Nathan woke up screaming.
The flower field was gone. The Shepherd was gone. He was back in Stonewell, in the burned ruins of the village. His body felt like it was on fire. The Heartseed's energy tore through him in waves of green-gold light. The pain was worse than anything he'd felt before—worse than broken ribs, worse than the Wyrm's fire.
Vex was pinning him down, her scarred hands on his shoulders. Ember circled them, burning with protective fire. "Easy, Cross! Easy! You're almost through it! Hold on, damn it! HOLD ON!"
The Bunny Girl System flashed with notifications, panels flickering:
[WARNING: Mana channels exceeding baseline.]
[CRITICAL: System stability failing.]
[CRITICAL: Foreign energy detected. Source: Heartseed Catalyst.]
[WARNING: Mana surge nearing critical threshold.]
[WARNING: Summon link unstable. Reconnecting...]
