Zza hit the street so hard her vision cracked sideways. Her legs dragged across torn asphalt, sparks flaring from her claws as she skidded to a stop beside a crushed metal rail. Her whole body trembled with a pulse that didn't belong to her. It crawled through her veins, sliding under her shell like warm wires. Buzz's pulse. The hive's pulse. She couldn't tell which beat harder.
The city around her twisted again.
A row of buildings folded inward like giant ribs. Windows stretched, bending toward her with a slow, hungry curve. Metal groaned as if waking from a long sleep. Concrete rolled across itself in thick waves, swallowing parked cars and broken signs as easily as a tide.
Zza stumbled upright, breathing harshly. Her silk stuck to her arms, wet from sweat and dust. Every direction felt wrong. Every shadow looked shaped. She swore the street whispered her name in a deep hum that echoed in her bones.
"Buzz," she breathed, clutching her ribs. "Buzz, where are you?"
