PART 9: Kind CEO Gave Poor Begger His $1M Card… What She Did Next Was More Shocking
Part 9: The Original Ethan Carter
00:19:41.
Ethan couldn’t breathe.
The words his father had just spoken seemed impossible.
You’re not him.
He stared at Edward.
“Say that again.”
Edward didn’t answer.
Ethan stepped closer.
“Say it.”
Edward finally looked into his eyes.
“You’re not the original Ethan Carter.”
Ariana tightened her grip around Ethan’s hand.
“No.”
Edward looked at her.
“I wish I could tell you otherwise.”
Ethan shook his head.
“Then who am I?”
Edward’s voice became quiet.
“You are Ethan Carter.”
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“You were born Ethan Carter.”
“Then what does original mean?”
Edward glanced toward the countdown.
00:18:56.
“Your grandfather created a biological duplicate from your genetic material.”
Ethan stared.
“Of me?”
“Yes.”
“Then which one am I?”
Edward hesitated.
“The duplicate.”
Ariana stepped between them.
“You’re saying the man standing here isn’t the Ethan who was born?”
Edward nodded.
“The original Ethan died.”
Silence.
Ethan felt the room spinning.
“How?”
Edward looked toward the floor.
“During the first experiment.”
“When?”
“When you were eight.”
Ethan closed his eyes.
Images began flashing through his mind.
A hospital room.
A bright light.
A woman screaming.
His father’s face.
Then darkness.
He opened his eyes.
“I remember.”
Edward looked shocked.
“What do you remember?”
“The fire.”
Edward’s face changed.
“What fire?”
“The laboratory.”
Ethan grabbed his head.
“I was there.”
Ariana supported him.
“What happened?”
Ethan struggled to breathe.
“My father was holding me.”
Edward whispered:
“I wasn’t.”
Ethan looked at him.
“You were.”
“No.”
“You were crying.”
Edward shook his head.
“That wasn’t me.”
Ethan stared.
Then another face appeared in his memory.
Nathaniel.
His grandfather.
Holding a small child.
Ethan’s eyes widened.
“Lucas.”
Edward nodded.
“The original experiment wasn’t performed on you.”
Ethan frowned.
“Then who?”
“Lucas.”
Ariana looked confused.
“But Lucas is Subject Zero.”
“Exactly.”
Edward pointed toward the countdown.
“Lucas was the original.”
Ethan shook his head.
“Then why does he look like me?”
“Because he is your genetic source.”
Ethan suddenly understood.
“You copied Lucas.”
Edward nodded.
“Your grandfather created you from him.”
“And Noah?”
Edward’s expression darkened.
“Noah was created from you.”
Ariana whispered:
“So it’s a chain.”
Edward nodded.
“Lucas was the beginning.”
“Ethan was the second generation.”
“And Noah?”
“The third.”
Ethan looked toward the empty monitor.
“Why?”
Edward’s voice became bitter.
“Because Nathaniel was trying to perfect humanity.”
Ariana shook her head.
“That’s not perfection.”
“No.”
Edward looked at her.
“That’s control.”
The countdown continued.
00:17:31.
Ethan stared at the numbers.
“What happens at zero?”
Edward took a deep breath.
“The original wakes up.”
“Lucas?”
“No.”
Edward shook his head.
“Someone else.”
Ariana frowned.
“Who?”
Edward looked at Ethan.
“The real Ethan.”
The room became silent.
Ethan’s heart pounded.
“You said he was dead.”
“I believed he was.”
“But now?”
Edward looked toward the underground laboratory.
“His body was never destroyed.”
Ethan stared.
“Where is he?”
“Below us.”
Marcus raised his weapon.
“Then we go get him.”
Edward shook his head.
“Too late.”
A loud metallic sound echoed through the mansion.
Something had activated beneath them.
The floor trembled.
Ariana grabbed Ethan.
“What’s happening?”
Edward looked terrified.
“The chamber.”
“What chamber?”
“The original chamber.”
