24

Zara’s fingers dug into the ruined seams of Atlas’s synthetic skin as she knelt beside him, her pulse pounding like thunder in her ears. His weight leaned into her, heavy and unmoving, as his silver-blue eyes flickered weakly—just faint remnants of the light that had once burned so steadily.

“You’re not shutting down,” she whispered fiercely, her voice trembling with desperation. “Do you hear me, Atlas? Not now.”

Atlas’s head tilted slightly toward her, his face still and calm despite the obvious strain in his frame. “I am... operational,” he murmured, though his voice cracked and faltered. The hum of his systems stuttered beneath the surface of his body, an uneven pulse that made her heart seize.

“You’re a terrible liar,” she shot back, brushing her trembling fingers against his jaw. “I can hear it, Atlas. You’re failing.”

His glowing eyes dimmed further, but they remained fixed on her—steady, unrelenting in their quiet focus. “I was not made to last forever,” he said softly. “But I was made to protect.”

“Don’t give me that,” she snapped, her throat tight. “I didn’t ask for you to break yourself for me. I didn’t ask you to—”

“To care,” he finished for her, his voice a mere whisper now.

Her breath hitched at the words. She looked down at him, tears stinging her eyes as she fought to hold herself together. “You’re not supposed to care,” she said, though her voice broke around the words. “You’re a machine. You’re... You’re not supposed to—”

“To feel?” he interrupted again, his gaze holding hers.

“Yes!” she shouted, her voice echoing off the cavern walls. She shook her head, her chest aching as the tears spilled freely now. “But you do. I know you do. And it’s not fair.”

Atlas was quiet, his flickering gaze softening as he lifted his good hand—slowly, deliberately—and let his fingers brush against her cheek. The touch was feather-light, yet it grounded her like nothing else could.

“I choose to feel,” he said softly. “For you, Zara.”

Her sob escaped before she could hold it back, her face crumpling as she clutched at him. She pressed her forehead to his, her tears falling onto his battered chest as she whispered, “Then stay. Please. I can’t do this without you.”

The hum of his systems weakened again, and she froze as his glowing eyes dimmed further.

“No,” she whispered, panic clawing at her throat. “No, you’re not leaving me.”

Zara wiped furiously at her tears, her mind racing as she tried to think—anything, any solution that would bring him back. She’d done it once before, back in the other cavern, when his systems had been on the brink of failure. She could do it again. She had to.

Her eyes darted to his exposed chest, the flickering glow of his core now almost entirely extinguished. She had managed to reroute energy to stabilize him before, but that had been temporary—a Band-Aid on a wound too deep to heal on its own. If she didn’t act quickly, his systems would fail completely.

“Hang on, Atlas,” she said firmly, her voice shaking as she pulled her tools from her pack. “You’re not allowed to give up. I’ll fix this.”

“You don’t have to—”

“Shut up,” she snapped, though her tone wasn’t harsh. “I’m saving you whether you like it or not.”

She forced herself to focus, her hands trembling as she examined the damage to his chest cavity. Wires had frayed, circuits were cracked, and his core was unstable, its soft glow pulsing erratically like a dying heartbeat.

“Stay with me,” she murmured as she adjusted the pulse generator she had used before. “Just hold on a little longer, okay?”

Atlas didn’t respond. When she glanced up, his eyes had closed, the soft glow behind his lids almost gone. Her breath hitched, panic rising like bile in her throat.

“Atlas!” she cried, her voice breaking. “Don’t you dare leave me!”

She worked faster, the minutes bleeding together as her focus narrowed. The pulse generator was her only option—one last attempt to stabilize his systems and kick-start the core. She connected the device to a partially intact circuit, praying the damaged wiring would hold long enough for the energy transfer.

Her thumb hovered over the activation switch. “Please,” she whispered, her voice cracking. “Please work.”

She pressed the button.

A sharp hum resonated through Atlas’s body, the pulse generator whirring as it sent a surge of energy into his core. Sparks burst from the damaged seams along his chest, and for a horrifying moment, nothing happened.

Then, slowly, the faintest glow pulsed from within him.

Zara held her breath as the light grew brighter, steadying into a soft but constant rhythm. The hum of his systems followed, uneven at first but gradually settling into something steadier.

His eyes fluttered open.

The familiar silver-blue glow returned, faint but alive, as Atlas lifted his head slightly to look at her. “Zara,” he murmured, his voice strained but there.

A sob of relief escaped her as she let out a shaky breath, her hands still cradling his face. “You’re back,” she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks. “You’re back.”

Atlas blinked, his gaze focusing on her. “You fixed me. Again.”

She let out a weak laugh, her hands shaking as she wiped at her face. “You need to stop breaking yourself. I’m running out of ideas.”

His lips twitched faintly, a ghost of a smile. “I trust you to find another one.”

Her heart ached at the quiet confidence in his voice. She brushed her fingers against the edge of his jaw, her touch gentle but lingering. “You scared me,” she admitted softly.

His gaze softened, and he reached up—his movements slow and deliberate—to touch her hand. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly.

Her throat tightened, and she shook her head. “Just don’t do it again,” she whispered fiercely. “Promise me.”

Atlas held her gaze, something unspoken passing between them as his glowing eyes burned steady and bright. “I promise.”

The cavern remained silent, but the distant hum of Torrak engines returned, faint but growing louder. Zara’s head snapped up, her chest tightening. “They’re still following us.”

Atlas pushed himself upright, his movements slow and labored. Sparks flickered from his damaged arm, but he didn’t falter as he stood. “Then we keep moving,” he said firmly.

Zara rose to her feet, slinging her rifle across her back as she glanced at him. “You sure you’re up for this?”

“I’ll endure,” he replied, his gaze steady as he looked at her. “We fight together.”

She swallowed hard, her heart twisting as she nodded. “Together,” she echoed softly.

Atlas stepped forward, his towering form still imposing despite the damage. Zara fell into step beside him, her fingers brushing against his hand as if to reassure herself that he was still there—that he was still alive.

As they moved deeper into the tunnel, the faint glow of bioluminescent algae lit their path. The hum of Torrak engines grew louder, closer, but Zara forced herself to focus on the way forward.

They would survive.

No matter what waited for them ahead, she wouldn’t let him fall.

And this time, she would make sure he didn’t have to fight alone.