_‘This wasn't part of the plan. He wasn't supposed to be here. I made sure he wasn't going to be here!’ _Selene thought to herself as she stalked through the hall of The Order.

The uniform she had on masked her identity; however, there was no denying that she didn't fit in. She observed the other soldiers too closely, their movements were loud with purpose meanwhile hers were quiet and stealthy.

She couldn't deflect her eyes away from him though. From _Kane_.

The way he stood. The dullness in his eyes. The tension in his jaw. The boy she once knew now had the brain of a murder machine and the shell of a human.

“Line up soldiers!” A man shouted unexpectedly.

Selene flinched quickly, rushing towards the other soldiers, masking herself exactly in their standpoint. Although her head was foward her eyes couldn't help but dart over to Kane. He stood with his back straight, analyzing the soldiers.

“Okay, soldiers there has been a data breach in our systems,” The man's brows furrowed. “This means that our information that we have been so diligently gathering, has been leaked. This will give ‘The Operation’ the perfect time to strike.” He declared as he paced back and forth.

“We will be doing a routine check this evening. This is just to ensure the safety of our citizens and our society. Thank you for your time.” The man concluded.

‘_This is not good.’ _Selene thought to herself. ‘_If they do a routine check, they'll be able to see that I'm not in their systems.’_

After the dismissal, Selene knew she had to act fast. She quickly got into contact with an agent from ‘The Operation,’ explaining to them the situation. She was given specific instructions to get into their mainframe and continue breaching their corrupted system files. The corrupted system files consist of every plausible plan that ‘The Order’ has strategically put together. If she succeeds then ‘The Operation’ would win the war, and her brother would be avenged.

Selene’s footsteps were quiet as she walked down the hallways, making her way towards the restricted access area center. She knew it was far-fetched but she was going to attempt to sneak in.

She kept her head down and her presence silent as she made her way past the guard. She almost let out a breath of relief until-

“Hey! You can't be in here!” The guard said pulling out his baton and lunging at her. Selene ducked low, sliding beneath his swing and sweeping his legs out with a sharp spin. He hit the ground hard groaning in pain, and reached out for his comm. Selene noticed and grabbed the guard's wrist twisting it back as the device clattered away. As a final attempt, he threw a weak punch, and she caught it mid-air, shifting her weight, and flipped him over into a small storage room with a thud that echoed the hall. She closed the door before looking left to right, ensuring no wandering eyes was around, before scurrying away.

She continued her journey and the hallway was quiet and isolated. She peeked over at a sharp corner. Clear. Selene darted into the control room, heart pounding like a war drum. She closed the door and locked it tight. For a breathless moment, silence was a relief.

She removed her helmet. The sweat slicked her brow, strands of her dark hair clinging to her face. Her ponytail was frayed, uneven-but appearances didn't matter anymore. Not when the war could end here.

She moved to the terminal, fingers trembling as she pulled a USB Drive from her belt. The tiny device looked so unassuming, but inside it was the key to unraveling ‘The Order’s’ plans. Every corrupted file, every hidden blueprint- if she succeeded ‘The Operation’ would have the upper hand.

_Click_.

The USB slot goes into place. Lines of code flickered across the screen, widening with each classified secret. She leaned in, mesmerized, barely darting to breathe.

She didn't hear the door unlock.

Didn't hear the footsteps behind her.

But she felt it- the shift in the air. The cold voice at her back.

“**Unplug the USB.” **

Flat. Mechanical. Stripped of warmth. A voice she once knew.

Selene froze.

Her breath hitched. Her chest tightened. She didn't have to turn around to know who it was.

Kane.

Her hands twitched. Her heart thundered against her ribs. Slowly, they curled into fists.

“No,” she replied. Low. Steady. Unshakable.

“Fine,” he chuckled sarcastically. “Let’s do this the hard way.” His voice responded. Selene turned around making eye contact with him. The person who was never supposed to be in this plan. For the first time, Selene was fearful that Kane would imperil everything she had worked for.

He charges first. Efficient, brutal. A low arc with a knife meant to gut. She twisted aside, nimble as smoke, catching his wrist mid-swing and shoving him back with more force than expected. He staggered but didn't fall.

“You're trained? Consider me impressed,” he said flatly.

“Yeah, well, I've learned from the best,” she breathed.

“I’ll be the judge of that, girl. Now one last chance. Give me the USB,” he answered. His jaw was clenched and a slight bead of sweat was dripping down his neck.

