Page 142

“If we don’t make it, Jamie…”

If we don’t make it.

Ships disappear in the void. They Orb-Shift, snapping out of existence – never to return.

You’d have to be crazy or desperate to risk what we’re about to.

But right now, I feel like I’m both – crazyanddesperate.

But if we’re going to disappear, we’re going to disappear together – my triad, and their Fated Mate.

Ahead of us, the terrified Toad punches in a code, and then presses the buttons frantically. The alarms of the ship ring louder, as the Orb-Drives hum into power.

Lucius kneels beside me, pressing his big hands against Quint’s wounds – trying desperately to stem the flow of blood.

As he tends to his battle-brother, Lucius turns and stares into my eyes.

He doesn’t need to say anything.

His aura tells the story.

Waves of caring, protectiveness, and gratitude flow through the Bond – from Lucius, and Marcel, and even the wounded Quint.

The three of them have no fear. The die has been cast. Either we make it to Colossus and face down the Aurelian Empire, or we blink out of existence as one.

Then, the alarms fall silent.

The ship suddenly wavers, reality bending and warping all around us. The floor and ceilings merge into one, as colors change as if I’m looking through somebody else’s eyes.

Blackness.

Nothingness surrounds me.

I’m not human anymore.

I’m a ball of light, and orbiting me are three planets. One is green and lush. One is blue and icy. One is brown earth – scorched, but strong.

I can see them, but I can’t feel the auras of my triad. I can see them as something else – as gravity pulls us together in a cosmic dance. We pulse together – across centuries, millennia, and eons.

They orbit me, and a great calm fills my mind. We’re nowhere, but we’re together – dancing and spinning in the emptiness.

Nothing exists but us.

Nothing matters to us. We’re here, and I never want to leave my triad. We’re here, where our hearts are beating as one. Deep inside my flaming core buds the seed of something new – something made of all four of our energies.

Then, I blink.

The spaceship reappears around me.

Through the wide viewport, I see the green and blue bulk of Colossus. Rising from the atmosphere come hundreds of Reavers fighters – darting all around us, circling the mothership.

Then, massive warships roll into view, blocking off all escape – beams of energy shooting from them and latching onto the Toad mothership to prevent its escape.

I wave. I have toes and fingers – nine of them, at least.

I gasp for air. In the void, I’d forgotten to breathe.

Air fills my lungs, sweet and real, and I stare in wonder.