The day began with a flicker.
No thunder, no rain – just this restless trembling on the horizon, as if the sky were breathing and forgetting its rhythm. The golden network above the city shimmered dully, and darkness filled the spaces between. Not the kind of darkness that disappeared when you looked at it, but the kind that stared back.
Lina stood on the balcony of the Control Center, hands on the railing, her skin warmed by the weak sunlight that couldn't decide whether it wanted to break through.
Inside her was silence. But she knew it was the deceptive kind – the silence before the sentence that changes everything.
"You're watching him," whispered the voice within her.
"I'm watching the city."
"No. Him. Always him."
"Because he's the only thing keeping me here."
"Then you're weaker than I thought."
"Or more human."
"That you consider that a compliment is fascinating."
She smiled thinly. "I know."
