Page 16 of Arakiba (Alien Legacy Brotherhood #3)

Epilogue

A ri stretched his arms overhead, muscles loosening as the remnants of sleep clung to him. All tension unraveled with each satisfying pull. The warmth of the bed still lingered on his skin, and for the first time in what felt like ages, he was rested and clearheaded. His limbs remained heavy, but in the best possible way. Like he’d finally shaken off the weight of endless battles and worries.

With a yawn, he reached out, seeking the warmth of Morgan beside him. His fingers brushed cool sheets where a whiff of her feminine scent still lingered and teased him with her absence. His chest tightened with an unexpected pang of disappointment. The space beside him felt too vast, too empty. He closed his hand into a fist against the empty spot. The fleeting peace from the restful night slipped away with the realization she wasn’t there.

“Why does this ludicrous ship inform me you’ve been asleep for over ten hours, Arakiba?”

Ari jerked his head at the foot of the bed at the harsh derisive sound of a familiar masculine voice. Adapa. His eldest brother. Standing there with his arms crossed and a stern, narrow-eyed expression of disapproval with his fists clenched under his arms. It wasn’t until then he noticed his brother wasn’t talking to him in a psychic sense. The man was actually standing at the foot of his bed. In the flesh. Which meant he had to be close enough to teleport.

“Have you done anything while you were gone besides cater to your own pursuits?” Adapa snorted.

“I…”

“Did you even bother to find that woman you were supposed to?” Adapa looked around the compact room. “I gather you didn’t, because if you had, she’d probably be in bed with you right now.”

One moment, his brother stood in front of him, arms crossed, casting a familiar shadow of authority, and the next, there was a shift in the air. It wasn’t until he caught a subtle movement over Adapa’s shoulder that he realized Morgan had slipped into the room—silent as a predator stalking its prey.

Before he could react, Morgan was behind Adapa, her movements fluid and precise. In an instant, he glimpsed her pressing a small, sleek cylinder to the back of his brother’s neck, just below the base of his skull.

The device hummed faintly, its deadly potential unmistakable.

Ari’s breath hitched. How did she get behind Adapa so quickly, so quietly? Even his brother, one of the most seasoned psychic fighters he knew, hadn’t noticed her until it was too late.

“Don’t move,” Morgan’s voice was low, almost a whisper, laced with a band of steel.

Adapa froze. His body tensed at the sudden contact. He didn’t turn, didn’t react—only his eyes flicked toward Ari, a glint of surprise flashing across their dark depths.

Ari watched, his heart pounding. He’d seen Morgan’s intelligence, her strength, but this—this was something different. She had slipped past his brother’s defenses effortlessly, and now had him at her mercy.

“Morgan,” Ari began, his voice strained, unsure whether to be more shocked or impressed. His eyes flicked between the two, feeling the weight of the tension in the room. The way she handled herself, the way she moved—it was as if she’d been preparing for this moment her entire life. And he realized just how dangerous she could be when she needed to.

Adapa’s lips twisted into a smirk, though Ari could see the strain beneath his calm facade.

“Ah, so you did find her,” he said, the words slow, deliberate. “And surprise, surprise. Here she is in your bedchamber.”

Morgan didn’t move. “I warn you.” Her voice dripped with disdain. “Growing up around psychics like you taught me early on how to defend myself. I can react before you even realize I’m there.”

Adapa’s eyebrows rose.

“So, whoever you are, apologize to Ari. He’s been through a lot and doesn’t need shit from some asshole. What he needs is time to regain his strength, and he can’t do that with you bullying him.”

Ari guessed Morgan had pushed the weapon harder when Adapa flinched.

“Now.”

Adapa chuckled under his breath, but stayed perfectly still. “Damn, she’s a fierce one, Arakiba.”

A surge of pride mixed with disbelief consumed Ari. “Well, let’s not put her to the test on you.” He kept his voice calm despite his racing pulse. “Morgan, this is my eldest brother, Adapa.” He narrowed a glare at his brother. “Adapa, this is Morgan Jackson from the hidden city of Aethralis under Antarctica.”

Morgan backed away, taking her weapon with her. She stalked around Adapa, then faced him with a fierce scowl, her own arms crossed. Damn, he loved it when she did that. Even clothed.

Adapa’s dark brows rose. “Really? I wasn’t aware humans had a base there.”

“Humans don’t have a base there,” Morgan supplied, clipping the device in her hand onto the thick belt she had around her trim waist.

It was then Ari noticed it was her handheld multicorder. Either it could turn into a weapon, or she’d been bluffing.

