Page 29 of Fourth

The bond threaded through that light, each flicker syncing with his own pulse until he couldn’t tell where his ended and hers began. It wasn’t just a mark now. It was a living tether. Abond forged in flesh. And every time it surged in her body, it reminded him that this wasn’t just about claiming or completion. It was permanence.

Riv’En’s breath rasped against her ear, the only sound besides the slap of skin and the sharp, helpless sounds escaping Maya’s throat. He didn’t speak. Didn’t needto.

He gave her exactly what she askedfor.

Again.

And again.

And yet again.

Chapter 7

RIV’EN MATERIALIZEDon the ship’s transport pad, Maya in his arms, the remnants of his armor and clothing he’d gathered before transport at his feet. Her weight was light against his chest, her skin still warm, still alive, kissed by the sun. That was all that mattered.

The transport lights cut off, leaving only the soft glow of the corridor ahead. The ship’s systems hummed quietly around them, sealing off the world below as if it had never existed.

As the final shimmer of transport light dissolved, his grip on Maya tightened fractionally. She didn’t stir. Her head rested against his shoulder, her breathing slow and even, lost in a sleep so complete she might have been a feather in his arms. He didn’t pause. Didn’t need to. His focus tunneled down to one thing, getting her to the medical wing. Not because she was hurt. Because she was his. Because every yearning in his body demandedit.

But as he moved through the silent corridors, acolder edge slid under his skin. It wasn’t just fatigue dragging at his muscles. It was the certainty of a bond that could not be shrugged away. Every step came slower, not just because of the effort it took to move, but because each one carried him closer to an end he could already see coming.

Dread settled low in his gut, coiled tight and quiet, as steady as his own pulse. Aweight he couldn’t shake. His joints were stiff, each step slower than the one before. The hum of the ship around him pressed in too loud, too sharp, and there was a faint pulsing ache in his temples that hadn’t been there before. His breath came thicker, each inhale tasting metallic, like the air was turning against him. And beneath it all was the unrelenting awareness that his body was changing in ways he couldn’t control.

By the time he laid Maya gently onto the med-bed, his breath was coming harder. Slower. His vision narrowed at the edges. Heat surged beneath his skin in sharp, rolling waves—not like exertion, not like adrenaline. Afull-body flash that lit every nerve with burning pressure before it faded to a slow, smoldering throb. His muscles locked tight for a beat, ribs aching from the sudden rush of heat that left sweat beading along his spine. Final Flight. Aheat flash. It wasn’t just theory now. It was happening.

Riv’En didn’t waste time. He activated the scan array above the bed, setting it to monitor her vitals and protect her from his heat flash.

The flash hit like a storm breaking through his veins. Heat flooded every nerve ending, adeep, rolling burn that radiated from his spine outward, locking his muscles and blanking out everything but the relentless pulse of it. His vision blurred towhite at the edges, breath trapped in his throat, skin too tight for hisbody.

It wasn’t just pain. It was finality. When it broke, his muscles trembled, every inch of restraint scraped clean. For a breath, Riv’En didn’t move. Didn’t even breathe. He expected darkness, expected collapse—but it didn’t come. He was still standing. Still alive. The realization hit as sharply as the heat had. He had survived this flash. But for how much longer?

Riv’En exhaled hard and stepped back, leaning weakly against the console, his breath laborious as Maya’s data scrolled past hiseyes.

Her pulse was strong. Her oxygen steady. Blood pressure perfect. Her Mating Flame still glowed faintly against her collarbone, steady as a beacon.

She was stable.

It should have calmedhim.

It didn’t.

Riv’En pushed off the console, stepping out of the med-bay and into the corridor beyond. The doors sealed behind him, leaving Maya in quiet isolation.

Only then did he press his hand to the wall panel, his fingers unsteady, the lingering echo of the heat flash still pulsing through his system. He didn’t know if he would make it through another one. Triggering a diagnostic scan on himself seemed almost pointless—but he needed to see. Needed to know just how fast he was burningout.

The results appeared in a heartbeat.

Final Flight: Accelerated Progression. Bond Induced Complications Detected.

Riv’En’s first impulse was to override the scan and try again. Part of him couldn’t believe it, couldn’t accept that the bond he’d fought so hard to complete was now the thing accelerating his own end. But the confirmation sat there in clean, unavoidable data. He sensed it everywhere now: the pulsing in his blood, the heat lingering beneath his skin. And beneath all of it, Maya’s presence tethered through the bond, her pulse echoing in his head. This wasn’t just about his body burning out. It was about how deeply she was tied into that burnnow.

His hair, what had once been pure silver, was near-black now. His skin held a duller sheen. His eyes were blacker than ever instead of the brilliant amethyst they’d oncebeen.

None of it surprised him. But seeing it confirmed sent a fresh burn through his chest, sharper than any heat flash. Knowing something and facing it were two different things. It wasn’t just data scrolling across a screen anymore. It was the shape of his end, laid out in clean, sterile lines. And standing there, with the echo of Maya’s Mating Flame still burning in the back of his mind, It hit like impact from a fall he couldn’tslow.

He was running out oftime.

He moved to the bridge and sat in the pilot’s seat, every step an effort. His body felt denser, the lingering aftermath of the heat flash making each breath a conscious act. When he finally lowered himself into the chair, his muscles locked tight for a beat, and his vision wavered at the edges. But his fingers steadied on the navigation panel despite it, moving with ingrained care even as the erratic pulse hammering beneath his skin, out of sync with the ship’s quiet hum aroundhim.

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