Echoed Lullabies (Lunar Chronicles x Reader)

Chapter 56

The audio feed disconnected with a soft click, leaving the cargo bay in silence. Sitting atop one of the now-empty storage crates, I glanced around, taking in Cinder's tense shoulders as she stared at the blank netscreen, the way Wolf was tapping his fingers against his elbows, and Iko, who was still focused on the portscreen on her lap, trying to figure out her next move in the game she and Cress had been playing for the last hour.

"He did it," mumbled Cinder.

"Of course he did," said Iko, without looking up. "We knew he would."

Turning her back on the screen, Cinder scratched idly at her wrist. "The eighth is a lot sooner than I'd expected. I bet Earthen leaders will start departing within the next forty-eight hours."

"Good," said Wolf. "The wait is driving me crazy."

No, the separation from Scarlet was driving him crazy, but no one said anything. Maybe the wait was driving us all a little crazy.

"Jester to A1!" Iko finally announced. Beaming, she held the port out to Cress.

"King to C4, and I claim all rubies," said Cress, without hesitation.

Iko paused, looked down at the screen, and deflated. "How are you so good at this?"

"I played this a lot when I was bored on the satellite. And I got bored a lot."

"But my brain is supposed to be superior."

"I've only ever played against a computer if that makes you feel better."

"It doesn't." Iko crinkled her nose. "I want that diamond." Setting the port back into her lap, she fisted her hand around a ponytail of braids, once again deep in concentration.

Cinder cleared her throat, drawing Cress's focus, but not Iko's. "Kai will have a fleet with him. It's imperative we know which ship he's on."

Cress nodded. "I can find out."

"This plan will work," said Wolf forcefully, like he was threatening the plan itself. He started to pace between the cockpit and medbay.

This was it, our only chance. Either it worked, or we failed.

"Crown-maker to A12."

Cress sacrificed her Jester, then proceeded to sneak her Thief across the board, snatching up every loose emerald, until even Iko's coveted diamond wouldn't win her the game.

"Ah! Why didn't I see that?" Growling, Iko pushed the portscreen away. "I never liked this game anyway."

"Podship detected," said the Rampion's monotone voice. I jumped, every muscle in my body tightening. "Captain Thorne is requesting permission to dock. Submitted code word: Captain is King."

I exhaled, relieved not only that we hadn't been spotted by an enemy ship, but that Thorne was back. All the worry I'd been harboring since he and Kai had left rose to the surface of my skin and evaporated with a single breath.

"Permission granted," said Cinder, a fair amount of relief in her tone as well. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Step one complete. Kai is back on Earth, the wedding is rescheduled to take place on Luna, and Thorne has returned safely." She rocked back on her heels, a crease between her eyebrows. "I can't believe nothing went wrong."

"I would wait until you're sitting on a throne before making statements like that," I said.

Cinder twisted her lips. "Good point. All right, everyone." She slapped her hands together. "Let's get started on any last-minute preparations. Cress and Iko, you're in charge of making final edits to the video. Wolf, I need you to—"