A while later, the night had fully taken hold. The sky stretched above him in a black sheet without a single star. Kyle sat with one hand braced behind his head, staring upward while the thought of the Orb pressed at the back of his mind.
Curiosity gnawed at him, urging him to summon it and behold its form, but his body resisted the impulse with an instinctive dread. He did not force it, conceding to the warning.
Orion stirred first while Kyle remained absorbed in the sky. His eyes slid open with the same guarded edge he had carried into the fight, observing the clearing in slow measure.
Adela and Na-Ri still lay where exhaustion had claimed them, and they breathed evenly as their strength returned. The handsome youth's gaze moved to the figure by the charred stump of a tree, sitting back and looking at the sky.
"Oh, yes... Kyle."
