Recommended for ages 18+ because of the use of profanity and sexual content.

Chapter 1: Nikkolai (FREE)

Chapter 2: Bianca (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 3: Nikkolai (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 4: Bianca (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 5: Nikkolai (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 6: Bianca (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 7: Nikkolai (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 8: Bianca (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 9: Nikkolai (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 10: Bianca (Support Squad Only)

Chapter 1: Nikkolai

[10 Years Ago]

“We need a better strategy.”

“Don't you think I know that, Vi?”

I hover outside the meeting room with bated breath. My mother stands at the head of the table. Her long black hair is twirled in a topknot and held together by her spare wand. She usually goes on like this with Auntie Vi for hours. Find this person. Cast this spell. Visit this Rehlm or that immortal. But something about her tone makes my stomach uneasy. Like I should leave before they get too deep into whatever they're talking about. Bianca is probably wondering what's taking so long for me to return to the library, but I can't pull myself away from the shadow of the doorframe.

“The search for the missing Di’Ehtiz should be disbanded.”

“What?” Auntie Vi yells. “Are you insane? That's not even our call to make.”

“We’ve been searching for thirty years and not a single reincarnation has surfaced.”

“We still have reason to believe that they will appear in the BohKehn faction-”

“When, Violet? In another hundred years when your mortality expires and your children have children?”

“You tell me. You’re the one with the future vision.”

“And yet I haven't seen shit in months, now have I?”

Auntie Vi drags her hand across her face. “This is getting us nowhere.”

“Maybe we should just split up.”

“Covering more ground isn't going to help-”

“No, Violet,” Mom says, her jaw clenched as she wipes away a stray tear with her palm. Realization slowly washes over Auntie Vi's face and a mix of emotions contort into a single word.

“Why?”

“Look, we've been best friends since high school. Hunting partners since college. And when we first took this job, I thought we'd find them in a year. Two at most. But now it just seems like we're chasing the impossible and I can't do it anymore. Things are different now. We're different-”

“This isn't just some job at the Burger Boi, Neh'Mah. This is a mission straight from Jupi’Johvi. We can’t just stop looking for them.”

“Until there is some semblance of an immortal reincarnation in Eh’Fi, I'm getting on with living my life. Raise my boys. Take in some sun.”

“Neh'Mah!”

“You could finally do the immortality pact with Rah'Jah. We can go off-planet together and-”

Auntie Vi slams her dark hands down on the table, her blue eyes aglow and aura striking. My mom takes her in with a frown and a heavy sigh usually reserved for the neighbor's dog when they shit on our lawn.

“Your mortality is ruining you. The longer you stay like that, the more attached you will become to this wretched Rehlm.”

“This wretched Rehlm is the only home I've got. That our children got. Not all of us can be born off-planet like you, princess.”

My mom's brown eyes narrow. “You're so naive.”

“Maybe. But I'm not giving up on this mission. Do what you want, but I’ll figure out a new plan. Alone.”

“Violet. Think reasonably-”

“Don't bother calling unless you have news on the reincarnations.”

Mom sighs, her lower lip quivering as Auntie Vi walks away. “It doesn't have to be like this, you know.”

“You're right. It didn't.”

I run. The halls of the shrine seem to stretch out into eternity but I eventually manage to swing open the library’s massive double doors and weave through the stacks straight to where I left her. Bianca sits in the large armchair, her bare feet swinging without a care as she glances up at me with a wild-eyed huff.

“Finally. I thought you were never coming back.”

“We have to get out of here.”

“Wh-”

The book in her lap tumbles to the floor as I yank Bianca to a stand. My left hand clings to hers as my right hand swirls open a portal. To where I'm not sure. I just know that if Auntie Vi finds us, that’ll be the end. No more holiday cookouts or best friend family fun dates. No more Bianca. The thought alone terrifies me.

The smell of old books is replaced with pine and rain on the breeze as I force us through the portal. Nothing looks familiar, and I notice that the portal has already closed behind us. Shit. Not good.

Bianca’s teal eyes swirl with confusion and fear. “Nikki, what’s going on?”

“Our moms are breaking up,” I blurt out. “Well, until my mom has a vision or something-”

“Breaking up? Like disbanding the mission? Can they even do that?”

