For the first time in years, Sagan was looking forward to the Progeny group meeting tonight. Too bad it was January and too cold for only a sports bra. Rayne would like that. Instead, Sagan settled for extra clingy workout gear, emphasizing her curves.

She pumped her hair up with her fingers and applied heavy gray eyeshadow. The shade always made her think of Korac. Sagan had missed him last night, probably more than she should.

They’d make up for it tonight. The thought brought a smile to Sagan’s glossed lips, a sexy one she took time to appreciate in the mirror.

Tonight.

Until then, Sagan kissed her mom on the way out. “I’m heading to Rayne’s for movie night. I’ll be back before ten. Love you.”

“Have fun, dear. Drive safe.”

Everything was coming together.

The chilly day had left the windshield frosted, so Sagan sat in the car warming her hands as she waited for it to defrost. She checked the rear-view mirror and tried to ignore that the gloss didn’t quite hide the split in her lower lip.

Over the last year, Justin had become careful and only bruised Sagan in places hidden by her clothes. But after Sagan blew Rayne a kiss yesterday morning, he’d lost control. She’d known it was coming by the satisfied look on Stacia and Cecily’s faces. The look of smug siblings who knew the other kid was about to get punished. At least Lucy wasn’t smug. More curious. As if she’d wondered why Sagan kept pushing Justin’s buttons.

Sagan knew the reason ‘why’ all too well. It satisfied the masochist in her, but she didn’t enjoy facing such an ugly truth. So she stopped looking in the mirror and headed out.

The training grounds looked magical under the light of the full moon, making all the frost glow in ethereal light. Of course, Rayne was already there, sparring with Xelan.

He stopped defending against Rayne when he saw Sagan. “Hey!”

Audacious as always, Rayne said, “You look amazing.”

Sagan almost laughed. She was hiding her hair under a hood and shivering beneath a puffy coat, but she appreciated the compliment, nonetheless. “Thanks. So do you, but aren’t you cold?”

Rayne had on layered tanks with no extra layers for pants. “Nah. I feel great.” An out-of-place blush graced Rayne’s cheeks. In fact, she looked a little different. More relaxed and confident, yet somehow shy.

Rayne was hiding something.

“Well, you’re making me cold looking at you,” Kyle said, as he emerged from the tree line with Andrew.

The other boy waved with bags under his eyes.

Sagan asked, “Aren’t you getting any sleep, Andrew?”

He glanced at Xelan, who looked away, before saying, “Oh, you know? I’m missing winter vacation already, but at least this is our last year.”

“Hell yes!” Tameka appeared next. “Seniors, baby. It’s almost over.”

The entire group beamed at each other.

Xelan looked especially proud before clapping his hands together, killing the moment. “Okay. Tonight is more of a briefing. We need to discuss the players in Nox’s camp. I know. I know. This is a matter of strategy. Something The Brethren mostly managed for the invasion.” He grinned. “But now you’re ready.”

Sagan and the others went to the picnic table, ready for a lesson. She sat beside Rayne, and, feeling bold, brushed the other girl’s fingers. With an attempt at discretion, Rayne stiffened only momentarily before lacing her fingers with Sagan’s gloved ones, warming each other through.

Xelan, oblivious to the reunion, lectured in a black tee and cargo pants, impervious to the cold. “From the intelligence I’ve gathered through The Brethren, Cinder’s royal council functions on rotation. It’s impossible to know who currently holds a seat. However, there are two allegiances sworn to the King which have survived for longer than you can imagine.”

At Xelan’s dramatic pause, Kyle rolled his eyes and groaned. “Yeah? Are you planning on telling us?”

Andrew nudged him with a friendly chuckle.

Tameka clicked her tongue and cut the air with her hand. “Don’t mind him. We know you’ll get to it.”

Rayne squeezed Sagan’s hand before glancing her way with a beaming grin on her face.

What a silly family they’d built over the years.

“As I was saying…” Xelan winked at Tameka before continuing. “Nox keeps two people closest to him.” Xelan held up a sketch of a beautiful woman with angelic features right down to her cherubic curls. “Colita mitigates trade relations and commerce, but her primary function is to serve Nox as a source of sustenance. He feeds only from her.”

