Leo placed his hand on my shoulder. “That doesn’t mean anything, sis. They could be giving us time to complete our mission.”
I turned on my locator, and the screen flashed with information. “We’re far enough from the crystals. It works!”
“I’ll tell Tauren ‘mission accomplished’.” Nova turned on her screen.
“Already am.” From years of practice, my fingers flew over the tiny keypad. I sent the message, wishing Asteran had a locator, too. What message would I send him? It was too soon to feel love, even though fire raced through my body at the sight of him and I didn’t know what I’d do if he didn’t make it back. I’d probably just ask him to stay safe.
“Now what?” Leo squinted at the ridge.
Nova started walking. “Let’s make it back to the ship. They’ll meet us there.”
We followed the same path we’d taken to get to the tunnel, using the stalagmites for cover. A couple of arachnids raced past us, but they weren’t interested in us at all.
Halfway to the ship, a large explosion shook the ground, rattling in my ears. I fell to my knees and covered my head, along with Leo and Nova. A blast of air blew past us. Dust and debris rained down. A rock as large as my fist hit the ground just centimeters from my head. I stood, coughing as the cloudy haze cleared.
My stomach dropped with the finality of the moment. A large chunk had been blown off the ridge. There were no ships left. Asteran and Tauren had set off the bomb.
Leo came up beside me. “Don’t worry. I’m sure he got away.”
I turned to my brother and clutched his uniform in my hands. “Can you see the future? Are you sure?”
He shook his head. “I’m sorry. I see nothing.”
“We’ve got to keep moving.” Nova’s hardened professional face had returned, and I hated her for it. Couldn’t she see why I was worried?
Of course she can. But there’s nothing she can do except ensure our safety.
“Let’s start walking.” Leo nudged my arm. “The sooner we reach the ship, the sooner you can see them.”
If they survived the blast. I forced my feet to move and followed them back to the ship. A sinking feeling in my gut told me I wouldn’t like what I saw when we got there.
“Over there! Someone’s coming over the ridge.” Nova pointed to a shadow of a human figure. My adrenaline kicked into high gear, and we all started running.
“Why is there only one?” Leo shouted as he ran beside me.
I shook my head, unwilling to accept the fact it might not be Asteran. I knew in my heart I still needed to talk with Tauren. If he was gone, then I’d failed at the very basic human courtesy, the one of truth.
The figure grew larger as we converged toward the ship. The burly shoulders and shaved head told me what my heart couldn’t accept.
Tauren reached us, panting and drenched with sweat. He was in top shape, but he slumped forward as though he’d run harder than he ever had before. Leo and Nova braced him on either side, helping him to the ship.
My eyes scanned the ridge. “Where’s Asteran?”
Tauren shook his head. “He stayed to detonate the bomb. He sent me away.”
“No.” I fell to my knees, numb with shock and denial. Asteran was gone? I couldn’t bring myself to accept the fact I wouldn’t see his ever-changing eyes and his gorgeous face again. My soul hollowed out until I didn’t think there was anything left for me. I shook my finger at Tauren. “You left him behind!”
“He ordered me to leave him, Lyra.” Tauren broke free of Leo and Nova and stood in front, pointing his finger at my forehead. “You can’t accept the fact he was in this for revenge—not for us. Not for you.”
I buried my face in my hands. I didn’t want Tauren to see me cry.
“Get up and come with us to the ship. Leave your childish fascination behind.” Tauren spoke like a parent to his misbehaving kid.
Grief enveloped me, and I had no words to say. It wasn’t a childish fascination. What I had with Asteran was real. He’d said so himself. We’d shared memories, something his kind only did when they were destined to be together. How could I ignore that?
“If you remember correctly, we’re supposed to be matched next month. Now, get to your feet and follow your duty to me and to the Guide.”
“No.” The word came out of nowhere, and I knew this was the time I’d been waiting for. Leo and Nova stood silent. My brother gave me a slight nod of approval.
Tauren narrowed his eyes and put his hands on his hips, looking like his father, surveying operations. “What do you mean no?”
I gazed right into his eyes with determination. “I don’t want to be paired with you. I should have told you a long time ago when they nullified the pairings, but I was afraid.” My voice softened, “I was a coward, Tauren, and I’m sorry.”
