The night air burned cold against Selara’s skin as she crossed the forbidden gates,her pulse racing.The watch on her wrist whirred,unfolding into sharp-winged drones that circled her in metallic arcs.She smiled,breathless with triumph.
“Impressive.”
The voice was low,steady.Her smile vanished.
A figure emerged from the shadows.Tall,6’2,skin pale,black hair swept to an undercut,eyes mercury-bright with X-shaped pupils.His tail swayed lazily,its tip glowing with plasma heat.
She raised her wrist. “One more step and you’re shredded.”
He studied the drones,unmoved. “You built them.”
“Yeah.Which means I know exactly how to take you apart.”
“You believe that?”His tone wasn’t mocking—just curious.
“I don’t believe.I know.”
A faint quirk touched his lips. “Then show me.”
Her jaw set. “Gladly.”
The drones shrieked forward,blades carving into his chest,lasers scorching his skin.He staggered—and reformed.Wounds sealed,metal knitted back,steam curling from flawless flesh.He kept walking.
Her throat tightened. “What…no.No!”
“Fragile.”His voice cut through the chaos. “Just like everything else here.”
The watch pulsed red.Cooldown initiated.
Selara spun and bolted.Sirens wailed,the colony gates yawned open.Guards shouted her name.She dove through as steel began to close—then a shriek of tearing metal split the air.His tail slammed through the gap,plasma melting hinges.The doors screamed as he forced them wide.
He stepped inside.
Gunfire cracked.Guards fell,their weapons ripped away midair.Screams ended in wet silence.Her father’s voice barked commands,but Cipher moved like death given shape.
Selara fumbled with the watch—green again.Drones rebuilt.But before she could order the strike,a tail coiled her waist and yanked her off her feet.Heat scorched her throat,her cry breaking.
“Put her down!” her father shouted,gun raised.
“Press it!” Selara screamed,eyes wide. “Father—do it now!”
Her father froze,hesitation hardening into fear.With a final motion he sealed the inner lock.Leaving her trapped.
Her knees buckled as her breath failed—but his grip shifted.His eyes flickered,slits softening into human circles.
He looked at her.
“You fight,” he murmured,almost puzzled.
Selara clawed at his tail,voice ragged. “Because I won’t die begging.”
His head tilted. “Not fear.Not like the others.”
“I’m not like the others.”
His lips curved faintly. “Good.”
Her chest heaved. “You’re insane.”
“Maybe.”He leaned closer,his breath brushing her burned skin,then pressed his mouth against her throat.Her body jerked at the strange warmth,his saliva cooling and sealing the wound.
She shivered. “What…what are you doing?”
“Healing you.”His voice was softer now. “Don’t ask why.I don’t know.”
The drones buzzed overhead.His eyes flicked once.They dropped lifeless to the floor.
She glared. “You can kill me.Why don’t you?”
His tail tightened gently around her leg. “Because I don’t want to.”
Her pulse skipped. “You don’t want to…or you can’t?”
His gaze lingered,unblinking. “Both.”
The silence between them thickened,charged,each breath a clash of fear and something stranger.She shifted back,but his tail anchored her still.
“Don’t run,” he said quietly.
Her heart hammered. “You think I’d stay with you willingly?”
“I don’t think,” he replied,expression unreadable. “I decide.”
Her laugh was sharp,broken. “Arrogant machine.”
“Arrogant human.”His eyes softened almost imperceptibly. “But I like your defiance.”
“Like?”The word cracked from her throat. “You slaughtered them.And now you—what?Like me?”
His silence was heavier than any answer.But he didn’t let go.
From that moment he stayed near.Guards who aimed at her were torn apart before they could fire.He walked at her side like a shadow,tail always touching her as if tethering her.His devotion was wordless but suffocating.
Cipher—the Authority’s perfect weapon,merciless and unbreakable—had chosen her for reasons neither of them understood.
And Selara felt the terror of it spark into something she could not name.