Lucid Truth - 4. Up Close

With a subtle burst of gravitational focus, the ship completed its jump, arriving far above the planet in the vacuum of space. For the first few moments, the danger was maximal, the suspicion at its peak, but then concern faded. The captain did not allow the alert to decrease for at least another minute out of pure caution, until he was satisfied that the probability of alien intercession had dropped to low enough.

"Report." Tullius gave the command to a bridge officer. "Any signs of residual civilisation, advanced or otherwise?"

"Very few indications, sir." The officer's response was uninformative, though there was little meaningful to say. "Apart from ambient interference, most artificial signals are low-power. Seems to be the result of automation surviving from the colonial era, with little actually indicating human presence. Probable settlements are less than 0.6% of these instances, and centred almost exclusively on the two smaller continental masses."

"There." The captain turned to the man next to him, the bystander being the equivalent of a political commissar. He gave deference, even though there was no official superseding rank under the current circumstances. "Does that satisfy you? This world is as dead as we thought it would be. The refugees were some kind of statistical anomaly."

"So it would seem." The response was curious, and fixed on the image of the planetary surface visible on the primary display. "We didn't come here to rescue survivors, though."

"Then what are we doing here?" Tullius was patient, not wishing to overstep his position, but an element of restlessness was present in his words. "You know I am as loyal as any, and not prone to asking pointless questions, but it would help my ability to prepare a great deal if I know why we are orbiting ... that."

On the final word, he gestured to the view, indicating the planet below.

Lucere.

"What a view." The other man nodded slowly, and his smile was appreciative. Before them, the glowing cloud banks shifted over the surface, the curious snaking shape of continental Pyropus angling in from one side of the view, its extensive sprawling branches dwarfing the neighbouring landmasses. Argentum was on the opposite side of the planet, but Aurum was still visible, occupying the upper part of the planetary curve. "This place is a gem, and we were unlucky to lose it."

For more than one reason.

"You won't tell me then?" The captain frowned at the screen, any ability to admire it lost behind more mundane concerns. "I don't want to face V17 liability when we return to Earth. If this carries with it any military penalties that-"

"It won't." The other's interruption was quick. "In fact, you can be assured that our purpose here will remove that concern permanently. Don't be worried, because his plans will ... phase out ... all of the bureaucracy."

Tullius hesitated, then nodded. That assurance that the director had the situation in hand was enough, and he was about to field another basic question, when there was a beep in his ear.

The voice spoke, the orders brief and simple.

The captain listened.

"Yes sir. Understood."

He turned to the other.

"We'll wait in orbit. You will fly him to the surface." Tullius placed his hands behind his back, and gave a terse dip of the head. "He's already at the hangar. Good luck."

"Captain." The man acknowledged, his smile unfazed. With that, he turned and left the bridge.

Duty was calling.

Following the ship's corridors, it took only a short walk to reach the hangar. The parked shuttle was in the same spot as earlier, and he entered to find his employer sitting in the co-pilot's chair, expectant, and without speaking, he sat too. The pre-flight was minimal, the prep handled by the AI, with the shuttle mostly ready anyhow. It wasn't more than seconds later that he was firing the ignition, piloting the lift-off and exiting the larger vessel.

Out, into space.

"Make for this destination." No other words were spoken and with a couple of finger taps, the spot was indicated -- a location in the centre-east of Aurum. The global arc flattened as he guided the shuttle down, the surface growing large. His limited piloting experience was thankfully sufficient to manage the trip, and he did not require any special skill for such a simple craft as the one they were in.

North of Lorentz, the point of interest was outside the Capital Arm. The Crossway, a strip of provinces dividing the continent horizontally like a girdle, was where it lay. The eastern and southern parts of the Crossway had been more developed than the rest, moreso than the vast wilderness of the northward Top Five, but much less than the capital region. Enkaria, the province in question, was rural and natural, resembling the backwater parts of Lorentz, but over a greater area.

Landing at a site in the forest, he confirmed with a quick thermal scan that the surrounding area was free of any wildlife larger than Aurum's harmless rodent and lagomorph mammalians; rabbits, mice, rats, and squirrels. Nothing to be concerned about, though when they exited the shuttle, he made sure to take the Malinski automatic from the weapons locker, and slung it over his back.

Always better to be safe than sorry.

It was a cool day, with this portion of the Enkarian evergreen pelt well insulated from the sun. The glimmering cloudy streaks of Lucere's fame were distant, but bright, and the two men descended from the shuttle's resting place into a small valley. The air was heady, the organic scents somehow both familiar and foreign all at once, the soil sticky clay and the grass rough. Mixed through with spindly ferns and little shrubs that sported tiny blue and white flowers, the undergrowth clung and scratched across their legs as they passed.

"You want to say something, Mr Quân." The statement came from nowhere, and his employer did not even turn around, simply continuing to lead the way as he spoke. Carrying a customised variant of their proprietary handheld scanner, he observed the readings as they walked. "So go ahead. Ask."

"Yes, sir," Martin Quân agreed. He did have many minor questions, most of them inconsequential and not worth verbalising. He knew about much of what they were doing, and was privy to detail far beyond most of the other privileged positions in the hierarchy. Still, the very crux of this expedition was unknown, the most relevant part of how and what, and there was a sense of relief that he was given permission to at least broach the subject.

"I know about the quantum field. I know about the research into its function and application. I know that's why we've come here." He glanced across the forest cover, still wary, not fully trusting that they were safe even though they had been as cautious as possible. "But, to accomplish what? With one ship? With this few personnel? On the eve of Earth's war?"

"I will not say that Accioli's initiative did not irk me," came the response, "but that was before my consolidation of power, when the directorate still held the reins. I explicitly dissented to his idiocy, they ignored me, and it led to a colossal waste of assets. Still, for this purpose, any amount of extra ships and men would make little difference. They are suited to remain where they are, serving my interests on Earth -- a job you will ensure they do. But here? What I intend will either work with a handful of the best, or it will fail completely."

Quân didn't say anything. He didn't know how to answer.

"Two hundred years ago, some of my own family were on this planet when the accident occurred." The man continued speaking as they picked their way down the decline, into the valley. "Originally, there was intended a progression of events wherein the conglomerate would form, absent the interruption of the Sharpe pandemic. In that circumstance, our position on Earth would have been weaker, without the leverage of embedded rights, though instead we would have had something better."

This world.

"Lucere."

"Yes." He turned, pausing only to reorient the scanner, clearly tracing some kind of ambient signal, before they began moving again. "And with MFM's control of this world, the others would follow, Earth included, because they would have no choice. Not just as a result of irresistible technological superiority, the capacity for weaponry and industry unparalleled by the rest of humanity, but, simply ... power."

