CHAPTER 1_ DEATH IN THE FROZEN WASTELAND
"Ethan, stop shaking, it's over now."
My teeth chatter so hard my jaw hurts. I press my shoulder against the warehouse wall and drag in air that feels like knives. My fingers won't bend. I can barely feel them.
"I told you not to go out again." My voice cracks. "I told you."
Morgana stands five steps away from me. Snow melts off her boots in small dirty puddles. Her hood is down. Her hair is stuck to her cheeks. She is holding a knife.
Not raised. Not attacking. Just holding it like it weighs more than she does.
"I had to." Her voice trembles. "We needed insulin. And antibiotics. You were coughing blood again."
"I was fine." I push myself up and fail. My knees hit concrete. Pain flashes white. "I said I was fine."
Marcus Vance closes the door behind them. He locks it. The click echoes too loud in the empty warehouse.
"You were not fine." Marcus says calmly. "You were dying. Still are."
I look at him properly then. Clean gloves. Frost barely touching his coat. He looks like he stepped out of a lecture hall instead of the frozen end of the world.
"Why is he here." I ask Morgana. "Why did you bring him back."
She doesn't answer. Her grip tightens on the knife. Her knuckles go pale.
Marcus steps closer. Not to me. To her.
"He deserves the truth." Marcus says. "After everything he's done."
"I didn't do anything." I snap. "I saved people. I held the breach closed. I kept her alive."
"Yes." Marcus nods. "That's the problem."
Morgana lets out a broken sound. Not quite a sob. More like something tearing inside her.
"I didn't know at first." She says. "I swear Ethan I didn't. Marcus showed me the data. The readings. The dates."
My chest feels hollow. "Showed you what."
Marcus crouches in front of me. He doesn't flinch when cold wind slips through the broken windows.
"You are not from this dimension." He says. "Not fully. Your biology is a bridge. When you awakened eight months ago you tore reality like paper."
"That's insane." I laugh and it hurts. Blood fills my mouth. "The world froze because of climate collapse. Because of—"
"Because of you." Marcus interrupts. "Every anomaly. Every rupture. Every temperature drop coincides with your power spikes. You didn't survive the apocalypse Ethan. You caused it."
I shake my head. My vision blurs. "No."
Morgana steps forward. One step. Then she stops.
"He's lying." I tell her. "Look at me. You know me."
She does look at me. Her eyes are red and swollen. Her lips shake.
"I love you." She whispers. "That's why this hurts so much."
The knife slips in her hand. She catches it again fast like she's afraid it might fall on its own.
Marcus stands. "Billions are already dead. The breach is widening. The only way to seal it is to remove the anchor."
"What anchor." I ask though I already know.
"You." He says. "Your death will collapse the connection. The frozen dimension will snap back. What remains of Earth might survive."
My heart pounds slow and heavy. "And if I don't."
"Then everything ends." Marcus says simply. "Including her."
I reach for Morgana. My arm barely lifts. It feels like it's made of lead.
"I burned myself out for you." I say. "Every day. Every night. I held the cold back so you could breathe."
"I know." She cries. "That's why I can't watch everyone else die."
I try to stand again. My legs buckle. I slam back down with a grunt.
Marcus watches with interest. Not concern. Not pity.
"You're empty." He says. "You spent every drop of energy protecting her. Exactly as predicted."
I look up at him sharply. "Predicted."
He smiles then. Small. Satisfied.
Morgana gasps. "What do you mean."
Marcus doesn't look at her. He looks at me.
"I needed you weak." He says. "Needed you unable to fight back. Needed you to trust her."
Morgana's breathing turns ragged. "You said there was no other way."
"There isn't." Marcus replies. "But the method matters."
She shakes her head. "You used me."
He shrugs. "I gave you a choice."
I crawl toward Morgana. My hands leave streaks of blood on the floor.
"Don't." She begs. "Please don't make this harder."
"Look at him." I rasp. "He planned this. He knew I'd die for you."
She covers her mouth. Tears fall onto the knife blade.
"I'm sorry." She says over and over. "I'm so sorry."
Marcus steps back. Giving space. Giving permission.
My chest tightens. Panic rises. Not for me. For her. For the weight she will carry.
"Morgana." I whisper. "If you do this you'll never forgive yourself."
She sobs. "If I don't I'll never forgive myself either."
The knife moves. Slow. Shaking.
I close my eyes. I think of warm mornings. Coffee. Her laugh. The way she steals the blankets.
Pain explodes between my ribs.
I gasp. Air won't come. My body jerks.
Morgana screams and drops the knife. She falls to her knees beside me clutching my face.
"I'm sorry." She cries. "I love you."
Blood soaks through my jacket. The cold doesn't matter anymore.
Marcus watches. His breath fogs calmly.
"Goodbye Ethan." He says. "You were always a variable."