“You know I can't do that, _Kane,”_ she answered. She saw a flash of confusion in his furrowed eyebrows before he started swinging again. Harder.

A flurry of blows - punch, elbow, blade - and she parried each with sharp precision. Every movement she made was a memory. A reflex learned beside him years ago. A shared rhythm now turned into a violent battle between the once inseparable pair.

She ducked under his strike, slid behind him, and landed a hard palm to the back of his knee. He dropped briefly - that was enough for her to wrap her arm around his throat.

“I don't want to hurt you!” She hissed in his ear.

“You know me,” Kane whispered, breath ragged, eyes wide with something more than anger. Fear. Recognition.

Selene flinched as Kane flung her against the wall, her shoulder screaming in protest as she pressed herself against the wall. Blood pounded in her ears. She didn't speak-just gave a faint, broken nod.

His expression twisted.

“How do you know me?” he demanded, voice rising with desperation. “No one knows me by that name. Kane is dead-” his chest heaved, his hands trembling, “-I am all the remains.”

Her heart cracked in two.

She didn't wait to grieve it.

She moved fast. Pain lanced through her shoulder as she reached for his wrist again, tried to disarm him. But she was slower now, weakened. He twisted free, nearly toppling her.

She stumbled back, eyes locked on his. Still sharp. Still calculating. But flickering. A glitch in his programming.

Her voice came out hoarse. Shaky. Barely a whisper.

“Then why,” she rasped, “do you still fight like? Like a member of ‘The Operation’?”

The silence between them was sudden and thick, suffocating.

He didn't answer.

But his grip faltered.

His gaze- once dead and cold- shifted. Confused. Haunted.

The blade in his hand hovered near her throat, but didn’t press closer.

She saw the war inside him. Memory warring with indoctrination. Instinct battling training.

“I trust you,” she says as his knife points to her throat.

He dropped the knife. Backed away, letting her drop to the floor.

His brain was burning. Every pained, ecstatic, joyful, furious memory was coming back to him in insufferable flashes. He dropped to his knees, his hands covering his ears as he let out laboured screams.

She crawled over towards him, grabbing his hand softly. Instead of fighting her, he simply looked at her. She grabbed his wrist, flipping it around and pulling up his sleeve.

#298.

It was tattooed on his wrist. She held out her wrist, silently signaling him to do the same. He looked skeptical, but followed her movements.

#301.

Was on hers.

“298,” she whispered, barely breathing.

He stared. His lips parted, but no sound came. Then, after a beat-

“-301.”

The numbers hovered between them, brittle and sharp. Neither moved. Time didn't stop- it collapsed.

For a moment they weren't enemies. Not soldiers. Not killers. Just echoes of something that was long buried. He looked at her- at Selene, broken and bloodied on the floor, hand still clutching her shoulder, mouth trembling from words she no longer has the strength to say.

She didn't stop him.

She couldn't.

He stepped forward.

Picked up the USB.

Held it in his plan like it weighed a thousand pounds.

Then, without a word, he turned his back on her.

Selene watched him go, her vision blurring, the burn of the number on her wrist throbbing like an old scar ripped open.

Her voice was barely audible- just a ghost in the quiet room.

“Please remember.”

Behind the closing door, Kane’s breath was shallow. Ragged. His mind was no longer silent- it screamed.

Flashes of laughter.

Of dirt beneath their fingernails.

Of promised whispered in the dark.

He pressed his hand to the wall to steady himself.

Memories were coming back - out of order, chaotic, but real. Too real.

“_She left. She joined them. She became what we swore we’d never be. I didn't fail her. She failed me. She failed us.”_

He crouched outside the room, gripping his comm tightly. For a moment, he hesitated- thumb hovering over the button.

_“She failed us.”_

_“She failed us.”_

_“She failed us.” _

Kept repeating in his brain.

Then he pressed it.

His voice was low. Controlled. Icy.

“We have a breach in Sector C. Control room. Secure the asset. Do not terminate.”

A beat of silence. Then static crackled as acknowledgment came.

He let go of the comm, stood tall, and walked away without looking back.

Selene lay on the floor, breathing shallow, her hand still extended toward the door he had vanished through. A single tear fell to the cold tile beneath her.

They wouldn't kill her.

Not yet.

They needed her alive.

_They needed her broken._