Tayo didn't know how many miles he had left behind. The persistent drone of search quarters still echoed in his ears, and his paws burned against the cold asphalt. The cyber-slums welcomed him with the scent of ozone, rust, and perpetual rain.
He is a thylacine. A laboratory anomaly. A creature that shouldn't even exist in this world of concrete and neon. Having broken free from his cage, he ran blindly until his strength completely gave out in one of those dark alleyways that look just like the labyrinths from old-school anime.
Tayo pressed his back against the damp wall, trying to stop shaking and figure out: what's next?
And right at that moment, stepping out of the neon haze with the faint click of claws on wet concrete, she appeared. Vesper. A regular dog, whose life was worlds away from test tubes and sensors. Two fates collided right where the line between the organic and the digital blurs.
This is their very first meeting. A split-second heartbeat before everything changes.
Atmospheric concept art: An attempt to recreate the 90s retro anime aesthetic with its warm tube glow, chromatic aberration, and film grain. Heavily inspired by the vibes of Stray and Ghost in the Shell.
