Page 98 of Nyx
“Ljómur was like Glaston multiplied by a hundred. Aside from those who worked there, very few people were aware of its existence, and if you talked? You disappeared, and we’re not talking about the friendly ‘take a few days off and think about what you’ve done’ type of disappearing. We all knew that whatever was happening there, whatever they were discovering, had to be terrible. And yeah, not everyone there was good. Most of them weren’t. Guards, medics, scientists… most of them were a fucking scourge on this planet and deserved to die a more painful death than the one they were given. But the rest of us?”
He’s quiet again for a stretch, and the only noise is the birds that chirp in the distance and the crackle of the fire. “The rest of us died a little more every time we had to do it. When Matuk claims he was too scared to do anything, I believe him. I was scared too. We all were. We had to fit in or meet our fates, and yeah… maybe that makes him a coward. Maybe we were all fucking cowards, but we made our choices, and we have to live with the consequences of those.”
He glances up, eye flickering between Ronan and Elas. “You know a little about living with your demons.”
Elas’s eyes are unfocused as August puts his arms around him and pulls him into a tight hug, while Cameron holds Ronan from behind, his chin resting on Ronan’s shoulder.
“So what do we do, then?” August asks. “What’s our plan? We’re building a home here, but we’re also searching for more. You said Nyx could affect the portal?” A few of us nod as everyone looks at Nyx by my side. “What if we open one of them? What then?”
A few glances are exchanged before Taryn speaks up. “Then we go through.”
“What?!” Ronan and I ask together, but she only scoffs and waves her hand around the group.
“You believe the fates gave us our mates… that they put this in motion. That these connections we’re making are supposed to be the cure, and we are the ones destined to fix this place. Somehow, against the millions of odds, we found each other and ended up here.Together.Sitting around the village building furniture and gardening isn’t going to do shit. No offence, Reyes,” she adds, just a touch grudgingly.
“None taken,” I grumble back before she continues.
“If you believe—trulybelieve—we are part of something so much bigger than ourselves, then we don’t have a choice. And Idobelieve that.” She takes Lillith’s hand in hers, and Lillith gives her a soft smile. “I might never have prayed to the fates, but they answered my prayers, regardless. Nothing else could explain how much I love her. You all understand what I’m talking about.”
My gaze moves to Nyx, and I find those bright sage eyes staring up at me as well. There’s so much love therethat sometimes, I don’t know what to do with it. He gives me a soft, uncertain smile, and I sigh as I press a kiss against his forehead. “Yeah,” I whisper against his skin. “I know what you mean.”
“That doesn’t mean we go through,” Ronan says, with a touch of hysteria building in his tone. “It doesn’t mean we risk this. I willnotrisk him,” he snarls, making himself larger like one of us might try to take Cameron away from him.
“If this world burns, he burns with it, Ronan,” Taryn says gently. “If the military takesmorepower, us little guys don’t stand a fucking chance.” A shadow passes over the village, the sun ducking under cover like it too wants to hide from this conversation.
“We’re getting off track here,” Elas interrupts before Ronan can wind himself up too far. “A few sparks from a rift are a long way from just waltzing through. The question at hand isn’t whether to jump fucking worlds. It’s whether we trust these people enough to allow them into our home.” His attention shifts to Xeni, and it feels like an unspoken truce is called between the two of them. “Tell us about these scientists. Can they even help with the portals?”
“Aryn, maybe. He worked directly in that part of the operation. Sprocket… eh.” He tilts his hand back and forth in front of him. “She’s more of an engineer than a scientist. I’m not sure how much she could help in that area, but she could work wonders with the things we’re struggling with here. Solar panels, wells.”
“Gods, hot showers,” Cameron groans, and I sigh wistfully at the fantasy.
“And you trust them?” Elas asks, some of that diplomacy dissolving as he looks Xeni up and down. “You don’t have the same stakes as the rest of us, you know.” It’s a dig at Xeni being the only unmated person here, and it seems to hit its target. Xeni’s gaze drops to the ground, and I notice he rubs his hip again.
“Just because I don’t have a mate inside this place doesn’t mean I don’t care.”
“What about Matuk?” I ask. “He’s fucking enormous—”
“Not to mention our track record with Khileons is pretty fucking awful,” Ronan interjects, and Elas grunts his agreement.
“That’s not fair,” Lillith says, with an uncharacteristic seriousness about her. “Yeah, Bravis and Khors were dicks, but so are plenty of my kind. Hells, you ripped the throat out of one not long ago. Lots of Nu’vak are assholes, including the one Reyes just killed, but judging an entire group of people based on the actions of a few is beneath you.”
Ronan ducks his head, admonished, and nods. “Yeah. You’re right. I’m just… I fucking hate this.”
“I trust Matuk,” August says, but Elas snorts.
“You trust everyone.”
“There is safety in numbers,” Taryn says, ignoring Elas and August as they glare at each other. “If we want to do more than survive, we’re going to have to learn to work with others. We can’t do this alone. I’m not saying to be careless,” she interjects as Ronan opens his mouth, “but to be smart. Xeni trusts these scientists, and the prisoners? Don’t they deserve a moment to breathe? A life that isn’tbehind those bars? Isn’t that the whole reason we fought to give them their freedom?”
“The prisoners aren’t a threat,” I say as I hug Nyx closer. “And I’m with Taryn on this. What was the point in freeing them if we’re just leaving them to the wolves?” She gives me a faint smile and tips her head in a nod, and Ronan groans as he leans forward and rests his forehead in his hands.
“Alright. Who’s opposed?” When silence follows, Ronan growls and jumps up from his spot, shoving his hand through his hair. “Fucking democracy,” he mutters, pacing in an agitated line back and forth. After a few cycles, and a few pointedly deep breaths, he nods and plops back into his seat. Cameron yelps as Ronan yanks him into his lap, but curls against his chest like he knows how much Ronan needs it. When Ronan speaks, it’s low and barely controlled.
“Alright. If we do this, we do it right. We don’t go back there without a plan.”
Nyx
Thenextfewdaysare a whirlwind of activity in the village. Ronan and Elas work with the humans on defensive techniques while Lillith reinforces everyone’s homes. She installs locking mechanisms on the doors and windows that are primitive, but effective. They even hold when she slams her weight against them, so it adds another layer of defense.
