It wasn't a polite rumble; it was the sound of a biological engine running on fumes, protesting the indignity of starvation while trying to rewrite the laws of physics. She flinched, her hand flying to her midsection, her cheeks flushing a dark rose color that was visible even in the dim bioluminescence of the moss.
"Subtle," Flynn muttered from where he was pretending to sleep, one eye cranking open. "I think you just woke the bats in the upper gallery."
Aria glared at him, but the fire in her amethyst eyes was dim, banked by exhaustion. "I haven't eaten a full meal in... I don't actually know how long. And the last thing I ate, I threw up because we were discussing my reproductive organs."
"Valid," Flynn conceded, sitting up and stretching. His spine popped, a sound like dry branches breaking. "I could go check the stream again. See if those blind fish have friends."
"I will go," Kaelen said, rising from his vigil against the stalagmite. His movements were stiff, the cold of the void stilllingering in his joints despite his dragon fire. He reached for his sword. "I need to move. The air here is stagnant."
I watched them, the Wolf and the Dragon, vibrating with kinetic energy they had no outlet for. They were men of action trapped in a waiting room, and their restlessness was muddying the waters. I needed clarity. I needed to see the threads of the future, but right now, the cavern was a tangled knot of anxiety, hunger, and testosterone.
And I needed to be close to her. Alone.
"Go together," I said, my voice soft, threading through the tension.
Kaelen frowned, looking down at me. "One of us should stay. To guard."
"Thane is here," I pointed out, gesturing to the massive shadow by the tunnel entrance. "And the beast. But I have looked into the currents, brother. The pattern... it fractures if we operate as individuals right now. The probability of capture increases exponentially if you hunt alone."
It was a lie. A beautiful, silky fabrication. The future was currently a wall of grey static, opaque and terrifyingly silent. I couldn't see five seconds ahead, let alone calculate capture probabilities. But I knew Kaelen. He respected strategy.
Kaelen hesitated, his golden eyes flicking to Aria, then to the dark tunnel. "Are you certain?"
"The tapestry does not lie," I said, keeping my face smooth, the mask of the Phoenix firmly in place. "Together, you are a phalanx. Apart, you are targets."
Flynn stood up, rolling his shoulders. "Works for me. I hate fishing alone anyway. No one to appreciate my technique." He looked at Kaelen. "Coming, Your Highness? Or do you need a written invitation?"
Kaelen grunted, sheathing his sword. He walked over to Aria, pressing a brief, searing kiss to her forehead. "We will be back. Do not leave the cavern."
"I'm not going anywhere," she murmured, leaning into his touch for a second before pulling back. "Just... bring back something that isn't slime-based."
The two of them disappeared into the tunnel, their footsteps fading quickly.
I waited for a few moments, then looked toward the entrance. Thane was watching me. The Bear Prince didn't say a word, but his brown eyes were heavy with knowing. He knew I was lying. He knew I was manipulating the board.
But he probably also knew why.
Thane pushed himself off the wall, grunting with the effort. He whistled low, and the Skal, Steve, lifted its armored head.
"Come, beast," Thane rumbled. "Let us check the perimeter. Far perimeter."
The Skal chittered happily and scuttled after him. Thane paused at the edge of the light, giving me a single, slow nod before vanishing into the gloom.
Silence reclaimed the cavern, but it felt lighter now. Less crowded.
I turned my gaze to Aria.
She was sitting by the dying embers of the fire, her knees pulled to her chest, her arms wrapped around her shins. She looked impossibly small. The shadows under her eyes were dark bruises against her pale skin.
I needed to see. The veil that had fallen over my sight when she woke from her "bad dream" was maddening. It was as if someone had thrown a heavy blanket over a mirror; I could see the shapes moving beneath, but no details. No color. If I could just touch her mind, if I could synchronize our rhythms... perhaps the static would clear.
I drifted toward her, gliding silently over the stone. I sat down across the fire from her, folding my legs beneath me in a meditative pose.
"They are gone," I said softly.
Aria didn't look up. She was staring into the red coals as if reading a language written in heat. "You lied to them."
"I adjusted the narrative," I corrected. "Kaelen needs a mission. Flynn needs movement. And we... we need quiet."