"What kind of power, sir?"

Finally, the man stopped, his eyes fixed on a spot in the air.

All Quân could see was flat ground at the valley's nadir, with muddy soil, ferns, and a mist from the forest's cool air.

Peaceful, quiet, and ... empty.

What was there?

Moving in a brief half-circle around that intangible point, until they were facing one another across it, the other made full eye contact at last.

"The same as that boy." Tytos Hartley was calm, the impression of imposing dignified control; ruffled fair hair, piercing blue eyes, a low-tone of the King's English, all in a practical navy-black CorpSec jumpsuit that spurned the ostentation of his incalculable corporate wealth. "The same that is right in front of you and I at this very moment. Invisible, untouchable, but still here. A door to reality's inner workings, a door to everything."

"But, my lord, isn't it still inaccessible? I was not aware of any breakthrough."

"It was, Mr Quân. That is, until he gave RDA the key to that door, in a moment of pure unguarded emotion. You see, the key is not just a neural mechanism integrated at a molecular level, nor is it merely the implanted code of a tailored retrovirus. We found both those things to be necessary aspects, but more important, was the boy himself."

With that, he deactivated the scanner, lowering it, and his focus shifted once more to the point in between them.

"It was his very DNA. They were waiting, for him to arrive." Hartley's voice was soft, but the gravitas and pure understated tonal depth was every bit as intimidating as the man's aura. "For however long it has been -- thousands of years, perhaps millions, or more -- the aliens who created this left it here, expecting that boy, that particular individual, to stumble upon it."

Specifically him.

"And now," he continued, his voice dropping even further, to little more than a whisper, "here I stand, my fingers grasping the handle of that door, a fabricated key turning in the lock, an illusory shadow of their chosen child-avatar. Here I stand, wondering if the temporary genetic masquerade of his biology will be enough to grant me the right to walk through and claim godhood."

Hartley reached out his hand, an entreaty to the unseen.

A point of light flared in response, the hidden force manifesting.

"Sir?" Quân's surprise and concern was immediate. "Is it meant to be doing that?"

The light formed into lines, which resolved into a display, a replica of human holography.

"Yes, Mr Quân." Hartley began to smile, as text filled it, the node reacting to his presence. "This is exactly what I want to see."

-o-0-O-0-o-

His sister.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

Her eyes caught mine not a moment after Mira released her from his embrace, and the colour, the shape, was exactly the same as his. Even the way her facial features lit up, wordless, with recognition and affection, was so similar to him that the only differentiation was gender alone.

They ARE twins.

Naked from her ordeal with the Herald, but as uncaring as her brother, she promptly stepped forward and hugged me. Her breasts pressed against my chest, her hair brushing my face, and my emotions were perplexed. Stuck somewhere between misplaced instinctive romance that I automatically associated with Mira's physical likeness, and a perceived friendliness from the feel of her back and shoulders under my fingertips; it was all so odd but so familiar.

Even though we did not -- and could not -- have any prior history, I still somehow knew her.

A connection, from long ago.

Letting go, her attention skipped from me, to Mira, then back again, her lips parting momentarily, her voice very soft, and she said only a single word.

"Elia."

Then she wavered, a fatigue setting in, and before either of us could act, Yugan intervened. He was next to us, steadying with both right arms, his form sizably ominous and foreign, but her reaction to the alien Mishith presence was not fearful. Briefly tense, she quickly relaxed, seeming to accept his support, and on that allowance, the strength left her and she leaned into him. With care, Yugan fully picked her up with those same bracing right arms, and then he addressed us.

"She must rest. Her time with the Enemy has wearied both body and spirit. I will find her a place to recover, and fabricate garments fit for a human." Though Elia was Mira's height and build, at the Mishith's side, pressed against his shoulder, she appeared no larger than a child. Turning to us, Yugan gestured to the outside where the remains of the Herald's destruction were forming into a harmless cloud, weakly bound by a field of strange static energy. "The immediate peril is gone, but we should not linger. Take what time you need, my friends, but a decision for our path must be made soon. I ask you think on it while I attend her welfare."

With that, Yugan was off, and I watched with some curiosity his movement, one of the first chances to simply observe the Mishith in motion. He walked to the opposite starboard bridge exit, his gait both flexible and efficient, and precise for a creature his size. The door, an octagonal portal with multiple layers, irised open soundlessly, fluid and clean, before shutting again behind him.

Elia ...

Her name.

Mira's sister.

He watched her go too, carried by our companion, and then his attention was back on me, and the same intensity of feeling was there. His face shifted from the guarded neutrality of his norm, to open emotion that was as startling as it was rare. Then, like me, he was somewhere in between, pulled by a mixture of feelings, as if he could not quite decide which was appropriate. Regardless, hidden or not, I could see through to what lay beneath; uncertainty, longing, confusion, and joy, but also ... his left hand.

It was partially healed, but not fully; aqumi hadn't completely finished fixing whatever injury he had sustained fighting on the Herald.

This won't do.

Taking that hand, I pulled him, and he obediently followed, settling into a trance-like state as we exited the bridge too. The nearer port door opened into a corridor that extended along that side of the ship, and the passage was as clean and featureless as the bridge. Approximately fifteen feet high, with lightly rounded walls, there were only two other exits. One was at the corridor's opposite end, into whatever functional space lay at the ship's rear, and another midway along, into an interior room.

There, a few steps in, I stopped, and raised Mira's burnt hand so I could kiss his fingers.

"Ship." I spoke, even as my aqumi streamed into the damaged tissue, performing the restoration that he deserved. His docile permissiveness faded, and the focus on me tightened, his pride evident as he observed the healing take place. There was a mutual satisfaction from it, and I wrapped myself in the feeling like a blanket as I continued my query. "How should I address you and where are Sulin's quarters? Dagen must have allowed something for his brother."

"Information: local artificial intelligence can differentiate any verbal cues and respond with maximised efficiency without specific command." The onboard AI spoke out of the air, as impressively concise and punctual as previous times. "However, for optimal results related to the immediacy of your concerns, please use the Mishith word 'serin', which is a contracted address of the term 'seret incamun', and is a clear denoted indication for all synthesised automata."

"Understood."

"Addendum: you are proximal to the habitat designated for Master Sulin. The entrance is opening now. Please be comfortable within."

The interior door midway along the wall irised free, right as the speech finished.

Mira seemed to snap out of his reverie, and without a pause, he came alive. His left hand pulled away and, along with the right, dropped down and under my butt, picking me up. Though I wasn't much lighter than he was, his fantastic strength was at play, and he lifted me like I weighed nothing. I clung to his front, my arms going around his shoulders, legs around his middle. It was simply him being himself and I didn't resist it, wanting the closeness, wanting to be taken care of, just as I had done for him. I leaned into him, his body warmth a drug, his feet padding on the floor like music as he began to walk.