Ari smirked and leaned back on the pillows with his hands behind his head. “Guess who her great-something grandfather is.”

The tension in Adapa’s jaw loosened. “Guessing games?” He snorted. “Okay, I’ll bite. Who’s her grandfather?”

“Rummeh.”

Adapa sucked in a breath. “The same Akurn who took Inanna to Earth’s surface all those centuries ago?”

“Yeah, that’s the one.” Ari grinned. “She’s a hybrid like we are. Just several generations removed.”

His brother examined Morgan with a stern expression.

“Stay out of my head, ahu .“ Morgan warned him in perfect Akurn.

Ari was relieved she at least she called Adapa ‘brother’ in a friendlier tone.

“I know how to protect my mind from arrogant snoops like you.”

Ari climbed out of bed, using his telekinesis to pull on his usual black jeans, T-shirt, and biker boots without a second thought. “I have a feeling you’re not here just to give me shit. So, what’s going on?” He stepped closer to Adapa and locked gazes with him. “Are the brothers okay?” His throat dried at the thought.

The tension thickened in the air as the words hung between them.

Adapa’s face was grim, his usual calmness undercut by a flicker of urgency that Ari wasn’t used to seeing in his older brother. It didn’t relieve him when Adapa put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“The invasion has begun,” Adapa said quietly, his voice low but weighted with meaning. “The Krystalii breached the dimensional veil. Earth, Akurn, the very seat of the Federation Consortium… nowhere is safe anymore.”

Beside Ari, Morgan stiffened. Her gaze darted to him, searching for a reaction.

But his mind raced, making it hard to process the gravity of what Adapa revealed. They had all known this moment was coming, but hearing it was a punch to the gut.

“A small group of us fled,” Adapa continued, his arms crossed, the hardness in his voice unmistakable. “Including Asmodel and Abalim, bringing others who slipped through the chaos with them. But it’s worse than we thought.”

Ari’s stomach clenched. “How bad?”

Adapa’s gaze darkened. “The Krystalii ship… it’s massive, Arakiba. Bigger than anything we’ve ever encountered. It’s like a continent suspended in an impenetrable void. We’re talking miles wide, miles high, with its own atmosphere and ecosystem. They’re not just invading—they’re settling in.”

Ari exhaled sharply, trying to imagine the scale. A ship the size of a continent. It sounded impossible, but nothing about the Krystalii ever made sense. They were from another dimension, beings of crystal and psionic power. Their very existence defied the known laws of nature.

Adapa’s next words cut through his thoughts like a blade. “Azazel’s already inside.”

Ari’s head snapped up. “What?”

Adapa nodded with a grim expression. “He’s gone undercover, infiltrating the Krystalii ship where they hold the woman he was sent to find. When he teleported from FiPan, that’s where he went. How he knew where to go is beyond me, but now he’s attempting to get them off that ship. But if they catch him first…”

Morgan shifted beside him, her face tight with concern. “This guy Azazel, went to that ship to get one of my friends? Alone?”

Ari’s hands curled into fists. The thought of his brother in the belly of that monstrous ship, surrounded by the most dangerous beings in the universe, was a knot twisting inside his chest, making it hard to breathe. Wait… wait. He took in a deep breath. Azazel was the poster boy of calm resolve and clear thinking. The man didn’t do anything he hadn’t calculated to the nth degree. Nothing ever rattled him. Smart, brave, sure, but this? Hard to believe the unflappable dumbass ran headfirst into something he had no way of foreseeing the resulting outcome.

“I’m sure he’s got a plan,” Adapa stated in a tone that didn’t carry the confidence Ari needed to hear. “But even for him, it’s risky. The Krystalii... they see everything, sense everything. One wrong move, and he won’t make it out alive.”

Great. This whole clusterfuck had the makings of a suicide mission.

Ari clenched his jaw, feeling the weight of the hardship ahead as their entire existence threatened to crumble beneath them. Along with an invasion from another dimension that put the Federation Consortium in chaos, they were missing a key ally, with Azazel trapped inside a spaceship that massive and no way to get him help.

Which gave the Krystalii free rein to close in on every front.

He glanced at Morgan, seeing the worry etched in her eyes. He pulled her under his arm and squeezed her in a tight grip. The path ahead was almost impossible, but what choice did they have? There was no turning back now. The stakes had never been higher, and all they had was each other. No matter how dark or deadly the mission grew, they’d claw their way to victory.

Or die trying.

Look for the exciting series finale in “Azazel”!