Chapter 12 · Neon Hounds

"Don't fight it, you idiot! You're going to fry your nervous system!"

Nyx’s voice didn't just echo in my head; it felt like a hot needle driving straight into my frontal lobe. My muscles locked. I was frozen mid-step in the middle of the rain-slicked alley, my boots slipping on neon-stained oil.

"Get... out... of my head!" I gasped, my voice sounding like I’d swallowed crushed glass.

I wasn't talking to Nyx. I was talking to the thing that had just hijacked our link. It felt like cold grease sliding over my brain, a digital parasite that didn't just want my data—it wanted the wheel.

"I can't!" Nyx screamed back, her presence flickering like a dying lightbulb. "This isn't a normal breach. Someone’s using a high-tier override. Kael, if you don't let me take over the motor functions now, you're a corpse!"

"Never," I spat. I slammed my fist against the brick wall, trying to use the physical pain to anchor myself.

Suddenly, the darkness at the end of the alley broke. Four figures stepped out of the haze, their silhouettes jagged against the glowing smog of the city. Neon Hounds. Corporate cleaners.