He knows we both want this, need this.

He always knows.

I watched the door frame pass by, the new room coming partially into view over his shoulder. The walls were that same light pearlescent colour that seemed to progress from one shade to another in a spectrum of muted iridescence. There was something naturally hospitable about it, and the welcoming vibe and flawless uniformity were total opposites in visual style to the uneven, darker organic appearance of the xenomorph ships. The two alien types could hardly have been more different, and with that thought came another concern: where was ours, the one that I had freed?

"Serin," I asked, and at that moment Mira reached what was apparently some kind of desk, with a lounge-style chair behind it, the sole furniture items in an otherwise empty room. He sat, lowering me with him, and I settled onto his lap. "The alien ship we arrived on, a small scout vessel: did it survive the destruction of the Herald? Where is it now?"

"Information: the Disciple-class designated Liberty evacuated the Herald after Guardian Kirak's debarkation. It successfully evaded damage during the ensuing conflict. Currently, it is located in the hangar of the subordinate transport vessel. Supplementary: the individuals known as Rashid, Ralot, and Mikom, are also aboard the same vessel, along with 2996 Mishith from the world Dagen's Grace."

Liberty is alive! And we have three thousand Mishith, and ... Guardian Kirak? That must be her name! Mira's female personality, Sulin's mate-

My thoughts were interrupted by the whisper of his own, the telepathy bringing my attention back to us.

To him.

Shay.

From where he was holding my lower back, his hands slid down, then out, over where I straddled his lap. There they stopped on the curve of my ass -- and stayed -- and he clasped me, beginning an idle squeeze-and-release rhythm that continued intermittently while we talked. Using my butt as a squishy stress-relief toy was a very Mira thing to do, and while it wasn't sexual so much as just intimate, I couldn't help the colour creeping in to warm my skin, a subtle but undeniable enjoyment.

"Mira," I murmured, and I gently grasped him back in return, my hands on his triceps, fingers grazing the skin.

She is my sister. His eyebrows raised just a fraction, contemplating, mild distraction mixed with a clear-eyed contentedness. Mira's gaze roamed from one side of my face to the other, absently taking in every square inch. He was drawing comfort merely from looking at me, but there was also a longing to the ethereal sound of his voice in my head.

Elia. She survived Lucere and the Herald.

"She did," I nodded, "but you're more like identical twins. Same height, same face, same eyes, same build; she's exactly like you. Just female." I paused, recalling the other person Elia and Mira both resembled; the one they were descended from. "I, uh ... I never told you," my voice fell to a whisper, "but I saw her -- Synnøve, that is. Before all of this, before everything happened, on Lucere. When I went for my treatment, she was there that same day, at the medical centre. She was leaving, and we didn't get to speak, but before she went, we made eye contact, and ... she smiled at me."

He didn't say anything.

"When you and I got to Earth, while we were in military custody, I had an opportunity to access the planetary net, and ... I used it to retrieve her public records. I wanted to know who she was, but there wasn't much information. Synnøve went to Lucere for the same reason as me; the treatment of a genetic condition. She had two younger brothers, and her mother was Norwegian, a university professor from Trondheim, while her father was an Icelandic marine biologist. It's not much, and I know these names and places won't mean anything to you, but ... I wanted you to have that, at least."

I felt like I was babbling, but what scant knowledge I had I wanted to give him, even if it was no more than anecdotes about where his blood was from. "I've never been to Scandinavia before, and I wasn't even able to read much about what Norwegian people are like in the short amount of time I had PDN access. What I did learn is that they are -- generally speaking -- independent-minded people, often private and introverted, but also sincere and loyal." I cracked a smile. "Maybe it's all projection but that sounds a lot like you, and it is where your genes came from, but now- ... now you have Elia too. Right here with us, you have family of your own."

Family.

For a few moments, he hung on that word, an echoing response to my monologue, and he didn't speak further, absorbing all that I had told him. Then his lips parted, his eyes locking with mine, and the spoken words began.

Slow and difficult for him, as always, but with so much weight.

"My family is also Konstantin," he told me, the pitch low and husky, "and you."

Me?

The sound of his voice was impactful as ever and it made me shiver. His words reminded me of the day we arrived at Earth, when he had claimed my surname.

He already thinks we're family, almost like ... he and I are ... married?

But I didn't get to dwell on the implication of it, because there was more.

"Shay, I wish that we ... could have ... "

Could have ... ?

He trailed off and didn't complete the sentence. Whatever he was going to say seemed to die before it was finished, with all thought of conveying it fading too. The unspoken was replaced with a guarded hesitation that didn't give me answers, but did match the odd mood Mira had been in, days earlier, during our stay at Elkos.

Just like then, something about the concept of family was troubling him. I couldn't tell what it was and I didn't want to force discussion that wasn't easy to verbalise.

"It's the same thing as before, right?"

I didn't need to elaborate because his intuition was so in tune with mine that he knew what I was referring to, and he slowly nodded, wordlessly agreeing.

"Then it can stay unsaid, until you're ready to talk about it." I squeezed his arms, where I was still holding him and he responded in kind. The squish of my butt compressing forced a surprised giggle out of me and I squirmed a little in his lap. "We are family. I'd wait for you forever, you know?"

I know. Mira's expression eased, and the pureness, the shine of his adoration came through. Our anticipation was simple and mutual. We leaned in together and kissed. Soft, light, momentary, and then we were apart again. Delicately, he licked his lips, and while I was happily focused on the tip of his tongue peeking out and the memories of what that tongue could do, his head angled slightly, eyes shifting to focus behind me.

Reluctantly withdrawing his right hand from where it was dug blissfully and snugly into my left buttock, Mira reached up and plucked something from the desk behind me. Bringing the object around he placed it into my lap for inspection.

What's this?

Curious, I picked the new item up to examine.

It was a rectangular cuboid, maybe six inches long and about four wide and deep. A pale metallic golden colour, it seemed to weigh very little and was probably hollow. I had only been physically touching it for about three seconds when a little holographic display activated, appearing in the air above it.

Oh!

The display resolved to a few paragraphs of Mishith text and nothing else. It was a short message from Dagen and it described the object's contents.

Shay Andersen.

I leave within this container two gifts for your journey.

The first is the product of a failed experiment, a curiosity known as the Sable Pearl. There is little need for such a thing and it is a trifle of small practice, but you will find a use for it.

The second is named the Truth. By comparison, this artifact has value inestimable and an importance that is unique among all our works. During the long defeat, many perished to delay our foe and their sacrifice allowed the art of this crafting to be completed.

