Chapter 3: No Place for the Dead

Cipher moved like a shadow, carrying Luna through the rain-soaked alleyways. Her breathing was uneven, the wounds slowing her down, but he never adjusted his pace.

She either kept up or she didn't.

"You shot me twice," she muttered, voice strained. "That's not how saving people works."

Cipher didn't look at her. "You misunderstand. I do not save people. You are alive because you are still useful."

Luna let out a short, bitter laugh. "And when I stop being useful?"

Cipher didn't answer. He didn't need to.

She already knew.

They reached an abandoned high-rise, its broken windows offering nothing but darkness inside. Cipher set her down against the cold concrete, then stepped back, scanning their surroundings with detached precision.

Luna watched him-watched the way he moved, the way he calculated everything without a shred of hesitation.

"You really feel nothing, do you?"

Cipher turned his gaze to her, empty and unreadable.

"Emotions do not serve a purpose."

Luna scoffed. "They do. They make us human."

Cipher kneeled in front of her, expression as lifeless as ever. "Humanity is a weakness. That is why they created me."

Luna's fingers clenched around the torn fabric of her sleeve. "And yet, you're the one they're trying to kill now."

Silence.

Cipher's eyes remained blank, but for the first time, he didn't answer immediately.

Luna smirked, despite the pain. "Looks like your creators don't think you're so perfect after all."

Cipher stood up, dismissing the conversation as irrelevant. He checked his ammo, his movements mechanical.

"Rest while you can. We move at dawn."

Luna exhaled, watching him with something unreadable in her own gaze.

Cipher wasn't human. He wasn't broken.

But something told her... maybe he wasn't whole, either.

Chapter 4: The Price of Perfection

The night passed in silence. Cipher remained motionless, standing by the broken window, his eyes scanning the city below. He didn't need rest-his body had been conditioned to function beyond human limits. Sleep was an unnecessary liability.

Luna, however, was different. Even in pain, she had eventually drifted off, exhaustion overriding her fear.

Cipher noted that she wasn't a trained operative. No combat instincts. No discipline. Just a scientist running from her execution.

His orders had been clear. Eliminate her.

And yet, she was still breathing.

Cipher didn't dwell on it.

At exactly 04:00, he moved. He approached Luna's unconscious form and nudged her shoulder-firm but not violent. "Get up."

She woke with a sharp inhale, eyes unfocused for a second before locking onto him. "You don't waste time, do you?"

Cipher turned away, already checking the ammunition in his pistol. "Time is a resource. I do not waste resources."

Luna stretched slightly, wincing at the pain in her shoulder and leg. "Right. Because you're a machine, and machines don't feel."

Cipher glanced at her, but his expression remained unreadable. "Your sarcasm is unnecessary. We move now."

He started towards the exit, expecting her to follow.

She did but not before muttering, "You really are the coldest bastard alive."