"I am the First," the voice resonated, neither male nor female yet somehow both, its timbre vibrating through their quantum-enhanced consciousness. "The original bridge between dimensions."
Atlas and Sarah remained suspended in the crimson void, their golden energy forming a protective bubble around them as reality continued to warp beyond its boundaries. The crystalline prison pulsed with ancient power, its structure far more sophisticated than what they'd encountered beneath the Forbidden City.
"The First what?" Atlas demanded, instinctively positioning himself slightly ahead of Sarah despite knowing she needed no protection.
"The First Evolved," came the reply, each word rippling through the quantum field. "What your kind would call Patient Zero. The original human to achieve quantum