Thus, such unmatched creation required a bloodshed that is immeasurable. Someday, you may understand our lamentation and the depth of injury. For now, know that we were too weakened by the Enemy's might and too constrained by the first great invasion through the Veil. The power we forged could not then be brought to the purpose for which it was designed. Instead, I hid this artifact and took it far from the war, to await in secret for when you would arrive.

Now you are here and that time has come.

The mantle becomes yours. With Yugan and your companions, you may succeed. Take the Truth in your hands and do what we could not.

With clarity, heal the ancient wound, and banish forever the eternal threat.

A couple of moments after I finished reading, the top of the cuboid first turned transparent, then it seemed to vanish entirely in an evaporating puff of synthetic glass. Inside were the two described items, each in the centre of its own half of the box, both resting securely within tiny metal cradles. I picked up the Sable Pearl first and lifted it out to get a better look.

Like its name, it was small, round, and pitch dark. An inch across, the Pearl was a sphere and completely absent any colour whatsoever. Not only that, it was also totally nonreactive; the room's ceiling illumination didn't even produce a glimmer of reflected light from its surface. Matte black and cool to the touch, I squinted at it, holding it between a thumb and index finger.

What is this even made out of? It looked like it could be scuffed obsidian or some kind of onyx, but from what little I knew about gemstones, none were so perfectly uniform and dull. It doesn't feel like it's made of a mineral. If anything, it's too light, almost insubstantial.

Like a little marble of black glass.

Weird. Guess it doesn't matter too much, Dagen did say it was a trifle. Puzzled, but not that concerned, I put the Sable Pearl back into its place.

Then, the other.

Larger than the sphere, the second artifact was just as light and maybe three inches across. At first glance, it had a number of pentagonal sides, all equal and symmetrical, and after lifting it up for inspection, I counted twelve, making it a regular dodecahedron. Turning it over in my fingers, the planes were fractionally inset, approximately three or four millimetres deep, with the protruding edges forming a structural framework. In the exact centre of each plane, there was a little bubble embedded, housing some kind of node. The whole was made of a semi-transparent material that resembled crystal, though the surfaces continually, and unevenly, changed colour. The interior couldn't be properly seen, obscured behind a random pattern of shifting and mingling clouds that ran the spectrum of the rainbow.

"Huh," I murmured. "This is their ... weapon? Device?" I don't even know what it's made out of, much less how it works. "I wonder what I'm meant to do with it."

Shay. Mira took the artifact out of my grasp with his free right hand, and turned it over, inspecting it. The hidden sunlight is within, but ... it is different.

Switching on the aqumi vision, I stared at the dodecahedron.

He was right.

The Truth was heavily imbued with quantum-unifying virtual particles, and arteries ran along each edge, mirroring the basis of the artifact's physical construction. Yet each planar bubble was emanating the standard gold, but ... at least one other colour too.

What ... ?

Red, blue, green, yellow, purple, and more.

Smaller aqumi veins ran across the surface from every bubble to the five vertices of their connected planes, all in perfect straight lines. The particle streams flowing through those veins were alternating between gold and the native colouration of the bubble itself.

I've never seen anything other than the typical gold. This is new. Is it a different type of aqumi? Whatever the purpose of this artifact, it was clearly exceptional and I took a deep breath as I stared at it in Mira's hand. Dagen wasn't exaggerating. If this thing can actually alter the quantum force in any practical way, then it must be as valuable as he said it was.

"There's so much going on," I sighed, sliding my fingers over his, so we were both holding the Truth together. "We've spent weeks following Dagen's trail, finding Yugan and the Mishith, but what's next? This is all leading somewhere, but ... where?"

On the Herald, the area for berthing smaller ships was empty. Mira's telepathic interjection made me glance up so we were eye to eye. He was serious, thoughtful, and I gazed at him as the low echo of his mental communication rang through me. It had space for many, but there was nothing. You know the reason for this.

"Earth." I did know, and goosebumps spread over my skin as the implication of that very basic fact sank in. "The Herald sent everything else there. The attack has to be happening right now." Then, another immediate realisation arrived. "This is all time sensitive! They need Earth, but it's not just to crush our resistance. Something else is meant to happen there -- something important -- and the Herald can't let us interfere. It had to stop me from meeting the Mishith, from allying them, but why? Because with their help, we're going to return with this artifact and prevent whatever the enemy is going to do. The only problem is-"

They are not whole. He finished my sentence for me. You remember the image of Dagen, on Elkos?

I nodded. Mira is right, something about our new alien friends is incomplete. "Yeah. He was much bigger than the Mishith we've met in person today; maybe twelve or thirteen feet tall. He looked physically different too, like his skin and muscles were augmented. Before we were teleported off the surface, Dagen mentioned 'the Sundering' when he spoke through Yugan -- whatever that is -- and that Yugan has to 'join their blood with the foundation of stone'. Considering he used aqumi to free a repressed part of their mentality, it sounds like they were biologically or genetically engineered somehow." My brow furrowed as I thought further on it. "It must be to do with the original war, being forced to go back to their roots and live without advanced technology. Seems like the modern Mishith probably don't even know what they lost. I don't think we'll be able to properly figure this artifact out until we 'fix' them."

That's what we must do next. He looked down and carefully placed the Truth back into the box in its cradle, before moving the cuboid itself to the seat next to us. Restore their foundation and then, together, we will win. Back up to make eye contact again, the gleam there went from plain worshipful all the way to sultry. I know this to be so because we have the ability between us and because ... you are the best.

He didn't need to say anything else. It was all written into the intensity of his stare; the clarity of emotion, the magnetism of the irises, the unquestionable conviction of his statement.

Not just that he believed in me, but that it was everything that mattered to him.

"Mira," I breathed, biting my lip in giddy embarrassment. "I wish this was over so I could have you to myself; just the two of us alone for a looong time. We've got to go help Yugan soon, but ... right now ... for the next couple minutes ... I want- ... no, I need to kiss you." My voice dropped to a husky whisper and I slid forward on his lap, closing the remaining space between us, my front against his, our faces nearly touching. "Really, really kiss you."

His eyes widened, a faint pink tinging his cheeks at the boldness of my determination.

"So, put both hands back where they belong," I arched my back, pushing my stomach forward and hips back, giving him a lot more to grab onto, "because all of me is yours."

His errant right dutifully dropped to join the left and together they went further; first up beneath the shirt, then down under the pants layers, and then lovingly across my bare skin, his fingers meeting in the cleft with a possessive satisfaction.

"That's right, you keep them there," my voice was half murmur, half purr, and my arms went around his shoulders again, one hand brushing his neck, the other threading into his gloriously silky hair. "And don't forget, all of you is mine too."

