{Enki}
To Nox, Rayne’s laughter chimed like a cheerful bell. A sound only given in freedom, and she rang it in Hell.
He loved her for it.
Which hurt him to think that his current elation stemmed from impending altercations. How could Nox tell Rayne he was excited at the mere thought of feeling her strangle an opponent with those dainty but powerful hands? Confess he wanted to feel the splash of warm blood on her face from a well-executed nacre-ectomy? Express how he lamented he couldn’t see her doused in her opponent’s carnage and relish in their defeat? Hair mussed, chest heaving, bright blue eyes sharp for more.
For all the good this rehabilitation did Nox’s soul, nothing could sate the fighter in him like pure, skillful violence. Rayne was the best at it. Nox should know.
Thousands of miles passed down this path of repeating shelves and mercury pools. Rayne never tired, and the exertion hardly affected her breathing. The Tritans built quite the nacre they installed in this killing machine with a precious smile. Gargantuan—Primary class—and weaponized. Her heritage contributed to it, mostly unbeknown to the many of those Tritans involved in her making. Primary Rem’s DNA from Xelan no doubt bestowed some gifts combined with her nacre. Who knew what Rayne gained descending from Celindria, seeing as no one knew the extents of the First Progeny’s abilities.
A god. The reincarnation of Elden. And Rayne’s eyes sparkled whenever Nox smiled.
He closed his eyes.
Time and place. If they survived, Nox would continue living in her consciousness. Her ease with it surprised him and implied a bizarre but mutually comfortable future ahead. Focus on it. Not on his feelings or his attraction for her.
Which was damned hard to do with Rayne smiling like that.
Nox shook himself and said, “You’re approaching the first conduit.”
“Right.” Rayne straightened her shoulders, shoring herself. The slight clench of her jaw said as much. “What do you suppose is on the other side?”
Enki was vast. Sized to house several million suns, but in his lifetime, Nox counted less than two dozen Tritans. He’d wondered about the Aegis population, and why they considered building this Dyson’s Sphere. But at least he knew the likely answer to her question. “Tameka reported to you that the Shadow estimated several billion identical ocean ‘landings’ comprises most of Enki’s maze. I imagine you’ll encounter one early in this excursion.”
Outside her mindscape, Rayne slowed to a halt. The aisle which served as a major artery to the ancient archives ended at a columned arch of white stone, framing a shimmering wall of energy. She said, “We’re about to find out. This is the first of hundreds of conduits on this map.”
Rayne took a breath, held it, and stepped through.
For the first time in Nox’s life, the glimpse of the Seam between conduits wasn’t monochromatic. The cathedrals ceilings of the once bone-white hall were every shade of purple, vibrant and beautiful. He wondered at the majesty of it.
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Rayne beamed at it. “Sagan did that.”
The Progeny were truly gifted.
Once through, they both took in Rayne’s surroundings. Ocean stretched in three-hundred and sixty degrees around the marble square platform she stood upon. Blue cloudless skies hovered above the flat blue water. Softly, she said, “You were right. A landing.” After a thoughtful moment passed, Rayne added, “I don’t know why Enki fears me. They should fear Tameka.”
No doubt. They stole her son. Curious, Nox asked, “What kind of fighter is she? I’m afraid I’ve only had the pleasure once, and I was… distracted.” By Rayne. On Volcano Day, he’d only wanted to fight with Rayne and completely alone. And, because of Nox’s Verse, Rayne understood why.
A touch of pink kissed Rayne’s cheeks as she took his meaning. Sticking to the subject, she crossed the landing to the next conduit and explained, “The name ‘Fury’ suits Tameka. She never held back, even in those early days. When she swung, she intended to knock your teeth down your throat. She’s good with her legs. Kicking. Grappling. But I’ve seen no one work a chain dart like her. Just amazing.”
Yes. The back of Nox’s head vividly recalled Tameka’s weapon. The blow had nearly killed him, but he’d avoided its gilded blades by mere centimeters.
“But it’s not why she’s a fury to fight…”
Nox let Rayne see the curiosity in his glance.
She took the intended encouragement and continued as Rayne stepped through the next conduit onto another generic landing. “Never come for the people she loves and leave Tameka alive. She has no patience for redemption, no grasp of mercy. I think I read something once like, ‘To know your enemy is to love them.’ Or vice versa. I can’t remember. But either way, Tameka leaves the knowing to someone else. She’s not here for that shit.”
Another conduit yielded another landing, and as Rayne strode across it, Nox considered her words. “The five of you make such a balance. The three women, especially. Sagan of grace, Tameka of pragmatism, and you of sacrifice.”
Rayne winced, and Nox immediately wished to take it back—
“No, it’s okay. I know what my strengths and weaknesses are. It’s only that…” She sighed and ran through the next conduit. “I don’t think I would trade mine for something else. Everything I’ve gone through has taught me so much—You know I still hear Xelan’s voice telling me lessons in my head? All this shaped us, and I like who we are. And do you know what else?”
Nox raised a brow for her to continue.
“I think you, Korac, and Xelan are settling into who you want to be, too.”
Another revelation here with Rayne. The Verses… They were an admission that now was the time to write of their lives because only now do they feel balanced, right, and… good.
A warmth encompassed Nox, familiar only in ancient memories, but he felt it more and more in Rayne’s presence. He opened his mouth to tell her as much when something caught his eye.
A movement in the otherwise flat water. A shade swam the length of the landing as Rayne ran across it to the next conduit marked on the map.
As if she’d sensed his tension, Rayne whispered, “What is it?”
Nox wet his lips and said his next words carefully. “Don’t show alarm, but glance to the edge of the landing on your left.”
When Rayne glimpsed it, only the slightest hitch of her breath gave her away. “How long?”
“Two conduits back was the first I noticed it.” While half of Nox hated the tightness around her eyes, the other half of him hoped this was an exotic beast soon to meet its bloody end at her capable hands.
Inside her head, Rayne nodded over her shoulder. “The Overseer is still behind us, too.” Her voice was airier than before.
Accelerated heart rate, constricted pupils, shallow breathing—
“Rayne, are you afraid?”
Her pulse fluttered as Nox noticed it did when he used her name. He tried to refer to her as ‘your majesty,’ but her name came too easily from his lips.
Still, Rayne answered with a firmer tone than Nox had expected. “No.”
Interesting. If she wasn’t afraid then… Almost in a whisper, he said, “You can tell me.”
Soft, so very soft, Rayne confessed, “I’m excited.”
Now, more so than ever, so was Nox.