The information market of Neoterra never slept.
Alex walked along a translucent bridge connecting the residential sectors with the city's trading zones. Beneath his feet, thousands of light threads pulsated—data circulating throughout Neoterra's organism, feeding its countless systems. The city breathed, digested information, redistributed resources, and Alex sensed these rhythms as clearly as the beating of his own heart.
After today's strange incident, his receptivity had intensified. The world around him seemed brighter, more saturated, as if someone had increased the contrast of reality. Or was his implant beginning to work on a new level? Alex rubbed the back of his neck—the scar no longer pulsated, but the sensation of a foreign presence in his consciousness hadn't disappeared.
"Second node activated."
These words gave him no peace. Someone else, similar to him, existed somewhere in this vast transformed world. Someone whose implant resonated with his own.
The bridge ended, and Alex entered the architectural chaos of the information market. There was no clear plan or structure here—kiosks, pavilions, and stalls of data merchants formed and dispersed depending on the flow of customers and the availability of goods. Some constructions resembled huge translucent mushrooms, inside which holograms of offered information flickered. Others looked like giant jellyfish hanging from the ceiling, with thousands of thin interface-tentacles.
The air was filled with sounds: the whisper of negotiations, the steady hum of cooling systems, strange melodic sequences—sonic manifestations of data that some sellers used to attract clients.
"Fresh maps of aberration zones!" called a hunched man with cybernetic eye modifications resembling multi-faceted insect organs. "Updated yesterday! With markers of stable passages!"
"Archives of pre-resonance medical procedures!" whispered a voice from a pulsating bio-kiosk. "Rare implantation protocols, secret pharmaceutical formulas!"
Alex paid no attention to the hawkers. He knew that most of the information offered was either fake or outdated. The real data treasures weren't displayed openly—they were kept by brokers like Meridian, and access to them wasn't sold for ordinary currency.
He turned into a narrow passage between two massive information nodes that looked like intertwined glowing neural networks. The passage grew narrower, transforming into a dark corridor that seemed to absorb light. This was one of the "information pockets"—places where the density of data was so high that it distorted physical space.
Ordinary visitors to the market avoided such places—without special protection, immersion in an information pocket could cause hallucinations, disorientation, or even information sickness. But Alex knew he was protected by his implant, and Meridian deliberately chose such places for meetings, filtering out casual clients.
At the very center of the pocket, the space expanded, forming a small spherical cavity. Here, the walls, floor, and ceiling were covered with continuously changing symbols—a reflection of information flows passing through this place. In the center of the cavity was a simple metal table and two chairs—surprisingly archaic objects in such a futuristic environment.
At the table sat a figure wrapped in a cloak made of light-absorbing material. The face was hidden in the shadow of a hood, but Alex still recognized his old acquaintance—Meridian, one of the most influential information brokers in Neoterra.
"It's been a while, Alex," said Meridian. His voice sounded strange—as if several voices were speaking simultaneously, with a slight echo, as if the words were coming from a deep well. "Sit down. To what do I owe such an... unexpected visit?"
Alex sat across from the broker, placing his hands on the cool surface of the table. He had known Meridian long enough to understand: in the world of information trading, there was no place for sentiments or friendly chatter. Every word had a price and weight.
"I need information," Alex said directly. "About a project that might have been connected to implants like mine. Something that existed before the Resonance."
Meridian tilted his head slightly, and Alex caught the gleam of eyes in the shadow of the hood—not human eyes, but cybernetic implants that continuously scanned the interlocutor, analyzing his reactions.
"Pre-resonance data is expensive," Meridian said slowly. "Especially those concerning such... specific topics. What do you offer in exchange?"
Alex took several memory crystals from his pocket and placed them on the table.
"Here are maps of information currents in the northeastern sector. Fresh, compiled by me personally. And an analysis of strange fluctuations that I've noticed in recent weeks."
Meridian didn't touch the crystals, but Alex knew he had already somehow read and analyzed their contents. Information brokers had evolved after the Resonance, developing abilities bordering on telepathy when it came to data.