His head tilted back, I leaned down, and we drew close. His lips met mine, a soft wet perfection, the sensation wonderful and familiar. At first, the touch was light, fleeting, but then we were fully enmeshed, mouths parting as the kiss deepened into a true lovers' reunion. Tongues rubbed, slowly swished, and the obsession of his intimacy was an emotional drug; the friction, the heat, the instinctive sensuality.

I couldn't help it, and I let out a faint whine of pure pleasure into his mouth. He squeezed me and I involuntarily whimpered again, the squishing of sensitive flesh being the cherry on top of our embrace. He pulled me even closer by his grip on my ass, our chests rubbing, my fingers tightening where they were twined through his tresses.

It was all I wanted in that moment.

A little slice of heaven.

-o-0-O-0-o-

The change in location due to teleportation was so fast and so smooth it left Ayize blinking in surprise, the final word of his sentence emerging into an audience-free room instead of a mountaintop. The sensory interruption from the transition was brief and imperceptible, gone before he could register it, and instead he was greeted with the interior of Dagen's ship.

Even to his relatively untrained eyes, it was extraordinary.

For humanity, from the progression of the industrial age and the increasing complexity of mechanised engineering, to the onset of electronics and digitisation, one trend had become very plain.

Miniaturisation.

Over time, human technology steadily became both more effective and smaller. By the 24th century, many items commonly found in even middle class households contained incredibly powerful integrated functions. Basic everyday devices were efficient and streamlined, some to a degree that made those from even a half century prior seem ungainly and primitive in contrast.

While Ayize was no expert on the construction of human interstellar vessels, military or civilian, he did at least know that the refinement of the systems involved were impressive compared to the early days of space exploration.

However, that refinement paled compared to this ship.

Moments after his arrival, Ayize was looking around the room he had been sent to and as he did, an AI voice spoke out of the air, in perfect accent-neutral English.

"Information: you are aboard Seer Dagen's personal vessel, located in passenger quarters on the middle deck. He has requested you remain here until the current hostile encounter is resolved. Remote observation of the bridge is enabled to provide continuing situational awareness. For any further concerns, simply speak aloud your query or use the Mishith word 'serin' to directly address the artificial intelligence."

Before those words were finished, in multiple places, the floor was morphing as matter flowed upward. It was projected by some kind of directed molecular construction field, and Ayize could only watch in astonishment as it formed into basic furniture by the end of the AI's verbalisation. The quarters were a half dozen metres wide and closer to ten long, with an octagonal portal on one side that he assumed was the exit. The fabricated items included a pair of single beds along one wall, a low table in the centre surrounded by a couch and several lounge chairs, wall-mounted lighting fixtures, and a wide soft circle of golden-hued carpet that replaced the mother-of-pearl iridescent floor beneath the seating.

Removing his rebreather, Ayize walked slowly across and sat upon the couch, gingerly, uncertain.

It seemed indistinguishable from a human-made one.

Just conjured up, from whatever this AI had already learned about humans.

Amazing.

Teleportation, matter manipulation, phase technology, advanced energy weaponry. He shouldn't have been surprised given the nature of the quantum-unified particle field embedded in Shay and Mira and the things he'd seen them do, but this was much more concrete, and visible.

It was as close to literal magic as anything he had seen.

What he had already witnessed from the ancient Mishith tech was at the minimum decades beyond human understanding and more realistically at least a century away.

At least.

He had the feeling that there was a lot more though and that this was only the smallest tip of an enormous iceberg of knowledge.

The African placed his TMP onto the couch and leaned back, relaxing.

What had started as an opportunity to fuck with MFM and change Earth's political situation for the better had led to something much larger than he thought possible. CorpSec, the federal authorities, human infighting, espionage; he was used to those concepts. It was the mire in which he swam; a murky soup that was odious, but he at least knew how to navigate it.

Now though?

Now, he felt like a child plucked from an ankle-depth wading pool and thrown into deeper water. Only, this was no pool, but an ocean infinitely greater than he realised, full of fables and monsters; vast, fantastic, and utterly terrifying.

Wonder what 'dani and Kenji would think of all of this? He sighed and rubbed his forehead. Rashid has been a loyal trooper through this crazy shit, and that's honestly reassuring. Bet Ken would love it though, he's one hell of a nerd for anything sci-fi.

A glimmer of light woke him from his reflections, and Ayize saw a holo-projection appear over the table. As promised, it showed the vessel's bridge; Yugan was in the foreground next to a control podium with Shay near him, the latter apparently having just arrived.

Speaking of my boy, where is Rashid? What about the other aliens too, the females? Did they-

The thought was interrupted by another blink of light and the sudden appearance of a small feline shape on a stretch of the empty floor. Momentarily surprised, Ayize got up and retrieved the confused kitten from where it had appeared before returning back to his seat.

From there, he watched the confrontation with the Herald unfold.

All of it; beginning with the approach of the leviathan, all the way through to its sudden depowering and destruction. The bridge transmission terminated around the point of Yugan's departure, with the freshly recovered guest in tow.

A human girl.

He was still thinking it over when the door slid open and Yugan entered, carrying his unconscious naked charge. The Mishith walked to the nearest bed and, with surprising gentleness, laid her down on the sheets before pulling them over her. Turning, he acknowledged Ayize's presence with a nod, but the man could not stop staring.

"You are Ayize. I have witnessed Shay's journey and the part you played." The Mishith voice was deep and with an odd rasp to it that was nearly hypnotising. He had taken notice of the prolonged attention though, as the next words were a question. "Does my appearance trouble you?"

"No." He shook his head, trying to find the words. "It's just ... you are the only friendly intelligent alien species we've encountered and I am- ... one of the first humans to speak with you, see you. For us, this is ... special. Unique."

"Then you wish to simply learn about us." Yugan crossed the room and sat in one of the chairs opposite the couch, the seat barely large enough to admit his frame. He adopted a loose posture, one that gave Ayize a clear view of the physical shape of his body. "It is only natural. I have seen much of your kind through Shay, but you have little experience with mine. Fulfill your curiosity and observe me."

Following the invitation, Ayize did just that.

From top to toe.

Apart from the arms, the most notable thing about the Mishith body was definitely the features of the head. The central and rear part of the skull was a similar shape to a hominid one, but the front was partially drawn forward, in a resemblance to Earth's larger felid and canid hunters. The dominant feature was the broad, lightly-rounded bridge of the nose, reminiscent of a less protrusive variation on a lion or tiger. At a steep decline, it ran more than two thirds of the skull's vertical axis, from forehead to the nasal tip. The tip itself was the point of a clean reverse angle, which in turn followed a shorter distance down to the chin. There, the jawline cut back and slightly upward towards the hinge and junction with the neck.

