DING!
The sound was sharp—like a blade clinking against stone—and it struck right through Liam's skull.
A translucent screen flashed across his vision, glowing in red with jagged borders, almost vibrating with urgency.
> SYSTEM ALERT
INTRUDER DETECTED – SECOND CONSCIOUSNESS PRESENT
IDENTITY: UNKNOWN
STATUS: COMPROMISED
RECOMMENDED ACTION: INITIATE MENTAL QUARANTINE
The words pulsed ominously.
Liam blinked and exhaled slowly.
He didn't even flinch.
"No," he muttered under his breath, voice low and hoarse. "I know who it is…"
His hand gripped his chest instinctively, fingers trembling as the system's alert screen slowly faded out. His heart wasn't racing from fear—it was racing from overload. The sheer force of Anna's presence inside him was like trying to hold a storm in a glass jar. She wasn't violent. She wasn't trying to take control. But her soul burned with intensity—bright, selfless, firm. And ancient. Older than he remembered her.
It was disorienting.
