Mae woke with a sharp inhale, her chest rising unevenly as if her lungs had forgotten how to fill with air. The room seemed to pulse around her, a dizzying blur of faces and sounds as her eyes slowly focused. Her body felt heavy, distant, as though she were floating outside of herself. The chill of the room pressed against her skin, but something else, something dark and unfamiliar, lingered in the air.
Around her, the men were in motion. Riven stepped forward first, his hand hovering uncertainly over her as if unsure whether to touch her or keep his distance. Kaine was still sitting beside her, his eyes wide, mouth open in shock as he watched her struggle to breathe. Ashar paced restlessly, his hand tightening on the hilt of his sword as he muttered to himself. Sethis had his back to the group, kneeling by the door, still looking for a way out, though Mae could see the tension in his posture.
But through it all, Lucien remained still. He didn't move. He didn't speak. He simply stared at her, his eyes dark, his expression unreadable. The only movement was the single tear that escaped, falling from the corner of his eye and disappearing into the shadows below his cheek.
The silence hung in the air, thick with the weight of the moment, until Mae finally broke it. She tried to speak, but the words came out a croak, strained, her throat raw. "What happened?"
Riven was the first to react, leaning closer to her. "You died, Mae," he said, his voice low, the words hanging like a bitter truth. "For a few moments. We thought we lost you."
Mae tried to process it, her mind racing, but the words felt foreign, out of place. "I don't, I don't remember." She gasped, still feeling the disorientation of the near-death experience. The power inside her, the surge, the connection, it was all there, still thrumming beneath her skin like a storm trying to break free.
"Lucien?" Ashar's voice cut through the confusion, his gaze darting to the quiet figure standing off to the side. There was something dangerous in his stillness, something that Mae couldn't quite place. She could feel his presence, the dark force he carried, but it was not just his usual intensity. There was something more. Something, broken.
Lucien didn't respond right away, his gaze never leaving Mae. The room seemed to hold its breath, waiting for him to speak, but he didn't. His emotions were contained, locked away behind the steel of his silence. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he exhaled, a slow release of breath that seemed to echo in the room. His tear, the only sign of vulnerability, was the only admission of the turmoil inside him. But even that didn't last. He wiped it away, hiding behind a cold expression, and spoke.
"We leave," he said simply, his voice quiet but unwavering. Everyone froze.
Mae's heart skipped a beat. "Leave? What do you mean?" she asked, her voice raw from the strain, a mix of fear and disbelief creeping into her words.
Lucien's eyes locked onto hers, and in that moment, Mae saw something in him she hadn't before. Not fear, but resignation. Not anger, but a kind of burden. "The universe has shifted, Mae," he said, his words heavy with the weight of their meaning. "We can't stay here any longer. It's not safe."
Ashar looked at Lucien, his brow furrowing as he processed the words. "You're serious. You think this is it?"
Lucien nodded, his jaw tight. "The Unseen aren't the only threat. There's something bigger coming, and we need to move. Fast."
The room was silent again, the decision hanging in the air like a cloud of uncertainty. Mae, still reeling from everything that had happened, struggled to process his words. But Lucien's gaze never wavered from hers. It was final. It was necessary.
"Everyone, pack up," Ashar ordered, his voice sharp with authority. He turned to Riven and Kaine. "We move out now. We leave."
Mae's chest tightened. The weight of it hit her all at once, the weight of the situation, the loss, the change. And now this. The decision to leave, to run. They were no longer fighting for survival in the moment. They were running from it. And Mae knew, deep down, that something more than just their safety was at risk now.
Something had shifted inside her too. The pull to Lucien, the chaos of the Unseen, the unexpected birth, the death, the resurrection, it had all led to this moment. The war wasn't over, but it had changed.
For the first time, as they moved to prepare for the journey ahead, Mae understood. It wasn't just about surviving anymore. It was about finding out what was beyond the breaking point. And whether they could make it out alive.
Mae's mind was still hazy, her body aching as though she had been torn apart and put back together again. She tried to focus, but it all felt distant. The voices around her, the movement, the sudden tension in the air, they all blurred together.
Then, a flash.
The babies.
Her chest tightened as the memory hit her. The babies. She hadn't held them herself, but she remembered Lucien's voice, low and steady, filled with awe. "They're perfect." That was all she had to hold on to. The image of them, alive, his words of perfection. They were safe. They had to be.
But as she tried to sit up, her head swimming, she noticed the room was quieter than it should have been.
Kaine was gone.
Her pulse quickened. Her eyes scanned the room, searching for any sign of him. Lucien, Ashar, Riven, Sethis, they were all here, busy with preparations, but Kaine? He was nowhere to be found. The babies should have been with him, safe in his arms. But now there was nothing but emptiness.
"Kaine," Mae whispered, her voice hoarse, fear creeping into her chest. "Where's Kaine?"
Lucien's eyes met hers, and he straightened, his expression darkening. He didn't answer at first, but his silence said it all.
"We don't know," he said quietly, his voice thick with a weight that made Mae's heart sink. "He and the babies, they were taken."
Mae's body went still, as if the world itself had frozen. "Taken?"
Riven stepped forward, his expression grim, his wings twitching in agitation. "The Unseen, the Void, they disappeared with him, Mae. Just gone."
Her heart pounded in her chest. "Gone? No, no, that's not possible! The babies, Lucien said they were perfect. They were safe, weren't they?"
Lucien's gaze hardened. "We couldn't stop it. They took them all."
Mae's mind spun. The babies, Kaine, the Void, all of it tangled together in a nightmare that didn't seem real. They were here, except for Kaine and the babies. The fear that gnawed at her deepened into something worse.
"Lucien," Mae choked out, her breath shaky. "What are we supposed to do now?"
Lucien stepped toward her, his eyes flicking briefly to the others before returning to Mae. "We leave," he said simply, his voice cold but resolute.