He pointed to the cloud of dust on the far ridge. “He’s not coming back, Lyra. What are going to do? Not have a lifemate?”
I stood, gaining confidence. “He’s not the reason why I want to break our lifemate tie. I just don’t think we’re suited for each other. Sure, the computer says we’re the genetically perfect match, but what about our personalities, our feelings? We have nothing in common.”
Tauren’s face had cracked into a mix of anger and pain. “We have the Guide in common, and that’s enough.”
“Maybe it used to be, when we were stuck on that ship for hundreds of years, but Commander Barliss destroyed the system. We can choose for ourselves.”
Tauren came right up in my face and his voice fell to a menacing whisper. “Let me get this straight: you’d rather have no one than be paired with me?”
This was the moment I’d feared, the confrontation I’d circumvented for so long. Would he hit me, kill me, blast me with his laser?
Behind him, Leo and Nova held up their weapons, ready to fire if need be. Tauren was too close. They’d never reach him in time. Both my weapons were holstered, one on each side. If I moved, he’d stop me.
Was I ready to die for my freedom? I stared right into his mud brown eyes. “Yes.”
Tauren’s hands closed on my neck, and he whirled me around, using my body to block their weapons. I choked, unable to breathe as he lifted me from the ground. I kicked at him, but his arms were long, and he held me away from his body like a biodome worker would hold a chicken.
I fought for air as dizziness started to overtake me. This was it. I’d die on this forsaken arachnid planet, along with my destined soul mate. It sounded like a terrible Romeo-and-Juliet story, the kind I’d hated reading in school. To experience it in real life was much worse.
Tauren’s hands grew hot around my neck, and he let go. I fell to the ground, and pain exploded through the right side of my body. Black splotches spread in front of my eyes.
I blinked, using all of my strength to stay awake. Hot liquid oozed down my face, and I brought my hand to the back of my head. Blood.
Why wasn’t Tauren coming after me? I glanced up, and a shield of blue light had spread between Tauren and me. Leo and Nova kneeled beside me. Nova felt my forehead. “Are you all right?”
“I think so.” I turned to Leo in awe. “How did you?”
He shook his head. “I didn’t.”
I whirled around toward the ridge. Asteran stood on the far edge, his hands spread out to the sky. Blue light glowed from his palms. His body shuddered and he fell to his knees, still managing to keep his arms raised with what little strength he must have had left.
“Watch Tauren.” I struggled to stand, pushing Leo and Nova away. “I have to help him.”
Asteran fell forward as I ran toward him. By the time I reached him, his eyes were closed. I felt his pulse, and a scary few seconds went by before I detected a heartbeat. I dragged him into my lap, smoothing my hand through his hair. Ash and soot covered half his face, and a scrape as long as my finger ran down his cheek, oozing blood.
His eyes flickered open. “Lyra, are you all right?”
I laughed. “I’m more than okay. I’m jumping with joy inside. You’re alive. You came back.”
“There was a moment where I could have stayed. I’d accomplished my mission and my people had all passed into the land of shining light. My home had been destroyed. Was there anything left for me? Then I thought of you.”
I melted, wondering if any other moment could be so perfect. I wiped the soot from his face, revealing his swirly tattoos. The vine that had reached across his cheek to blossom around his eye had lengthened into a gorgeous pattern of rippling circles spreading to his eyebrow.
“Your markings on your face! They’ve changed.”
His eyes widened, evolving from lavender to a deep, dark navy blue. “What? Really?”
I nodded, so proud of him my chest could burst. “That means you’ve grown.”
He touched his face then glanced at me. “All because of you.”
Before I could deny it, he rose from my lap and brought his lips to mine. His mouth was warm, soft and gentle. I kissed him back with a passion I’d never felt before. He responded by pulling me close with a fierce desperation I’d hadn’t seen in him before.
Love wasn’t the rush of attraction that flooded my hormones when I’d first seen him on the ship. Okay, maybe it had started that way, but it had deepened into something more complex: a joy in his accomplishments, an interest in his past, an understanding of what made him who he was, and an acceptance of the things about him I couldn’t change. Asteran wasn’t the only one of us who’d grown during this mission. I’d learned to confront my demons and look deeper than the surface value. Enough thought.
The world around us vanished as we shared more of each other’s memories.