Beside Sagan, Rayne stiffened, and her smile disappeared as if it had never been.

Kyle asked, “So, she’s valuable to Nox; therefore, should be targeted in regards to the invasion?”

Xelan glanced over at Andrew, who confessed, “In some ways, she’s already invaded. She’s contacted me in my dreams a few times over the last two years.”

Sagan frowned. She wasn’t the only one getting nocturnal visitors?

“Me, too,” Kyle piped up.

Xelan tilted his head to the side in an avian gesture, asking, “Why haven’t you ever mentioned this before?”

Kyle tangled his fingers in his hair and blew the air out of his cheeks. “Well, I didn’t think she was real, and the nature of the dreams were kind of private.”

Private.

Sagan looked between Andrew and Tameka to glimpse Kyle’s reddening cheeks.

Xelan’s bewildered expression while he stared at the ground wasn’t very reassuring. He asked, “Did Colita tell you anything we can use?”

“She told me what Nox wants.” Kyle sounded a little smug or angry, even.

Without looking up from the grass, Xelan’s eyes doubled in size.

Andrew shifted uncomfortably next to Tameka, who asked, “What is that supposed to mean?!”

Rayne remained eerily silent, still rigid beside Sagan. Her hand even went clammy.

Kyle opened his mouth to say more, but Xelan cut him off. “Let me. Please.”

The younger man conceded with a nod.

Xelan ran a hand through his hair and sighed. After which, he leveled his gaze on Rayne in a way that sent a chill down Sagan’s spine. There was too much fear in his eyes.

Xelan said, “The reason I know the invasion will start in Little Rock—the reason Nox will find the Progeny first—is you, Rayne. Nox wants you.”

Sagan could only see Rayne’s profile, and there was almost no reaction. Aside from a single tear. Sagan squeezed Rayne’s hand, trying to warm her suddenly freezing fingers.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Tameka, Andrew, and Kyle likewise checked for her reaction, and Tameka wasn’t having it. She put an arm around Rayne and chafed her bicep, pegging Xelan with a fierce expression as she asked, “Can you tell us why?”

Xelan crossed the clearing and took Rayne’s free hand, kindly oblivious to Sagan’s grip on her. He said to Rayne, “He wants your blood which is the only way to open the conduit.”

Sagan frowned. “Wait. If it’s the only way to open the conduit, then how could he get here in the first place?”

Andrew answered with entirely too much confidence for someone who should be as much in the dark as the rest of them. “It’s not the only conduit.”

Kyle said, “And they only need a drop. They could find other ways to get your blood—As far as I’ve gathered from Colita. A little blood; a little door. All of Rayne’s blood; all of the door.”

Tameka put her face in Rayne’s field of vision, brushed her brunette hair from her eyes, and said, “He has to come through us, first. Right, Rayne?”

The look on her best friend’s face made Sagan want to cry. Something had broken inside Rayne. Sagan leaned in and whispered, “I won’t let him take you from me.”

Rayne turned and searched Sagan’s eyes. No other tears fell, but ‘devastated’ was the only way to describe the lost look in those shattered sapphires. “I wanted to save the worlds…” The words trailed off as if Rayne feared finishing the sentence. After the broken confession, she shook herself, her strength gathering in her eyes. “I’ll kill him.”

Xelan brought Rayne to him so he could kiss the top of her head. Against her hair, he said, “That’s my badass warrior.”

Kyle disguised a disgusted sound with a cough.

Andrew nudged him hard enough to knock him off the table.

Tameka muttered, “Serves you right.”

Sagan felt better when Rayne squeezed her hand and shot her a reassuring look. It wasn’t anything close to a smile, but it was better than despondent grief.

Relieved, Sagan changed the subject. “So, who else should we send packing back to Cinder?”

“Ah.” Xelan held up a finger as he backed up and rifled through his bag for another sketch. “Nox’s second-in-command. The Silver General.”

Silver.

General.

Sagan blinked.

