Page 3 of Vengeance of the Gods

Bridger was snatched from his own mind and thrown out like a drunk bar patron. He woke to a room lit by dim moonlight, tumbling from bed and crashing into the nightstand. A lamp fell to the floor, glass shattering around his bare feet.

The commotion wasn’t enough to distract him from what he’d seen.

Bridger had only been to Earth once, his overall knowledge of the world lacking, but he knew that landmark—he’d studied it as a part of Tolevarre’s history.

Soaked from head to toe, Bridger wiped a bead of sweat rolling down his brow and hadn’t finished buttoning his shirt before leaving the room.

The halls of Atrox bustled with early morning activity. Soldiers headed to training and lectures, while others went to or from their designated posts. Bridger liked to spend as little time as possible in Fortis’s fort city, but he was suddenly glad he’d decided to stay the night instead of traveling back to Vincere after the battle in Schoenus yesterday.

Bridger spoke to no one as he passed, and everyone had the right sense to step out of his way. His footsteps were light and hurried, descending the stairs into the massive prison below the fort’s foundation.

All the dreams he’d had of Vega thus far had been memories he hid away inside his mind. This one wasn’t a memory… It was a sign, pointing him straight to the cell door of a face he wasn’t particularly thrilled to see locked behind iron bars.

Her tight curls hid her face until she lifted her head and locked eyes with Bridger.

Unable to hold it in any longer, Bridger admitted what he’d come all the way down here for. “I know where Vega is.”

2

One Month Later

The evergreens rustled with the sound of wind breezing through, the lowest hanging limbs of two trees crossing together to form an arch. In between the trunks and the crossed branches, the snow from last night’s storm reflected off the portal, tiny beams of light casting the space around Bridger with sparkles.

It was beautiful in the same way a destructive fire was beautiful. Dangerous and lethal. Life-changing. And in a moment, it could take everything someone loved.

The crack down the middle made Bridger shudder.

What happens if it splits in two and Vega is lost forever? What does that mean for the rest of us?

The crack appeared after Vega’s body vanished from his arms. One second, he’d been holding the strongest version of Vega he’d ever known, and the next she was gone—in the blink of an eye.

“Commander.” Halo’s voice yanked Bridger from his daydream.

He turned to face the traveler, his eyebrow raised as if to ask, What?

Halo rubbed his hands together nervously. “I think we should get back.” His eyes scanned the clearing. “Rebels are everywhere.”

Bridger knew where the rebels were. He knew they would be looking to take whoever they could prisoner. He was aware he would be the prize of a lifetime if they got their hands on him.

If.

“Halo, please.” Bridger held up his hand to dismiss him. “We will go when I’m ready.” He turned back around to face the portal.

He reached down the bond, searching for the other end where Vega should be. Bridger felt nothing. Not a whisper or a breath of a response, only the tingle of the brand on his wrist and the reminder he knew where she was.

This was the first time she’d killed herself. Bridger hadn’t missed the electric buzz of her body when he held her until she disappeared. If he concentrated hard enough, he could still feel his fingers tingling.

Bridger lost himself staring at the portal, slipping behind a shield to protect himself and Halo from any surprise attacks while he was distracted with everything he knew.

Arlet hadn’t talked much since being taken captive, but the little she had was enough for Bridger to get some useful information.

Vega found something about her curse which pointed her back to Earth, returning her to the world that’d already stolen fifty-five years from her.

Since Vega couldn’t find anyone to assist in testing her theory, she decided to take it into her own hands—pretending to kill herself to reset to a new life and search for the root of her curse, the one responsible for over twenty different deaths and for stripping her of her memories and powers.

Why she couldn’t have tried walking through the portal as a starter is beyond me…

Halo’s boots crunched on dry leaves, his nerves causing him to fidget.