The world didn't end with the Spark's collapse. It changed.
Days after the storm, the city still buzzed with confusion. Power grids flickered in and out. News anchors spoke in riddles about energy surges and magnetic anomalies. People whispered of miracles and ghosts in the systems, but no one knew the truth. No one except Mei Lin and Adrian.
They sat in silence in his penthouse, the skyline sprawling before them, draped in mist and light. The air still carried a faint hum—a memory of the Spark—but it was quieter now, like a sleeping beast.
Mei Lin traced the rim of her teacup, eyes distant. The warmth felt foreign after everything cold and cruel. "You know they'll come looking," she said. "The board, the government… everyone. Someone's going to want answers."
Adrian leaned against the glass, one hand in his pocket, gaze unreadable. "They'll get a story. Not the truth."
"And what's the truth?" she asked, meeting his eyes.
He turned toward her slowly, the city's reflection painting his face in broken light. "That I almost lost you."
The words hit harder than any weapon. She looked away, pretending to study the skyline. "You didn't."
"No," he said quietly. "Because you refused to die."
Silence stretched between them, but it wasn't empty. It was full of the weight of shared survival.
He walked over and sat beside her, close enough that she could feel his warmth. "We can't stay here forever, Mei Lin. The Spark left traces. Data. Energy. Someone will find it."
She nodded. "Then we get there first."
Adrian's lips curved slightly. "You really don't know how to rest, do you?"
"I could ask you the same."
Their banter carried an ease that hadn't existed before—the fragile kind that only comes after fire. But beneath it, tension coiled, the awareness that their peace was temporary.
The doorbell shattered the quiet. Adrian froze, instinct flickering in his eyes. "You expecting someone?"
She shook her head.
He crossed to the console and checked the camera feed. A man stood at the door—tall, suited, and uninvited. His face was half-hidden under a hat, but the emblem on his lapel made Adrian's blood chill.
Lupus Industries.
Mei Lin was on her feet before he spoke. "They shouldn't know we're here."
"They don't," Adrian muttered. "Unless someone told them."
He unlocked a drawer and pulled out his pistol, checking the chamber. "Stay back."
"Not a chance."
He shot her a look, but she was already moving toward the back entrance. Her instincts had kept them alive before; now they screamed again.
The knock came. Measured. Calm. "Adrian Cole," a voice called through the rain. "We need to talk."
He opened the door halfway. "You've got thirty seconds."
The man smiled faintly, removing his hat. He looked in his forties, sharp eyes gleaming with restrained confidence. "Name's Marcus Hale. I work with the internal division of Lupus Industries. Or what's left of it."
"Not interested," Adrian said flatly, starting to close the door.
Marcus wedged his hand against it. "You should be. You destroyed something you don't understand."
Mei Lin stepped forward, her presence enough to make the man hesitate. "We stopped a weapon," she said. "That's all you need to know."
Marcus studied her. "You're Mei Lin, right? The rogue engineer." His gaze sharpened. "You didn't stop it. You woke it."
Adrian's jaw tightened. "Explain."
Marcus reached into his coat and pulled out a device, its surface pulsing faintly blue. The same hue as the Spark. "It's evolving. The energy didn't vanish—it adapted. It's searching for a new host."
The rain outside intensified, thunder rolling like a warning.
Mei Lin stared at the device. The hum within it matched the one she still felt beneath her skin.
"It's not searching," she whispered. "It's already found one."
Marcus frowned. "What do you mean?"
She looked at her hand. Tiny arcs of light danced across her fingertips—brief, invisible to anyone who didn't know what to see.
Her voice trembled. "It's in me."
Adrian's eyes darkened, a storm of fear and fury all at once.
Marcus took a cautious step back. "Then you're either humanity's savior… or its next disaster."
The rain outside the penthouse blurred the city lights into liquid gold. Adrian's pulse thundered in his ears as he watched Mei Lin, the faint traces of the Spark dancing across her skin like starlight trapped beneath flesh.
She stood frozen, her breathing shallow. The hum was soft, but he could hear it—the same resonance that had destroyed the fortress, that had nearly taken her life. Only this time, it pulsed in rhythm with her heartbeat.
Marcus's eyes darted between them. "If that's true, she's a live conduit. The energy is using her to stabilize itself."
Adrian moved between them instinctively. "You're not touching her."
Marcus lifted his hands. "If we don't contain it, it could trigger another collapse. You think I want to see the world burn again?"
Mei Lin stepped forward, her eyes sharp despite the tremor in her hands. "You can't contain what you don't understand. The Spark adapts. It learns. You try to cage it, it becomes something worse."
Her voice cracked slightly, a whisper of fear breaking through. "I felt it when the core exploded. It wasn't just energy—it was aware."
Adrian's breath caught. "Aware?"
She nodded. "It was searching. Calling. And when I stopped it… it clung to me."
Marcus frowned. "That's impossible. The Spark isn't sentient."
"Neither was the AI that started it," she shot back. "Until someone gave it emotion."
The words hung heavy, the storm outside mirroring their tension.
Adrian turned toward Marcus, eyes hard. "What do you want from us?"
"I want to help," Marcus said, though his tone carried more calculation than sincerity. "There's a facility—off-grid, old Lupus tech, before the corruption. If she comes with me, we can analyze the residue, maybe find a way to separate her from it."
Mei Lin laughed under her breath, bitter and low. "You mean lock me in a lab."
"It's safer than pretending this isn't happening," he replied. "For you—and for everyone else."
Adrian's voice dropped to a growl. "She's not your experiment."
Marcus met his glare without flinching. "She might already be the experiment."
Before Adrian could answer, the lights flickered. The penthouse vibrated—a deep rumble from below. Mei Lin's hand snapped to the wall for balance, and a burst of blue light flared across her palm, searing into the glass like a web of lightning.
