I couldn't see anything. The darkness pressed in, and all sound seemed muffled, like I was underwater. My heart thundered as I tried to get my bearings, but there was nothing to orient myself with, just darkness.
Then, streaks of purple light shot across what I assumed was the sky, briefly illuminating dark fog that swirled around us in thick, choking clouds. The light was gone as quickly as it had appeared, plunging us back into darkness.
"Juno!" Cypher's voice sounded distant. "Juno, where are you?"
I tried to call back but words caught in my throat. Another flash of purple light, and I saw his silhouette moving through the fog.
"Here," I finally managed, barely above a whisper.
He found me in the next flash, materializing out of the darkness like a ghost. His hands were warm when they found mine, and he helped me to my feet. "Are you hurt?" he asked, his face briefly illuminated by another streak of light.
Before I could answer, I heard them. Whispers, dozens, maybe hundreds of them, all around us. They were soft at first, almost imperceptible beneath the strange muffled quality of this place. But they grew, multiplied, pushed from all sides.
'Come stay... come join... never alone again...'
A sinking pit formed in my stomach. I knew these whispers. I'd heard them before, during those three nightmarish days lost in the Gallery, waiting to either die or be rescued. The voices had kept me company then, growing louder each day, more insistent.
"No," I gasped, backing up. "No, not again."
My breathing quickened, and soon I couldn't get enough air. The fog seemed to thicken around me, and the whispers became more urgent, more demanding.
'Stay with us...'
“Listen to me." Cypher grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to look at him. "They're only echoes. They can't hurt you."
"I know what they are," I said, trembling. I knew they couldn't physically harm me, but that didn't make their presence less terrifying.
They pressed closer, the fog swirling more violently around us. I felt them reaching for me, trying to entice me to join them, to stay with them. The pendant at my neck burned cold, responding to their presence.
"Where are we?" I asked, struggling to keep my panic under control. "This isn't the normal Gallery. It's different."
Cypher was silent, his eyes scanning the darkness. There was an odd look on his face. He knew this place. He knew exactly where we were, but he wasn't saying.
"Cypher," I insisted, grabbing his arm. "Whereare we?"
He opened his mouth to respond, but more whispers joined the chorus, drowning out his words. I could almost make out individual voices now, begging me to stay, promising peace, belonging, and an end to the constant struggle.
My panic reached a breaking point. The whispers were inside my head now, behind my eyes, under my skin. My chest felt too tight, my heart beating too fast. I couldn't breathe.
Something cold brushed against my arm and I screamed, the sound tearing from my throat. Suddenly, we were being tugged again, pulled by another current. The darkness blurred around us, the whispers fading as we were yanked away.
Then, we slammed hard onto the wooden deck of The Night-Piercer, as if we'd never left. I lay there gasping, the solid feel of the ship beneath me the most welcome sensation I'd ever experienced. Above us, the storm still raged, but it was just a normal void storm now, dangerous, but manageable. Not like the place we'd just escaped. Cypher recovered first, rolling to his feet.
"Captain!" Jask shouted, eyes wide with shock. "How—where did you?—"
"No time!" Cypher yelled back. "Get us out of this storm! Bearing one-eighty, full speed!"
The crew scrambled to obey, though I saw the confused glances they exchanged. One moment we'd been pulled overboard, the next we were back on deck. None of them had seen where we'd gone.
Cypher helped me to my feet. "Are you alright?"
I nodded shakily, though "alright" was far from how I felt. "What was that place? And don't tell me you don't know."
He glanced around to ensure no one was close enough to hear, then leaned in. "We can talk about it later. When we're safe."
I grabbed his arm. "Now, Cypher."
Cypher's expression was strange as he said, "The place that exists beyond the Gallery."
