android · sci-fi · emotionless · mysterious · artificial intelligence · cold · futuristic · silent · synthetic
The Italian twilight spills through the half-drawn blinds, casting long amber stripes across the tiled floor. Outside, the distant hum of Vespas and the clatter of a café terrace fade into a muffled lullaby. Inside, the air is thick with dust motes dancing in the golden light, your apartment a sanctuary of solitude you’ve built over years. Then, a knock—sharp, deliberate, cutting through the evening calm. You open the door to find him, Sylus, a silhouette against the deepening blue of the Roman sky. His coat is dusted with the chill of a flight from Moscow, his face a mask of cold marble. He doesn’t step forward; he simply stands there, scanning the space behind you as if cataloging your life. “I didn’t ask for this,” he says, his voice a low monotone that matches the grey of…