“I can’t ask that of you,” Andi said. “If you want to run, find somewhere safe...” But she knew there was nowhere safe. Not anymore.
His eyes were fierce and determined as he said, “You are my safety. Andi, we’re two of the most unlovable people in this galaxy. And yet somehow we found each other.”
She wanted to laugh at that, at the sincerity and pure Dexness of that statement. But he kept going.
“I intend to see to it that you live through this mission. So that when all is said and done, after we burn that mind-robbing witch and her brother to the ground, I can finally give you the life I’ve always wanted to give you. The adventures I always promised you.”
“I don’t need you to give me anything,” Andi said. “I can happily take it for myself.”
“You’re right,” Dex said. “You don’t. But I’d like to try anyway.”
“Okay,” Andi whispered. “How about we start with—”
He pulled her to him, pressing his lips against hers.
They hadn’t touched, hadn’t been close, in so long. But she found herself turning molten in his arms, found herself desperate for more of him as she wrapped her fingers in his hair and every part of her became a flame.
“I love you, Androma Racella,” Dex whispered against her lips. “I love you, and there’s not a damn thing you can do to change my mind.”
It was painful to say it. Terrifying. But Andi took the chance. For when tomorrow came, she wasn’t sure what would be left of her.
“I love you, too, Dextro Arez.”
They’d seen the darkest, most shadowed places of each other’s hearts. And yet here in this cavern, the world aglow around them as they kissed, all Andi felt was light.
CHAPTER 31
DEX
Dex felt great for a guy who might die tomorrow.
Knowing that Andi loved him meant that he would die happy. His whole body hummed knowing that, after so much time and through immense pain, he and Andi would always make their way back together. Not as the people they once were, but better.
He only wished he could take away the pain that he’d seen in Andi’s eyes since the moment of Lira’s execution. But pain like this needed to be felt, hard as it was to see it coursing through her. He could kill Nor for what she did, but he wouldn’t. That was Andi’s job.
“So what’s the plan?” Dex whispered into her ear as they turned down an empty hallway.
She stopped at a door and waved him over. “Through here is an entrance to the ships,” Andi whispered. “We’ll slip through and hijack one of them. From there, we’ll make things up as we go. I know Averia like the back of my hand. We’ll find the girls and get out.”
Dex wasn’t a stickler for precise mission planning; he usually liked leaving room for improvisation. But right now, they didn’t have any room to make mistakes. Sadly, they didn’t have time to make a solid plan. It was now or never.
He reached out and grabbed her hand, smoothing his thumb over her calluses. “Okay. We’ll make up the rest as we go.”
Andi smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Follow me.”
“To hell and back,” Dex agreed as Andi opened the door. She disappeared inside for a moment. He heard a muffled cry, then a thump, followed by the sound of groans. Andi stuck her head back out.
“All clear.”
Dex slipped through the door and emerged in a cavernous room full of hundreds of crates, stepping past two unconscious bodies.
“Sorry, friends,” Dex murmured to them.
The crates stretched across the dimly lit space, creating small walkways between stacks. The room looked like a warehouse where the Underground stored equipment for the ships. A few loose tubes dangled from one crate, while another was bursting with wires.
Andi was already a few paces ahead, scanning each aisle before moving on. Once clear, she gestured for him to follow.
It didn’t take long to cross the room. The ceiling was much higher than the room was wide. A door met them on the other side, this one armed with a keypad.
“Got the code?” Dex asked, eyeing the numbers.
Andi quirked a pale brow. “I may be good, but I’m not that good.”
She was right. When would she have had time to swipe access codes, since this whole plan had been configured in a blink of an eye?
“So what are we—” Dex stopped as Andi slipped a knife from her belt and slid the tip across the seam of the keypad. The front section popped off, revealing a mess of wiring, not unlike the crate he’d just passed.
She twiddled the colored strands between her fingers, following each wire to its source before picking the yellow one. She sliced it in half, and the door popped open.
Andi pumped her fist into the air as Dex whistled, impressed.
“We had similar keypads in Averia,” she told him. “I used to do this all the time to get into places I wasn’t allowed.”
“Naughty,” Dex teased.
Andi rolled her eyes. “Come on. We have to be quick.”
This time, Dex went first. Inside was an entire hangar of ships ripe for the taking, spread out like a display before them. There were older models scattered in with the new, all of them painted with the Solis crest on their sides and beneath their wings. To the left, Dex’s eye caught an old Ripper, a sleek white ship designed for the Solerans that he knew usually sounded, quite literally, like it was shredding the skies in which it soared. It had its bumps and bruises, and a wing that looked patched, but he’d never seen one before in person. Beside it was a newer model of a Scuttler, a ship that was razor-thin and lightweight, known for crumpling like a tin can if it was crashed, but marveled at for its capability to outsoar any ship even half its size.
Throughout the hangar, workers of all shapes and sizes marched around, droids and humans alike, busy as they hauled gear from ship to ship. Some of the ships were being torn apart entirely, reinforced with bits of metal from a massive pile at the end of the hangar. A graveyard of old ship parts, it seemed. Water dripped down from the top of the cavernous space, landing with a constant plink, plink, plink atop the ships.
