Vane stepped into the light. She looked tired, her eyes rimmed with red. She gestured toward the crate. "It’s not a vibration. It’s a heartbeat. Or the closest thing to one that the Union wants to acknowledge."
Elias looked back at the crate. The hum was getting louder, shifting from a dull thrum to a rhythmic pulse. "What’s inside?"
Elias leaned in, driven by a terrifying curiosity. He expected to see a machine or a terrifying creature. Instead, he saw a swirling, viscous liquid that seemed to reach toward the edges of the container, mimicking the shape of the hands he held against his chest. "It's learning," Vane whispered. "And it’s hungry."