I kept my focus on the portal, tracking its rhythm. Unstable... unstable... a brief moment of stability... then back to unstable.
"How will you know when to go?" Zoya asked.
"I'll tell you.” I was deep in the sensation now, feeling the portal's rhythm as if it were my own heartbeat. "I can feel when it's about to stabilize. I'll give you a ten-second warning, then count down to the stable period."
"Good," Cypher said. "Everyone to your positions. Secure anything that isn't already tied down. This transition is going to be rough."
The crew scattered, leaving only Cypher, Zoya, and me at the helm. Kora hesitated, then squeezed my shoulder before heading to help Knives with the wing controls.
"You're sure about this?" Cypher asked quietly.
I opened my eyes to look at him. "No. But I'm sure I can feel the patterns. The rest is up to you."
He nodded, accepting my honesty. "That's all I need."
I returned my attention to the portal, tracking its fluctuations. We were close enough now that I could almost reach out and touch the energy. The hair on my arms stood on end, and the back of my neck tingled with the proximity of so much unstable power.
"Ten seconds," I called suddenly, feeling the shift. "The portal is about to stabilize."
Cypher's hands tightened on the helm. "Omri, standby for full power!"
"Ready, Captain!" came the reply from below.
"Five seconds," I counted. "Four... three... two... one... NOW!"
"Full power!" Cypher shouted, and the ship surged forward as Omri released everything the engines had.
The portal stabilized just as we reached it, its sickly glow steadying into a more solid light. We hit the threshold at full speed, and the world around us dissolved into chaos. Sound and light bent around us. The ship groaned and creaked as if being torn apart. My stomach lurched, and for a terrible moment I thought I'd misjudged, that we were going to be ripped to pieces in the transition.
Then we were through, bursting into a darkness so complete it swallowed the light, emitting nothing in return. Only the crystal lamps kept us from absolute blindness.
"Wings!" Cypher shouted, and Knives and Kora moved in perfect sync, adjusting the great sails to catch the chaotic currents.
The ship stabilized, and I sagged against the rail, suddenly exhausted. My head pounded, and my vision swam.
"Status report!" Cypher called.
"Engines holding!" Omri replied.
"Wings stable!" Knives added.
"Everyone accounted for," Jask confirmed after a quick headcount.
I looked up, and the sight before me stole what little breath I had left.
Nytheris spread out around us, a shattered realm suspended in eternal darkness. Islands floated in the void, some the size of small mountains, others barely large enough for a single building. Purple and green energy arced between them, remnants of whatever catastrophe had torn the realm apart. In the distance, I could see the largest island—Calvaris, accordingto Cypher's maps—with the broken spires of the Reliquarium rising from its center.
"We made it," I whispered, a small, hysterical laugh bursting through.
Cypher's hand landed on my shoulder. "You did good, scavenger." I looked up at him, surprised. "Don't celebrate yet," he said, addressing the crew. "We're in now, but getting out will be just as dangerous. And between now and then..." He gestured to the broken realm around us. "We have to survive Nytheris."
The Night-Piercer hung suspendedin the void between shattered pieces of what was once a thriving realm. I couldn't tear my eyes away from the broken landscape, islands of various sizes drifting in the darkness.
"We can't stay here," Tor said, appearing at my side. His massive frame blocked some of the eerie light pulsing between the islands. "The ship's too vulnerable in the open void. We need to dock at one of the larger islands."
"Can we get close enough?" I asked, gesturing to the unstable debris field surrounding us.
"We'll have to. The bigger islands have more structural stability." He pointed to a massive landmass about a mile away. "That one looks solid enough."
