Page 50 of Eclipse Bound
Eclipse retreated into the deepest part of his consciousness, to where the essence of his true self remained uncompromised. There, he nurtured a small, hidden spark, a reservoir of twilight energy shielded from Milano's detection.
Rowan was out there. She was searching for him. And when the moment came, he would be ready.
The containment field hummed as it was prepared for transport. Eclipse allowed himself to drift again, conserving strength for whatever came next. His last coherent thought before returning to the void was simple but profound.
Rowan. I am here, waiting in the twilight between worlds.
Chapter
Fourteen
Rowan's knuckles were white against the worn leather of the jeep steering wheel as she navigated the rugged desert trail. The vehicle bounced violently over ruts and stones, but she didn't slow down. She couldn't. Not with Eclipse's energy stone pulsing against her chest, tucked safely in a makeshift pouch she'd fashioned from a strip of leather and hung around her neck.
"I'm coming," she whispered, as if he could hear her. "Just hold on."
The stone had changed three hours ago. After days of silence, three endless days of hopelessness, it had suddenly warmed against her skin in the predawn darkness, emanating a faint purple glow that matched the twilight color of Eclipse's true form.
That's when she knew. He was alive, and somehow, he was calling to her.
She could find him.
The desert stretched endlessly before her, red rocks and scrub brush blurring as tears pricked at her eyes. She'd left the cabin before sunrise, stealing away while Lunar was distracted and Poppy was still asleep. She'd left a note, of course. She wasn't completely reckless.
“Gone to find Eclipse. Milano has him. Don't follow. Stay hidden. I'll be back.”
She hoped it was true.
Rowan had taken Poppy’s jeep and snuck away without asking. Lunar needed to remain hidden. Two strange aliens named Bob and Gary had picked up Solar and Dani. The aliens had contacted them through a communication device that looked like a tiny drone, explaining that extraction had become too dangerous with Milano's increased surveillance.
They'd managed to get Solar and Dani safely aboard their ship under cover of darkness, but Eclipse's energy signature was missing from their scanners.
She hadn't mentioned how she knew where to find Eclipse.
"We'll return for the others in fourteen Earth days," Bob had told Lunar. "Once Milano gives up their hunt."
Fourteen days. Two weeks of Milano having Eclipse. It was too long. She couldn't wait. Not when she felt him. Galaxy Brides was an all but useless ally. Their extraction timelines seemed arbitrarily set. First a month. Then forty-eight hours. Now fourteen days."
The stone pulsed again, stronger this time. Rowan adjusted her course slightly, following its rhythmic response like an otherworldly compass. The closer she got, the more intensely it vibrated.
According to the tattered map she'd found in Poppy's glove compartment, she was approaching an area marked with nothing but a series of hash marks and a warning, "Gov't Land. No Trespassing."
Precisely where she'd expect a secret Milano research facility to be located.
The terrain grew increasingly rougher as she followed a barely visible track that wound between massive red rock formations. The jeep's ancient suspension groaned in protest.
"Come on, baby. Just a little farther," she coaxed the vehicle, patting its dashboard like a faithful pet.
The sun had risen, casting long shadows across the desert floor. She'd have to abandon the jeep soon and continue on foot. A vehicle this noisy would alert any security patrols long before she got close enough to do Eclipse any good.
As she rounded a bend, a massive mesa rose before her, its flat top perfect for concealing a facility. The energy stone practically hummed against her skin now, confirmation she was on the right track.
Rowan brought the jeep to a stop behind a large boulder and cut the engine. She sat for a moment in the sudden silence, listening for any signs she'd been detected. There was nothing but the whisper of desert wind and the hard beating of her heart.
She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t scared. She was terrified.
Rowan checked her supplies. There was a backpack containing water, power bars, a first aid kit, binoculars, and a small toolkit she'd found in Poppy's cabin. Hardly the equipment needed for a rescue mission, but it was all she had.
A gun would have been better. Or an army.
