Chapter 15 · Fragment: Crimson Petals

"Stay with me, Kaelen - eyes on me, not the glitch!" Jax's hand slammed against my chest, pinning me to the rusted med-bay cot before I could rip the wires out of my own skull.

"Get off!" I snarled, bucking under him. "It's burning through - it's burning right through!"

"I know. I see it. Don't fight me." His forearm pressed harder, his face inches from mine. "You fight me and you fry. You understand me? You fry."

The error code was still screaming across my vision. Red. Endless red. Not the coordinates from before. This was deeper, hotter, like someone poured liquid metal behind my eyes.

"You did this!" I choked out, fingers clawing at his wrist. "You pushed the last patch too deep!"

"I had to push!" he snapped back. "You flatlined for twelve seconds when we moved you. Twelve seconds, Kaelen. You want me to just watch you die pretty and peaceful?"

I tried to throw him off. My body wouldn't listen. My arms were shaking so bad I couldn't get leverage. Killer body, my ass. Right now I was just a glitching mess with a killer headache.

"You're killing me faster," I hissed.

"No.