But it wasn’t his words that unsettled me most. It was the way his aura kept… shifting. When the gold flared, he looked almost holy, like some avenging angel carved out of light, every edge of him sharp and impossible. It made my breath catch, made me forget for a heartbeat that he’d just snarled at me like he wanted to break me in half.
But then the red bled through, streaks of molten fury crawling over his skin, and the angel disappeared. In its place stood something else entirely, something darker, more primal. A demon. A predator wrapped in flesh and fire.
And the black… good God, the black was the worst.
When those shadows tore through the light, everything inside me screamedStay away.A very primal, very undeniable instinct told me nothing good came out of that color. That blackness wasn’t rage or power, it was hunger—a void pretending to be a man.
My head spun. I’d been kidnapped, sold, dumped on a dying world, and now, somehow, I was standing inside a Black Hole with a golden demon-soldier claiming me as his. What in God’s name had I gotten myself into?
It was all too much. I needed to think of something else, something… someone…
“Ed.” My chest squeezed tight. How could I have forgotten about him? “The others—where are they? I need to find them.”
Zapharos’ head cocked, those black eyes narrowing. “Others? What others?”
I stared at him. “The ninety-nine people who were with me. The Cryons sold us like cattle, and then—for whatever reason—the buyers dumped us on that planet.”
His aura pulsed faintly as he supplied the name for that world. “Rotodex.”
I threw my hands up, exasperated. “I don’t care what you call it. Planet, Rotodex, whatever—it doesn’t matter. What matters is they were there with me. A hundred of us. And I need to know if they survived.”
He studied me, his expression unreadable, then he shook his head once, slow and certain. “No one survives crossing into Nox Eternum. Not them. Not your Ed. Only us.”
My chest tightened. “But I’m here.”
His gaze sharpened. “Yes. And that, I cannot explain.”
“Well, maybe humans can,” I shot back, irritation sparking hotter than fear. “So can you help me find them?”
His lip curled, part snarl, part reluctant amusement. “You don’t even know where to begin.”
“Then I’ll figure it out.”
He sighed, the sound rough, like a growl dragged from his chest. “This is stupid.” He dragged a hand through his hair, muttering, “I should be at war, not chasing ghosts with a stubborn little Earthling.”
“Then don’t,” I snapped, heat rising in my cheeks. “I’ll manage on my own.”
He turned back, his aura flaring gray against the shadows. “You won’t last a breath without me. Whether you like it or not, you are mine to guard.”
Even though the words made my blood boil, some deep, traitorous part of me shivered at the way he said them.
“It’s dangerous,” he muttered under his breath, pacing like a storm on legs. “You have no idea what lurks here.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, no kidding.” I bent my knees and bounced once. Twice. Then jumped harder, trying to launch myself upward. The ground refused to cooperate.
He stopped, blinked at me. “What in the Abyss are you doing?”
“Trying to figure out how this floating crap works!” I snapped, throwing my hands up. How had I done it in the first place? “Do I flap my arms? Do I thinkhappy thoughts? Am I supposed to just…levitate?” To prove my point, I hopped again, harder this time, and nearly sprained my ankle.
He closed his eyes like a man about to pray for patience or commit murder. Maybe both. “Earthlings,” he growled, dragging in a breath through his teeth.
“Don’t youEarthlingme,” I shot back, fists on my hips. “If you don’t want me hopping around like an idiot, maybe give me a clue.”
When he opened his eyes again, the black in them seemed to have lightened a bit; there were traces of glowing sparks, but I had no idea if that was good or bad. His jaw was still tight enough to break a stone. He extended a hand, palm up, fingers steady. “Come.”
I stared at it. At him. “That’s it? That’s your whole explanation?”
“Take it,” he ordered.
