Chapter 15 - Echoes in the Rain
Ten minutes passed. Federal emergency vehicles finally surrounded the base of the Sterling building, their red and blue lights flashing against the glass facade.
Sarah sat on the helipad, holding Leo’s lifeless body, staring blankly at the rising sun painting the horizon in shades of orange and gold.
Suddenly, a violent cough shattered the silence.
Leo’s body jerked. He gasped, taking a deep, agonizing breath of cold morning air. His eyes snapped open—no longer icy blue or glowing with terrifying technology, but a warm, natural hazel.
Sarah gasped, holding him tighter. "Leo?! You're... you're breathing!"
Leo looked up at her, blinking against the bright morning light. He looked down at his arms—the circuit tattoos had completely faded into smooth, normal skin. He reached up, touching his chest where the bullet hole had been. There was only a small, closed scar.
"The bio-synthetic core..." Leo whispered, his voice sounding entirely like a normal eight-year-old boy for the first time. "It burned out completely. The tech is gone."
"You're just a kid now," Sarah laughed through her tears, wiping her face. "You're just a normal kid."
Leo looked out over the glittering skyline of the city, listening to the normal noise of traffic and distant voices. "Is it really over?"
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Sarah pulled him up to his feet, wrapping her arm around his shoulder as federal tactical teams burst onto the helipad with weapons lowered.
"Yeah," Sarah said, throwing her ruined gun to the floor. "It's over."
