Korac kissed Sagan’s freckled nose before climbing out from under the sheets. With a sigh, she smiled in her sleep and snuggled her pillow, messy bed-head and all.

He loved her.

Which was why Korac couldn’t let Sagan into his burgeoning conspiracy theory.

He slipped on some silk shorts—white, duh—and sneaked into his office. The mountain chalet was kitted out with the best of Aegis technology, but it was contained in cozy elegance. Elegant coziness. Their home was damned comfortable, stylish, and futuristic.

Far more than anything Korac would’ve imagined for himself on Gait—Shit, even on Cinder. As Ishkur’s first General, equal only to Sagan, his office was faceted with projected screens dedicated to separate avenues of his role. All wireless. Cable was a thing of the past.

Korac sat in the levitating chair which formed under his ass from thin air and pulled up the files he was keeping from Sagan. Pehton, too—Nobody knew.

Nacre.

Chamber.

Those were the two words Nox had mouthed to Korac through a closing conduit seconds before Rayne had decimated Enki. Only Korac was a little slow and hadn’t recognized the words until his wedding day, not even a week ago. It wasn’t good timing. First, Xelan bogarted Sagan and Korac’s honeymoon like an imperial Prima Donna, and now the Shadow knew Celindria was out there. It didn’t exactly lend to a relaxing vacation, but damn, did Sagan try.

The two of them went on a tour of exotic planets for fun, frolic, and so much sex. Korac couldn’t get enough of Sagan, but the niggling in the back of his head wouldn’t relent.

“Fuck.”

No one was around to hear. There was only Korac’s office and the files open on his screen.

Elden’s nacre was missing, and Korac was almost ninety-nine point nine percent certain the nacre in its place was Rayne’s. How had the incredible sprite even managed it? He couldn’t fathom it. But if she was alive, maybe Nox was too? After all, both resurrection caskets in the nacre chamber were still functional.

Korac appreciated the space Sagan gave him, but she was brilliant. A gem of so many perfect cuts. There’s no way she was completely in the dark. But how could he tell her without proof?

So, here Korac was, filtering reports for any signs of the power duo out there in the wild. And then Xelan dropped this on his desk.

Imminent Bad Guy

The vile lowlifes of this galaxy couldn’t get enough of trafficking children. Korac would make a point of visiting the orphanage in person once his honeymoon was officially over. Until then, he’d send Pehton and Bones to investigate.

Speak of the adorable devil.

“Hey, boss.”

Korac smirked so Pehton could see. He took way too much pleasure in her calling him that. “General Warden.” He gave her a little salute, and she flipped him off, unaware of how much he enjoyed it. “Report on your Pil mission.”

Pehton held up the projected device in her palm for Bones to join. He said, “Matt, Lucy, Bethany, Puk, and Yito went undercover last night. Some sleazy place looking to fill the Pain Curator vacuum. Totally within their perimeters, right?”

Korac’s hands were laced and pressed against his mouth, so he nodded to show he was tracking.

Pehton took over from there. Her tiny Lyriki self said, “Only the VIPs survived the fight. Someone left them alive, and that certainly isn’t very much like the annihilation squad.”

With little reason for it, Korac asked, “Was Bethany all right?”

There was a look on Pehton’s face. She got it every time she found Korac endearing, and the warmth of it almost made him blush. Stupid mushy Shadow shit. She said, “They’re all fine. We thought about joining forces with them, at least for some intel. Who else could’ve gone in and attacked a base like this one?”

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Bones added, “But something doesn’t add up.”

Intrigued, Korac leaned forward and said, “Go on, soldier.”

He almost smirked at how Bones straightened and stood a little taller as the Icarean warrior said, “While all this went down in the slums, lightning struck topside of the space-scraper.”

Lightning.

During the Volcano Day battle, Rayne and Nox had accumulated such a force of equivalent energies that lightning had struck them on the battlefield.

Korac swiped along the screens, saying, “I’m sending some fresh reports about the new orphanage which may correspond with the events at the vice den. Find some witnesses and see if there’s a correlation. Let me know what the annihilation squad—as you so aptly named them—has to say about their current operation. Co-op, if they allow it, but don’t smother them. They work best when left to their own devices.”

“Will do.” Off topic, Pehton asked, “How is Echo?”

Okay. So. Whenever someone mentioned his little girl, Korac couldn’t keep this proud, beaming grin off his face, and ever since Pehton discovered this, she asked at every opportunity. And there it was again, involuntary, yet still welcome. “She’s perfect. Mother is keeping her for us until the honeymoon is over, but we popped in earlier today for some baby time.”

