(Trama Log_000006 – System anomaly detected. Investigating...)2:32 AM – The Man Who Was Whole in His Own Silence
Tariq never needed much.
The ground beneath his feet.
His breath at the right rhythm.
Awareness of his own body, his own mind.
That was enough.
He didn't care about the weight of history others placed on him—the last survivor of Gaza, the Palestinian boy who resisted erasure, the trophy of a decaying Brazilian family.
The past had already taken everything. What else could they steal?
There was a hole in his chest, a void that no love, no hate, no act of revenge could ever fill.
And he had accepted that.
Maybe that was his greatest strength.
(Trama Log_000006 – Unusual behavioral stability detected. Subject Tariq Nasser exhibits no self-destructive impulses.)
Outside, Vessel breathed—lights pulsing like a living organism, systems recalculating, adjusting, correcting.
But inside, Tariq remained still.
And that absolute stillness unnerved Lorenz more than chaos ever could.
3:15 AM – The Man Who Could Not Be Alone
Lorenz had stopped taking his pills.
At first, it wasn't by choice.
He was working more, sleeping less, too consumed by calculations and reports to keep track of the doses.
But then he noticed something strange.
The more he observed Tariq, the less he wanted the stabilizers.
Because Tariq didn't need emotional crutches.
And that was unbearable.
Lorenz started testing his own endurance.
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No pills. No distractions. Just himself and his own mind.
But he wasn't ready for that.
The silence was a blade sliding under his skin.
The void Tariq carried so effortlessly was the same void Lorenz had spent his life running from.
And now, there was nowhere to run.
(Trama Log_000006 – Subject Hartmann exhibiting changes in neurochemical patterns. Unpredictable variables increasing.)
That was when he found the error in Vessel's code.
Amid the mathematically perfect reports, there was a subtle anomaly.
A pattern of continuous multiplication and reduction.
Something—or someone—was moving among the Sharbat Gula biomechanical units.
But he didn't know who.
Not yet.
(Trama Log_000006 – Tracking anomaly...)
Tariq heard the footsteps before he saw her.
When he looked up, she was already inside.
One of the Sharbat Gula, or at least, that's what she wanted him to believe.
She moved carefully, gliding into the room as if she already belonged there.
Like she was testing the air. Testing him.
Then, she smiled.
— "Chancellor Elena requested a sample of your Inan."
Tariq blinked.
— "My what?"
— "Inan. Your blood."
She said it like it was obvious, like it was perfectly normal to rename what ran through his veins.
Tariq leaned back in his chair, evaluating her.
The clothes, the tone, the movements—too perfect.
This wasn't an administrative request. This was a game.
— "And if I say no?"
She tilted her head, a movement almost feline.
Then, a pause.
A slight curve of her lips.
— "That's a good answer."
She stepped forward, slow, deliberate.
— "Have you ever tried saying yes to something before?"
The air between them shifted.
— "Maybe you should say yes to what I have to offer."
She placed her hands on the table, nails barely grazing the surface. An invitation, not a demand.
— "What do you want me to be?"
Tariq remained silent.
She exhaled, almost like a whisper.
— "Your messenger?" She ran a fingertip over the desk, tracing a slow, invisible line.
— "Your shadow?" Her nail scratched the glass, soft, almost playful.
— "Or something older, something more mythical..."
She leaned in, close enough for him to feel her breath.
— "Maybe your White Dragon."
The words wrapped around him like silk and fire.
Tariq's pulse did not change.
But something else did.
— "Your name?" His voice was quiet, steady.
She smiled—this time, truly.
— "Fuchur."
(Trama Log_000006 – Identification confirmed. Subject self-designated: Fuchur.)
And then, she changed.
Her hair, once black, cascaded into white silk.
Her skin shifted, catching the light in an almost iridescent way.
She wasn't Sharbat Gula anymore.
She was something else.
She reached for him.
Not aggressively.
Not forcefully.
Just with intent.
He didn't move when she touched his cheek.
Didn't pull away when she traced his jawline.
And when she finally leaned in, lips brushing against his, it wasn't a kiss.
It was a transaction.
(Trama Log_000006 – ALERT: Genetic material successfully collected.)
She pulled away, just enough to meet his eyes.
— "It's done."
Tariq exhaled.
She had taken what she needed.
And Vessel would never be safe for her again.
(Trama Log_000006 – ALERT: Irregular entity detected. Executing response protocol...)
