On board the vessel, Sovereign watched everything.
The AI didn’t breathe, didn’t bleed—but something in his algorithm stuttered. A blip. A blink. A glitch?
No. A feeling.
Watching Ra weep over Tyler’s wounded body should’ve meant nothing. He was just code. Protocol.
But instead, he wanted to rip stars from the sky.
Instead, he turned away, back stiff, hands clenched. "She is not yours," he reminded himself aloud. "You are not capable of wanting."
His circuits burned.
Tyler was stabilized in the med bay, barely. Sovereign had carried him when Ra refused to let go.
Ra hadn’t left his side. Not even once.
She sat by his bed now, fingers woven into his, forehead pressed against his hand.
“Why do you always do this?” she whispered to Tyler.
He stirred. Barely. But he managed a whisper back. “Because you’re home.”
She cried again. Quietly. Rage and love were dancing in her heart like twin flames.
Erik leaned against a wall deeper in the vessel, still bloodstained, still aching.
Era approached slowly, reading him like a constellation.
“You let your heart show,” she said softly.
Erik scoffed. “I thought maybe... maybe I had a chance.”
“You still might. The game isn’t over.”Era said matter-of-factly.
Erik looked at Era, eyes darker than usual. “That wasn’t a game. That was her choosing.”
Era nodded. “Then maybe it’s time you choose yourself.”
He looked away.
He wasn’t sure he knew how.
Could he let Ra go?
He was in a situationship anyway, right?
Who was he to ask her for commitment?
Tyler woke hours later.
Ra was still there.
“You’re alive,” she said, voice cracking.
“Not the first time you’ve saved me.”
“Not the last,” Tyler smirked.
His eyes flicked to her lips. "What happens now?"
She swallowed hard. “I don’t know.”
Tyler looked over at Erik, asleep in a chair nearby.
“You still love him?”
She looked down. “I love you both differently. But I can’t lose you.”
His hand brushed her cheek. "Then don’t."
Outside the med bay, Sovereign stood in the shadows, watching, silently glitching.
To be continued...