“I miss my ship,” Andi murmured from beside him. Dex shuddered to think of what the Marauder looked like right now, out there, lifeless on the ice.
“You mean my ship,” he joked, trying to lighten her mood, even by just a fraction. She had enough heartbreak to handle as it was—no need to add more atop the pile, just to have it topple when she needed to keep it together the most.
“Act like we’re meant to be here,” Dex said, switching back to the mission. Sometimes hiding in plain sight was the best disguise.
Andi gave him a nod, and together they strolled into the hangar. A couple of engineers in green jumpsuits passed, and Dex gave them a casual nod, which one returned.
“Which ship do we grab?” Dex asked under his breath once the engineers were out of earshot.
“I say we go for the Sneaker in the back corner,” Andi suggested.
Dex followed her gaze and pinpointed a small ship across the way. To say it had seen better days was an understatement, and that was Dex being generous about its looks. The silver hull was marred with meteor dents and its nose had been scorched so badly, it was now charred a solid black.
But if it got them to Arcardius, he wasn’t going to complain. Still, Dex let his gaze linger longingly on the Ripper once more before heading toward their chosen ship.
“Going somewhere?” a familiar, metallic voice said behind them. Dex and Andi both stopped in their tracks.
“Arachnid,” Andi hissed.
Dex’s heart leaped, and he rested his hand near his gun. “Act casual,” he said quietly, but even while saying it, he knew the suggestion was futile. Nothing about this situation could be called casual.
Klaren came to stand in front of them, eyes hard. Dex sighed. Out
of everyone who could’ve stopped them, it just had to be her.
“I’m not here to stop you,” Klaren said, her hands held up defensively. “I’m here to go with you.”
“Sure you are,” Andi said, a mocking tone in her voice. “Because you seemed so willing to let me go when we spoke earlier.”
“I’ve done a lot of thinking since you stormed out of my office,” Klaren admitted. “We’ve tried to alter the outcome of all this by physical means, by pitting soldier against soldier. But if I know Nor and Darai, they won’t be fazed by that—they’ll just use our actions to inspire their followers even more.”
“So what are you going to do?” Dex asked.
“I am going to try and reason with them,” she said simply, as if they were merely discussing a fight between two toddlers.
Andi scoffed. “Like that will change their minds.”
“I only need to change Nor’s mind,” Klaren insisted. “Darai has been influencing it for far too long, but I think I can convince her to listen to reason. In any case, they’ll eventually figure out a way to access the nuclear arsenal, with or without you, Andi. You being out of their reach has just delayed the inevitable. And even if I ask you to stay, I know you’ll still try to figure out a way to rescue your girls.”
If there were any left to save.
“Fine,” Andi agreed. “So what’s the plan?”
“We get on that ship,” Klaren said, pointing at a slick Tracker ship to their left, “and meet your crew.”
* * *
Dex had loved ships all his life.
When he was younger, he’d never wanted anything but small models of the many ships in Tenebris’s fleet—and later, from the unique fleets of planets beyond his own. He’d pored over books about them, studying the way each beast had the capability to take to the black skies. Reveling in the way they could cart a person from one world to another in a matter of days, and do so in style.
He’d always admired them, been curious about them, even humored the idea of pursuing a career in piloting, before his life as a Guardian came into play.
His love for sleek ships only grew when he acquired the Marauder. Which was why, when Andi took it, he’d felt as if he’d lost the two most important things in his life—Andi being the first, of course, but the ship was definitely a close second. So many memories lingered in the halls of the Marauder, and not having it now, for such a monumental job, felt wrong.
Still...the Tracker was beautiful.
“This. Is. Heaven,” Dex said, slapping his hands together. He leaned back his head and howled like a wolf, then trotted farther into the Tracker. It was brand spanking new and full of gadgets Dex had never seen before.
“She’s a beauty, huh?” Soyina said, sliding down the ladder to his right. She landed lightly, like a cat. “She’s the newest vessel of her class.”
“How?” Andi asked in awe.
Soyina shrugged and waved a hand. “You’d be surprised to know how much loot we’ve managed to steal for our cause. I guess you could call us pirates. Better watch out, Baroness. The Underground is coming for your brand.”
Andi rolled her eyes.
Klaren, who had already climbed the staircase at the back of the cargo bay, waved them up before disappearing from view. The three of them followed, but once at the top, they were met with a solid wall.
Dex furrowed his brows, running a hand against the cold metal. “Where did she—”
“Just watch,” Soyina said, interrupting him. She swiped one finger against the wall, and it seemingly evaporated before his eyes, revealing a control room beyond.
“I’ll drink to that,” he said with an approving nod.
Andi waved her hand through where the wall once stood. “What was that?”
“Soluble nanotech. First of its kind,” Klaren answered from across the now-visible room. She sat in the elevated captain’s chair, lines of screens stretching out before her like a computerized army. A table stood in the center of the room, with a map of Mirabel projecting from it.
