Aquarian Awakenings - A Collective Saga Sci-Fi Romance

Prologue

Flirtation lasts the brief flutter of a butterfly's wing.

True love endures the weathering of a mountain to dust.

-- Hun Proverb

Nikita's heart soared as she strode up the rocky slope to the plateau overlooking the battlefield. It had been four long days since the death-sworn raiders had thundered down the mountains in seemingly unstoppable numbers. Four agonizing days of blood-soaked chaos; four obsidian nights punctuated by heart-rending screams and groans. Many good warriors had been slain. She had almost lost hope.

It had been Nathan who had turned the tide. Nathan, his five lieutenants, and their soul-deep commitment to holding the line, no matter what it took. They had paid dearly for their efforts; each man bore wounds which would leave lasting scars. But they had done it. Against all odds, against the most brutal of foes, they had held the field.

She looked to her right, to where Nathan walked steadily at her side. Warmth soaked her to the bone. God, he was everything she craved. His leather armor was pocked with ragged holes and countless stains. Blood soaked through the bandage on his thigh, and she marveled that he was able to walk. The sword at his hip was well worn; it had saved her life more times than she could count.

She drew to a stop as they reached the crest, and behind her Nathan's five loyal lieutenants spread out, always vigilant for danger. For so long their lives had been about war – about holding off the endless waves of bandits and raiders who sought to destroy all they had so carefully built. Now, at last, the final threat had been dealt with. After years of bloody conflict, they might have achieved that peace so long dreamed of.

It took her breath away.

She turned to Nathan, and his gaze was on her, steady, sure. The eldest son of the neighboring noble, he had been the first to come to her aid when her parents had been ambushed and killed. He had loyally stood by her side throughout the raids and sieges which followed.

And now there was peace.

Her heart wound with coiled wire. For so long she had not dared dream of this day. It had seemed like the long, hellacious storm would never end. And now that the clouds were finally passing – would he leave as well?

The coils drew tighter. She could not imagine her keep without him in it. Without his warm smile as they practiced swordwork in the courtyard. Without his insightful conversations as they walked the battlements.

Without the warmth of being - just being - on the couch by the fire at the end of a battle which would have broken the will of most others. And he had laid his arm across her shoulder ...

She wrapped her arms around her chest. If peace was finally a reality, would he leave her to return to his own lands? Would her home become safe, secure ... and cavernously lonely?

She looked out to the field, and then past it, to the city of Aquarius. Those sturdy walls had never been breached. The innocents huddled within could finally emerge to furrow their soil and seed the ground. They could laugh, love, and rebuild. And it was all due to the man who stood by her side.

If he were to go ...

She blinked her eyes against the emotion, then turned to him. She looked up into those amber eyes ... and her voice caught in her throat.

It took all her strength to put breath behind her thoughts.

"Nathan, I wanted to say ..."

The words dried up.

Thank you?

There were no trite platitudes which could express her feelings for all he had done. He had put his life on the line for her more times than she could count. He had been there in the darkest hours, when all hope seemed lost. He had held her close when despair threatened to suck away the last of her will.

She knew what she wanted to say from the very depths of her soul.

Please don't leave me.

The setting sun shimmered behind him, casting shadows across his face, and she could not read his expression. His hand, as always, rested lightly on the hilt of his sword, ready to defend her.

She wished she knew what he was thinking. Was he grateful that he was finally released from his obligation? Was he eager to return home to his parents? She swallowed hard, clinging to the tiniest fragment of hope. Could it be that he, too, found that their friendship tracing back to childhood had grown, through the blaze and fury of battle, into a precious metal forged to last the ages?

Nathan's gaze swirled, caught up in emotions she could not name. He, too, swept his focus to rest on Aquarius for a moment. Then he turned to each of his lieutenants in turn, their eyes meeting in some sort of understanding.

Her heart thundered against her chest. He was leaving. He was saying goodbye.

At last he brought his gaze back to her.

He lowered himself onto one knee.

Nikita swayed, the world taking on a dream-like glow. Not in a thousand years, not in her deepest unspoken dreams, could she have hoped –

He reached up to take her hand in his. She felt the sturdiness of his fingers, the rough-worn strength which had grappled against death and clawed its way back from the edge of despair. Now they held her fingers with the delicacy of a newborn chick.

The world faded away, and it was just her and Nathan.

His voice was rich, warm, and it soothed into the depths of her soul, into the ragged places which thought never to find solace.

"Nikita, my other half, the one who makes me complete. When I first came to you, it was as a loyal friend who respected our family ties. But over these past four years ..."

He shook his head as if he could not believe she was before him. It took him a moment to continue.

"Nikki, it has been an honor. An honor to share your table, an honor to fight by your side, an honor to witness the depths of your care for those you watch over. I have witnessed your blossoming from a stripling girl into a woman who takes my breath away."

Nikita forced herself to breathe, so lost she was in his gaze.

Nathan's eyes shone with emotion. "You deserve far better than me. You deserve the richest king and a castle carved from gold. You deserve the finest destriers and the softest silks. But I swear to you, if you would do me the honor of being my wife, that our home will be rich with laughter, security, and love."

He reached into his pocket and brought out a small wooden box. Lifting the lid, he revealed a simple but finely crafted ring.

Joy filled Nikita, radiating out, seeming to light the entire valley below with golden brilliance. Her world was complete. There was nothing that could mar her sense of wholeness. Nothing could put even the slightest shadow over the love which blossomed out from the innermost reaches of her soul.

She looked down into the eyes of the man who had won her heart. She held her hand out to him, fingers splayed. Her voice rang with the certainty that echoed in every cell of her body.

"I love you. I love you with every beat of my heart; with every breath. Yes, I will be yours, Nathan. Forever."

Nathan's eyes glowed with emotion. He took up the ring, preparing to slide -

The golden glow around them intensified, then shimmered. A deep, resonant voice surrounded them, seeming to come from their very bones.

"Wait."