The chamber vibrated like a strained engine.
Cracks splintered slowly across the glass column, each one spreading like
lightening frozen in time. The rotating currents of light inside had stopped
flowing smoothly. Instead, they surged in erratic pulses, symbols flickering
and collapsing into chaotic patterns.
Jessica presssed her hand harder against the fractured glass.
Inside the column the glowing outline shifted again.
Ellie.
Not just a fragment.
Not just a memory.
Alive in a way that was impossible.
Micah stood beside Jessica, his hand locked in hers, their fingers gripping
tight enough to hurt.
The Collector had crossed halfway into the chamber.
It moved slowly.
Deliberately.
Like something that had never needed to rush before.
The air around it thickened with pressu
