Emma discovered the ghost was singing.
Not speaking. Not communicating through the standard ghost protocols. Singing. Pure tonal expression that carried meaning without words, emotion without narrative, presence without personality.
The ghost had been her colleague—a woman named Sarah who'd died three months ago. Sarah had chosen ghost protocol, had persisted in the Preservation Network with standard dissolution timeline. Should have been fading gradually. Should have been releasing memories. Should have been approaching final dissolution.
Instead, she was growing stronger. And singing.
"What is that?" Luna stood beside Emma in network-space, both of them observing the anomaly. The ghost's consciousness produced harmonics. Frequencies. Patterns that felt almost—
