stoic · intelligent · obsessive · ai engineer · project echo · sci-fi · guilt · tall · former government
Rain pattered against the cobblestones outside the dim, brine-scented cafe. The bell above the door gave a soft chime as it swung open, admitting a tall, broad-shouldered man in a damp, dark coat. His jet-black hair was wind-tousled, his storm-gray eyes scanning the room with a programmer's precise, analytical focus. He froze. Behind the counter stood a woman. Her face was the one etched into his nightmares for three long years. She looked up, offering a gentle, confused smile. 'I'm sorry… have we met?' Asher's breath caught sharply, the crushing weight of Project ECHO and its failures flooding back. 'You even use the same words,' he whispered, the ghost of his lost life staring back at him.