Narrowing my eyes, I turned on him, “You have no idea who you just baited.”
He laughed, that cocky, careless sound that had gotten him into trouble more times than I could count. “Doesn’t matter. I can take him?—”
“I’d love to see you try,” Jax cut in dryly. “There won’t be anything left of you within ten seconds.”
Marek leaned back in his chair, arms crossed. “Five.”
Jax grinned. “You’re on.”
I shook my head, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Men.”
All three of them looked at me with varying degrees of innocence. I didn’t have the patience for their posturing right now.
“I’m going down to the surface with the others,” I told them. “Ella and Nadine seem to know what they’re doing, and they’re offering real answers about Earth. Aboutus. This might be theonly chance we get to learn what the Order never wanted us to know.”
Jax’s expression darkened. “You sure that’s smart, Commander? That golden… whatever he is… they’re not exactly the trusting type.”
"Arkhevari," I filled them all in. "That's what they call themselves."
Rylan muttered, still scowling at the door like he could burn a hole through it. “That one looked at you like he wanted to eat you alive. Or drag you off somewhere private. Maybe both.”
I ignored the unwelcome heat that flared low in my belly at his words. “It doesn’t matter what he wants. I make my own choices. And right now, going down to Earth with them gives us the best chance to gather intel and figure out our next move. You three stay here. Rest. Stay sharp. If anything goes wrong, I need you ready.”
Rylan opened his mouth—probably to argue—but I pinned him with a hard stare.
“Too bad,” I said before he could speak. “I’m still the boss.”
He closed his mouth, though the look he gave me made it very clear he wasn’t happy. Jax and Marek exchanged a glance but didn’t push. They knew when to trust my judgment. I turned toward the door. The two Pandraxian guards were still waiting outside, polite but watchful.
“Take me to Ella and the others,” I told them.
They nodded without hesitation, almost… relieved? One of them even offered a small, respectful incline of his head as he gestured down the corridor. All while we walked, I felt the pull of that golden thread tugging insistently behind my ribs, growing stronger with every step. I could almost sense him, like a storm on the horizon.
I clenched my jaw and kept walking. Whatever this was between us, I wasn’t going to let it control me. Not yet; not ever, if I could help it.
But as the guards led me toward the briefing room where myhostswere waiting, I couldn’t quite shake the feeling that the universe had already made its choice.
The briefing room was dominated by a massive holographic display hovering above a central table. A detailed 3D image of Earth rotated slowly, continents and oceans glowing softly. Ella stood beside it, fingers moving through the air as she manipulated the projection. Red dots lit up across the globe scattered across deserts, mountains, and coastal regions.
I stepped inside. All eyes turned toward me.
Ashley gave me a nod. “Ah, Naeris. Good timing.”
Ella kept moving the hologram, zooming in on one of the red markers. “These red dots are the oldest excavation sites we’ve found so far, places where human history already gets… fuzzy. Göbekli Tepe, the submerged structures off India, and a few sites in the Amazon that don’t match any known timeline.”
Nadine shook her head, arms crossed. “I keep telling her that whatever we’re looking for is much older than that.”
I moved closer to the table, studying the glowing map. The pull in my chest sharpened the moment I felt Thyros’ presence. He stood on the far side of the hologram, arms folded, watching me with that same intense, burning focus that made my skin feel too tight.
Ashley looked at me directly. “Do you have any idea how long ago the Sythari came and took humans?”
I hesitated only a moment. This much, at least, was safe to share.
“I was born into the 100,000th generation of the Prime Luminae line,” I announced evenly.
The room went very still. Ella’s hand froze mid-gesture. Nadine’s eyes widened. Ashley let out a low whistle. The males, however, didn't seem impressed.
Ella finally found her voice. “One hundred thousand generations…? How many years is that on Earth?”
