Page 70

Lucien
The Void never changes. It breathes in the space between worlds, shifting and restless, alive in ways it shouldn’t be. The ground beneath us is not quite solid, not quite air, just something, something that holds us when it chooses to, something that lets us drift when it tires of pretending to obey the laws of nature.
And yet, despite all its horrors, we slept here.
It wasn’t restful, but it was something.
I glance over at Luna, watching as she kicks at a patch of voidmatter that reacts by curling in on itself, like a wounded thing. She doesn’t flinch when it writhes away, doesn’t recoil when the world beneath her flickers in protest.
She’s adapting.
Too fast.
Not fast enough.
Elias stretches beside her, arms behind his head, smirking up at nothing like he had the best night of sleep in his life. He did not. None of us did. But he looks infuriatingly pleased with himself anyway.
"Morning, love of my life," he drawls toward Luna. "And Lucien." He tacks my name on like an afterthought.
I sigh. "Elias."
He winks at Luna. "Did you dream about me?"
She doesn’t even react anymore. "Not once."
"Tragic." He rolls onto his side, propping himself up on his elbow. "You know, we could fix that. I hear repeated exposure leads to increased subconscious infiltration. I could just... be around you all the time."
Luna meets his gaze, deadpan. "We already are around each other all the time."
Elias grins. "See? It’s working."
It is, in fact, not working.
Luna sighs, nudging his boot with the toe of hers. "Get up."
"Say it nicer."
"Get up before I shove you into the nearest Rift."
"Kinky," Elias mutters, but he does sit up, stretching his arms above his head. The Void shifts uneasily around him, the ground beneath his palms rippling like disturbed water. He watches it with mild interest before turning back to Luna, his expression suddenly too serious for someone who spent the last several minutes making an ass of himself.
"How’re you feeling?"
Luna hesitates.
Just barely.
"Fine."
I don’t believe her.
Neither does Elias.
He exhales, rubbing a hand down his face. "You know, you’re the worst liar I’ve ever met. And that’s saying something, because Lucien exists."
I look up from securing my weapons. "I’m an excellent liar."
"Sure you are, sweetheart." Elias gestures broadly. "Right up until you start looking all broody and ominous because you’re silently judging our life choices."