Then Xelan held up the next sketch, and bile rose in Sagan’s throat. Pale hair, eyes, and skin. Soft angles and prominent cheekbones. Xelan even nailed the smirk, as if familiar with the expression. When he said Korac’s name, she cupped a hand over her mouth to keep from vomiting.

Rayne glanced at Sagan, before double-taking and staring at her best friend. But Sagan could hardly notice. The rest of Xelan’s lecture floated on the chilled air, fuzzy and confusing.

Korac.

Four years.

“Xelan didn’t send me. I’m here against orders not to interfere with your training, but you’re so vital, I couldn’t stay away.”

Four years and sex.

“Xelan could face major consequences for contacting you. As would I. So please. Don’t endanger him further by mentioning me, and we’ll keep our sessions a secret.”

In love…

With Nox’s second-in-command.

Xelan continued his lecture. “Korac’s a brutal fighter—quick to kill. He’s more agile than Nox and—”

“Is Korac under Nox’s influence like the other Icari?” Sagan blurted. All eyes fell on her. She regretted the attention, but she needed to know the answer. “Does he have no other choice but to serve Nox?”

Xelan’s faint wince went unnoticed by everyone by Sagan as the others continued to stare at her. Clear and grim, Xelan declared, “Korac chose Nox.”

No.

“Like Nox’s ring, you can tell them apart by signatures with this symbol on it.” Xelan held up a sketch of the same heart-shaped emblem as Korac’s axes. “You’ve heard me talk about the Pretiosum Cruor. This is it. It held Celindria’s blood, and now they need Rayne’s for the same purpose.”

Sagan’s heart sank. Her body felt like an anchor, weighing her down. This happened sometimes when Justin hurt her, but this time it hurt more. Sagan’s focus splintered into useless pulp as her thoughts scattered into the night.

No thinking.

No feeling.

As Xelan continued his lecture, Sagan drifted away.

“Babe, the meeting’s over. Can we talk?”

Rayne.

The concern in her voice brought Sagan back to her body. How long was she gone? Did anyone else notice?

Tameka chatted Xelan up while Andrew and Kyle came over to the girls. “See you two later.”

Rayne shot Sagan a pitying look, as if she knew this was hard for her. The brunette hugged Andrew and Kyle. “Good night. Drive safe.”

“This ain’t The Fast and the Furious. It’s a Volkswagen for fuck’s sake.” Andrew chuckled and squeezed Sagan warmly.

Kyle said, “Besides, I can’t get this grandma to drive over fifty miles an hour.” His hugs followed, lingering a little with Rayne, but everyone lingered with her. Sagan especially.

“Goodnight, boys.”

Xelan saluted them on the way out, but kept beaming down at Tameka. Her freckles even sparkled while gazing into his undivided attention. They were so cute and didn’t even know it.

They were also a wonderful distraction for Sagan’s broken heart.

Rayne whispered into Sagan’s ear, “Stay with me, tonight.”

Yes.

Sagan wasted no time calling her mom and asking for permission, easily granted after six years of friendship. Mrs. Callahan would likewise agree, assuming she was even home from the bookstore yet.

The girls clasped hands and walked over to Xelan and Tameka, who grinned at their linked fingers in delight. He asked, “You two heading out?”

Sagan couldn’t smile. Not yet. Instead, she stole a hug, soaking in Xelan’s kindness. She said, “I’m staying over with Rayne.”

The Icarus always squeezed just right. “Good.”

As Rayne hugged Xelan next, Sagan hugged Tameka. “See you, Monday, girl.”

The redhead whispered to the blond, “I’m happy for you two.”

It all felt good. It felt right.

Much better than how Sagan felt on the inside. A blender had taken hold of her stomach, and she feared falling asleep. In fact, without Rayne, there would be no sleep tonight.

So, yay.

The girls left the couple in the woods to their chain dart discussion and walked the few meters to Rayne’s house. Ray always worked weekend nights at the hospital, but the modest two-story seemed suspiciously empty for nine thirty at night.

Sagan asked, “Where’s Jack?”

“Oh, he had a date.” Rayne’s eyes sparkled with humor.

