Blood and Sparks: The Edge of Power
Chapter 27: The Veins Whisper

Chapter 27: The Veins Whisper

The tunnel swallowed us whole, its walls closing in like a throat, the crystal veins pulsing brighter with every step, their red-gold glow painting our shadows long and jagged across the slick stone. The air was thick, heavy with that burnt-iron tang, stinging my nose and coating my tongue, a taste that clung like ash after a fire. Liv’s hand stayed locked in mine, her fingers cold and clammy, her sparks flickering like dying embers, barely enough to light the path. My pocket burned where the Hollow Core Fragment rested, its heat seeping through the fabric, syncing with the veins’ rhythm—a steady thrum that rattled my ribs, deeper than my heartbeat, pulling me forward like a chain I couldn’t break.

My boots slipped on the wet stone, the soles worn thin, catching on jagged edges that scraped my shins through the torn tank top. The fabric hung in rags now, the steel-like flesh underneath glinting dully in the glow, scratched but holding—65% durability, my system had said once, before it started choking on its own warnings. It was quiet again, a ghost in my skull, but I felt it stirring, the shard’s energy weaving into its code, a foreign pulse that made my head ache. I gritted my teeth, forcing the pain down, focusing on the tunnel ahead.

"Kai, slow down," Liv rasped, her voice hoarse, tugging me back. She stumbled, her knee hitting the stone, a sharp hiss escaping her lips. Blood smeared the ground where she’d landed, fresh from the cut on her palm, mixing with the damp. Her face was pale, her eyes sunken, but they burned with that same stubborn fire, even as her sparks faded to a faint shimmer.

"You okay?" I asked, crouching beside her, my free hand brushing her shoulder. Her skin was hot, feverish, the strain of holding off the Heart’s tendrils still etched in the lines of her face.

"Peachy," she muttered, forcing herself up, leaning on me. "Just need a minute. That thing’s still in my head—whispering, like it’s waiting."

I nodded, my jaw tight. I felt it too—the Hollow’s voice, soft and insidious, threading through the shard’s thrum, promising power, promising ruin. "You will return," it had said, and now it lingered, a shadow I couldn’t outrun. But we had to keep moving. The tunnel’s pull was stronger here, the shard’s heat intensifying, guiding us toward... something.

I helped her stand, her weight heavy against my side, her sparks brushing my arm—weak, but enough to steady her. The figures from the cavern hadn’t followed, their red eyes fading into the dark, but the silence behind us felt alive, watching, waiting. My rifle dangled at my hip, useless without charge, its weight a bitter reminder of how close we’d come to breaking.

The tunnel curved, the glow sharpening ahead, revealing a chamber—a wide, uneven bowl carved from the same veined stone, its ceiling lost in shadow. The crystal veins thickened here, converging on a central pit, their pulse a deep, resonant hum that vibrated through my boots, my bones, my skull. The shard in my pocket flared, a jolt that made me stagger, and my system pinged, faint but urgent.

System Alert: Anomaly Convergence Detected.

Psionic Signature: 92% Match with Hollow Core.

Host Integration: 47% and Rising.

Warning: Entity Presence Imminent.

Entity presence.

My gut twisted. The Watcher had been bad enough, its touch a violation I still felt under my skin. This was worse—bigger, older, tied to the shard, to the Heart, to whatever had swallowed Rylan. I scanned the chamber, my breath catching as shapes emerged from the pit—tall, gaunt figures, more than before, their elongated limbs glistening with the same wet sheen as the tendrils. Their red eyes glowed brighter, fixed on us, but they didn’t move. Not yet.

"Kai..." Liv’s voice was a whisper, her hand tightening on mine, her sparks flaring briefly, casting light across the nearest figure. Its face was a mockery of human—stretched skin, no mouth, just those unblinking eyes, reflecting her light like mirrors. More rose from the pit, a dozen, then two, their silence a pressure that pressed against my chest.

"Stay close," I muttered, stepping in front of her, my free hand flexing, feeling the shard’s heat through my pocket. It pulsed in time with the veins, a rhythm I could almost hear—words, maybe, or a heartbeat, calling me forward. The pit loomed, its edges jagged, its depths a black so deep it swallowed the glow. Something moved down there, a flicker of shadow, too fast to track.

The figures shifted, their heads tilting in unison, and the chamber’s hum sharpened, splitting into a chorus—high and low, a dissonant wail that stabbed my ears. My system flared.

System Override: Entity Engagement Initiated.

Kinetic Reserves: 0%.

Host Integrity: 22% and Falling.

Recommendation: Evade.

Evade.