On either side of the tip were tiny slits for the nostrils and while Ayize had not noticed evidence of any strong olfactory sense, they seemed at least human equivalent. The mouth, also, was set midway between the nasal tip and the chin and, from when Yugan had spoken, there had been glimpses of both incisors and molars within. This provided the simple assumption of an omnivorous diet, and though there was no suggestion of being a predatory species, the overall profile of the facial features definitely reminded Ayize of Earth's big cats.

However, the eyes were perhaps the most striking aspect.

To the front, in a close mirroring of humanity, were two medial eyes, one on each side of the nasal bridge and just beneath the forehead. The underlying shapes were well defined, but with straighter linear sides that made the ocular sockets appear triangular and alien, instead of the human ellipse. The shortest side was nearly parallel to the bridge, with the other two longer sides drawn outward. A secondary lateral pair of eyes were set wider, each an inverted format of the primary. Together, the visual fields of both sets had an overlap, and could catch everything from front to periphery. All four had black pupils, formed in an X shape, and vivid richly shaded irises of pure violet. Vision seemed to be the most acute sense, as judging from Mishith movement and coordination, they had excellent depth perception, fantastic balance, and impressive dexterity for their size.

The frontal narrowness of the jaw widened toward the skull's rear and upward to the eyes. Though there wasn't a direct equivalent to hair, Yugan possessed a series of thick fibrous shocks that seemed to be roughly analogous. They grew in clumps and his ran from the top of the skull and just behind the outer eyes, all the way down his neck, not quite to the shoulders. Matted into a loose weave, they were much less malleable than human hair, but still flexible with light pressure. The females, Ralot and Mikom, both possessed longer growths, and had also arranged them in what Ayize assumed was some kind of cultural styling related to gender. On all three individuals, these growths went behind the ears, which were the final easily discernible feature of the face.

Like a bellwether, the Mishith ears seemed to be representative of an outwardly displayed emotional state, and were probably used as much for social interaction as they were for auditory reception. Pointed, flexible, leaf-shaped, with what appeared to be some kind of velvet surfacing, they could be held vertical like a deer, as a sign of attention being given -- as Yugan was currently doing for Ayize's inspection. He had glimpsed all three Mishith with them swiveled forward when they were on Dagen's Grace during the Herald's attack, showing an intent focus on capturing sound. Also, tilted back or pulled in close, for defensiveness or perhaps reserved emotions. He was sure there had to be other subtle configurations for communicating feelings past the obvious.

Beyond the head, the rest of the body was loosely anthropoid. The chest, torso, and lower body were a close match to human proportions, simply scaled up. The main difference was the upper legs had a slight forward lean when standing, though the lower section from knee to ankle ran counter, effectively balancing it out. The dual pairs of arms were well developed, and while Ayize recalled the females having a greater central mass, Yugan's male physiology apparently possessed higher muscle density and tensile strength in his limbs and shoulders. While both pairs were indistinguishable from one another in terms of size and dexterity, the lower inferior pair were kept drawn close to his stomach when not needed, with the upper superior pair being the default for gesturing and physical interactions.

Though the wrists and lower arms were a familiar shape, the hands had a marked advantage over the human counterpart. Instead of four fingers, there were five, and they were fully symmetrical; a longest middle finger, two slightly lesser on either side, and then two more surrounding those. The thumb was not located parallel to the arm, but instead perpendicular, at the hand's heel, above the wrist. With the opposable digit having an extensive bidirectional range of motion, there was no practical difference between the left and right hands, outside of the orientation of the arm itself. Ayize had already seen their manual dexterity at work, and could not fault the effectiveness. At the tip of each finger also, was a short narrowing claw in place of a fingernail. Clearly evolved for grip enhancement, they were apparently also extendable for self-defence.

Lastly was the skin itself. On the face, it was smoother and less blemished, granted the protection of the cranial bone structure, but from the neck and shoulders down, it was thicker. Pitted and tautly drawn, Mishith skin was far more like a leathery hide than human skin. In some places around vital areas, it was thicker and denser, with ridging and bunched layering as cumulative protection. This was particularly noticeable on the shoulders, chest, and thighs. Not only this, but there was perhaps also some kind of chameleon element present. On the mountain summit, Yugan's skin had been a light green-brown, but now here, on this ship, the shade had changed in response to the surroundings and was a yellow-tinted shade of cream.

"You are so ... unlike us, but also, so similar." Ayize struggled to express himself. "That we are communicating at all feels like some kind of miracle and I don't- ... I wouldn't call myself a superstitious man."

"Much of Dagen's implanted knowledge remains latent, but I do remember a little of our history. One fact is that your kind was not the first intelligent species my ancestors discovered." Yugan nodded slowly and held out both superior hands, palms upward, the gesture eerily human. "There were many others before you -- a great many -- and the shapes of their bodies, their minds, their behaviours; certain aspects that we share were found in all of them too. On many worlds, too far apart from one another for the circumstances to be linked."

"It's a constant? A universal constant?" Ayize asked and, unable to contain it, he let out a choked laugh of pure emotional disbelief. "If- ... if people on Earth could hear this? That complex life exists in many other places and that ... that we resemble the model for success? That we have the potential to be better, to be anything like ... you."

"And yet," Yugan rumbled, "we were the ones who made the mistake that led to the Enemy entering reality. Until I learn a full explanation of that history, I have only legends from the past, but I understand those mythic tales better than when I heard them as a child. The Mishith of old lost a great war, but now it is your kind that form the shield and spear, the mind and soul, of this final conflict." His superior left hand dropped down again, but the right one stayed raised momentarily, gesturing placidly over his shoulder to the sleeping girl. "It is her, and Mira, and Shay, that can accomplish what we cannot."

"If I've learned anything from knowing those two, it's that we need to pay more attention to the best of our youth." He sighed, not sure exactly what to say next, but Ayize forged on nonetheless. "I suppose I should ask, because there's something about this -- all of this, the entire thing -- that's been stuck in my head for a long time. Maybe it sounds overly simplistic, but ... what are we fighting?" He paused a second, trying to formulate it a little better, and glanced to Elia's sleeping form. "We've seen sharpelings -- mutated human slaves, I guess you'd call them -- and we've seen arbiters and their ships, by the thousand. We've seen this Herald too, just now, but ... that can't be it. They all seem like extensions of something larger, servants or puppets that were sent here for a reason."

"They are." Yugan's answer was a basic affirmation. "Even the Herald, as mighty as it was, served another. You heard that creature make reference to its superior; an entity that Shay and the others already know as the Master."

The Master.