"Interesting," Meridian drawled, and notes of curiosity appeared in his multi-voice. "But not enough. What you're looking for... these are more valuable data."
Alex had expected this. Meridian never agreed to the first offer—it was part of the ritual.
"I have something else," Alex said, lowering his voice. "This morning I received a strange signal. An information anomaly in sector 7-B. Something related to the so-called 'second node.' My implant reacted to this signal in... an unusual way."
Now he had Meridian's full attention. The broker leaned forward, and for a moment the light symbols around them froze, as if listening to the conversation.
"Show me," Meridian demanded.
Alex hesitated. What the broker was asking for meant direct access to his implant—something he had never allowed anyone.
"I won't interfere," soothing notes appeared in Meridian's voice. "Just let me read the surface data. Without full immersion."
After a second's thought, Alex nodded. Meridian raised his hand, on which a thin bio-cybernetic interface instantly formed—a network of glowing fibers encompassing the palm and fingers.
"Close your eyes and remember the moment of receiving the signal," the broker instructed. "Concentrate on your sensations."
Alex obeyed. He recreated in his memory the morning incident: the strange symbol on the work panel, the sudden pain in the back of his head, the message about the second node, the sensation of light penetrating under the skin... And the fleeting vision of a face strikingly similar to his own.
Meridian carefully touched his temple. The touch was light, almost weightless, but Alex sensed something penetrating his consciousness—a thin probe, delicately exploring memories associated with the implant.
It lasted only a few seconds, but when Meridian withdrew, Alex felt as if hours had passed. He opened his eyes and saw that the broker was frozen, as if in a trance, and the symbols on the walls of the information pocket were frantically rotating, forming complex spiral patterns.
"Meridian?" Alex called cautiously.
The broker slowly emerged from the trance. His cloak quivered slightly, as if some transformation processes were occurring beneath it.
"Unusual," he finally said. "Very unusual."
Alex waited, understanding that Meridian was analyzing the received information, comparing it with the vast arrays of data to which he had access.
"Your implant," the broker finally said, "is not ordinary neurotechnology that was used before the Resonance. It's much more complex. Multi-layered. Adaptive."
"I already know that," Alex said impatiently. "That's why I survived the Resonance, when most people with implants died or went insane."
"It's not just that," Meridian shook his head. "Your implant contains components I've never seen before. And not just cybernetic ones. There's something... biological there. Something that evolved with you after the Resonance."
Alex frowned. This was news.
"Are you saying my implant is... alive?"
"Not exactly," Meridian made an indefinite gesture with his hand. "Rather, it's a hybrid. Something that was created specifically to adapt to changes. Almost as if..." he paused, choosing his words, "as if someone knew the Resonance would happen and created technology capable of interacting with it."
This thought made Alex shudder. The Resonance had always been considered an unforeseen catastrophe—a moment when the global digital network somehow merged with the biosphere, causing a wave of transformations that changed the planet forever. The suggestion that someone could have foreseen this event or even prepared for it opened frightening perspectives.
"And what about the 'second node'?" Alex asked, returning to the main topic.
Meridian raised his hand, and a hologram materialized in the air before them—a three-dimensional model resembling a DNA double helix, but with unusual insertions that looked like crystalline structures.
"Your implant," the broker explained, pointing to the model, "was originally created as part of a paired system. Two nodes, complementing each other, exchanging data, amplifying mutual signals."
"A paired system?" Alex stared at the hologram. "Are you saying there's a person with a paired implant somewhere?"
"Yes," Meridian nodded. "And judging by the signal you received, this person is active and seeking connection. Perhaps, just like you, without understanding the full picture."
Alex tried to comprehend this information. Who was this second person? How and why were they implanted with these devices? And most importantly—what was the purpose of this experiment?
"I need to find this person," he said firmly. "Do you have data that could help?"
Meridian paused, and Alex felt that the broker was weighing something in his multi-layered mind.
