The last thing I heard was a chorus of ‘thank you.’
All at once a blast—a single beam of pure power—crashed into me. It shattered my physical body in milliseconds, the atoms breaking apart completely. I watched in horror as my skin blistered and peeled from my body before disintegrating into space, my clothing rendered to ashes instantly. My wings were torn back and ripped off my body as a cry caught in my throat. I was witness to my own death as pieces of me were torn off left and right…only to be reformed by the shockwave that followed.
Each of my cells was now imbued with knowledge and power—with truth.
A solar flare exploded from my chest and my vision went black as pure agony eclipsed me. My body fell backwards, and as I lost all motor function, images and memories, flashed behind my eyelids. Lost in the starlight, I began to undergo a metamorphosis.
My once very normal body was shifting and accommodating for the new well of power I had been entrusted with. I was gifted the previous knowledge of my kin, knowledge of the painthey had suffered, watching their own kind being slaughtered. Knowledge of what it meant to be a Star Keeper and what I could do with that power. Knowledge of how powerful I had the potential to be.
Please let me be strong enough to carry this power and the memories of all those who came before me.
Suddenly all the pain was gone and so was my ability to think.
14
GABE
As I pacedthrough the forested region of the Rebellion camp a few miles out from our house, I tried to find within myself some level of restraint, forgiveness, and understanding. Yet, the more I reached for it, the angrier I grew at Steele.
To say I’d been furious and shocked at what happened this afternoon with Kieran at combat training would be an understatement. Despite the two of them settling things between themselves, I found I couldn’t look past it.
There was no reason for him to push her the way he had today. She had no business being at that level of training yet. She’d only been here for a few weeks!
My fist snapped out on its own accord, smashing into the unfortunate tree nearest me, causing a crack to echo through the quiet forest.
Steele had placed Kieran in an incredible amount of danger and risk. A one-time incident would have been forgivable, easy to pass off as a mistake, but as I recounted their interactions from the start…I began to see the pattern of his treatment of her and his inability to process his own feelings.
Drawing my hand back to examine my split knuckles, I let out a heavy sigh.
Rationally, I understood that there was an undertone to their relationship that caused them to interact in such a combative way with one another. Their interactions were two-sided to an extent, but I found that I didn’t care—that it didn’t make me feel any better about it or able to excuse his actions.
I wouldn’t allow him to treat her like that anymore.
It was time for Steele to make up his damn mind.
To me, it was clear as day where the rest of the house stood with their feelings about Kieran. I also knew that with everything coming her way, she would need all the support she could get. While I still struggled on howexactlyto help her—what I could do with my own abilities to be useful for her—I knew there was one thing I could give her endless amounts of:support.
I could assure her time and again that she would be successful at this mission of hers. That Iknewshe was more than capable of saving everyone. That I would never leave her side through it all, no matter how hard it got.
But Steele? I wasn’t sure he could or would do that.
My pacing came to a halt as I considered going back and demanding to have a conversation with Steele—if only to alleviate the anger weighing on me. I knew I had a larger motive for returning, though—one that included seeing Kieran.
I hadn’t disagreed with the idea of leaving her alone for the night—I knew she needed the rest. Unfortunately, because of that decision and not being able to see her or be close to her, I’d been restless for hours. Eventually, I decided to go on a walk to clear my head. I’d even stood outside her door for a long moment, listening to see if she was up so I could invite her to join me. I hadn’t been able to bring myself to wake her up, though.
I tilted my head up, trying to break away from my busy, worry-filled thoughts as I examined the darkness of the midnight sky. The moon was especially bright tonight, and likea moth drawn to the flame, my wings broke out of my back—urging me skyward. I didn’t bother fighting it, having grown tired of pacing, and I found that I wanted to get back to the house sooner rather than later, just in case Kieran woke up early.
Bursting through the top of the trees in a surge of movement, my wings swished through the air as I hovered myself above the Rebellion camp. I began to fly in the direction of the house, only to have something catch my eye.
A bright blast, like a shooting star, entered the atmosphere. It lit up the sky in shades of blue, green, and purple, causing the world to lighten momentarily as if it was midday.
I cursed as I tried to shield my eyes, a secondary blast of blazing white light coming from the descending object—as if it was exploding—caused a shockwave to radiate through the sky. Wind rushed over me and threw me back, my wings barely catching me, before I tumbled down into the forest below. Stunned, I stared in awe at the display of power as the night darkened once more.
What the hell was that?
My eyes locked on to the only evidence left of the experience—a lone figure falling toward the earth.Shit.Immediately, I was speeding toward it, realizing very quickly that it was a humanoid. Panic hit me square in the chest and I hoped like hell I would be able to save the individual.
That panic was absolutely nothing compared to what I felt as I got in close enough range to seewhowas falling.
