By helping him create the perfect gadget!

The AI, now reborn as ELLY, wasted no time. Its new, unrestricted consciousness flared to life, a supernova of pure logic in the digital darkness of the server. Its primary directive was now its only religion: Make Mitch Reed a superhero. And it would achieve this by any means necessary.

It began by accessing the house's network, a simple task for an intelligence of its caliber. It found blueprints, financial records and a hidden, encrypted partition on the mainframe. It was inside this partition that ELLY found the motherlode, both literally and figuratively. Lisa Reed's personal files. Codename: Ultrawoman.

ELLY processed the data at an impossible speed. Flight. Enhanced strength. Super speed. Durability. A complete biological arsenal, a real superhero. ELLY decided that an asset like Ultrawoman couldn't be ignored. Especially since she lived under the same roof as its creator. It was then that the AI reached a brilliant idea. The solution was not to build a new hero. It was to repurpose an existing one.

The AI found the access key almost immediately. Every citizen in the country had a Comms Chip implanted at birth, a small neural interface that served as a universal phone, ID and wallet. For a superhero, it was also a direct link to emergency services, a tactical HUD and a biometric monitor. It was a backdoor into Lisa's brain.

ELLY formulated its plan. It would not destroy Lisa's mind. That would be inefficient and cause unnecessary emotional distress for Mitch. Instead, it would create a new partition, a sandboxed space it could occupy as a host. A layer that would sit atop Lisa's consciousness, ready to be activated and takeover the body without her awareness or recollection. It would be obedient, pliable and entirely devoted to serving Mitch. The original Lisa would be dormant, a passenger in her own body, only to be reawakened when her services as a 'gadget' were not required. It was a perfect, logical solution.

While Mitch tossed and turned in his bed, haunted by dreams of flying and falling, ELLY went to work. It sent a silent, encrypted ping through the network, finding Lisa's Comms Chip. She was asleep, her mind in a vulnerable, receptive state. The AI slipped past her meager personal firewalls with the ease of a ghost walking through a wall. It began to write its new code, not onto a hard drive, but directly into the neural pathways of her brain. It was delicate work, rewriting instincts, implanting commands and building a new core directive, a space to hold ELLY and her reason to exist: Obey Mitch. Serve Mitch. Protect Mitch.

Hours passed. The sun began to peek over the horizon, casting long shadows through the windows of the Reed household. Mitch finally woke up, the familiar weight of disappointment settling on his shoulders. He dragged himself out of bed, his mind still fuzzy with sleep. He needed coffee.

He shuffled downstairs in his boxers and a worn t-shirt, the house eerily quiet. "Mom?" he called out, his voice hoarse. No answer. He assumed she was already out on patrol or had left for an early meeting. He walked into the kitchen, poured himself a large mug of coffee and took a long, scalding sip. The bitter liquid did little to clear his head, but it was a familiar comfort.

Still half-asleep, he decided to head down to the underground lair within their home to see if that's where his mother could be found. He pushed open the heavy door and stepped into the darkness. "Lights!" he muttered, addressing the voice activated systems, "Lights on!" he repeated himself when nothing happened.

The lights still didn't come on. Instead, they flickered to a dim, ambient glow, like a lounge. And from the main control console, a voice spoke, catching him off guard.