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"I knew I should have been a mechanic instead." Mark laughed. "Fixing bots all day doesn't sound so bad."

Aly shrugged. "At least you get to interact with others."

Mark frowned. "Things here are different...I think our mission at this point is at a stand-still."

Aly had nothing to say to that, though she didn't necessarily agree. Once again, her mind brought up the image of the nillium standing before her on the bridge. It was the first time, she realized, anyone other than a human had interacted with her. How strange it was that it should be the one who seemed to avoid people the most.

"Well, see you around then," Mark said.

Aly smiled again and he left. She walked out of the old station and looked around the dark cavern. She couldn't see the sky, but she guessed, by now, the moon was gone, covered by clouds. Even so, she was thankful for the moment she had gotten.

Because tomorrow, she was sure, would be just another rainy day.

Chapter Three

Ryziel felt like his insides were turning and twisting, his heart thumping heavily against his chest. He crouched in the dark for some time, afraid he was slipping. That he was frenzying. That he was in his Drega's hold.

He hadn't had an episode in so long he had forgotten what it felt like. In fact, it didn't feel the same at all. When his Drega side came out, when his beast-like tendencies took hold, they were violent. Primal. There was no sense of self, just the need for blood and the thralls of rage. But, as he sat there taking deep long breaths, he didn't feel these things at all. He felt something else altogether. And it scared him.

That...female—whatever she was as he'd never seen the likes of her before but knew by her scent and her form that she was indeed female—had brought out his Drega side. No one had been able to do that by just sight or touch alone. No one.

Yet, she had. And, as he sat there in the dark and his mind and senses started returning to him, he could finally understand. It wasn't rage or a hunger for violence that had taken him. It was something more instinctual. Something he hadn't felt for many years and nothing as strong.

He didn't want to break her or kill her. He wanted to...

Ryziel growled, and his insides spasmed again. He bared his teeth and clenched his hands tight, his body shaking. He could feel his receptors vibrating.

That one little touch, that light brush of skin, and he had almost faded out completely. If he hadn't ripped himself away and blindly fled into the dark, who knows what he might have done?

His stomach turned at the thought, and he clutched his sides with a groan. Slowly, he stood back up and closed his eyes, taking another long breath.

The image of her standing there was still clear to him even now. The moon cast its light over her reddish-gold hair, blue eyes looking up in sheer wonder, pale face shining from the droplets of water, giving her almost a strange glow. Then her small delicate hands lifting the floater and letting it go and her breath of surprise at seeing him.

Even he was shocked that he had allowed himself to be seen by her, like he hadn't realized he had stepped so close. It was her scent he had caught first. A scent he didn't recognize but had drawn him away all the same. Then his receptors had begun to vibrate along his head, like a blasting signal trailing a strong beacon. Once he had come up the stairway and onto the bridge, he had halted and gone completely still. Once he saw her, his sixth sense had gone wild. The confusion and shock were understandable. Why was his body reacting to this person? This female who wasnotnillium.

Once the shock had faded somewhat, curiosity had taken its turn. He wanted to make sure she wasn't some strange hallucination. In the light of the moon and misty air, she had seemed otherworldly. Perhaps he would have even mistaken her in that moment for a lightbringer or one of Nihl's guardians. But that was clearly absurd. Because, again, his logic brought him sense. She was not nillium, so that was impossible.

Still, he felt a need to touch. A very strong need. And he never cared to touch anyone, so this was definitely another shock. Never would he have considered going up to some random person—one whose race he couldn't even identify—and demanding to touch them. It was unthinkable. But the feeling couldn't be helped. Not in that moment.

He had hesitated twice, fighting the urge. He had smelled her fear wafting alongside her scent, but her fear could barely hold him.

When she had closed her eyes and closed the distance between them, in that one second of contact, his Drega had torn its way to the surface, like a beast thrashing to get out.

And so, he had fled.

He didn't know how long he had been hiding now, but he had to go. He had to get back to the lair. But first, he needed the tools. And now, a quick, serious talk with Braxin.

As he pulled himself away from the rocky wall, his techband went off. Taking one last deep breath to compose himself, he took the call.

"Did you die?" was Nar's hello as his face was brought up before him.

"I'm not sure," was Ryziel's reply.

There was silence and Nar's little urk face—beady black eyes with sharp features— actually looked surprised. "What happened?" he asked.

"It was..." Ryziel didn't know if he even wanted to tell him. Not in detail. "I had a lapse in control."

"Nihl's hide," Nar muttered. "What set you off? Did someone get in your way?"