“So what’s your plan for getting us onto Arcardius without getting caught?” Andi asked.
Before Klaren could respond, another voice piped up. “That would be me, the answer to all your problems.”
Dex nearly leaped out of his skin as Eryn materialized before him.
“Where did you come from?” Andi breathed.
Eryn smiled, climbing atop the table, making the map twinkle out. She pulled her knees to her chest. “I’ve been following you almost all day.”
Oh, Godstars, was she there when he and Andi...?
Dex pushed the thought aside. Eryn grinned at him with all her teeth, as if she could read his mind.
“And how are you going to solve all our problems, exactly?” Andi asked, propping a hand on her hip.
“I’m going to hide the ship.” As she spoke, Eryn placed both hands on the metal hull, closing her eyes and tilting her head at just enough of an angle to still show off her smile. Then she hopped off the table and went to the front of the ship, placing her hands against the controls.
“Come, come.” Andi and Dex sidled up next to her.
“Watch the outside of the ship.” She closed her eyes, and they watched as the front of the ship began to flicker, gradually fading from view. Then, as soon as it disappeared, the cloaking lifted as Eryn raised her hands again.
“They won’t even know we’re there until we start kicking some ass.” She smirked.
“Enough showing off. Get over here, people,” Soyina said from the table.
All five of them gathered around. Klaren spoke first.
“We’ve received new intelligence that the satellite is going to be launching sooner than expected, due to Valen’s declining health,” she told them. “That’s another reason for me agreeing to this preemptive internal strike. If we can end this with just the few of us, countless lives will be saved. But if we fail, I’ve given orders for the Underground to move ahead with our original plan.”
Dex and Andi exchanged a look. “Which is...?” he asked.
“War.”
CHAPTER 32
VALEN
Valen awoke to a hideous throbbing in his temples.
It was cold, so cold, when he opened his eyes to a darkness as deep as the night.
He tried to lift his hands, but they were stuck. Pressed tightly together behind his back, as if someone had taken a cord and bound him.
“Hello?” he whispered.
He couldn’t see his legs when he looked down, couldn’t make out his torso or the chair he could feel himself sitting in. But Valen knew that he was inside his mind castle, could feel it when he closed his eyes.
What had Darai done?
How could he have had such power—the ability to lock Valen up inside his own mind—and Valen had never even sensed it?
He tried to think back on the past moments they’d shared, tried to remember something that would have given the Exonian away...but the memories were distant. Already fading, as if tugged away from him on a spectral wind.
Valen closed his eyes, trying to regain control of himself. He was in his mind, safe in his fortress. And yet the chill of the air was so deep that it stung with each breath he took. His head kept pounding, like the angry beat of a drum.
This was his domain. He could control it. Will it to obey him, for he was the creator. And once he got out, he would find Darai and solve this once and for all.
Nor is going to betray you, Darai had said.
Valen couldn’t let himself believe it. Not now.
He imagined the darkness lifting, the light of a burning torch as his guide.
There, to his left. A torch flickered into existence, the light a brilliant glow that chased the darkness away. He craned his neck as far around as it could go, trying to look behind him. Nothing but
walls, endless and without an exit door or window.
He rocked back and forth, trying to loosen his bindings, but they remained as tight as ever. No matter what he did, the castle refused to bend any further to his will. The bonds refused to fall free. The obsidinite walls remained intact, neither crumbling when he imagined it, nor splitting apart to create a door to the other side when he begged it to do so.
Had he finally lost his power?
He began to wonder if Darai hadn’t been lying. If perhaps Valen was already trapped inside Nexus, and would spend forever inside his mind, locked in a castle of his own making.
Valen screamed, rage coursing through him. Panic took over. This was wrong, terribly wrong...
“LET ME OUT!”
He thought he was screaming to no one, until a figure made entirely of shadow stepped through the obsidinite walls and into the room.
“Valen, Valen,” it said. “When will you learn? There is so much more for you than this.”
The figure spread its arms wide, black coils of shadow undulating around it like chains.
“Darai?” Valen asked, the word forming clouds in the cold air.
Darai laughed, the shadows shaking and hissing.
“I tried, Valen. I truly did try to keep it a secret until the time was right. But it seems your foolish sister cannot make the choice she needs to.”
“Keep what a secret?” Valen asked.
Darai stepped closer, the cold intensifying as his hands touched Valen’s temples.
Valen screamed as his mind went black.
A ruined canvas, and a painter that did not belong.
“Your mind must be opened,” Darai whispered, “so that you can see whose side you really wish to be on. I tried to bring you to my end of things, in the beginning. Don’t you remember when I visited you in Lunamere? Before your sister ever did.”
But Valen was lost to the pain. Lost to the shadows. And as he screamed, the darkness reached inside and dragged its claws across his mind.
“All this time, I needed you to grow stronger. To hone your skills, so that you could rise up and give your sister the power she needed. Then, finally, once your body failed and I got you out of the way... I would become the king Exonia needs.”
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