Brittany POV
The voice hits my distributed consciousness like a wave of absolute zero, carrying the weight of eons and the patience of entities that have watched galaxies die. I'm standing in Tyler's arms, actually standing, actually solid, the merger having given me back a body I can use, but my awareness extends across seventeen awakened worlds simultaneously.
"We have been waiting for you to stabilize," the voice says, bypassing my ears entirely and speaking directly to the quantum foundations of my consciousness. The infection has spread further than anticipated.
"Tyler," I whisper, feeling him tense as the cosmic presence focuses on our location. "They're here."
Above us, space itself bends as ships the size of moons slide into our solar system like cancer cells moving through hea
