I relaxed with a grunt. “Good.”
A few quiet moments passed. I felt empty, but not in a bad way—like I’d finally spat out a festering poison stuck in my chest.
“I’m sorry, Kur’tok,” Paz said.
I turned to him with a confused frown. “What for?”
“Everything you went through.” He stroked my back with his small palm. The warm circles felt soothing. “I know it’s hard to think of it differently, but you were used.”
The wound was still too fresh. I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing.
“Do you...wantto return to the village we’re from?” Paz asked.
Again, I didn’t know. I stared at the charred remains of my old village, a permanent scorched mark on the wilderness.
“They won’t take me back,” I muttered.
“You don’t know that,” Paz insisted. “The Kur’tok who berated his friends and ordered me around on a leash? Maybe not that version of you. But the one I’m talking to right now is different.”
I grimaced. As much as I wanted to, I didn’t feel like I could believe him.
Paz pointed to the village’s remains. “Look, Kur’tok. I know it seems bad. But it’s not ruined forever. Do you see the plants poking out of the ashes?”
Until now, I’d avoided looking too closely at the village, even from a distance. It was all a charred blur, darkening my psyche. But Paz forced me to look closer. As I sharpened my gaze and focused, I sucked in a breath. Ididsee new plant life dotted across the ruins. I couldn’t believe my eyes. If Paz hadn’t mentioned them, I never would’ve noticed.
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned on Eukaria, it’s that a new beginning is always possible, if youwantone,” Paz said, flashing me a brilliant smile. “Even for you.”
My heart vibrated in my ribs. Overwhelmed with affection, I grabbed Paz with my tentacles and yanked him into my lap soI could crush him in a hug. His laugh was muffled against my chest.
“Love you, too,” he said through a mouthful of my pectorals.
A sudden flicker of motion moved in my peripheral vision. I lifted my head, narrowing my eyes at the village. Then I saw it—a figure moving around in the ruins.
A very familiar figure.
“Paz,” I whispered.
Hearing my serious voice, he stopped laughing. He quietly turned around to follow my gaze, then sucked in a breath when he saw it, too.
Even after all these years, I’d recognize that strange flesh shape anywhere.
Creeping around in the ruins of my old village was Assistant 23.
15 /Paz
I couldn't believemy eyes. I blinked multiple times to make sure my mind wasn’t playing tricks on me, but the figure remained unchanged.
I didn’t know who orwhatwas inside of that outfit, but the person sneaking around in the village wore an outdated model of the space-faring hazmat suit.
I wanted to tell Kur’tok ASAP, but we were both deadly silent. Nobody dared to speak in case the wanderer heard us. They didn’t seem to realize they were being watched.
Slowly, I lifted my gaze to meet Kur’tok’s. He was utterly wide-eyed with shock. I’d never seen him look so stunned. Did he recognize that person?
The figure slunk around, digging in the ashes to retrieve something, then ran. They kept low to the ground as they fled the scene like a cautious prey animal. We watched them disappear into a shallow cavern nearby.
“Okay, we both saw that, right?” I asked.
Kur’tok sounded like he’d just seen a ghost. “That was Assistant 23.”
