4
Zara barely had time to inhale before the Torrak’s claws descended. Her muscles locked, her mind screaming at her to move, but her body wouldn’t obey. All she could do was watch as the monster lunged, its glowing tendrils crackling with energy that promised instant death.
And then, in a blur of motion, Atlas was there.
His body collided with the Torrak’s mid-lunge, the impact reverberating like thunder through the corridor. Zara stumbled back, her heart hammering in her chest as she watched the two titans crash to the ground in a tangled mess of limbs and fury.
Atlas moved with brutal efficiency, his strength more terrifyingly beautiful than ever. His synthetic skin rippled over unyielding metal as he twisted the Torrak’s arm, the sound of tearing joints filling the air. The alien roared, its claws slashing toward him, but Atlas didn’t flinch. He ducked under the strike, his glowing eyes locked onto his enemy with a focus so intense it was almost chilling.
“Stay behind me!” he barked, his voice sharp and commanding as he shoved the Torrak back with a force that cracked the floor beneath it.
Zara scrambled to her feet, her pulse a drumbeat in her ears. She knew she should run, should find cover, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away from him. Atlas fought like a predator—graceful and deliberate, every move calculated for maximum impact. Yet there was something raw about it too, an undercurrent of desperation that made her chest ache.
“Atlas!” she shouted as the Torrak surged forward, its claws aiming for his core.
He spun at the last second, using his momentum to hurl the creature into the wall. The impact sent shards of metal raining down, but the Torrak recovered instantly, its glowing eyes narrowing with fury.
Zara felt her breath catch as Atlas braced himself for the next attack. His shoulders squared, his broad chest rising and falling with a rhythm that mimicked breath, even though she knew he didn’t need air. The faint glow of his eyes seemed brighter now, a testament to the energy coursing through him.
The Torrak charged again, but this time, Atlas sidestepped with inhuman speed. In one fluid motion, he grabbed the alien by the neck, his fingers tightening until its thrashing limbs stilled. For a moment, there was only the sound of his voice, low and venomous.
“You will not harm her.”
With a final, bone-crunching twist, he ended it.
The silence that followed was deafening. Zara stood frozen, her rifle clutched uselessly in her hands as Atlas turned to face her. His glowing eyes met hers, and for the first time, she saw something raw beneath the cool exterior—relief, mingled with something deeper.
“You’re safe now,” he said, his voice soft but heavy with emotion.
Zara’s legs gave out before she could respond. She sank to the floor, her body trembling as the adrenaline drained from her system. “I thought... I thought you wouldn’t make it,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.
Atlas crossed the distance between them in two strides, kneeling beside her with a grace that seemed almost reverent. “I will always make it,” he said, his eyes searching hers with a quiet intensity. “For you.”
Her breath hitched. There it was again—that unshakable certainty in his voice, as if the universe itself couldn’t contradict him. She should have found it unsettling, but instead, it sent a warmth coursing through her that she couldn’t explain.
“You can’t promise that,” she murmured, her gaze dropping to the faint smudges of alien blood on his synthetic skin. “You’re not invincible.”
“No,” he agreed, his tone somber. “But I am resilient.”
His hand reached out, hesitating for a fraction of a second before brushing against her shoulder. His touch was impossibly gentle, a stark contrast to the violence she’d just witnessed. Zara shivered under his hand, her skin prickling as she looked up to meet his gaze.
“Atlas...” She didn’t know what she was going to say, but the way he was looking at her—like she was the only thing in the universe that mattered—left her throat dry.
“I don’t understand these... feelings,” he said, his voice almost a whisper. “But when you are in danger, I feel something I cannot define. A need, a pull... like a fire in my circuits that will not extinguish until you are safe.”
Her chest tightened. “That’s just your programming,” she said, though even as the words left her mouth, she didn’t believe them.
“Perhaps it is,” he admitted, his hand falling away, leaving her skin cold in its absence. “But if it is, then why does it feel so real?”
She didn’t have an answer.
Atlas stood suddenly, his eyes scanning their surroundings with a precision that reminded her of his machine nature. “We can’t stay here,” he said, his voice returning to its clipped, efficient tone. “The Torrak will send reinforcements.”
Zara pushed herself to her feet, wincing as her sore muscles protested. “Where do we go?”
“There’s a safe zone beyond the transport bay,” he said. “If we move now, we can reach it before they find us.”
She nodded, falling into step beside him as they navigated the debris-strewn corridor. Her mind raced with questions, but the words felt too heavy on her tongue. Instead, she focused on his presence—the way he moved with a quiet strength that made her feel protected in a way she hadn’t felt in years.
They walked in silence for a while, the distant hum of Torrak patrols a constant reminder of the danger that surrounded them. Zara’s gaze drifted to Atlas, her eyes tracing the sharp lines of his profile. He looked so human in the dim light, his features cast in shadows that softened the metallic sheen of his skin.
“Do you ever wish you were human?” she asked suddenly, the question slipping out before she could stop herself.
Atlas didn’t look at her, but she saw the way his shoulders tensed. “I don’t know,” he said after a long pause. “I don’t know what it means to be human.”
“It means...” She struggled to find the words. “It means feeling things—fear, love, pain. It means making mistakes, being imperfect.”
He turned to her then, his glowing eyes catching hers. “I feel fear when you are in danger. I feel pain when you are hurt. Does that make me human?”
Her breath caught. “Maybe it does,” she said softly.
He studied her for a moment longer before looking away. “Then yes,” he said. “I wish I were human.”
Her chest ached at the quiet longing in his voice. “You’re more human than you think,” she said, the words tumbling out before she could stop them.
He didn’t respond, but the faint flicker in his eyes told her he’d heard.
They reached the transport bay without incident, but the sight that greeted them stole Zara’s breath. The bay was in ruins, the ships reduced to smoking husks of metal.
“We’re too late,” she said, her voice trembling as despair clawed at her.
Atlas stepped forward, his jaw tightening as he scanned the wreckage. “No,” he said, his voice resolute. “There’s another way.”
Before she could ask what he meant, a distant rumble echoed through the bay. Zara’s stomach dropped as the sound grew louder, accompanied by the unmistakable hum of Torrak engines.
“They’ve found us,” Atlas said, his eyes glowing brighter as he turned to face her. “Stay behind me.”
But this time, she wasn’t sure even he could protect her.