayel ran to the console.

“The signal’s out. They’re coming.”

Kai grabbed her bag. “We need another way out.”

Dex looked desperate. “Please. Don’t leave me.”

Zayel turned slowly. His face was cold now. Focused.

“You’re the reason they found us.”

Dex’s voice dropped. “But I stopped the signal. I destroyed the tracker!”

Zayel stepped close. “The tracker isn’t the only thing you gave them, is it?”

Dex’s silence was the answer.

Outside, the door began to spark. A cutting laser hissed.

Zayel made a decision. “Split up. Kai, Lira—you go left, toward the server dump. I’ll draw them away.”

Kai stared at him. “Zayel—”

“Trust me,” he said. “I’ll meet you at the fallback zone.”

They nodded.

Then he turned to Dex.

“You’re coming with me.”

The door burst open as Zayel and Dex sprinted down the hallway in the opposite direction. Drones chased them, and gunfire echoed behind.

Zayel wasn’t sure how long they could run. But he needed answers.

“You told them something,” he said as they ran. “What was it?”

Dex shouted back, “A name. A location. Your status. I gave them a code—only one!”

Zayel clenched his jaw.

“You gave them my name.”

In the control room, Dr. Varin watched the screen.

“Subject 01 is unstable… and angry.”

His assistant asked, “Should we engage?”

Varin smiled. “No. Let him come. Let him feel the betrayal.”

He turned to another screen, where Subject 02—Kai— was now marked.

“Soon, they’ll all turn against each other. Then we won’t need to control them. They’ll destroy themselves.”

Back in the lower level, Zayel stopped suddenly.

A red gate blocked the path. Behind it—an elevator shaft.

No guards. No drones.

Dex looked confused. “This was supposed to be sealed.”

Zayel turned. “Why isn’t it?”

A chill ran down his spine.

Then he saw it—the gate was already open. From the inside.

Someone had opened it.

Someone who knew they were coming.

As Zayel stepped forward, a figure emerged from the shadows at the far end of the hall.

It was Lira. Alone. And she was holding a gun.