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Four

Brynmor POV

"Are you insane?! You’ve brought shame to the Grimclaw Colony, Brynmor!"

I knew it was my fault, but Father was overreacting. Yet, when he glanced at the genetic data again, he seemed to understand my point.

"Yes, I am insane, but she’s still a Starfire descendant. I’ll use this genetic match to exact my revenge."

"Revenge? Do you even know who that woman is?! She’s nothing more than a genetic anomaly, entirely disregarded by her colony. If she hadn’t been paired that night, her family would’ve married her off to Commander Rey!"

Commander Rey? That old man with outdated augmentations still seeking a partner after his wife passed away. The Starfire family truly cared nothing for her.

"I have my own plan, Father. You’ll be proud once you see the results."

Father only stared at the holographic screen before leaving. I knew he was disappointed, but it wasn’t over yet. I had chosen her out of rage, but there was another purpose behind it.

I followed him out and overheard Jack, Father’s Beta Engineer, speaking seriously, "The woman seems to be experiencing synthetic hormonal anomalies."

Father’s eyes sharpened instantly. So soon? This woman was already bringing trouble to my colony. I immediately rushed to her quarters. In the corridors, several unpaired men began reacting to her synthetic pheromones.

"Stand down!" I commanded, and they retreated once their neural-links detected my authority.

As I entered her quarters, her synthetic pheromones were instantly detected by my biological sensors. I ordered the unit's AI to activate the ventilation system and had an Omega-class servant android lock the doors.

But instead of calming down, her augmentations grew more unstable. Her cold fingers, enhanced with neural implants, touched my cheek with an unusual expression. My biological sensors began responding erratically.

No, I couldn’t let myself get carried away. "Commander, all my augmentation systems are overheating," she said in a strange tone. I worked to recalibrate my biological sensors.

Still, her behavior remained erratic. I touched the implant on her cheek, and a smile broke across her face. "Just one neural connection." She nodded.

I linked our neural networks, and the sensation was intense. Her augmentation systems weren’t trained for this, but they were enough to make even a Commander lose control.

"Enough!" I severed the neural connection. She seemed to regain some clarity. I reset my systems.

She couldn’t stay here. If she did, every unpaired man would be lured in by her synthetic pheromones. "I’m sorry." Why was she apologizing?

"Come with me. You’re not safe here!" She complied as I grabbed her hand. We made our way to the isolation zone behind the dome.

Here, she began to calm down. It seemed like this place suited her. "I’m sorry for causing trouble again."

I glanced at her briefly before choosing to sit facing away, saying nothing. I needed to recalibrate my sensors to resist her synthetic pheromones.

"Do you regret choosing me as your genetic match? I mean, why me?"

She seemed frustrated. I leaned my head against the anti-gravity wall and stared at the holographic dome. I folded one control panel and placed my right hand over it.

"Why do you want to know?" I asked. She looked back and then turned to face me.

"I’m just curious. Nobody wanted to choose me. You must have input the wrong genetic data, right? It should’ve been Freya, not Fiora."

She doubted her genetic worth, questioning her suitability as a Commander’s match and assuming only her sister could be.

"There’s no special reason. I just wanted to choose you."

"You’re lying, Commander. When everyone was laughing at you, you got angry and chose me on impulse. I know you meant to call Freya’s name."

"You talk too much! There’s nothing special about you, except that I wanted to choose you." She was stubborn.

"To satisfy your genetic supremacy preferences, Commander? You said so yourself earlier."

This time I gave a cynical smile. She panicked and grabbed a nano-fiber blanket to cover herself. She had brought that blanket when she fled, and now it was useful for hiding her fear.

"Yes, I couldn’t do this to any other woman. You’re just a genetic anomaly your colony disregarded. If I break you until your augmentation systems completely fail, they won’t even press charges."

She averted her gaze and turned away. Now, she wouldn’t ask any more questions.

Taking revenge through her seemed challenging, but I’d try it later.

"I hope you won’t be disappointed."

"About what?"

"I’m not sure I can satisfy your genetic supremacy preferences." I smirked. This woman was truly different. Most women would fear their genetic match discussing preferences, but she was only afraid of failing me.

"Hm, maybe I’ll be disappointed," I replied, and she turned with a sour expression. She looked quite attractive when calm like this.

"I’ll try." What? She wasn’t afraid at all. "Because I don’t want to die." Ah, she was only afraid of having her system shut down.

I shifted to face her. "You won’t die," I said, and she lowered her head.

She clutched the nano-fiber blanket tightly and fell silent. "This is the first time someone’s wanted to communicate with me. I thought you were a bad person."

"But I’m not as good as you think." If only she knew I chose her by mistake and intended to take revenge on her father, I doubt those words would have come out of her mouth.

"But you’re kind. No one’s ever wanted to talk to me before. You know, everyone has communication networks, but I don’t. Father, Mother, and Freya only contact me when they need something."

Was she venting now? She judged people too easily. "So, I’m the first?" She nodded and smiled. I had never seen such a genuine smile before.

Wait, I had an idea for revenge. This would make someone suffer.

Suddenly, I noticed her body trembling, and her synthetic pheromones intensified. We had to leave now.

I grabbed her hand, and she fell into my arms. Her face was incredibly alluring. I carried her to an empty isolation unit.

We spent the night there. Without proper lighting, I wasn’t sure I could control my biological systems. She continued releasing pheromones that triggered my sensors. The genetic match mark on her neck seemed to beckon me to reconnect.

"Fiora," I called, and she simply smiled.

"Commander, can we make an intimate neural connection?"

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