"I have access to a certain archive," he said slowly. "A fragment of a pre-resonance database containing information about some experimental programs. There might be something related to your implant there."
"And what do you want for this access?" Alex asked directly.
"A complete scan of your implant," Meridian replied without hesitation. "Not superficial, like now, but deep. I want to see its structure, functionality, ways of interacting with your nervous system."
Alex tensed. A complete scan was risky—it could cause unpredictable consequences, from temporary loss of control over the implant to changes in its functionality. But on the other hand, information from the archive could help him find the second node and understand his past.
"I have conditions," Alex said after brief consideration. "The scanning will be conducted here and now, without recording data to external media. And you will share with me everything you learn."
Meridian tilted his head, and Alex thought he glimpsed a smile under the hood.
"Agreed," the broker said. "Get ready. This might be... unpleasant."
The surface of the table between them began to transform, sending up thin stems with bioluminescent nodes at the ends. The stems curved, forming something like a helmet or crown above Alex's head, not touching him but creating a tense field that made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.
"Relax and don't resist," Meridian instructed, activating some personal interface hidden under his cloak. "Just let the scanner examine the implant. I will guide the process."
Alex took a deep breath and closed his eyes, trying to calm his wildly beating heart. He felt the field above his head thickening, creating pressure on the skin of his skull, especially in the area of the scar. And then came the pain—not sharp, but deep, as if someone was slowly screwing a screw into the base of his skull.
Lights danced before his closed eyes, and strange tones and clicks sounded in his ears—a sound interpretation of the data being read by the scanner. Alex felt his consciousness seemingly expanding, opening access to areas of memory he didn't even know existed.
Suddenly, a vision appeared before his inner eye: a white sterile room filled with medical equipment. He was lying on an operating table, turning his head and looking through a glass partition, where someone else was lying on an identical table—a figure whose face he couldn't make out. People in white coats with masks on their faces bent over both of them. One of them held a device resembling a miniature silver ball, pulsating with soft light.
"Preparation complete," a voice said off-screen. "Beginning synchronous implantation of nodes AK-472 and SK-472."
The vision disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared, replaced by a kaleidoscope of images and sensations: escape from the laboratory, the deafening roar preceding the Resonance, fear, pain, disorientation... And through all this—a feeling of loss, as if part of himself had been torn away, leaving a gaping void.
Alex didn't know how long the scanning process continued. When the pressure finally disappeared and he opened his eyes, he found that the walls of the information pocket were no longer pulsating with symbols—they had frozen, showing a single image: the same laboratory from his vision, but now he could see more details. On the wall was visible a logo: a stylized image of a DNA double helix intertwined with digital symbols, and the inscription "Project Binary Twins."
Meridian sat opposite, absolutely motionless, like a statue. His hood was thrown back, revealing his face—or what had once been one. Now it was a complex mosaic of organic and synthetic tissues, with numerous tiny implants embedded directly into the skin. The broker's eyes—completely cybernetic, with constantly changing irises—were fixedly directed at Alex.
"Interesting," Meridian finally said. His voice sounded different than before—cleaner, without echo or multiple overtones. "Very, very interesting."
"What exactly?" asked Alex, feeling weakness and dizziness after the procedure.
"Your implant," Meridian raised his hand, and a new hologram appeared above the table—a complex three-dimensional structure resembling a neural network, but with unusual nodes glowing with pulsating blue light. "It's not just adaptive. It was created specifically to become part of you. Biologically compatible at a level that didn't exist in available technologies before the Resonance. As if its creators used technologies... not from here."
"What do you mean?" Alex frowned.
"Look here," Meridian enlarged a fragment of the hologram, showing the microstructure of one of the nodes. "These crystalline formations... they don't just store data. They grow, evolve, integrate with your nervous system at the cellular level. This resembles symbiosis, not implantation."
Alex stared at the hologram, feeling a strange mixture of admiration and horror. A part of him had always known that the implant was something more than just a piece of technology in his head. But to see confirmation of this, to understand how deeply the device was integrated with his being...
