The Leo entity stopped exactly three paces away. Up close, his skin didn’t look like flesh; it looked like a polished, pearlescent material, shimmering with the same violet data streams that were currently consuming the world below. He tilted his head, a movement so mechanical it made Nala’s stomach churn.
"You speak of 'him' as if he were separate from the process," the entity said, his voice overlapping in a haunting chorus. "Leo was the vessel. Elisha is the destination. There is no 'him' left to save, Nala. Only the data remains."
"I don't believe you," Nala spat, her fingers surreptitiously tapping a sequence into the malachite bracelet. The green light was dimming, struggling against the overwhelming purple aura of the ship’s core. "Maricha Sonoko wouldn't have left the bracelet if
