Page 96 of The Alien in the Archive

Then Lyn is talking about Earth, about the Convergence. She’s recounting her great-grandmother’s suffering during the Convergence. The images hit me as if I’m seeing them in person, all through Page’s imagination.

Hollow bones. Wings affixed to fragile shoulders.

A body turned into a mockery of life.

The anger in Lyn’s voice is visceral, shattering Page’s attempt to stay neutral.

“She hated the Boreans more than anyone,” Lyn says.“And honestly? I get it.”

I recall Page’s reaction, her dismay…knowing she’s wondering if I was right about myself.

If I really am a monster.

The memory shifts. She’s in Davina’s office, panicking about how she can convincingly lie to her advisor.“You have two weeks.”

Page’s frustration bubbles to the surface, but she doesn’t argue.

She won’t tell a soul what she’s really doing.

And there’s Riley, desperately worried about her…Thalara hoping she doesn’t put her career in jeopardy.

Page is intent on saving me, but who’s going to save her?

The fragments blur together, a kaleidoscope of stress and sacrifice, and I feel the depth of her exhaustion. She’s risking everything for me—her friendships, her reputation, her future. She’s given up her own research, her own dreams, to fight for me.

I’m becoming her dream, and I hate myself all the more for it.

The guilt settles heavily in my chest. I pull back from her thoughts, my own mind reeling as I return to the echoing, overwhelming silence of the Obscuary.

She’s giving up too much. And I’ve let her.

I stand, pacing the length of the alcove. The truth is undeniable—Page is too young, too bright, too full of potential to be dragged down by the ghosts of my past. Even if we’re mates, there will be others who will love her. How could they not?

She deserves a life free of the burdens I carry.

But she’s stubborn. She loves me. And she won’t stop fighting for me, no matter how much I try to convince her otherwise.

I glance at the chronicle on the desk, its pages half-filledwith my writing. The history of Borean dissent, the truth I’ve avoided for centuries, all laid bare. My resolve hardens.

If she’s willing to risk everything for me, I have to take risks for her. I’ll protect her from Davina’s suspicions, from Lyn’s anger, from Riley and Thalara’s questions and concerns.

I’ll find a way to make this right, no matter the cost.

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Iwake the next morning with a start, the hazy remnants of my dreams refusing to leave me alone. Flashes of conversation—with Lyn, Davina, Riley, Thalara—blur together like a slideshow of all the mistakes I’ve made, all the ways I’ve slipped up. My chest feels tight, pulse racing.

It wasn’t just a dream. Or, it was, but it was too organized. It felt…intrusive, like someone was there.

Watching, sifting through my memories.

My gut twists as realization dawns.

Thorne.

I throw off the covers and head to the bathroom, splashing cold water on my face. The sensation jolts me, clearing my mind enough to confirm what I already know: he’s been in my head. The bond is faint but undeniable, and I can feel him somewhere in the depths of the Obscuary, likely oblivious to the boundary he’s crossed.

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