"Then ... what is it? What does it want?" Ayize sat up straighter and the kitten mewled loudly at the movement, interjecting for the first time with a verbalisation. "I mean, obviously it wants to destroy us, but ... why?" He petted it, stroking behind the ears, and it settled again on his lap. "Do you even know? Does ... Dagen? Would he tell me if he did?"

For a few seconds Yugan did not respond, and the X of his medial pupils tightened, as if focusing closer, but the barometer of the ears did not change. Then, a moment later, he spoke and the voice was different.

Stilted, less familiar with human linguistics; a foreigner with only a technical knowledge, no experience, and a touch of distaste being forced to practice it.

[ Speak. I will not indulge this often. ]

"Is that because ... if we learn too much at the wrong time, your intended future might not happen?"

[ Yes. All upcoming probabilities are continuously recalculated based upon the present and the interference of uncontrolled variables reduces effectiveness. Everything I influence is in service of maximising our success and minimising the opposite. ]

So, Rashid was right, he mused. Seems like a complicated balancing act.

"Then can you tell me: what is the Master, and why is it doing this?" Ayize shrugged a shoulder. "I mean the war, violence, destruction. Those things."

[ I cannot tell you, because I do not know. None in our material universe have conversed with it. We know nothing of its nature, save the name, and that the servants we encounter revere it as one might a deity. ]

There was a slight pause, but before Ayize could say anything more, Dagen went on.

[ What motivates the Master is unknown. When the cataclysm occurred, the Enemy beheld the glory and supremacy of my kin in those first terrible moments through the Veil's wound. It took but the smallest instance of time to recognise us as a threat and choose hostility. That we could pierce the fundamental barrier and draw its attention was enough to elicit fear, but the true danger it perceived was within our singular potential, the stuff of unified body and soul. ]

Yugan's head dipped forward, the concentrated medial gaze and serious tone of his ancestor's voice seeming to intensify.

[ The Enemy cannot allow my species to exist, and all the cosmos is condemned along with us; to forestall life arising anywhere in a manner that may repeat our success. You have heard the Master's servants speak of 'Music' and 'Light', and while I can say nothing more on that subject, know that these ideas represent what they intend: a dissolution of all physical structures and laws. ]

"They're going to literally ... end reality?" Ayize blinked and, despite the company he was in, his tone shifted to his regular conversational style. "Wait, what can this Master do if Shay ripped its biggest minion into pieces? Saw it on the holo-graph a few minutes back; massive chunks of splintered xenoform spread like confetti in orbit. The toughest guy is down, so we move on to whatever's next. Speaking of which, what IS next? Can you even say?"

[ The Herald is not the Master's strongest pawn. ]

Not the strongest? The African didn't want to hear a statement like that and could hardly conceptualise something more dangerous, but then, the wording ... did he say 'is'?!

[ Be glad you have not encountered that foe yet, ] Dagen told him, [ but along the way, through my path of divided blood and stone, you shall. ]

With that, Yugan sat up straighter, his upper body drawing forward, then he promptly relaxed again, giving a gentle shake of the head as the possession faded and full control was regained.

"What kind of answer was that?" Ayize frowned. "The background information was ... enlightening, if really dire, I won't lie about that, but it didn't change the immediate situation. All we've got to look forward to is something bigger and nastier? I was hoping that he might actually hint at what we should do next."

"Oh, but I think ... he did." Standing, Yugan eased out of the chair and came around the table. Ayize couldn't help but shrink back slightly, just from the imposing presence of the approaching Mishith, but Yugan crouched next to him. The superior left hand rose and, with the index finger, scratched a claw lightly along the kitten's back, eliciting a mew of satisfaction in return. He spoke again, closer, softer, and the human began to understand that the apprehension was misplaced and a simple biological reaction to something new and larger than himself.

He knew, undoubtedly, that Yugan was a friend.

"It may have sounded like words without obvious meaning, but consider this: he spoke of a path of divided blood and stone. We Mishith are the blood and I am seeking the other half, the stone. I know he went to other worlds after Dagen's Grace, before he met his death, and this is his vessel."

Ayize's mouth fell open as he realised. "Then ... he went there in this ship! There has to be a log, a record of where he travelled!"

"Precisely." The Mishith tickled the animal's stomach, watching with some amusement as the marauding retaliatory feline claws stabbed ineffectually into the digit, and completely failed to pierce his skin. "We will do as Shay did for Sulin's path and retrace Dagen's steps."

-o-0-O-0-o-

Following a few minutes of being wrapped around him enjoying a lazy make-out, Mira and I got up and made our way together back to the bridge. In other circumstances I might have wanted our encounter to become sexual, but it wasn’t the time and place, and a little intimacy with him was really all I needed. Despite the exertion of fighting through the Herald, I noticed Mira seemed to have regained his spent energy too, and it was easy to tell that our closeness was the reason. I had to admit that I felt recharged, and while I wasn't sure if it was endorphins or dopamine or whatever 'happy' chemicals were involved in our emotional connection, or if there was an actual aqumi effect at play, but I was grateful.

A short interlude with him had helped my state of mind so much.

Both Yugan and Ayize were present on the bridge when we walked in. The Mishith had taken Elia to sleep on the middle deck where Ayize had been during the recent conflict, specifically the lower starboard passenger quarters. Dagen's ship wasn't a large one and, with only three decks in total, and having seen the external shape, I could estimate the overall size. We were informed it had four passenger quarters, with Sulin's -- now for Mira and I -- being the upper port side, and Dagen's -- now for Yugan -- the upper starboard, with the lower port room unoccupied. There were six other rooms, mostly located toward the aft end nearer the engines, and also on the bottom deck, which was entirely devoted to system utility.

After a short discussion between me, Yugan, and Ayize, we quickly reached a consensus with our shared information. My contribution was to tell them about Dagen's gifts and their potential value, and the understanding that Earth was undoubtedly under attack, and possibly on borrowed time. From Yugan we heard the news that there was another enemy yet to be encountered, probably more dangerous than the Herald, but also that we had a definite trail to follow in the form of this ship's past locations.

Considering that I wanted to help Yugan find his other half, and he had basically been given a big hint to do just that, the course of action was clear.

Summoning the AI, he requested it recall the travel log for the previous time Dagen departed his namesake world, where we were.

Immediately, the location was identified and locked as a navigation waypoint.

After ensuring the transport vessel's subordinate AI was on a slave setting to our own, and with nothing further left, he initiated the jump.

With my only frame of reference being the archaic human technology of the old orbital gates, and the distinctly weird heavy-lightness of the Disciple's variation, I wasn't sure what to expect.

