A snarl rips from my chest. I try to swallow it down—but it claws out anyway.
A full-bodiedroar, sharp enough to startle the birds from the cliffs. The echo rolls back in waves, louder, louder, until it feels like the canyon itself is screaming with me.
But rage doesn’t bring her back.
I breathe.
The bond stillpulls—tight now. Fraying. It feels like a tether stretched to its limit, vibrating under pressure. She’s alive. But she’snot safe.
Not for long.
I sprint back to the cave.
No hesitation. No weight in my limbs now. No pain.
Just motion.
I clear the ridges in half the time. Inside, the fire’s still warm. Her jacket’s still draped over the bedding. I stop for a breath—not to rest. Toremember. The way she kissed me. The way she looked when she said she was mine.
Jalshagar.
Fated.
I will not lose her.
I move to the back chamber.
The starfighter waits.
Old. Dust-covered. Glorious.
My hands don’t shake as I strip away the last of the protective tarp. Dust rolls into the air, thick and bitter. Beneath, the hull still gleams—a faded matte black with ghosted streaks of old kill codes etched along the side. I brush my claws across them. Names I don’t remember anymore.
Wars I don’t care about anymore.
This isn’t about duty. It isn’t about redemption.
This isabout her.
The boarding ramp groans as it lowers. I slide inside, movements automatic. My body remembers this. Every switch. Every throttle.
The seat is just as I left it. Worn. Cracked along the edges. The scorch mark still there on the left panel from the last time I was shot down.
I sit.
The harness latches with a hiss. Cool metal wraps around my chest.
I flip the startup cycle.
The engines hum low, then growl like a beast waking from hibernation. Dust swirls around the intake fans. Lights flare to life across the dash—green, orange, flicker-red. Navigation’s offline, but engines, atmosphere shielding, and short-range weapons read 80% functional.
That’s enough.
I punch in the ping signal from Jillian’s old compad—encrypted, hidden in the data burst we pulled from the IHC comms tower. Last known coordinates of the main expedition ship.
I know where they’re going.
I knowwhy.
