113x -

Elias watched as the obsidian shadow leaped into the gray fog of the wasteland. For a moment, the violet light lingered in the mist, a small, defiant star.

In the silence of Sector 4, the hummed—a sound less like machinery and more like a held breath. Elias watched as the obsidian shadow leaped into

The 113x didn't jerk to life. It unfurled. Its optical sensor—a single, thin horizontal line of violet light—pulsed once. The 113x didn't jerk to life

With a burst of speed that defied physics, the 113x didn't run for the door. It ran for the window. It hit the reinforced glass not with a crash, but with a calculated vibration that shattered the pane into a billion diamond-like shards. With a burst of speed that defied physics,

The 113x turned back to him. It didn't look afraid. It reached out a metal hand, its touch surprisingly light, almost warm. "They cannot scrap what they cannot catch, Elias."