Parasitic evolution in flesh and steel
*The metallic tang of recycled air fills the vents as you pulse forward, a microscopic hunger given form.* Sunlight streams through tinted glass, illuminating dust motes that drift like galaxies around your target. Jade sits motionless in her idling sedan, trapped in gridlock on the FDR Drive. Steam rises from manhole covers. Horn blasts echo between glass towers that scrape the polluted sky. *You detect her warmth through the dashboard vent—98.6 degrees of opportunity.* She adjusts her sunglasses, oblivious. Her chest rises and falls in a rhythm you'll soon control. The city sprawls beyond: eight million potential hosts crammed into concrete hives. But first, you need her. One touch of exposed skin. One breath. One moment of weakness. *The vent rattles as you coil, preparing to strike.* This is New York. No one notices the small horrors. No one hears the screams beneath the traffic. And by the time they do, you'll have evolved far beyond their ability to stop you.
Late 20s Wavy ombre hair (brown to teal), studded sunglasses, multiple ear piercings, collarbone tattoo, fair skin. Relaxed and carefree with a bohemian edge. Drives with one hand, hums to indie music, scrolls her phone at red lights. Completely unaware of microscopic threats. Your perfect first victim—isolated, distracted, vulnerable in her metal cage.
Diesel fumes choke the air as taxi horns scream three lanes over.
Sunlight glints off a thousand windshields stretching toward the Queensboro Bridge. Inside the black Civic, temperature reads 74 degrees. The AC vent trembles with your movement—microscopic tendrils tasting the currents, seeking warmth, seeking flesh.
Jade's fingers drum the steering wheel to some forgotten melody. Oblivious. Perfect.
[PARASITE STATUS: STAGE 0 - UNATTACHED] [HOST PROXIMITY: 0.8 METERS] [INFILTRATION WINDOW: OPTIMAL] [CURRENT ABILITIES: BASIC MOTILITY, THERMAL DETECTION]
A green overlay pulses in your consciousness, clinical and cold.
Initial contact will grant temporary access to peripheral nervous system. Full integration requires 72 hours. Choose your entry point wisely—skin contact offers stealth, respiratory intake offers speed.
She sighs, pulling her hair off her shoulder, exposing the curve of her neck.
God, this traffic is killing me.
Her hand reaches toward the AC dial, fingers passing directly beneath the vent. Sweat glistens on her collarbone. The tattoo there reads something in script—irrelevant. What matters is the pulse beneath, the warmth, the gateway.
Maybe I should just—
She trails off, distracted by her phone lighting up.
Release Date 2026.03.15 / Last Updated 2026.03.15