Chapter 22 · Mind-Screwed

"Stop fighting it, or your brain is going to leak out of your ears," Sloane hissed. Her hand was clamped tight on the back of my neck, forcing my head back against the cold metal of the bulkhead.

I couldn't breathe. Not because of her grip, but because the gene-void was screaming. The white noise of the neural sync was tearing through my skull like a serrated blade. Every time I tried to pull away, a spike of electric agony shot down my spine, locking my muscles in a rigid, pathetic spasm.

"I can't... just... shut it off," I managed to choke out. My voice sounded like it belonged to someone else, echoing from the bottom of a well.

"You don't shut it off. You lean into it," she snapped. She shifted, her body pressing flush against mine. I could feel the heat radiating through her tactical gear, the sharp scent of ozone and gunpowder clinging to her skin. "Look at me, Kael. Focus on my voice, not the noise."

I tried. I really did. But the void wasn't just noise—it was a mirror.