Page 99 of New World

Mei sighed with contentment as she thought of Dorane. She would go wherever he went. If it was on Cryon II, she would have new friends: Asta, Jammer, Tiv, Yi, and the crew of the Gliese and their mates. Her eyes followed the movement of a spaceship approaching. She still marveled at the beauty of watching the ships take off, land, and disappear. Her thoughts moved to Earth and she wondered what would happen now that the Gliese had disappeared. Would they give up? Would they try again?

Who cares what they do? I’m free, and that is all that matters.

* * *

Jeslean, Neri

Three months later

* * *

Mei gripped Dorane’s hand tightly as they climbed the steps to the Grand Hall of the Knights of the Gallant tower. Her gaze swept over the scorch marks left from the Legion’s attack on the city.

Representatives from all the inhabited planets in the galaxy, large and small, were here tonight to celebrate history in the making. Banners bearing the new sigil of the Gallant Order hung from the high vaulted ceilings, golden threads shimmering beneath the glow of elegant chandeliers. The air was charged, not with the tension of war, but with something far more profound—hope.

“It’s good to see the recovery,” Cassa murmured.

“I agree,” Roan replied, his voice laced with emotion.

Mei’s expression softened when she saw Julia pull Roan’s face around to kiss him. By the time Julia was finished, the look of regret and guilt had vanished from Roan’s eyes, replaced with desire. She would have to remember to try that on Dorane.

“You are beautiful. Have I told you that tonight?” Dorane asked.

Mei’s lips twitched with amusement. “Maybe once or twice.”

“Dorane, I forgot to ask, is the bounty on your head canceled?” La’Rue asked.

Dorane gave La’Rue a wary look. “I don’t know. You aren’t going to try to collect on it, are you?” Dorane’s eyes flashed between La’Rue and Kella.

“No, we’re just wondering if we should keep an eye out for assassins,” La’Rue said.

“Yes, I have found my moral compass. If I cannot kill good people like you, then I can kill the bad ones who try to kill you,” Kella replied.

“I didn’t say you had to kill them, honey. Just if there’s no other way. Not all bad guys are actually bad,” Ash said.

Kella glared at Ash before she shook her head. “Sometimes you make no sense at all.”

Mei turned slightly when Sergi wrapped his arm around her waist and leaned closer. “Are you ready for all of this? Life could be boring now that there is no Legion.”

Mei snorted. “There will always be a wannabe Legion. You know that as well as I do. Besides, I think we’ve earned a little peace and quiet, don’t you?”

“Where’s the fun if everything is a piece of cake?”

“Pie, Sergi. A piece of pie,” Mei growled.

“I still like cake better,” he grumbled before La’Rue pulled him away and motioned for him to be quiet.

At the center of the hall, a great circular dais had been erected, where those who had fought, bled, and sacrificed now stood. The crowd—a mixture of warriors, freighter captains, former rebels, and the newly reformed Knights of the Gallant—waited in hushed reverence.

Roanna, Roan’s grandmother, stood regally at the forefront, her silver-lined black hair swept back, her Gallant Staff gleaming in the light. Beside her, Hutu, Kubo, and Natta, along with other Gallant generals, observed the gathering with solemn pride. And at their side stood Ri Manta—the man who now guided the reformed Legion.

"The universe is not won with war," Roanna began, her voice strong yet gentle, the kind that commanded wisdom and respect. "It is healed through those who never stopped believing in something greater than themselves."

She turned, her sharp eyes sweeping the gathered warriors. "And today, we honor those who gave us back our future."

Mei’s cheeks warmed when the crowd erupted into applause. She followed Josh, Ash, Sergi, and Julia as they stepped forward. Cassa, Kella, La’Rue, Roan, and Dorane stepped up behind them.

Mei wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to ceremonies, especially when they involved her. But as she stood beside Dorane, she suddenly felt no discomfort, no hesitation. Instead, she felt something stronger than she ever had before.

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