A door suddenly opened at the far end of the room.
Cold white light poured through it.
Ethan stared into the darkness.
Then he heard footsteps.
One.
Two.
Three.
Someone was walking toward them.
Marcus raised his weapon.
“Stay back.”
A figure appeared.
A young man.
Barefoot.
Wearing a white hospital gown.
His hair was messy.
His face was pale.
He looked exactly like Ethan.
But younger.
Maybe twenty years old.
He stopped beneath the light.
Ariana covered her mouth.
Ethan couldn’t move.
The stranger looked directly at him.
Then whispered:
“You’re the copy.”
Ethan’s heart sank.
“And you’re Ethan?”
The stranger smiled.
“Finally.”
He looked at Edward.
“You kept your promise.”
Edward lowered his head.
“I’m sorry.”
The young man looked at him.
“You should be.”
Ethan stepped forward.
“What happened to you?”
The original Ethan looked at him.
“They told me I was dying.”
Ethan frowned.
“Why?”
“Because they needed my body to create yours.”
Ariana stared.
“They copied him while he was alive.”
Edward nodded.
“Yes.”
The original Ethan looked at Ariana.
“You saved him.”
She nodded slowly.
“I tried.”
He smiled.
“Then you did exactly what my mother wanted.”
Ariana froze.
“Your mother?”
The original Ethan looked at her.
“You know her.”
“Who?”
He answered:
“Elizabeth Brooks.”
Ariana stopped breathing.
“My mother?”
The original Ethan nodded.
“She was there the night I was taken.”
Ariana’s eyes filled with tears.
“What did she do?”
“She tried to stop Nathaniel.”
“Did she survive?”
The original Ethan looked away.
“I don’t know.”
Edward suddenly stepped forward.
“She survived.”
Ariana turned.
“You knew?”
Edward nodded.
“She’s alive.”
Ariana’s entire body trembled.
“Where?”
Edward hesitated.
“She’s been hiding.”
“For how long?”
“Twenty years.”
“Why didn’t she come for me?”
Edward looked at her sadly.
“Because she believed Nathaniel would kill you if he knew she was alive.”
Ariana wiped her tears.
“Where is she now?”
Edward looked toward the mansion’s security system.
“She was supposed to be here.”
Ariana frowned.
“Was?”
Edward’s face changed.
“She disappeared three days ago.”
Ethan looked at him.
“Why?”
“We don’t know.”
Suddenly the original Ethan laughed.
Everyone turned.
He was staring at the floor.
“She’s not missing.”
Edward froze.
“What?”
The original Ethan looked at him.
“She’s been watching us.”
Edward’s eyes widened.
“How do you know?”
“Because she told me.”
Ariana stepped forward.
“When?”
“Before I woke up.”
“Where is she?”
The original Ethan looked toward the ceiling.
“Above us.”
Ariana looked up.
A hidden speaker crackled.
Then a woman’s voice filled the room.
“Ethan.”
Ariana froze.
It was her mother.
“Mom?”
The voice continued.
“Ariana, listen carefully.”
Ariana’s eyes filled with tears.
“Where are you?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Why?”
“Because everything you’ve been told is a lie.”
Ariana looked at Edward.
Her mother continued.
“Nathaniel didn’t create Helix.”
Edward closed his eyes.
Ariana whispered:
“Then who did?”
Silence.
Then her mother’s voice returned.
“I did.”
Ariana’s face went pale.
Ethan stared at Edward.
“Your wife created Helix?”
Edward nodded slowly.
“Yes.”
Ariana couldn’t believe it.
“Why?”
Her mother’s voice answered.
“To stop something much worse.”
“What?”
“An organization that existed before Helix.”
Ethan stepped closer to the speaker.
“What organization?”
Elizabeth replied:
“The Order.”
The original Ethan suddenly looked terrified.
“No.”
Ariana turned toward him.
“You know them?”
He nodded.
“They were the ones who funded Nathaniel.”
Edward’s expression changed.
“They’re back.”
