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PANDORA

A s soon as my head hit the pillow after my mates and I had thoroughly celebrated graduating, I was sucked into an otherworldly space that was not Reed’s dreamscape.

It was a magical realm suspended in a golden glow that wasn’t like the desert sun—it was more like the Fates had promised, where the sky shimmered in hues of lavender, gold, and deep velvet. Stars twinkled and moved above like slow-moving fireflies.

I felt weightless, as if my soul had momentarily slipped between the pages of reality and the afterlife. The ground wasn’t solid, similar to Reed’s dreamscape, but what I stood on was just air with a golden void beneath my feet.

I had no control here.

That thought didn’t scare me like it should’ve—instead, I only felt peace.

The air was thick with the scent of blooming moonflowers—a scent I’d only faintly smelled once in my life. My breath hitched as I remembered where I’d smelled it before: when I’d hugged Nebula for the first time in that cellar.

My heart ached painfully as my gaze raised toward the sound of soft padding paws against the air.

A sleek black kitten strode forward, its fur shimmering with an almost ethereal glow as it walked on an invisible path straight for me. Its piercing, luminescent eyes—golden like the void beneath us—locked onto mine with stark familiarity.

“This can’t be real,” I rasped, my hands flying to my mouth as I fell to my knees with a painful sob. “You can’t really be here.”

As he drew closer, the air crackled faintly with unseen magic. “But I am, Pandora, and the Fates have given us a rare gift—an exception specifically made because you have sacrificed so much. The Fates have seen that. They wish to reward you and me for what we have done to banish the dark magic from Kalista.”

“What?” I croaked, blinking away the falling tears, but more sprang back as soon as they rolled down my cheeks. “ Why? What gift?”

Nebula wasted no time curling into my lap with a soft sigh. “We had no idea how close Kalista was to being lost to the Veil, Pandora. The Fates have blessed us with a familiar bond.”

“Demons don’t have familiars, do we?” I couldn’t understand what he was talking about or why. I didn’t know where we were—all I knew was that my best friend was curled into my lap, and I couldn’t stop myself from wrapping him into my arms and inhaling his moonflower scent with a sob.

“Only you,” he answered, nuzzling into me. “The Fates have seen our bond, and they’ve given us a full familiar bond. And Pandora, the best part happens when you wake up.”

“Wake…up?” I rasped before my heart felt like it’d splinter all over again. “No, no ! Don’t make me go—I can’t—I can’t lose you again, Nebula. Please don’t make me lose you again!”

A soft chuckle rang around me. “Pandora… wake up.”

“No!” I was ripped away from the beautiful scene and of Nebula in my arms the next instant.

My heart felt like it’d been crushed under the weight of grief again.

It hurt to breathe as I gasped and jolted out of bed, stumbling over my mates and falling to the floor in front of Nebula’s stand on the nightstand, where his empty skull was placed.

“Fuck!” Dex roared, jumping out of bed, as naked as we all were, searching the room for an intruder as I sobbed helplessly, clutching the nightstand as I stared at Nebula’s skull.

His eye sockets were hollow—he wasn’t here.

“What happened?” Bram and Skel were up by Dex, checking the room.

“Why are you crying?” Hunter and Reed crouched beside me as I wailed.

“Nebula visited me! He—I held him. He was a cat again, and he told me the Fates had blessed us, but he made me leave!” I sobbed, choking on the words as I forced them out of my raw throat.

My mates shared a look, and Reed handed me my water bottle.

Before they could say anything, a disembodied voice echoed around the room. “Pandora…”

A golden light flickered from within Nebula’s skull, pulsing gently.

“Nebula?” I sobbed, collapsing into Reed and Hunter as they barely held me up with the shock that dawned through all of my bonds.

Strands of shimmering black fur began to weave themselves over his skull, flowing easily as the Fates’ magic wrapped sinew and muscle in a soft, golden cocoon around his skull. Delicate whiskers sprouted from his once-barren muzzle. His skull tilted, twitching mid-air before his golden eyes blinked open, gleaming like twin suns.

The glow of the Fates’ magic intensified, flashing a brilliant light that almost blinded me before it faded, leaving behind a sleek, living black kitten. His entire body was supple and whole, as if it had never been gone.

With a slow, deliberate stretch, Nebula placed himself onto graceful paws, tail flicking playfully, eyes gleaming with a spark of something ancient and loving. He purred before leaping off the table and into my arms. “I told you the Fates bestowed on us a gift, Pandora. I’m your familiar now, and my magic will only ever be used to aid you.”

I cuddled him against my chest, my body trembling with sobs that shook me. Tears continued to spill down my face, but I couldn’t stop myself from burying my face in the familiar warmth of the fur I thought I’d never feel again. My breath hitched as my fingers weaved through his silky coat, pressing against the gentle rise and fall of his living, breathing body.

“You really came back to life,” I whispered, voice breaking, my tears dampening his fur.

“I did. My life is tied to yours, now.” He nuzzled against me, purring—a deep, steady vibration that soothed the ache in my heart. “I will always be here as long as you are. The Fates decided to uphold my promise to you. They saw that you’d lost too much already. We both had. And…they told me to tell you that you have always been more than your blood.”

I cuddled him tighter, too afraid to let him go, as if this moment might slip away like a dream.

But the weight in my arms was real . The warmth, the life —it was all real. More sobs wracked my body—not from grief, but from the overwhelming, breathtaking joy of having my best friend back.

“I’m so happy to be back, but what the Fates did I come back to life to? Why are you all naked?” Nebula hissed, and the tension broke as the six of us laughed.

Nebula was alive—and he wasn’t going to leave me ever again.