Yeah, right. There was no running—not with Liv limping, not with the shard pulling me toward that pit. I glanced at her, her face set, her sparks steadying despite the tremble in her hands. She met my eyes, a silent agreement passing between us. We weren’t breaking. Not yet.

The figures lunged, their movements jerky but fast, limbs stretching impossibly long. I shoved Liv aside, my body moving on instinct, the shard’s energy surging through me. A tendril of shadow whipped past my face, its edge slicing my cheek, warm blood trickling down my jaw. I swung my rifle like a club, the metal connecting with a figure’s arm, the impact jarring my shoulder, but it didn’t flinch. Its eyes glowed brighter, and another tendril lashed out, wrapping around my wrist.

Pain seared through me, a cold burn that sank into my bones, and my system screamed.

Integration Compromise: 58%.

Entity Assimilation Accelerating.

"Kai!" Liv’s voice cut through, her sparks erupting, a blinding burst that forced the tendril to recoil. She staggered forward, her hands outstretched, a wall of electricity crackling between us and the figures. They hissed, their flesh sizzling, but they pressed harder, their numbers swelling from the pit.

I yanked my wrist free, the skin raw, the shard’s heat flaring in response. It wasn’t just warm now—it was alive, its energy flooding my system, bypassing the zeroed reserves. My muscles tensed, strength surging—55% increase, stable—my durability holding as I charged forward, tackling a figure head-on. Its body gave under my weight, collapsing into shadow and ash, but another took its place, its tendril wrapping around my leg.

Liv’s wall faltered, her knees buckling, her sparks dimming. "I can’t—too many—" she gasped, her voice breaking.

"Hold on!" I roared, twisting free, the shard’s energy amplifying my kick, sending the figure sprawling. I reached her, hauling her up, her body trembling against mine. Her sparks brushed my skin, hot and erratic, grounding me, but her eyes were glazing, the strain too much.

The pit pulsed, a deep throb that shook the chamber, and a shape rose from its depths—taller than the others, its form a mass of shadow and crystal, its eyes a blazing red. The Watcher. Or something worse. Its voice filled my mind, not the Heart’s flood but a rasp, dry and ancient. "The fragment chooses. You are its vessel."

The shard burned, its symbols glowing through my pocket, and my system overloaded.

System Critical: Integration Complete.

Host Integrity: 10% and Stabilizing.

Psionic Saturation: 100%.

Entity Designation: Hollow Ascendant.

Hollow Ascendant.

The words hit like a punch, and the chamber tilted, visions flooding me again—Rylan, alive, his face twisted in pain, trapped in a cage of crystal, his voice a faint echo, "Kai, help me."

A city, not Earth, but similar, its skies torn by green light. And a presence, vast and cold, watching through the Watcher’s eyes.

I staggered, clutching Liv, her weight anchoring me. The figures froze, their tendrils retracting, their eyes dimming as the Watcher loomed. It didn’t attack—not yet. It studied me, its head tilting, its voice a whisper. "Return the fragment, or become it."

"No," I growled, my hand closing over the shard, its heat steadying me. "I’m not your puppet."

The Watcher’s eyes flared, and the pit rumbled, crystals shattering, sending shards flying. Liv gasped, her sparks flaring one last time, shielding us as I pulled her back, the shard’s energy surging, tearing a rift in the air—a mirror to the tear we’d entered through, its amber glow faint but real.

"Go!" I shouted, shoving her toward it. She hesitated, her hand reaching for mine, her eyes fierce despite the exhaustion.

"Not without you," she said, her voice steel.

I nodded, diving after her, the Watcher’s scream echoing in my skull as we crossed. The rift snapped shut, plunging us into darkness—stone under us again, cold and solid, the Hollow’s hum fading to a distant pulse.

We landed hard, Liv sprawled beside me, her breaths ragged, her sparks gone. My rifle clattered away, the shard still burning in my pocket. My system pinged, weak but there.

System Status: Host Integrity: 18% and Rising.

Anomaly Contained: Partial.

Location Unknown. Recommendation: Assess.

Assess.

I coughed, tasting blood, my body aching, but alive. Liv groaned, rolling onto her back, her hand finding mine again, her grip weak but there.

"Where...?" she whispered, her voice fading.

I looked around—stone walls, no veins, no glow, just a tunnel stretching into shadow. The shard’s thrum was quieter, but it still pulled, toward something ahead. Rylan, maybe. Or the next trap.

"I don’t know," I said, my voice raw. "But we’re not done."

She managed a nod, her eyes closing, her hand tightening. The darkness pressed in, but the shard’s warmth kept me going. The Hollow wasn’t done. Neither was I.

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