Ariana stared.
“Who are they?”
Elizabeth answered:
“People who believe governments should not exist.”
Ethan frowned.
“What do they want?”
“Control.”
“Control of what?”
“Everything.”
The lights suddenly flickered.
The security system began malfunctioning.
Edward rushed toward the control panel.
“We have to leave.”
Ariana grabbed his arm.
“Where?”
“Nowhere is safe.”
The original Ethan suddenly looked toward the hallway.
“They’re here.”
Marcus raised his weapon.
“Who?”
A loud explosion shook the mansion.
Windows shattered.
The walls trembled.
Then the lights went out.
Gunfire erupted outside.
Marcus shouted:
“Down!”
Everyone dropped.
Bullets tore through the windows.
Security alarms screamed.
Ethan pulled Ariana behind a marble column.
The original Ethan disappeared into the darkness.
“Where did he go?”
Edward shouted:
“He knows how to escape!”
Ethan looked toward the hallway.
“I’ll find him.”
“No!”
Edward grabbed his arm.
“If you separate from us, they will take you.”
“Who?”
“The Order.”
Ariana looked at Edward.
“Why would they want Ethan?”
Edward stared at her.
“Because he carries the one thing they cannot reproduce.”
“What?”
“Choice.”
Ariana frowned.
“Choice?”
Edward nodded.
“Every Helix subject was conditioned.”
“Except Ethan?”
“Except him.”
The original Ethan suddenly appeared behind them.
“Not except him.”
Ethan turned.
“What?”
The original Ethan looked directly at him.
“He was conditioned too.”
Edward froze.
“No.”
The original Ethan shook his head.
“You erased his memories.”
Edward’s face became pale.
“That’s different.”
“No.”
The original Ethan pointed at Ethan.
“You didn’t erase his memories to protect him.”
“Then why?”
“Because you were afraid he’d remember what he did.”
Ethan stared.
“What did I do?”
The original Ethan looked at him.
“You killed someone.”
Ariana gasped.
Ethan shook his head.
“No.”
“You did.”
“Who?”
The original Ethan’s eyes filled with sadness.
“Me.”
Silence.
Ethan couldn’t speak.
The original Ethan continued.
“That’s why they made you believe I was dead.”
Ethan stepped backward.
“I don’t understand.”
“You were there.”
“Where?”
“The first laboratory.”
“When?”
“Twenty years ago.”
“I was eight.”
“Yes.”
Ethan shook his head.
“I couldn’t have killed anyone.”
The original Ethan looked at him.
“You didn’t know what you were doing.”
“Then who controlled me?”
Nathaniel’s voice suddenly echoed through the room.
“I did.”
Everyone turned.
Nathaniel stood at the entrance.
He was holding a weapon.
Behind him were armed men wearing black uniforms.
Edward stepped forward.
“Nathaniel.”
Nathaniel smiled.
“Hello, son.”
Ethan stared at him.
“You controlled me?”
Nathaniel nodded.
“I created you.”
“You poisoned me.”
“Yes.”
“You erased my memories.”
“Yes.”
“You made me kill him?”
Nathaniel smiled.
“Not exactly.”
The original Ethan looked at him.
“You lied to him.”
Nathaniel nodded.
“Of course.”
Ariana stepped forward.
“What did Ethan do?”
Nathaniel looked at her.
“Nothing.”
She frowned.
“What?”
“He didn’t kill anyone.”
The original Ethan stared at him.
Nathaniel smiled.
“He only believed he did.”
Ethan’s eyes widened.
“Why?”
“Because guilt is easier to control than fear.”
Edward shouted:
“Don’t listen to him!”
Nathaniel ignored him.
“You were eight years old.”
Ethan stared.
“You watched your grandfather kill the original Ethan.”
The room became silent.
Nathaniel pointed at the young man.
“You didn’t kill him.”
He smiled.
“I did.”
Ethan looked at the original.
“But you’re alive.”
Nathaniel laughed.
“No.”
The young man’s face changed.