“Not really. I don't know. But the way they were talking, we’re never gonna see each other again and-”

Bianca’s eyes dim a little. “Nikki you're being a bit dramatic, dontcha think? Our moms are always-”

“You didn't hear them, B!” I yell. “They weren't acting like they usually do. This was something different. More final…”

Bianca’s brow crinkles in concern. For me or the situation, I’m too distraught to decipher. A drop of rain falls on her nose and she looks up at the darkening sky as a few more fall.

“We should probably find somewhere to-”

“Marry me.”

Bianca’s eyes nearly pop out of her head as they refocus on me. “What? Nikki, we’re only thirteen-”

“I'll be fourteen in the summer,” I stammer, taking her tan hands in mine. “We can figure something out. Maybe off-planet? They have different laws off-planet, right?”

“Nikki, do you hear yourself? This is too much. We're just kids.”

What am I even saying at this point? Marriage? Off-planet? Before today, I only dreamed of making things more official between us beyond hand-holding. I mean I can barely teleport us to a safe location. For all I know we’re in the middle of the untamable forest with this rain growing beyond a drizzle. But now that the words are out, I can’t seem to stop them.

“Bianca, I’m in love with you.”

Her hands squeeze mine, that perfect mouth agape as her eyes search my face for the words that elude her.

“I do too. Love you. I mean- Of course I do. But, Nikkolai marriage? We don't even know where we are. I don’t even have shoes on. And to get off-planet is just-”

“I can't live without you Bianca.”

My legs wobble as I get down on one knee, pale fingers frantically searching the forest floor for some perfect gem to convince her. The best I can find is an iridescent rock soaked from the rain. I hold it up to her pinched between my trembling fingers now caked in dirt.

“Bianca, please. I know this isn’t much, but we’re meant to be together. We’ll figure it out.”

“What about food? Shelter? Are we just gonna be some teen beggars downtown now?”

“We'll figure it out. I don’t know right now but I promise-”

“Just take me home, Nikki.”

I can feel her slipping away and grip her hand tighter. “Please. Just give me some time-”

“Nikkolai? Bianca?”

My blood freezes as I turn to find a blue-bearded man walking towards us, his hulking frame glowing with a natural aura of authority. Bianca’s dad. I’m frozen on one knee as he holds his umbrella over us with a torn expression.

“Your mom called me in a panic to go looking for you. What are you doing out here? What happened?”

I glance back at Bianca in terror. Her wide eyes are cast to the ground, cheeks flaming as she snatches her hand out of mine and tucks a soaked strand of purple behind her ear. The iridescent rock tumbles into the growing mud between us and I see her father’s eyes follow it before falling back on me. He rakes the wet strands of blue off his forehead with a sigh.

“Violet sure ain’t gonna know what to do with this one,” I hear him mumble under his breath before waving us along. “Come on, kids. Let’s get out of this storm. Our shrine ain’t too far away.”

Whatever courage I had before has washed away with the rain. It’s clear what Bianca’s answer is and I’ve run out of time to convince her. There’s nothing left to be done. I make my way to a wobbly stand and bow before her father.

“I apologize for taking your daughter out into these conditions, Lord Rah’Jah. Please take her home and have a pleasant evening.”

Pleasant evening? Is this how Bianca will remember me for the rest of her life? Some pale boy soaked in rain and dirt with an ancient vocabulary? Will she even remember me at all after this? My legs manage to carry me back into the rain, and I hold up my right hand with a shaky breath.

“Nikki, come on. Just come home with us,” Bianca says, eyes shadowed by the umbrella. “You can't even portal out for at least another ten minutes-”

I will open a small portal with the rest of my energy and glance back at Bianca, her form now blurry as a few tears fall free.

“Goodbye, B.”

“Nikkolai!”

She reaches out to me, desperation in her voice as I step into the portal and collapse into my mother's garden. I can only tell by the soft grass and the overwhelming smell of lavender. The world itself is distorted. I’ve used up too much of my power and feel like I’m going to puke up my guts. Shit. I need to get stronger. But what’s even the point if I’ll never see her again? It’s not like we live in the same district or have any other connection outside our mom's friendship. She’s too beautiful to stay single forever and definitely will move on with someone else sooner or later. The thought of marriage makes me puke my guts out.

Footsteps slosh in the grass towards me in a rush. It isn’t long before I’m being gripped up by my shoulders and someone is shouting at my face. Whatever they’re saying is lost on me. All I can feel is the rain soaking me to the bone and the off-tempo sound of my heartbeat. I probably won’t die from all this drama, but I wish I would. That way, I won’t have to live with this burning ache in my chest for the rest of my life without her.