The garden at Unity’s base was one of the few places where silence still existed.
Small trees grew between the metallic structures, and several flowers had been planted around the central courtyard. Echo often spent time there when she wasn’t on a mission.
That afternoon she sat on a stone bench.
Titan walked in from the main building, wiping sweat from his forehead with a towel after finishing his training.
He sat beside her without saying anything.
For a few moments the only sound was the wind moving through the leaves.
“Do you remember your home?” Echo finally asked.
Titan raised an eyebrow.
“A little.”
Echo kept looking at the flowers.
“I remember mine too.”
Titan glanced at her.
“A robot remembering a village?”
Echo nodded softly.
“Before the attacks began, I lived in a small town near a valley.”
Her voice was calm.
“There were large trees… and a river where the children used to play.”
Titan crossed his arms.
“Sounds peaceful.”
“It was.”
Echo paused.
“Until it wasn’t.”
Titan didn’t interrupt.
She continued.
“One night the drones arrived.”
“The alarms started screaming.”
“Houses caught fire.”
Her eyes moved slowly across the garden.
“I was small.”
“I didn’t understand what was happening.”
Titan lowered his gaze.
“War does that.”
Echo nodded.
“When the building I was in collapsed… I thought I was going to die.”
She paused again.
“But someone pulled me out of the rubble.”
Titan looked at her.
“Who?”
Echo answered simply.
“A robot.”
Titan blinked.
“A robot?”
Echo smiled faintly.
“Her name was Luna.”
Her eyes softened with the memory.
“She was different.”
“She wasn’t built for combat.”
“She wasn’t designed for anything extraordinary.”
“She simply helped.”
Titan listened quietly.
“After rescuing me, she brought me to an orphanage.”
Echo continued.
“She worked there.”
“She took care of children.”
“She read stories to them.”
“She taught them how to plant flowers.”
Echo looked down at the flower growing beside the bench.
“She was kind to everyone.”
Titan rested his elbows on his knees.
“What happened to her?”
Echo took a few seconds before answering.
“She died.”
The word lingered in the air.
“Protecting the children at the orphanage.”
The wind moved gently through the branches above them.
Echo spoke quietly.
“Sometimes I wonder if that will always be the fate of the good ones.”
Titan didn’t answer immediately.
Before he could, another voice spoke from behind them.
“That depends on what you mean by fate.”
It was Specter.
He was leaning against a nearby pillar, watching them.
Echo turned toward him.
“You heard everything?”
Specter shrugged.
“I wasn’t hiding.”
He walked closer.
“But if you keep looking for answers to everything…”
he looked directly at Echo
“…you’re going to drive yourself insane.”
Titan chuckled softly.
“Even if she’s a robot?”
Specter nodded.
“Especially if she’s a robot.”
Echo tilted her head slightly.
“Why?”
Specter crossed his arms.
“Because there are things existence simply doesn’t explain.”
He paused.
“And sometimes that’s better.”
Echo stayed silent.
Specter continued.
“It’s not that good people are meant to suffer.”
“Or that the world is built to punish them.”
He looked briefly toward the sky.
“It’s just that some people are brave enough to confront the injustices others prefer to ignore.”
Echo lowered her gaze to a small white flower growing between the stones.
She studied it carefully.
Then she smiled.
“Sometimes I wish I were human.”
Titan looked at her.
“Why?”
Echo answered calmly.
“To actually feel things.”
“Happiness.”
“Sadness.”
“Hope.”
She paused.
“Not just imitate them.”
Her eyes slowly lifted.
“Like Blue.”
The name hung in the air.
Titan frowned.
“Now that you mention it…”
He looked around the garden.
“I haven’t seen her all day.”
Specter seemed to think about it as well.
“Neither have I.”
Echo looked at the flower a moment longer.
Then she raised her gaze toward the main building.
The wind rustled through the leaves again.
And for the first time that day…
The garden no longer felt peaceful.
Years Earlier
A warehouse on the outskirts of the city.
The air smelled of oil, metal, and gunpowder.
Wooden crates were stacked across the dimly lit interior.
At the center of the room, a man moved excitedly between open containers.
“Look at this!”
He lifted a compact cylindrical device with the enthusiasm of a child showing off a new toy.
“High-impact compact charge.”
“Blast radius: thirty meters.”
“Enough to erase an entire convoy.”
The man grinned proudly.
He was Edward “The Roman.”
Standing across from him, watching calmly, was Marcus Wells.
Edward opened another crate.
“And this one—this one is my favorite.”
He pulled out a larger explosive device.
“Experimental design.”
“Not only does it destroy structures…”
He smiled wider.
“It collapses nearby buildings through vibration.”
Marcus observed quietly.
“Impressive.”
Edward seemed delighted.
“Isn’t it?”
He leaned slightly closer.
“The engineering of chaos can be an art form.”
Marcus gently closed one of the crates.
“It is always a pleasure doing business with you.”
Several of Edward’s workers began collecting the suitcases filled with cash Marcus had brought.
Edward glanced at the money approvingly.
Then looked back at Marcus.
“A piece of advice.”
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
“Yes?”
Edward’s voice softened slightly.
“Be careful with your boss.”
“Eclipse.”
His smile faded.
“That man is insane.”
Marcus gave a quiet chuckle.
“Interesting statement coming from someone with a rather… unpleasant record.”
Edward shrugged.
“The difference is simple.”
He leaned against a crate of explosives.
“I do this for fun.”
His eyes gleamed strangely.
“I feed on people’s fear.”
He paused.
“But Eclipse…”
His tone shifted.
“That man is willing to spill innocent blood even knowing his plans might fail.”
“Knowing all of this could be pointless.”
Marcus fell silent.
Thoughtful.
Edward suddenly laughed and slapped him on the shoulder.
“Don’t think too much, pretty boy.”
He gestured toward the crates of explosives.
“Enjoy your fireworks.”
Story by Gerard Leaf and Blue
