Again, Serix was amazed with the humans’ creativity. They not only invented war machines, but from what the female was saying, they created countless variations of them. The Lunairans always stopped working on their projects when they found something that functioned properly. They never continued on to improve or change their technology unless they discovered a serious flaw. He supposed that was because they never felt any pressure to do so. They didn’t have any deadly enemies and they rarely bickered amongst themselves. Everyone obeyed the laws of the higher powers. That was how they kept the peace.

Except now, that is.

Serix was beginning to think his simple act of keeping the human alive had more weight to it than he first believed. His pilot had instructed the Scouts to exterminate any and all survivors of the Plague. The order had to have come from the higher powers, which meant he was disregarding their supreme authority. He racked his brain to think of another time when a Lunairan committed an act of treason, but none came to mind. It was a rare occurrence, if it ever happened at all… but what if someone did?

A dark thought came to him. The human had mentioned a possible sympathizer. If there was one, there were bound to be others, but why had he never heard of them until now? What had happened to those who rebelled against the authorities? It was like they had all vanished from existence, never to be heard from again. Serix swallowed. What would happen to him?

His eyes slowly drifted back to the human female on the other side of the vessel. He had to get rid of her first thing after the Storm left. His own curiosities didn’t matter. It was for his own safety. If the higher powers received word of his betrayal, he might end up disappearing just like the others. He couldn’t— no, he [i]wouldn’t[/i] let that happen.

“You said this Storm will last all night, correct?” Serix said abruptly. “I suggest you get some sleep. I would like you to take me to this ‘robotics storage’ tomorrow.” His tone was suddenly distant. He knew he couldn’t let himself get close to this human. It was already going to be difficult enough to kill her because of her appearance. He didn’t want to develop any emotional ties on top of that.

“Don’t worry,” Serix said, not meeting her eyes. “I won’t shoot you in your sleep.” [i]But I will be rid of you when you awaken,[/i] he added silently to himself. Then there would be no more problem. He would be back on track, scouting the city properly according to his original instructions. He would no longer be in danger.

…But why did it still feel so wrong?