His skin began to pale.
His body trembled.
Then the monitors behind him began flashing.
SUBJECT ZERO: REACTIVATION FAILURE.
Ethan stared.
“What?”
The original Ethan collapsed.
Ariana screamed.
Nathaniel smiled.
“You’ve been talking to a memory.”
The body on the floor began dissolving into a cloud of smoke.
Ethan stepped backward in horror.
“No.”
Nathaniel looked at him.
“The real Ethan died twenty years ago.”
Ethan stared at the empty floor.
“Then who was that?”
Nathaniel smiled.
“Your grandfather’s final trick.”
The countdown reached:
00:05:00.
Nathaniel raised his weapon.
“Now we can begin.”
Edward suddenly pulled a hidden weapon from his jacket.
He fired.
Nathaniel ducked.
Marcus returned fire.
The room exploded into chaos.
Ariana grabbed Ethan.
“Run!”
They rushed toward the basement corridor.
Behind them, Edward shouted:
“Ethan!”
He turned.
His father was standing alone against Nathaniel’s men.
Edward looked at him.
“Whatever happens, don’t trust the man who looks like you.”
Ethan froze.
“What does that mean?”
Edward shouted:
“Lucas isn’t Lucas.”
Then a gunshot rang out.
Edward collapsed.
“Dad!”
Ethan tried to run back.
Ariana grabbed him.
“No!”
“We can’t leave him!”
“We have to!”
The mansion began shaking violently.
The countdown flashed.
00:03:17.
They ran.
Behind them, Nathaniel’s voice echoed through the halls.
“Run, Ethan!”
He laughed.
“Run while you still believe you’re the hero.”
They reached the underground elevator.
Ariana slammed the button.
The doors opened.
They stepped inside.
Then someone grabbed Ethan’s arm.
He spun around.
Daniel.
Alive.
Ethan stared at him.
“You.”
Daniel smiled.
“You really should have listened to me.”
Ariana raised the gun.
“Stay away from him.”
Daniel laughed.
“You still don’t understand.”
“What?”
Daniel looked at Ethan.
“I’m not Daniel.”
Ethan froze.
“Then who are you?”
The elevator doors closed.
Daniel leaned closer.
“I’m the reason your father is afraid of you.”
The elevator began descending.
00:02:01.
Ethan stared at him.
“Who are you?”
Daniel’s expression became cold.
“My name isn’t Daniel Carter.”
He paused.
Then whispered:
“My name is Nathaniel Carter.”
Ethan’s blood ran cold.
Ariana stared.
“That’s impossible.”
Daniel smiled.
“The man upstairs isn’t Nathaniel.”
The elevator continued downward.
00:01:12.
Ethan’s heart pounded.
“Then who is he?”
Daniel looked at him.
“Your grandfather’s clone.”
Ariana shook her head.
“No.”
Daniel’s smile disappeared.
“And he’s about to activate every Echo subject on Earth.”
00:00:47.
The elevator lights turned red.
00:00:30.
Ethan looked at Ariana.
“What happens at zero?”
Daniel answered:
“The world changes forever.”
00:00:15.
Ariana grabbed Ethan’s hand.
00:00:10.
The elevator suddenly stopped.
00:00:05.
A door opened beneath them.
But instead of another laboratory, Ethan saw something that made his blood run cold.
Hundreds of people stood in a massive underground chamber.
All of them were staring directly at him.
All of them had the same blank expression.
Then, in perfect unison, they spoke:
“Welcome home, Subject One.”
The countdown reached zero.
And Ethan finally understood.
The experiment had never been about creating one perfect human.
It had been about creating an army.
And somehow…
he was the one they had been waiting for.
But before Ethan could speak, every person in the chamber suddenly turned toward Ariana.
And one voice rose above all the others.
“Protect Subject Two.”
Ariana looked at Ethan in confusion.
Then the chamber doors slammed shut.
Leaving Ethan on one side…
and Ariana on the other.
TO BE CONTINUED…
