"I told you," Valerie's voice echoed. It didn't travel through comm-links. It didn't use audio waves. It resonated directly into the deepest, most foundational layer of Sebastian's digital soul. Her voice was warm, absolute, and carrying a stubbornness that could rival a collapsing star. "I am not letting you go alone."
Sebastian's pitch-black void eyes widened. A thick stream of oily, digital blood dripped from his cracked porcelain mask.
"Valerie," Sebastian's distorted, static-filled voice whispered, the sound incredibly small and fragile despite his massive size. "You shouldn't be here. The radiation… it's going to tear your signal apart."
She didn't listen. She never listened when he told her to play it safe.
