"In a world where emotions are extinct, loving someone is the most dangerous crime of all."
---
Her light wasn't artificial.
Kairo stared at the girl, and for a full second, the world went silent—no machines, no alerts, no protocols. Just that humming sound again… and the glow around her chest.
It pulsed in rhythm.
Like a heartbeat.
"You're leaking emotion," Kairo said, barely audible. "That's impossible."
She didn't answer right away. She rose slowly, brushing silver strands of hair behind her ear. Up close, she looked his age—maybe seventeen. But her eyes were ancient. Knowing. Tired.
"You're not chipped," he added. "Everyone's chipped."
"I'm not everyone." Her voice was soft—almost too soft. "And you're not emotionless, are you?"
Kairo froze. "What?"
"I saw you hesitate before opening the door. I saw the way you looked at me. You felt something, didn't you?"
He took a step back. "That's not how it works. My neural HUD says zero percent—"
"HUDs lie. People don't."
Her gaze pinned him in place. "Your soul's still alive. That's why I let you find me."
He didn't know what disturbed him more: that she was real—or that her words felt true.
Before he could speak, a loud klaxon cut through the silence.
WARNING: UNREGISTERED EMOTIONAL ACTIVITY DETECTED. SEARCH UNITS DEPLOYED.
She looked up, eyes wide. "They're coming."
"Run," Kairo said instinctively.
She didn't move. "You have the clearance. You lead. I'll follow."
Kairo pulled her by the wrist, and the moment their skin touched, a jolt surged through him—a current of heat and memory.
Flashes.
A child laughing. Someone's arms. A name whispered.
Eris.
He didn't know how he knew it—but he did.
---
They ran.
Through back corridors and faded neon tunnels, past automated drones and silent statues wearing human skin. Kairo's stolen ID tag let them bypass most doors—until they reached the Sensor Gate.
"No non-citizen can pass this," Kairo said, breathless.
"I'm not a non-citizen," Eris replied.
She stepped forward and placed her hand on the gate panel.
It blinked blue—then green.
Access granted.
"What the hell are you?" he asked.
She smiled faintly. "A mistake. One the system buried."
---
They emerged onto the edge of Lower Neurolux, where the skyscrapers thinned and the glow of the Core dimmed. This was the city's skeleton—where old tech was scrapped and forgotten.
They ducked into an abandoned transit pod.
For a moment, it was just them—two fugitives with no reason to trust each other… and no one else to rely on.
Kairo sank into a cracked seat. His heart—if he still had one—was thundering.
"You're not like the others," he said. "You feel. That makes you dangerous."
Eris looked down at her hands. They were trembling.
"I wasn't supposed to survive the Purge," she said. "But someone hid me. Modified my DNA. Disconnected my chip."
"The Purge?"
"You really don't remember?"
He shook his head.
She sighed. "Two hundred years ago, when the world outlawed emotion, the system destroyed everyone with high-emotional bandwidth. Children were tested. The ones who couldn't be controlled… were erased."
"And you—"
"I was one of them. But I was saved. Stored in cryo for decades. They called me a virus… a ticking bomb."
Kairo stared. "Then why wake up now?"
She looked at him, eyes burning.
"Because the system's breaking. And you're the final variable."
---
The words hit harder than a bullet.
He tried to process them—but his mind fractured under the weight.
Why me? Why now?
She stepped closer. "Before you died, you created Heartware. The first software that could replicate real emotion. You tried to upload it. You almost did."
He blinked. "Wait… you know who I was?"
"I don't just know," she said, reaching out. "I remember you."
Kairo's breath caught.
Then she did the unthinkable.
She pressed her palm to his chest—and suddenly, he saw it.
A vision.
Not a memory.
A shared link.
Him. Standing in a firelit room. A younger Eris laughing beside him. They were building something together. Wires, screens, music. He looked at her like she was the only light left in the world.
The vision vanished.
He stumbled back. "What… was that?"
"Our past," Eris said quietly. "Encoded into the last fragment of your soul."
"Why don't I remember?"
"Because they didn't just kill your body," she whispered. "They wiped your core. But some things… survive deletion."
---
Suddenly—
BANG!
The pod door exploded inward.
Drones stormed in, red eyes glowing.
Eris stood up, fists clenched. Light flared around her—her aura no longer just emotional, but weaponized.
"Get behind me," she said.
"No," Kairo replied.
He stood beside her, eyes flashing silver as he raised his hand.
The drones paused.
Confused.
Then—
Kairo's HUD flickered.
> Emotion Index: 1%
Detected Emotion: Defiance
And for the first time since his rebirth, Kairo smiled.
---
> To be continued…
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✅ Author's Thought (End of Chapter)
This chapter just cracked the seal wide open! Kairo's soul is glitching back into reality, and Eris… well, she's just getting started.
Next up: secrets unfold, the city hunts them, and love becomes their deadliest rebellion.
Drop a 💻 if you believe in hacked hearts.
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Ready for Chapter 3: The Spark Protocol?