The moment Elara's hand made contact with Kai's arm, something snapped.
A violent surge of sensations slammed into her mind like a tidal wave breaching a dam. There was no warning, no gradual build-up - just raw, unfiltered chaos.
Her eyes went wide.
Her breath hitched.
And then she screamed.
She stumbled backwards, her body jerking as though she'd been electrocuted. Her back slammed into a metal desk, scattering tools and sending a few startled cats leaping for cover.
Shadow moved towards her, but she threw up a hand, shaking, gasping, too rattled to speak just yet.
Kai stood still, eyes narrowed, silent.
She had felt it all.
The bloodlust.
The torment.
The unbearable, inhuman anguish that twisted and writhed like a monstrous entity buried deep within Kai's soul. It wasn't like the emotions of any animal, any person, or any mutant she had ever touched before. This wasn't sorrow. This wasn't rage.
This was something else.
It was an abyss screaming back.