Like teleportation, the advanced propulsion of the ancient Mishith ships was near instant and almost without sensation. Briefly, the stars outside blurred, shimmering, the layout morphing to a new field. I felt a buzzing tingle throughout my body and the deck beneath our feet gave a slight tremble as the transit occurred, but then it was done.

So smooth, barely even noticed it happen.

"Uh, serin," Ayize queried, and he was gazing out the forward window at the stars, "we're clearly still in the Milky Way -- I can see the galactic core -- but the view is different. So, where did we go, exactly?"

"Information: current location is in the Scutum-Centaurus Arm." The control podium in front of us displayed a map of the galaxy, with a blinking icon highlighting our location in the mid reaches of the vast curve of one of the spiral arms. "The galactic core is 29,345 light years distant."

"That's about right for- ... no. No, wait a sec, Scutum is opposite the Orion Arm -- our arm! -- and how do you know human names for the galactic spirals?"

"Information: an extensive encyclopaedia of racial knowledge was copied from the human systems installed on the vessel Liberty. Appropriate naming conventions and standardised measurements will be used for your convenience and understanding." The AI was quite blunt about informing us that it had effortlessly appropriated not only our language through brain scans, but also stolen everything present about our world and history in the state-of-the-art CorpSec-protected shipboard database -- and it was all just 'for our convenience'. "Addendum: the human solar system is 51,688 light years distant."

"What?!" Ayize's response was an astonished whisper, and he turned to look at me. "Shay, we jumped halfway across the Milky Way."

"That is impressive." I blinked, then addressed another question to the AI. "Is there anywhere in the galaxy that's too far away?"

"Negative. Jump range exceeds galactic boundaries."

Wow.

With a few flicks of his fingers, Yugan switched the galactic map for a system map and moments later the destination planet came into view as the ship rotated, along with the parent star. A red dwarf in the medium distance, it was nothing special. The planet though was in the habitable zone, and I stared at the broad curve beneath us, still not immune to the magnificent sight of a new alien world.

The AI began to list the stats for us, and we listened as our vessel settled into a high orbit. One of three planets, this was the only terrestrial world. Another desert environment, it was 0.95 Earth masses, but slightly denser and with a smaller diameter. Possessing a heavy concentration of iron and other common metals, it had a molten core, an Earth-similar magnetic field, and was tectonically active. Though the volcanism was mild and the surface was mostly clear, there were sections blanketed in cloud and smoke. The rest were the ridges and troughs of continental motion, ranging from grey to deeper brown all the way through to ruddy Martian tones.

"I get that they're common, but another heated ball of dust and rock?" The African regarded it warily and I found myself sharing the sentiment. "I guess at least this one looks like it could support life." He looked at Yugan. "Do you know what we're looking for?"

"No." Yugan pointed to an area in the northern hemisphere of the planet. "I am uncertain what to expect, but Dagen did visit this continental region, to a number of locations spread across it."

"It doesn't seem like there are any obvious signs of habitation. No buildings, no evidence of civilisation." With a thought, I activated my quantum vision. "I don't see anything related to aqumi either. It's clean."

"The transport vessel will land between these points." Yugan zoomed the system map in further to a planetary spread, the image spinning so that the aforementioned region was central. He indicated a cluster of three dots, closer together than most of the other sites Dagen had gone to. "Our companions will investigate directly on the surface. I wish to keep us here, as my predictive sense is unsettled. I feel we may still be in danger and so I urge caution, for the time."

"That's wise." Ayize agreed and I nodded with him. "Our last encounter did spring from practically nowhere. Let's just watch, and see how this plays out."

For roughly the next four hours, that was what we did.

Yugan engaged himself mostly with a study of the ship's systems, and Ayize did the same, as he was given at least basic access permission. I knew he was smart, but there was still a lot about the alien technology that we just couldn't understand, at least on an academic-intellectual level. Still, that didn't change his exclamations of surprise and awe at what he was learning, and those interjections made me smile.

There were occasional voice communications from the Mishith on the surface and Rashid, though their initial exploration hadn't uncovered anything noteworthy. For my part, I continued to watch the forward view, content to just admire the planetary vista. Bridge seating literally materialised upward from the floor, a short bench on either side of the command podia big enough for three humans, and I sat on the port-side one and waited, Mira next to me, his hand in mine.

The vigil was finally interrupted by the door behind us opening, from the passenger quarters.

Elia.

Now rested and awake, she padded through, barefoot, but wearing fabricated clothing similar to her brother's; cargo pants and a singlet top. My breath caught the moment I lay eyes on her and it was simply because she was a replica of everything that physically attracted me to Mira, only ... feminine. To my mind -- and to others also, I was confident -- she was beautiful, and it triggered in me a certain realisation: while I was definitely drawn to Mira because he was a boy, in an alternate reality, it could have been her. It seemed I had a very definite type and gender apparently didn't matter all too much.

She had long, wavy, darker blonde hair, just like him; the same face, the same eyes, the same guarded look that didn't give anything away. Athletic, with wiry definition, to me she was also ideally feminine in the same way Mira was ideally masculine. The flare of the hips was model pitch-perfect, but even more the tightness of the singlet material across her chest merely emphasised how the Ellefsen genes were uniquely suited to my personal tastes.

I didn't actually want anything sexual nor romantic from her -- she was his twin -- but the magnetism?

Just like with him, it was completely undeniable.

I felt drawn to her.

I wanted to know her, I wanted to be close to her, because she was a part of him.

By blood, more than any other living human.

The instant he saw her, Mira sprang over the back of our seat, and in a short dash, he was on her, then they were whirling about in a tight hug. Following, I rose and approached around the bench, my chest tightening at the image, emotions flying.

I felt ... happy.

So happy that I almost wanted to cry.

He's got family.

We have family.

Letting him go, she came straight to me and didn't hesitate at all. With absurd agility, she slipped to my side and then directly behind me, her front against my back. Her arms went around my neck, clasping over my chest in a hug that was incredibly Mira-esque and very familiar. Her cheek pressed against mine and I leaned into her.

In front of us, Mira was staring at our embrace, his expression a mix of joy and gratitude, like he was receiving the most precious offering.

In truth, he was, but I felt the same.

This IS a gift.

Defeating the Herald was worth it just to rescue her.

Her lashes fluttered against my skin, ticklish, and she paused, a vibe of concern entering her attitude. Her left hand rose, delicate fingers pointing to a blank spot in the starfield out the forward view, and her voice came, a soft whisper of my name that was sweet, but troubled by prescience.

"Shay."

No sooner than the sound was uttered, there was a shudder in the cosmic warp, gravity distorting. Into the indicated position upon the celestial canopy burst a giant dark shape, and a presence that was not long dead, but already renewed.

Maleficent, colossal, and unrelenting, the Herald was alive and it had found us once more.