The stealth transport touches down on the Academy tarmac with a heavy, muffled thud, the rotors slowing to a gentle whir. The ramp lowers, and the crisp, pine-scented air of the Pacific Northwest floods the cabin. It smells of damp earth, blooming jasmine, and the faint, metallic tang of ozone.
It smells like home. But I don't feel safe.
I carry Asher down the ramp, my heavily bandaged hands trembling beneath his small, freezing weight. He is unconscious, his head lolling against my shoulder, his breathing shallow and ragged. The geometric lattice in his silver eye is blazing with a fierce, bioluminescent violet light, casting sharp, erratic shadows across my face.
Kade is right beside me, his right arm wrapped securely around my waist, taking half my weight. His left sleeve is pinned n
