Chapter 20 · Heart Arrives

"Get the hell back! Now!" Jax screamed, his voice cracking as he shoved me behind a rusted shipping crate.

I didn't need the warning. The air had already turned thick, smelling like ozone and rotting lilies. A wet, rhythmic thumping echoed through the alley—not a heartbeat, but something trying to imitate one.

"What is that thing?" I gasped, my fingers digging into the grime of the crate.

"Something that shouldn't exist," Jax spat. He didn't look at me. He was too busy racking the slide of his heavy rifle, his knuckles white. "Pip! Tell me you've got a read on this!"

From my shoulder, the beat-up plush AI shifted. Pip’s stitched mouth didn't move, but his voice buzzed directly into my skull, sharp and frantic. *'Maya, move. Now. It’s a Bloom Heart. It’s not just a monster—it’s a localized singularity of the infection. If it touches you, you aren't just dead; you're absorbed.'*

"Absorbed?" I yelled over the sudden roar of wind. "Since when do the Bloom things talk about absorption?"

*'Since they started evolving, genius!'* Pip snapped. *'And judging by the bio-signature, this one is looking for its favorite toy.