Through his Stone Suit gloves, Adam’s fingers traced the fault in the rock wall as he walked along the dark winding tunnel. Eclipsing Sarah’s torch, his shadow stretched long ahead of him. He looked down constantly to be sure of his footing.

The tunnel began widening, a sign they were close to their destination.

In the corner of his mind, he could feel pain pulsing through The Consensus. He turned, “Do you feel it too?”

“Yes.”

Adam explored the feeling taking him further into The Consensus. Like thousands of others, he parted the currents of thought seeking the focus of the pain.

He had become more adept at this over the years since the collective awareness of each other emerged after the Reaper genocide.

To Adam, he, it was a man, felt close, within a hundred klicks.

Maybe the Reapers had hurt him.

The pain vanished.

Maybe they had killed him: another death and another step closer to extermination.

“Not long now,” he said. Sarah nodded and held out her hand. He grabbed it, pulling her close so he could see through her mask. Their foreheads touched. “Not long now.” She smiled. They held each other tight.