They Really Made Me Sweat

Though the Gorgonite projected an indifferent, even haughty, façade before the two Evolvers, his actions and body language told a different story.

The way he stumbled backward, a jittery dance toward the Nexus, never daring to blink for fear of losing sight of them—it was evident he was gripped by terror.

'Damn it, why isn't the Nexus reacting?!' Rigel was internally shrieking in panic, teetering on the edge of hysteria. 'Why isn't it summoning its bloody Avatar?! Can't it understand that our lives hang in the balance?'

The nonresponse from the translucent gem silently levitating behind him was maddening. Seeing himself abandoned, the frantic Brain-Eater decided to stall for time by striking up a conversation. Hopefully, this would buy the Digestor, stained with the task of their extraction, the few seconds needed to reach them.

Fortunately, he didn't have to feign curiosity. He had many questions.