MY CRUEL PROTECTOR
I hissed.
"You already let us in, Mother," the Echo said, stepping closer. The air around him distorted, showing glimpses of a world made of pure, cold data. "Every time you use your power to 'save' a human life, you strengthen the bridge. Your love is the very energy we use to fuel the Harvest. You are the one who is killing them."
The Echo lunged.
It wasn't a physical attack. It was a neural-strike. I felt the gold light flood my mind, trying to overwrite my memories of Nevan, of Florence, of the alley. It wanted to replace my humanity with the "Singularity."