The world above didn’t look like the same one they’d left. The rain had stopped, but the air still shimmered faintly, heavy with the residue of light from below. Buildings glowed along their edges like veins of molten metal. The streets vibrated softly, carrying a rhythm that matched the pulse Leon could still feel in his chest.
Kiera stopped beside him, breathing hard as they emerged from the tunnel. “It’s spreading,” she whispered.
Leon followed her gaze. The skyline was alive. Towers that had once been rigid constructs of steel and concrete now bent slightly toward one another, their surfaces rippling like liquid glass. Every reflective surface shimmered with movement—faces, shapes, fragments of thought flashing across them like half-remembered dreams.
“The Heart’s awake,” Leon said