Sagan wanted to make a crack about him growing up too fast, but her heart wasn’t in it. “Can we go to bed now?”

All the humor died in Rayne’s eyes, replaced with pure understanding. “Of course. You can shower first.”

No.

Sagan leaned into Rayne’s ear and made a different suggestion. The girls showered together, and Rayne held Sagan in bed. While the blond wanted to cry, the brunette asked, “How long has Korac come to you in your dreams?”

Startled, Sagan sat up in the bed and faced her best friend. “How did you know?”

A tear marked a trail down Rayne’s cheek like earlier in the night. “Nox comes to mine.”

“Oh, god. Rayne…”

Rayne held up a hand, staving Sagan. “Tell me about Korac. Does he hurt you?”

Sagan shook her head, and her voice broke on a sob. “No. He’s perfectly wonderful.”

Without hesitation, Rayne pulled Sagan in for a hug, squeezing the truth out of her. Both girls shared their stories down to every last detail, including the most recent developments.

Sagan said, “I love Korac. It’s different from how I feel about you, but it’s almost as intense. Do you have feelings for Nox?”

Rayne looked away. Another tear rolled down her cheek as she took a shaking breath to say, “I want to get through to him that there’s another way—a better way—to save our planets. Nox doesn’t have to invade. He can come to humanity as a diplomat in a relationship with a hybrid of the two species. With me…”

“You sound like a martyr, Rayne. That’s not what I asked you. How do you feel about Nox?”

Crumbling, Rayne said, “I thought there was something between us, but after tonight, I know he was manipulating me. He’s spent all this time making me pliable. I’m so tired, Sagan.”

Sagan kissed Rayne, and the split lip told her it should hurt. Instead…

The girls found solace in each other for several hours until sleep took them.

“We’ll tell them off tonight.” They promised each other as their eyelids fluttered close. “We have each other. We don’t need them.”

Sagan appeared in Korac’s quarters, wearing a borrowed band tee and panties. This time, she studied her surroundings. Over the last month or so, this dream space had changed in arrangement, color, and texture. There was always a fireplace, armchairs, a bed, and a massive dresser—but in different places, varied wood finishes, and other upholstery—

“I missed you last night.”

Sagan shut her eyes, and already the tears wanted to form. Korac’s elegant cadence elicited responses from her body and heart which did not fade after the revelation.

But there was no avoiding this.

Sagan turned and faced Korac. She gave a curtsy, which he smirked at until she said, “Hello, Silver General.”

In an impossible feat, the Icarus lost what little color there was to his complexion. The mask dissolved, and genuine panic widened Korac’s eyes. “Sagan, please listen to me—”

“I don’t care.”

Korac held out his hands, placating her. “I understand. I know you’re upset—”

Sagan shook her head. “No. I’m not.”

In the same avian gesture as Xelan, Korac tilted his head. He stopped trying to explain and let her have the space to speak.

When Sagan crossed the room to stand centimeters apart from her enemy, she craned her neck up to maintain eye contact. Here, the gray flecks reminded her of falling ash in snow. Korac smelled crisp as the winter outside and looked like a wet dream in his black pajama bottoms. The silk shimmered in the firelight.

It was too much, and Sagan realized she was too far gone. “I love you, Korac.”

His eyes widened, taken aback, but there was no other hesitation. Korac cupped Sagan’s face and kissed her. Even in the dream, it stung her tender lip, and she moaned against him.

The kiss deepened when Korac caressed the soreness with his tongue.

Despite how enraptured Sagan was with him, she separated them to say, “I need you to promise me you’ll never lie to me again.” Korac opened his mouth, but she shook her head. “No. I mean about anything. We won’t talk about work. This space is only for us, and here you don’t lie to me. I will bear the shame of loving a man who means to invade my planet, but I won’t tolerate your lies.”

“On Elden, I will never lie to you again, lest Li steal my last breath.”

For one sorrowful second, Sagan turned to steel. “Soldier, if you lie to me again, Li won’t take your last breath. I will.”

Korac shivered, and it was not in a bad way.

This was wrong.

Sagan was wrong.

But at least here, and in Rayne’s arms, she was happy.