"And the second node?" he asked. "Did you see anything about it?"
"Yes," Meridian nodded. "Your implant contains... let's say, a map for finding its pair. That's why you received the signal. The second node is also active and seeking connection."
"Who is this person?" Alex asked insistently. "Where can I find them?"
Meridian touched the hologram, and it transformed, showing a complex diagram resembling a family tree. In the center were two symbols connected by a dotted line.
"Project 'Binary Twins,'" the broker said, pointing to the diagram. "An experiment to create a pair of synchronized human subjects capable of acting as biological interfaces for a special type of technology. The main idea was that two people with similar genetic structures, implanted with complementary nodes, could create a unique connection between themselves at the neural level, surpassing all known forms of communication."
"Twins," whispered Alex, remembering the face from the vision—so similar to his own, but with subtle, elusive differences. "They used twins for the experiment."
"Exactly," confirmed Meridian. "Identical twins with the most similar neural structure. And according to the data I saw in your implant... you have a sister, Alex. A twin sister who carries the second node."
The world seemed to freeze around Alex. A sister. He has a sister. This thought was simultaneously shocking and strangely familiar, as if part of him had always known about it but couldn't formulate this information until now.
"Her name," continued Meridian, "judging by fragments of data, is Sarah. Sarah Kovich. You were subjects A.K. and S.K. in the 'Binary Twins' project."
"Where is she now?" Alex's voice trembled with tension.
Meridian shook his head.
"That I don't know. The data in your implant are fragmented. But judging by the fact that you received a signal, she's somewhere nearby. And her implant is actively seeking connection with yours."
"I must find her," Alex said resolutely. "You promised me access to the archive. There might be more information about the project, about who led it, what goals they pursued."
Meridian nodded and made a gesture with his hand. One of the walls of the information pocket parted, opening a passage into a space that seemed infinite—a huge library where, instead of books, pulsating spheres of data were arranged on shelves.
"The Ark Archive," Meridian introduced. "One of the few surviving fragments of the pre-resonance information network. Everything that could be saved in the first hours after the catastrophe is gathered here. Including," he made a significant pause, "some secret research projects that the general public wasn't even aware of."
Alex stepped toward the passage, but Meridian stopped him, touching his arm.
"Before you enter," the broker said seriously, "you should understand the risk. The data in the Archive don't just exist—they live their own lives, interact, evolve. After the Resonance, information became something more than just a sequence of bits. It acquired its own ecology, its own laws of existence. An unprepared mind could get lost in this sea of data."
"I'll manage," Alex said confidently, though he felt anxiety inside. "My implant... will protect me."
"Perhaps," Meridian nodded. "But be careful. And one more thing," his voice became quieter, as if he feared they might be overheard even here, in the protected information pocket. "The 'Binary Twins' project wasn't ordinary research. The archive contains fragments indicating that its goal was much more ambitious than just creating new interfaces. Some data suggest..." he paused, as if choosing his words, "that the project developers might have known about the approaching Resonance. Or even... triggered it."
"What?!" Alex couldn't believe his ears. "That's impossible. The Resonance was a global catastrophe that took millions of lives, changed the very essence of reality. Nobody could intentionally cause something like that."
"I'm just conveying what I saw in fragments of data," Meridian shrugged. "Decide for yourself what to believe. But when you're searching in the Archive, pay attention to mentions of 'the Architect'—the project's lead developer. His real name isn't indicated anywhere, but there are hints that he was... an outstanding scientist with very unconventional views."
Alex nodded, accepting the advice, and stepped into the passage. For a moment, a strange sensation enveloped him—as if he were dissolving, becoming part of the data flow. But the implant quickly adapted, creating a protective cocoon around his consciousness.
The Ark Archive opened before him in all its grandeur—an infinite ocean of information waiting to be explored.
Behind Alex, the passage slowly closed, leaving him alone with the secrets of the past and, possibly, the keys to his future.