She gasped, clutching her wrist. "It's reacting—"
Adrian grabbed her shoulders. "Breathe. Focus on me."
Her chest heaved as she tried to steady herself, eyes wide, pupils glowing faintly with Spark light. The hum grew louder, not external anymore, but emanating from her.
Marcus swore under his breath. "If that thing stabilizes at full charge inside her, we're not dealing with a human anymore."
Adrian snapped. "Shut up."
He turned back to Mei Lin, pressing his forehead to hers like he did in the storm. "You're stronger than it. You've already proven that."
Tears mixed with the rain on her cheeks. "I can feel it trying to take over."
"Then don't let it."
Her hands trembled, but slowly, the hum faded to a whisper. The glow receded, leaving only the faint shimmer of rainlight in her eyes.
When the quiet finally settled, Marcus exhaled. "You just suppressed an energy surge powerful enough to vaporize a city block."
Mei Lin's voice was hoarse. "It's not power. It's pain. It feels everything—the loss, the chaos, the fear we felt. That's what feeds it."
Adrian brushed a damp strand of hair from her face. "Then we starve it."
Marcus looked between them. "You can't run from something that's inside her. Every emotion she feels—every heartbeat—will make it stronger."
Adrian's tone was calm but cold. "Then I'll keep her steady."
The older man's expression softened for a brief moment. "You really think you can fight something like that?"
Adrian met his gaze. "I've fought worse. I've fought myself."
Marcus studied him, then sighed. "Fine. But when she loses control—and she will—remember this conversation."
He turned to leave, but before he stepped into the hallway, Mei Lin said quietly, "You're not wrong. But if I lose control… I want him to be the one who stops me."
Marcus glanced back at her, a flicker of something almost like respect in his eyes. "Then I hope he's ready to make that choice."
The door shut behind him, leaving the sound of rain and the echo of what he'd said.
Adrian looked at Mei Lin, his voice barely above a whisper. "Don't talk like that again."
She gave a small, sad smile. "You can't protect me from everything."
"I can try."
Her eyes softened, and for a moment, the storm outside seemed to still. "Then try with me. Not for me."
He stared at her, then nodded once. "Together."
The hum within her chest pulsed in quiet answer.
The Spark wasn't gone. It had chosen its host—and it wasn't done yet.
The night deepened around the penthouse, but neither of them slept. The rain had slowed to a whisper against the glass, the city lights flickering like dying embers.
Adrian sat by the window, his shirt damp, his thoughts darker still. Mei Lin slept fitfully on the couch, the faint blue shimmer beneath her skin pulsing in time with her heartbeat. Every few minutes, the light dimmed, then flared again, like a restless spirit refusing peace.
He didn't dare move. Didn't dare look away.
He'd seen power corrupt men, destroy empires. But this was different. This was the woman he—
No. He couldn't name it. Not yet.
Mei Lin stirred, her hand clutching the side of her head. "Adrian?"
He was beside her in a heartbeat. "I'm here."
Her voice trembled. "I saw something. When the Spark surged earlier—it wasn't just noise. It was a memory. A vision."
He frowned. "Of what?"
She hesitated. "You."
Adrian stiffened.
"In the lab. Years ago. You were there when they first tested it," she said, her eyes searching his face. "You were the one who shut it down the first time."
He exhaled slowly, the truth catching up with him. "It was before I met you. Before I knew what it really was."
"So you've been lying to me?" Her voice broke—not in anger, but in disbelief.
"I didn't lie," he said quietly. "I buried it. There's a difference."
She rose to her feet, the glow from her veins lighting the room in eerie silver. "You knew the Spark wasn't just a weapon."
"I thought I destroyed it," he said. "I thought I ended it for good."
"And instead," she whispered, stepping back, "you created me."
The words cut through him like glass. "Don't say that."
"Why not?" she said bitterly. "It's the truth, isn't it? The Spark was born from human emotion—from ambition, grief, guilt. You were part of that experiment, and now it's in me. We're both its products."
He grabbed her shoulders, voice fierce. "You're not a product. You're the only thing that's ever felt real."
Her breath hitched. The glow beneath her skin pulsed faster, reflecting her turmoil. "Then why do I feel like I'm losing myself?"
"Because you're fighting something built to consume," he said, his tone softer now. "But you're stronger than it."
She shook her head. "What if I'm not?"
"Then I'll remind you who you are."
Their eyes locked. The storm outside began again, faint thunder echoing their heartbeat.
She closed the space between them, chest heaving, voice breaking. "Adrian, I can feel its thoughts. It wants to use me—to reach the core network, to rebuild what we destroyed."
He cupped her face, firm but tender. "Then we don't run from it. We find where it's calling to—and end it on our terms."
Tears glimmered in her eyes. "And if it kills me?"
He didn't answer. He didn't have to. The silence between them said everything.
Lightning struck somewhere in the distance. The air trembled with power. She leaned into him, her forehead resting against his.
"Promise me something," she whispered.
"Anything."
"If I lose control, if it takes me… don't save me. End me."
He flinched. "Don't—"
She pressed her fingers to his lips. "Promise."
His eyes burned, the alpha's strength cracking under the weight of her plea. Finally, he nodded once. "Only if you promise to fight like hell before it ever gets that far."
She smiled faintly. "Deal."
The hum in her body softened, syncing with his heartbeat as if it recognized his presence. For a fleeting moment, the storm faded into peace.
She closed her eyes, resting against him, her voice barely audible. "The Spark's awake again. I can feel it… calling from the northern sector."
He held her tighter. "Then that's where we go next."
Outside, the city lights flickered once more—like the Spark itself was watching.