--
The forest didn't just move.
It reacted.
Branches bent inward like ribs closing around a heart. Vines writhed across the ground, ripping up soil and stone, curling toward Zza and Buzz like instinct, like memory. Glowbeetles burst into frantic spirals, their lights flickering in jagged patterns. The Centipedes rose in coiled walls. The Scarabs pounded the earth so hard dust rose in choking clouds.
But it was the sound that stunned them.
A deep, rolling groan, like the earth was waking up angry.
The human leader steadied her stance. Her hand lifted.
"Shields up."
Panels unfolded across their armor, aligning in smooth mechanical clicks. A dome of blue energy expanded outward, repelling the first wave of vines with a crackle of sparks.
