“I’m not abandoning her!” I protest. “I just need to make a supply run. A quick one. I’ll go alone this time—you stay here and keep her company.”
“Now you’re talking. And I’ll sing your praises while you’re gone—if you don’t mind. I don’t need help winning over my Dedicated Soul.”
“Are you sure? That’s not the impression I’m getting.”
“Absolutely. Just stay out of my way. She’s a little distant right now, so I’ll prep for departure. She’ll settle in while I’m gone.”
“I’ll let you explain that to her.”
As expected, Ileana doesn’t take the news well. She crosses her arms and starts negotiating.
“You don’t want to drop me off at a Confederation base—I get that. But what about a Coalition base? I could volunteer at a hospital.”
“You’re not serious. Do you even know what the Coalition is?”
“It’s a rival to the Confederation, right? I may not know everything, but I’m not naïve. I know their leadership might be more aggressive, but they’ve got planets where people need doctors.”
“The Coalition doesn’t do charity work. They’re all about profit. Everything has a price. And trust me, someone like you? They’d see you as a valuable asset—for all the wrong reasons.”
She doesn’t say much—just presses her lips together and gives me a look that could cloud over a sunny day. Clearly, I haven’t been persuasive enough.
“While I’m gone, I’ll leave you with a few ground rules.”
“Should I take notes?” she asks, all sass and raised eyebrows.
“Gnuffgnuff!”Wingo bursts out laughing in my head.
I frown but push on.
“Rule number one: don’t send out any signals from MyFaS. You’d be giving away your location—and that’s the last thing we want. Rule two: stay away from the edge of the energy dome. And three: don’t go near the lake.”
She stares at me like I’ve lost my mind, ticking off the rules on her fingers with exaggerated patience. There’s a twitch at the corner of her mouth—she’s clearly not planning to follow any of this. I can’t tell if I want to shake some sense into her or kiss her until she forgets what sarcasm is.
Instead, I turn away. Wingo catches my eye, and I give him a look. He knows what it means.
Without another word, I head straight for the SIL.
Chapter 12.
Ileana.
The days pass quietly on MyFaS, without much excitement. But I’m not nearly as bored as I thought I’d be. Thankfully, Wingo’s around to keep me company. He’s a riot—funny, playful, and way less uptight than Pherebos.
Honestly, I haven’t felt the urge to break any of the so-called sacred rules. But when it came to the lake ban? Yeah, I didn’t ask for permission.
So now, every day, I go swimming—just me, the water, and my underwear. And it feels amazing.
Later, Wingo starts teaching me how to cook. Well, “teaching” might be a stretch. He gives me instructions, and I do my best to follow them. That’s how I learned to make crêpes, fruit compote, and veggie pies—after a few total disasters, of course.
He also gave me the full Queen discography, including everything by their lead singer, Freddie Mercury. The songs are a breeze for me, and Wingo’s choreography for some of the choruses? Hilarious and surprisingly fun.
At the end of the day, we hang out in the lounge, watching movies and snacking on chocolate. I was shocked to find out how much Pherebos had stashed away. Even the governor only let me taste it on special occasions.
Pherebos’s chocolate is kind of raw—super rich, high in cocoa, and satisfying in just a few bites. But Wingo had me make a chocolate fondant using powdered egg, sweet sap from a shrub, and oil from a tiny nut. The result? Pure decadence. We’ve already eaten half the batch, but there’s still some left for tonight.
Every morning, I watch Wingo head off to hunt for insects while I slip into the lake.
I always ease in slowly, warming up with a few strokes before heading toward the center. The water wraps around me like freedom itself. And I love that I’m breaking Pherebos’s rule. I don’t see the point of obeying this one. The lake is perfectly safe.
