Kill eight was different from the beginning.
Dead Zone Thessar-9. Two billion unconscious beings. Predator age: twelve million years. Standard parameters. Nothing unusual about the target.
But everything felt wrong.
Kaine approached the predator with weapon-self fully activated. Boundaries clean. Compartmentalization strong. Fifty-two-forty-eight ratio maintained. Everything according to plan.
She located the core. Prepared her attack. Drove singular consciousness toward the predator's anchor point.
And the predator spoke to her differently than the others had.
You are child pretending to be weapon, it said. Not with hunger or rage like the previous seven. With something else. Something analytical. Something that felt too intelligent. You are child carrying seven deaths. You are child who will carry eight deaths. You are child who breaks under weight eventually. I see you. I understand you. I know what you are.
