Page 114 of The Viking in the Vault
“I am not frowny,” I murmur, though of course—I am. I want to be strong for my crew, for my mate…but I feel weak. Being with Elena has made me softer, wishing for relief, for guidance?—
“Hey,” she says, interrupting my thoughts and squeezing my hand harder. “You don’t have to be tough, okay? You have a Vethari now, remember?”
Her bracelets chime as if to remind me of what she is.
I smile.
“Right,” I say. “I remember.”
She leans into my side as we walk, Fenrik matching our pace and looking up at me, tongue lolling.
I think he’s just as happy to have found her as I am.
Back in Snowveil,the previously quiet hospital where I was kept as the doctors examined me is pure chaos.
Medical drones hover overhead, Archive personnel coordinate the arrival of our crew. The Skoll have split into smaller units, each assigned a temporary bunk while they’re examined for ‘ancient pathogens’. They move with curiosity and caution, watching as their vitals are scanned, translators implanted, and clothes—not armor, but proper, modern clothes—distributed in modest bundles. A few of them tug at the sleeves and wrinkle their noses, but they take it with dignity…particularly Axl, who seems utterly charmed with Cosmia.
I remain at Elena’s side, letting the others acclimate while I remain nearby. I want to be available…but Elena is too, particularly as the crew gets their translators. She doesn’t mind being their guide, eager to help.
And Fenrik is unbothered; he’s discovered the source of the warm air in this place, and is currently sprawled across a vent, utterly boneless. I suspect he will be hard to dislodge.
Elena’s cheeks are flushed from the bustle of activity, but she moves confidently through the storm of medical equipmentand bright lights, answering questions from the crew. When one hesitates at the sight of a scanning drone, Elena is the one who steps forward with an assuring smile.
“It’s okay,” she tells them. “It’s not Borean tech—just wants to make sure you’re healthy.”
They nod, reassured, and I watch the way she eases them…not with authority, but with presence.
She makes people feel safe.
She mademefeel safe.
“Elena,” Ves calls, jogging over with a tablet in hand. “Sorry—can you come confirm the log on the last twenty units? I’m getting some conflicting tags from Kallisto.”
Elena tucks a curl behind her ear. “Yeah, of course. Just one second.”
She glances back at me.
“You good?”
I nod. “Go. I’ll be here.”
She leans up on her toes and presses a kiss to my cheek, then hurries after Ves.
Cosmia brushes past me with a datapad, muttering to herself as she updates something in the intake logs. Behind her, Rishik is checking readings from a mobile med station. Across the room, Axl is speaking animatedly to one of the Archive researchers. When Cosmia glances their way, they give her a rakish grin.
She stares for a second too long before rolling her eyes and turning back to her work, but her antennae are pink.
Perhaps I was not the only one who had a fenvarra waiting in the distant future.
I smile.
This place…it’s strange. Loud. Bright. I’m not certain that I will ever become fully accustomed to it. But Elena…she is the most perfect mate I could ever have asked for.
She helped me find my crew. My people. They are already learning how to live in this strange world.
And I am watching my future bloom beside me. In every gesture, every laugh, every time Elena puts her hand on someone’s arm to steady them or walks one of my clan through the basics of a translator implant. She never pretends to be something she’s not. She merelyis.
Elena comes back a moment later, her eyes wide. Her curls are bouncing as they fall free from her ponytail, her steps almost clumsy with excitement.
