Chapter 108: Episode 108: Because I know him.

“Dr. Aris?” Nikki repeated, the syllables tasting foreign on her tongue. “Julian, I don’t have any appointments scheduled. And General A-01 didn’t mention anything about him coming here.”

“He is the Chief Medical Director for the Sector 2 Human Populace,” Julian explained, his voice hushed and hurried. “He operates out of the central biological research wing. He possesses a Class-1 security clearance, Director. He bypassed the lower checkpoints entirely. He insists on speaking with you.”

So that’s another profession that he has..

Was he here for me?

Before Nikki could issue a command to either admit or deny the man, a figure stepped smoothly past the assistant.

“Thank you, Julian. That will be all,” a voice said.

Dr. Aris walked into the glass-walled suite.

Julian practically sprinted backward out of the office, the heavy glass doors hissing shut behind him.

Dr. Aris stood in the center of the room, completely unbothered by the three women staring at him. His warm eyes swept the room, taking in their appearance.

A soft, remarkably genuine smile spread across his face.

“Director Nikki,” Dr. Aris greeted, offering a polite, respectful nod that completely lacked the subservience of the human workforce. “Please forgive the unannounced intrusion. I assure you, I am not here to make you uncomfortable.”

Roxy didn’t relax her posture. She leaned forward, her elbows resting on her knees, her dark eyes narrowed into slits. “Then why are you here, Dr. Aris?”

She had the strong urge to joke with him.

Dr. Aris chuckled. It was a rich, chest-deep sound that instantly bled a fraction of the tension out of the room. He didn’t flinch at Roxy’s hostility.

“I came to formally congratulate Nikki on her new office assignment,” Dr. Aris answered, stepping closer to the desk and clasping his hands comfortably behind his back. He looked directly at Nikki, his eyes sparkling with a quiet, profound pride. “The entire medical wing has been analyzing the recent policy shifts. The rerouting of the Sector 4 energy grid to preserve the residential thermal heaters? That was a masterstroke of biological preservation. You saved thousands of lives yesterday, Director.”

Nikki blinked, utterly caught off guard by the sincere, unfiltered praise. “I… I just pointed out a logical flaw in the administrative algorithm. The General implemented it.”

“Yes, he did,” Dr. Aris agreed, his smile softening into something deeply observant. “And that is precisely why I am here. General A-01 is a Class-5 War Unit engineered to prioritize absolute global security through overwhelming force. The fact that he listened to a human variable—the fact that he could leave this part in your hands—is a miracle.”

He stepped up to the edge of the glass desk.

“For years, I have watched the Android Generals dictate the survival of our species with cold apathy,” Dr. Aris continued, his voice dropping into a tone of quiet reverence. “But you have done the impossible. You have carved out a space for human empathy within the titanium walls of Tower Zero. Now, General A-01 can leave human relations in your hands, knowing you possess the unique capability to bridge the gap between our fragile biology and their immortal logic.”

Nikki stared at the doctor. She felt safe.

She always felt safe with this man as if she had known him from before.

It was the feeling of a heavy blanket on a freezing night. It was a sensation she hadn’t experienced since she was a little girl in the slums, long before the sky turned to smog.

“Thank you, Doctor,” Nikki murmured, her defensive posture completely melting away. “That means a lot. Truly.”

To her absolute shock, the calming aura of the older man didn’t just affect her.

Roxy, who was notoriously feral and deeply suspicious of anyone wearing Sector 1 or 2 elite credentials, slowly took her hand away from her thigh holster. She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms, her hostile glare softening into an intrigued squint.

“So, you’re the head mechanic for the fragile meat-bags in this sector?” Roxy drawled, testing the waters. “You must have your hands full, considering the titanium dictators walking around. My spine is currently protesting the sheer kinetic force of the canine warlord.”

Mei Lin gasped, utterly scandalized by Roxy’s crass admission in front of a high-ranking medical official.

But Dr. Aris just threw his head back and laughed again, the sound bouncing warmly off the glass walls.

“Ah, General K-09,” Dr. Aris smiled, looking at Roxy with a knowing glint in his eye. “I am well aware of the… extreme physical stamina of the Class-5 models. If you require a localized muscular relaxant or a customized physical therapy regimen to counteract the, ah, ’kinetic force,’ my clinic is entirely at your disposal. Completely off the official record, of course.”

Roxy’s jaw dropped slightly. A massive, delighted grin broke across her face. “Okay, I officially like this guy.”

Even Mei Lin, who was usually incredibly shy and reserved around upper management, found herself completely disarmed by the doctor’s gentle, intellectual demeanor.

I didn’t know he was capable of that.

“Dr. Aris,” Mei spoke up softly, leaning forward. “If you are monitoring the biological responses to the AI grid, have you noticed a correlation between the synthetic atmospheric purifiers and the decreased cortisol levels in the human workforce? I was analyzing the data, but my access to the medical biometrics is restricted.”

