Page 47 of Second

His jaw clenched, his gaze unwavering. “He has no right to continue. No right to live when he has caused you such pain.”

Her hand covered his, her fingers trembling as they rested against the strength of his grip. “And you have no right to take a life for me,” she said softly. “Not like this. Not when it’s revenge, not justice. Icouldn’t bear to see you become something darker because of me.”

His expression didn’t soften, but the bond between them pulsed with a hesitant understanding. “You do not want me to do this.” It was not a question.

“No,” she said firmly, though tears slipped free again. “I want you to be exactly who you are—fierce, loyal, protective. And this? This tells me how much you care. But you don’t need to destroy him to prove that.”

Zar’Ryn exhaled sharply, his muscles taut as though barely holding back a primal force. Finally, his shoulders eased, though his jaw remained tense. “If you change your mind, say the word.”

Elara let out a shaky laugh, something light threading through her voice for the first time. “I’ll hold you to that.” Her fingers squeezed his hand gently. “But right now, this is enough. You’re enough.”

His amethyst gaze locked onto hers, fierce and unyielding. “Then we will face this together, too.”

She nodded, her voice small but certain. “Together.”

Zar’Ryn rose slowly to his full height, his fury sharp and controlled, his movements deliberate as he stepped away from Elara. The air around him seemed to vibrate with the weight of his restrained anger, the bond between them pulsing with his unrelenting determination.

“Custodian,” he called, his voice echoing through the chamber like the toll of a war drum. “Show yourself.”

When no response came, his tone dropped, colder now, laced with lethal intent. “You will not hide from me. You will answer for what you have done.”

The space around them shimmered faintly, aripple of energy announcing the Custodian’s arrival. It materialized with its usual air of detachment, its expression calm, almost impassive. It studied Zar’Ryn with a faint tilt of its head, as though he were an interesting specimen under its scrutiny.

“You summoned me,” it said, its tone devoid of inflection. “What do you seek, Intergalactic Warrior?”

Zar’Ryn’s fists clenched at his sides, his jaw tightening as he took a step toward her. “I demand that you show usyourmost vulnerable moment,” he said, each word a challenge, sharp and unyielding. “You have forced Elara to endure what no one should. You will reveal the same of yourself. If you believe your actions justified, then you will not hesitate.”

The Custodian’s expression did not falter, though a flicker of unease passed through its eyes. “That is not how this works,” it replied, its voice calm but firm. “I am the keeper of these truths, not their subject.”

“Not how it works?” Zar’Ryn’s laugh was short and bitter, asound devoid of humor. He closed the distance between them, towering over the hologram. “You claim to safeguard truths, yet you wield them like weapons. You strip others bare while cloaking yourself in secrecy. That is not justice. It is cowardice.”

The Custodian’s gaze hardened, but it did not retreat. “You misunderstand my role.”

“No, Iunderstand it all too well,” Zar’Ryn snapped, his voice a low growl. “You tear open wounds and call it revelation. You inflict pain and call it progress. What you have done here is despicable, and you will answer for it.”

“I answer to no one,” it said simply, though its composure was not as unshakable as it hadbeen.

Zar’Ryn’s eyes narrowed, his hands flexing as though itching for action. For a moment, the bond resonated with his restrained violence, his need to strike against the injustice he saw before him. But then he exhaled sharply, forcing himself to turn away.The Custodian was untouchable—for now—but there was still someone he could reach.

“Elara,” he said, his voice softening as he knelt before her. His movements, though gentler, carried the same intensity that had filled his confrontation with the Custodian. “You deserve more than this. More than me.”

Her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to protest, but he pressed a hand to her trembling fingers, silencing her gently. “No, listen to me. You need to know who I am.”

He paused, drawing a deep breath. “I must tell you the truth of what I am, so you may see all of me. Then you may decide if I am worthy of your trust—of your forgiveness.”

His voice dropped, weighted with the burden of memory. “In my unit, First is the one who enters first, the scout who evaluates and decides. But when peace is no longer possible, when strength is the only solution... they send me.”

Elara’s gaze softened, but he pressed on, his words deliberate, unflinching. “I am their hammer. Their weapon. And where I go, violence follows.”

He looked down briefly, his hands tightening into fists. “There was a colony on the edge of the Ninth Galaxy. Marauders had enslaved its people, stripped its land of resources, and left nothing but despair. My orders were clear. Eliminate the threat. No negotiations. No survivors. And by the time I left, there were none.”

The memory remained vivid, the acrid stench of smoke and blood still lingering in his mind. “It is always the same, Elara. They send me, and I bring ruin. Afactory of weapons. Aresearch station holding hostages. Astronghold housing children stolenfrom Vettian families. Each time, the mission was the same. Destruction. And I did it all.”

His voice faltered for a moment, but he forced himself to continue. “This is what I am. What I have always been. When I look at you, Ido not see a victim. Isee resilience. Strength. Fire. And you have made me wish to be something else. To be more than I am.”

He met her gaze, his amethyst eyes burning with raw vulnerability. “I would do it all again if it meant protecting you. If it meant sparing you even a fraction of the pain you have endured. But you must understand this, Elara. Iam not a man who leaves peace in his wake.”

The bond thrummed between them, awave of emotion too tangled to unravel. Elara reached out, her hand trembling as it rested against his. “You are not alone, Zar’Ryn,” she whispered, her voice steady despite the tears glistening in her eyes. “You do not have to be the hammer anymore. Not with me.”

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