Stefano's vision swam. The cold, sterile air of the conduit, thick with the smell of ozone and sulfur, felt like a physical weight pressing down on him.
He could feel the chip behind his ear, a constant, dull ache that was no longer a warning, but a quiet, insidious presence.
It was humming, a low, resonant frequency that seemed to vibrate through his very bones. He wasn't Stefano anymore. He was something else. Something Thorne had made.
"Stefano?" Delta's voice, rough as grinding stones, cut through the haze. The giant was beside him, his massive frame a bulwark against the encroaching shadows. Delta's blue eyes, usually blazing with a fierce, protective light, were dimmed, heavy-lidded with exhaustion. A deep gash on his cheek, still oozing dark fluid, testified to the brutal cost
