Fracture - Book One of the Glass Galaxy Trilogy

Chapter 17: Dream

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"Kalani," said a warm, gentle voice nearby.

"Kalani!" the voice said louder. It reminded me of Kaeya waking me up in the mornings.

I opened my eyes to find myself laying in a familiar bed, the soft linen sheets haphazardly covering me. A hand was on my shoulder, gently shaking me awake, and I rolled over to see who it was.

Kaeya smiled down at me with a warmth and fondness that made my heart ache, her long, chocolate-brown hair messily tumbling downwards like a goddess' wreath. I smiled up at her even as I felt tears welling up, "Hey, love."

She leaned down and gave my forehead a light kiss, "Good morning, sweetheart. How was your sleep?"

The tears in my eyes escaped their captivity, racing downwards towards the pillow my head lay on, and her face changed to worry. "What's wrong, love?" she asked me gently. "Did you have a bad dream?"

I sat up and rubbed the tears from my eyes, a deep sadness and nostalgia gripping my chest tightly, "Yeah. Yeah, a really bad one."

She sat back against the wall and gently pulled me towards her, wrapping her arms around my stomach as I leaned into her, "What was it about?"

"Teracon vanished. Admiral Oliver tried to seize your vessel, so you fled, but I wasn't able to follow you and I lost you. I searched for you for so many years..."

She ran a hand through my hair, "That does sound terrible. Did you ever find me?"

I shook my head sorrowfully, "We were on our way to get help finding you, actually, but then I woke up."

"We?"

I smiled a bit, tears still inexplicably running down my face, "I met some interesting people while looking for you."

"Tell me about them," she said softly.

"The first one I met was Aria. She was an arachnid-type alien with terrifying physical strength and excellent training." With one hand I tried to mime a spider running, "She was incredibly fast, too."

"And what about her as a person?" she asked.

"She was innocent to a fault," I answered softly. "The first time she killed someone she went into shock."

"It is an act that weighs heavily on one's heart, Kalani, and you know that."

I nodded, "I know. It's just that it nearly got us all killed."

She shifted a bit, clearing her throat, "Who else did you meet?"

I grimaced, "The next person I met was Reaper."

"Reaper?" she asked, audibly puzzled. "Is that their name?"

"Her name is Lastic," I answered her, "but she goes by Reaper mostly."

"Mmh." She kissed the back of my head, "How did you meet her?"

I chuckled, the absurdity of the situation comical in retrospect, "She attacked my ship."

"Attacked you?" she asked in surprise. "Why did she do that?"

I made finger guns, pretending to shoot an imaginary target in the distance, "She was a pirate. I was transporting goods for a nearby station and she jumped me with her fleet."

"Did she succeed?" Kaeya asked, her voice laden with concern and worry.

I shook my head, "She managed to board The Wanderer, but Aria and I subdued her, and we struck a deal with her."