The air was colder than before.
Not the kind of cold that crept through skin and bone but the kind that came from absence. Emptiness. Like the whole world had exhaled and forgotten how to inhale again.
Node Zero, once alive with pulsing lights and humming servers, had grown still. Dim. Silent. It felt like the universe was holding its breath, waiting to know whether Orion—its last hope would live or fade.
Lucy sat cross-legged on the grated floor, her spine rigid despite the hours. Her eyes stayed locked on the central monitor, watching the slow, steady blinks of Orion's vitals. Too slow. Too even. Too lifeless to comfort her.
A few feet away, Cole hadn't moved in over three hours. He sat beside Orion, her body still connected to the interface, her breathing faint and mechanical. One of his hands held hers, fingers wrapped gently around her palm, brushing the back of it with his thumb again and again, like he could call her back just by touch.
