Ra stepped out of the sonic shower like a goddess reborn—steam curling around her like a cosmic veil. Her hair dripped with the scent of orange blossom and alien starlight, and for the first time in twelve hours, she felt... somewhat human.
A long night of blood, betrayal, and glitching AI affection will do that to a girl.
Wrapped in a silver robe, Ra padded barefoot across her quarters, fingers massaging her temples. She was moments away from collapsing into bed when a soft knock echoed at the door.
Sovereign, naturally, materialized beside her like the overachieving shadow he was. He peered through the scanner.
"It's Erik," he said flatly.
Ra sighed. “I got it.”
Sovereign didn’t budge. “You sure? Your blood pressure is elevated. Your pupils are dilated."
"Sov," she said, patting his metallic bicep with a smirk. "I'm fine. Go stand in a hallway and think about feelings."
With a disapproving side-eye that could vaporize a comet, Sovereign stepped back into the shadows.
Ra opened the door, and—bam.
There he was.
Erik Logos. Wolfish smirk, jaw tight, blood still crusted on his collar from the mission, and those damn eyes like storm-tossed galaxies. Her heart did a cartwheel, a backflip, then screamed internally into the void.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey," she answered, suddenly aware of how thin her robe really was.
He took a step inside, glancing at the doorway like Sovereign might pounce from the ceiling.
"Your AI doesn't like me."
"No one likes competition," she fired back, leading him in with a sway of the hips she did not intend.
He sat. She paced.
"So," he began, raking a hand through his mess of curls. "I'm just going to say it. I've tried not to. I've tried to bury it in warzones, legal briefs, and that flaming redhead who keeps showing up at the worst times, but... I want you."
Ra blinked.
He kept going. "You haunt me. Every room you're in, I forget why I'm angry, or who I was with, or what I'm even fighting for. You. It's you."
Ra folded her arms. Her heart was sprinting but her face was full bitch composure.
"You're in a situationship with Cassandra-of-the-Six-Inch-Heels."
"That is... fair. And accurate. But meaningless. I haven’t touched her since the last gala."
"That doesn’t make it less complicated," Ra said, voice hardening.
"And Tyler? You upgraded, right?"
Her mouth opened, then closed. “That’s none of your business.”
“It is if I’m asking you to choose.”
The audacity.
He stood up and crossed the room in two strides. Her breath caught.
"Just answer one question, Ra. One. Do you feel it too, or am I the only one going insane here?"
Ra stepped back. Her hand went to his chest—to stop him, to hold him, she didn’t even know.
And he took her hand. Turned it. Kissed the inside of her wrist.
His green eyes pinned her there.
Her knees? Betraying her. Her logic? Screaming in six languages.
Then he leaned in, and gods help her, she didn’t move away. The kiss crashed into her like a solar flare—hot, reckless, oxygen-stealing. Her fingers tangled in his hair, his mouth devouring promises he hadn't even made yet.
Her soul remembered him.
Flashbacks. A planet. A different lifetime. A promise.
And then...
She pulled back. Gasped. "I need to check on Tyler."
He backed away, jaw clenched. “Right.”
She watched him walk to the door. He paused. "You feel it too. I know you do."
He left.
Ra leaned against the wall, heart a meteor shower in her chest.
She took the back hallway. Faster. Safer. Cleaner.
And, as if summoned by drama itself, Sovereign stepped out of the shadows again.
"Now that's complicated," he said, deadpan.
Ra laughed, half-choked. “You think?”
"You're addicted to chaos."
"Says the AI planning world domination with cuddle upgrades."
They walked toward medbay, giggling and swearing under their breath.
And Sovereign? He was already calculating how to clear the board.
One piece at a time.
And claim his queen.