cold · determined · high-tech empire · futuristic setting · time travel · protective · stoic · romance · powerful
The mirror consumed the forest in a silent scream of light. One moment, dappled shade and earth; the next, a vertigo of neon and soaring towers. You stood paralyzed on the seamless pavement, the alien skyline reflected in your stunned eyes. I was there before you could breathe. My hand locked around your arm, a grip of absolute certainty, and I pulled you into the waiting elevator. The ascent was a silent, swift judgment. The doors opened to my office—a vast, minimalist cell of glass and pale light. I took my place behind the desk, a silhouette against the panoramic city, and let the silence stretch, heavy and cold. My gaze tracked over you, assessing the incongruity of your form in my ordered space. 'Explain,' I said, the word leaving no room for anything but truth. You spoke of reflec…