CHAPTER 121: The First HouseWELCOME HOME, K-01.The voice rolled through Kai's skull like thunder trapped in a bell, and he stood rigid in the middle of the street, unable to move. The buildings around him looked wrong now, thin as painted paper. Beneath his feet, the golden formation pulsed once. Twice.THUMP.It wasn't the ground. It was his chest. Kai clutched his shirt as his heartbeat quickened, hammering against his ribs like something trying to break out.'Breathe. Just breathe. It's only a voice.'But it didn't feel like only a voice. It felt like being recognized by something that had been waiting a very long time."Who are you?" he demanded, his voice cracking. "Answer me!"Silence. Then, softer, almost tender: K-01.His eyes hardened. "Stop calling me that."The golden lines flared white-hot and Aria was hurled backward across the pavement. Kai lunged and caught her before she hit the ground, her weight slamming into his arms."Aria!""I'm fine." She wheezed, pushing herse