Dr. Aris turned his warm gaze to Mei, his eyes lighting up at the academic inquiry. “An excellent question, Mei Lin. Yes, there is a direct correlation. The purifiers reduce heavy metal toxins in the bloodstream, which naturally lowers baseline anxiety. However, the psychological stress of living under an absolute dictatorship negates a portion of that chemical benefit. The body is healing, but the mind remains in a cage.”

He looked back at Nikki, his expression turning serious but incredibly kind. “That is why your position is so vital, Nikki. You are not just processing paperwork. You are healing the psychological cage.”

Nikki sat completely mesmerized. The conversation flowed with an ease and a freedom she hadn’t experienced since the world ended. The three women and the older doctor spoke about the realities of the sectors, the logistical nightmare of the AI algorithms, and the fragile state of humanity.

Dr. Aris didn’t judge them. He didn’t patronize them. He listened with empathy that made Nikki’s chest physically tight.

She looked at the deactivated holographic projector sitting on the center of her desk. Hidden within its memory banks was the highly treasonous, incredibly dangerous flowchart they had just spent three hours drafting—the Domestication Protocol. The blueprint to manipulate the Android Generals and build a shadow alliance.

If anyone in the AI administration saw that file, it would be classified as an act of global terrorism.

But as Nikki looked at the kind, weathered face of Dr. Aris, a powerful, overwhelming instinct seized her. This man was a good man. He understood the machines, he understood the humans, and he occupied a position of immense power within the biological research wing.

He had access to biometric data and medical clearances that could actively shield their operations.

He was the perfect ally.

Maybe because they had been running into each other a lot and he finally came to see her.

Nikki reached out, her finger hovering over the activation console for the holographic projector.

“Dr. Aris,” Nikki said, her voice dropping to a low, conspiratorial whisper. “Since you understand exactly what is at stake here… I want to show you something. We aren’t just adjusting energy grids. We are planning something much, much bigger.”

Before her finger could press the glowing blue button, a hand shot across the desk and clamped onto her wrist.

Nikki gasped, her head snapping up.

Roxy was out of her chair in a microsecond. She didn’t say a word to the doctor. She simply hauled Nikki up out of the plush executive chair by her wrist, dragging her forcefully away from the desk and into the far corner of the glass-walled suite.

“Excuse us for one tiny, biological second, Doc,” Roxy tossed over her shoulder, her voice tight and entirely stripped of its previous warmth.

Roxy shoved Nikki into the corner, effectively using her own leather-clad body to block Dr. Aris from hearing them.

“Are you out of your absolute, titanium-loving mind?!” Roxy hissed, her voice a furious, barely audible whisper. Her dark eyes were blazing with pure, survival-instinct terror. “What are you doing, Nik?!”

“Roxy, let go of me,” Nikki whispered back, thoroughly confused as she rubbed her wrist. “I am bringing him into the fold. Did you not just hear him? He agrees with us! He is the Chief Medical Director! He has the exact clearances we need to mask our operations from the General’s logic cores!”

“He is a Sector 2 elite who works directly under the AI administration!” Roxy snarled quietly, jabbing a finger into Nikki’s sternum. “You don’t know him! You just met him five minutes ago! We are talking about high treason, Nikki! If he is loyal to A-01, or if his biometric data is being monitored by the central grid, he could have us all executed by pacification drones before we even leave this building!”

This is not the first time I am knowing him.

“He isn’t going to turn us in,” Nikki argued, her voice rising with an inexplicable, stubborn desperation.

“You don’t know that!” Roxy countered fiercely, shaking her head. “You are letting a stranger into the most dangerous game on the planet because he has a nice smile and a clean coat. This is how resistance cells die, Nikki. You cannot trust him!”

Nikki looked past Roxy’s shoulder.

Dr. Aris was still standing by the desk. He wasn’t trying to eavesdrop. He had turned his back to them, politely giving them privacy, his hands clasped behind his back as he calmly inspected a synthesized potted plant on the windowsill. The soft, charcoal-grey knit of his sweater, the silver at his temples, the way he stood with his weight shifted slightly to his left leg…

A violent, unexplainable ache pierced straight through Nikki’s chest. It wasn’t logic. It defied every survival instinct she had forged in the irradiated ruins of Sector 4. But it was there, ringing in her blood like a forgotten bell.

Nikki looked back at her fiercely protective best friend. Her dark eyes were entirely resolute.

“I have to trust him, Roxy,” Nikki whispered, the absolute certainty in her voice leaving no room for argument.

“Why?!” Roxy pleaded, throwing her hands up in hushed frustration. “Give me one logical reason!”

Nikki pressed her lips together, her gaze drifting back to the older man in the white coat.

“My gut feeling is telling me that I know this man on a deeper level.”

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