Page 65 of The Cerulean Sister
99 sits while I remove his armor, insisting I do it myself. He holds onto the back of my thighs as I work the clasps, his forehead resting lazily between my breasts while I massage the tense, corded muscles on his shoulder. His grumbly response to my touch is so deep that I can feel the vibrations against my skin.
I run my fingers through the top of his hair, prompting him to look up at me, then I trace the deep lines in 99’s brow, attempting to smooth out the furrow still present.
His eyes look so dark in the low light of the room. They dance around my face like he is memorizing every tiny detail. His lips pull up in the smallest hint of a smile before he kisses me with such tenderness that it becomes excruciating not to have his body fully fitted against mine.
And when he carries me to our bed, we make love for the last time in our little home, off the busy market street, in the Viathan capital. It's sweet and slow but altogether heartbreaking.
I have never seen this number of Viathan commanders before. They line the courtyard in tight groups, lifeless and facing away from the massive ship that juts up into the sky like a black metal building.
August’s ship is miniaturized next to it as we stand at the bottom of the cargo hull doors, waiting for the lord general to see us off. The three of us are the first to leave, and 99 and the fleet will follow shortly after. August's expression is stern as he looks out into the huge courtyard, he takes being appointed as my transporter very seriously.
The groups of commanders become impossibly straight as the lord general and 99 walk into the courtyard. Their presence is so thick, each one draws their shoulders back a little more as 99 passes.
A chill runs through my body as 99 locks in on me, his powerful form sauntering across the landing area full of hundreds of commanders, all at his charge.
I can barely breathe as he approaches. I know he is coming to say goodbye.
He won’t tell me to stay; he has no intention of taking the chance to save my sister away from me. But seeing him now, all I want is for him to ascend our ship's ramp and come with me.
I need him. I trust my light to protect me, but I need him too.
As he reaches me, he removes his helmet and slams it into the stomach of the commander nearest him to hold.
His strong hand is on the back of my neck before I can say anything, pulling me into a deep, unashamed kiss in front of the fleet. He kisses me as if we are the only two people in thecourtyard and the hundreds of commanders are not watching his every move.
I plummet into the depths of our tether, seeking out and memorizing every amber corner, knees weak by the crash of emotion it brings knowing he is kissing me goodbye.
When we break away, he holds my chin, his breath still fanning my kiss-swollen lips as he speaks. "I will be waiting for you in the birthlands, Priestess. Find the evidence you need so I can come to you."
I quickly swipe away the tears falling down my cheeks, but he catches a few with a gentle caress of his thumb. I was not expecting this to feel so impossible that my fingers would clutch at him, refusing to let go.
"I will stay tethered as long as I can, but I don't know how far it will reach," I say, the words catching in my throat like spikes as they are spoken.
He nods. We both dread the moment we cannot feel each other in our minds’ eyes, when the ship is far enough away that my gifts can't hold on to our link any longer and that special part of us slips away.
In the group of capital workers huddled to watch the spectacle, I notice a frantically waving hand. I stare at the man towering over the rest of the people, and when I squint, he raises both arms, crossing them as if to get my attention.
99 curiously follows my eyeline, to the cluster of people by the capital archway.
I am so enmeshed in his mind that the moment he sees the man, I know who it is.
"Allister is here?" I ask 99 when he turns back to me.
"I sent him a message that we were deploying to Cosima."
"He is seeing you off?" I ask, assuming he is here for his son.
"He knows you are going to save your sister. He came for you."
"He did?" I wave back.
99 nods.
Allister smiles so broadly, my heart aches, then his expression changes to something else. There is so much written on his face that I can see his wrinkles from across the courtyard. This means more to him than just saying goodbye.
"You are braver than both of us." 99's fingertips graze over the fern pin in my hair.
Suddenly, it's heavier, pulling and reminding me it cannot come with me either.