Knowingly, Pehton smirked. “Couldn’t stay away, could you?”

Bones chuckled beside her before throwing out, “Say hi to Para for me,” as Korac ended the call.

Family was a funny thing.

Leaning back in his chair, Korac considered the other request from Xelan’s missive: upcycle Zero and ask about the Eternal Bind. It was strange building a connection with one’s father posthumously, but Korac couldn’t shake this feeling. The Exalted was hiding something.

Shit, the man was an Aegis—He was probably hiding an entire universe in the hollow ring of his pupils.

Korac closed his eyes and concentrated on his talent for calling Aegis beings into his body. It was a surprisingly warm and complete feeling. Inside his mind, Zero appeared.

The Exalted shoved his hands into the pocket of his white tux. A single black rose was the only thing about him not in white. He smiled as he said, “My son, how are these early days of your matrimony?”

Without a reason to lie, Korac said, “Perfect. Sagan… She’s perfect.”

There was a slight lilt to Zero’s lips before he took a few steps forward, saying, “You wake on this night rather than sleep with her in your arms. Something must trouble you. How may I help?”

It was weird having a dad. Especially one who could read Korac almost as well as if he’d raised him. Next time, Korac would try upcycling one of his brothers to see what it would be like to have one. Razor didn’t count.

Korac asked, “How much do you know about the Eternal Bind?”

Zero broke into a mischievous grin, as if caught with stolen candy. “A good deal, but it is rather simple, is it not? A pair destined to rein in destiny itself.”

Evasive. Illusive.

Fucking Aegis.

Was this what it was like talking to Korac all these years?

Never mind.

“Do you know who it is and would you be willing to share this information with me?” Korac tried to take the edge off the words, but this was getting frustrating. Was it so much to ask for transparency?

Zero stared at the top of his shiny white shoes, saying, “No… But One knows.”

Korac raked a hand through his hair, recovering his patience, before asking, “Which one? Can you give me a straight answer?”

There was an amused lift to Zero’s lips as he asked, “May I know what you plan to accomplish with this information?”

“I suppose we mean to stop it.”

The Exalted nodded as if he’d guessed as much. “The Probability Matrix is an affront to the natural order. We shattered your realities when we entered your universe, and they continued to splinter. This is not the way of it, my son. The Eternal Bind will right what we wronged.”

Korac didn’t have an immediate argument against his logic. To build some trust in their relationship, he admitted, “I don’t know what we mean to do about it. The potential of our universe collapsing makes it a phenomenon worth investigating.”

“Quite right.” Zero’s eyes drifted to the side as if he were listening. “She wakes. Continue seeking your friend and the sprite. They will need you soon.”

Korac wasn’t ready for his father to leave yet. To stop him, Korac blurted, “Dad.”

The Exalted’s smile was genuine and radiant. “Yes, Korac?”

“I know you don’t appreciate when I bring him up, but I see the ghost of Razor anytime I’m on the bridge in Ishkur. He’s standing in the back, trying to help while everyone else ignores him. Please give me something genuine to understand.” Why did it matter to Korac? Because the young man who was Razor waiting for his brothers to acknowledge him implied a beginning. An opening to heal.

Zero crossed the mindscape and put his hand on Korac’s shoulder. When their eyes met, he said, “Your brother’s bitterness was not half-earned, and I carry my responsibility for it into this afterlife. Please, do not try to bear it with me. He loved Sagan enough to die for Ishkur, and I think, if not for a long history of neglect, he could understand kindness and mercy. But no matter how long we dwell in what could have been, Three Two Four chose his life and found some semblance of redemption in his last act. The ghost is a sad truth, but not one you or I could change.”

Korac searched his father’s white eyes before asking, “Would you?”

Without hesitation, Zero said, “If I could? Absolutely.”

Sagan called from the hallway, “Hey, honey, can I come in?”

Zero smiled again, warning, “Do not waste a second of your time together. Good bye, my son.”

“Good bye, father.”

The Exalted waved as he faded away.

Korac sprung from his chair and opened the door. Sagan stood naked in the doorway, sleepily rubbing her eyes with her hair sticking up everywhere. He didn’t give her a chance to speak before he tilted her face up for a kiss. Even tired, Sagan returned with searing heat. Comfort. Korac sought comfort in her.

They’d spend a few hours in bed, sleep, and then Korac would continue his search for Nox and Rayne. But somehow he knew they’d find him when they were ready.