miles away.
“Renna, where are you?” he muttered.
She wanted to whisper to him, to tell him she was right there, but the dream had frozen her mouth as well as her body. She used every atom of her willpower to walk toward him, to raise her hand to touch his face, but her body wouldn’t obey. She felt impossibly heavy. Immovable.
Around her, the Athena jerked and trembled, and Finn stumbled, catching himself on the wall. Renna shivered again at the searing heat of his hand. Sucked in a breath to say his name…
…and was awakened by Commander Jayla’s voice filling her room.
“Good morning, Renna. We should be in the Costa system in under an hour.”
Her lungs felt like they’d been squeezed into a teacup, and she took a deep, shuddering breath before responding. “Thanks, Commander. I’ll be right up.”
She forced herself to sit upright, waiting until the cabin stopped spinning before getting to her feet. Her blood pumped sluggishly through her veins, her mind thick with fog. It felt like she’d been attacked by a rabid moisu. The two-headed creatures rarely left their pray intact.
But she’d seen Finn, even if it had only been a dream. That was almost worth feeling like this.
Renna ran some cool water in the sink, splashing her face several times with the icy water. Damn, that was cold. But it wasn’t doing much to wake her up. She was still focused on the longing that ached within her, the touch of Finn’s hand on her arm. It had felt so real, so life-like. Like she’d actually been there with him.
Renna studied her pale reflection in the mirror over the sink. Her caramel skin had lost its usual color, and her lips were pale pink. Exhaustion made her look like she was about to pass out.
And then she peered deeper into her eyes. They were even darker than normal, almost black as the pupils swallowed her irises. But as she stared, something flickered deep inside them. A strange glow that wasn’t entirely human.
Her fingers curled into the metal sink as everything hit her at once. Acid spiked the back of her throat, and she swallowed back the nausea. It was happening. Beyond the weird mental things, she was physically changing. Her implant was turning her into a hybrid.
Renna’s knees gave out, and she slid to the floor, her back resting against the bathroom wall. She wrapped her arms around her knees and rocked back and forth. This wasn’t happening. Couldn’t be happening. She was going to solve this. Everything was going to be all right.
But what if it wasn’t?
An angry wail escaped her. It wasn’t fucking fair. This wasn’t supposed to happen to her, just when she was finally starting her life. She was fucking twenty-three years old. She’d worked her ass off to make it this far, and with one injection, it had all been snatched away from her. Her future, her relationship with Finn, even the money she’d spent the last ten years saving so she could retire and start a new life. What the hell did a robot need with credits?
Bile coated her tongue as another wave of nausea twisted through her. Renna curled into herself further, resting her head on her knees. She’d spent her whole life working so hard to get past her childhood—to become something different, to leave her blasted mother and the tenements behind, to find her own path.
And for what? To die alone and unloved somewhere in a MYTH facility while they experimented on her? Fuck if she was going to let that happen. She’d kill herself first. Maybe she should just do it now and save everyone the trouble.
A sob ripped through her. Giving up would be so easy. She could disappear on Crius Beta. Find a quiet place. End it all. It might hurt Finn for a while, but he’d get over it. He’d understand. And then everyone would be free to move on.
But what about Pallas? She’d promised to stop him, to keep Myka safe. A stupid promise, one she didn’t know if she could actually fulfill. One she never should have made in the first
“Renna, where are you?” he muttered.
She wanted to whisper to him, to tell him she was right there, but the dream had frozen her mouth as well as her body. She used every atom of her willpower to walk toward him, to raise her hand to touch his face, but her body wouldn’t obey. She felt impossibly heavy. Immovable.
Around her, the Athena jerked and trembled, and Finn stumbled, catching himself on the wall. Renna shivered again at the searing heat of his hand. Sucked in a breath to say his name…
…and was awakened by Commander Jayla’s voice filling her room.
“Good morning, Renna. We should be in the Costa system in under an hour.”
Her lungs felt like they’d been squeezed into a teacup, and she took a deep, shuddering breath before responding. “Thanks, Commander. I’ll be right up.”
She forced herself to sit upright, waiting until the cabin stopped spinning before getting to her feet. Her blood pumped sluggishly through her veins, her mind thick with fog. It felt like she’d been attacked by a rabid moisu. The two-headed creatures rarely left their pray intact.
But she’d seen Finn, even if it had only been a dream. That was almost worth feeling like this.
Renna ran some cool water in the sink, splashing her face several times with the icy water. Damn, that was cold. But it wasn’t doing much to wake her up. She was still focused on the longing that ached within her, the touch of Finn’s hand on her arm. It had felt so real, so life-like. Like she’d actually been there with him.
Renna studied her pale reflection in the mirror over the sink. Her caramel skin had lost its usual color, and her lips were pale pink. Exhaustion made her look like she was about to pass out.
And then she peered deeper into her eyes. They were even darker than normal, almost black as the pupils swallowed her irises. But as she stared, something flickered deep inside them. A strange glow that wasn’t entirely human.
Her fingers curled into the metal sink as everything hit her at once. Acid spiked the back of her throat, and she swallowed back the nausea. It was happening. Beyond the weird mental things, she was physically changing. Her implant was turning her into a hybrid.
Renna’s knees gave out, and she slid to the floor, her back resting against the bathroom wall. She wrapped her arms around her knees and rocked back and forth. This wasn’t happening. Couldn’t be happening. She was going to solve this. Everything was going to be all right.
But what if it wasn’t?
An angry wail escaped her. It wasn’t fucking fair. This wasn’t supposed to happen to her, just when she was finally starting her life. She was fucking twenty-three years old. She’d worked her ass off to make it this far, and with one injection, it had all been snatched away from her. Her future, her relationship with Finn, even the money she’d spent the last ten years saving so she could retire and start a new life. What the hell did a robot need with credits?
Bile coated her tongue as another wave of nausea twisted through her. Renna curled into herself further, resting her head on her knees. She’d spent her whole life working so hard to get past her childhood—to become something different, to leave her blasted mother and the tenements behind, to find her own path.
And for what? To die alone and unloved somewhere in a MYTH facility while they experimented on her? Fuck if she was going to let that happen. She’d kill herself first. Maybe she should just do it now and save everyone the trouble.
A sob ripped through her. Giving up would be so easy. She could disappear on Crius Beta. Find a quiet place. End it all. It might hurt Finn for a while, but he’d get over it. He’d understand. And then everyone would be free to move on.
But what about Pallas? She’d promised to stop him, to keep Myka safe. A stupid promise, one she didn’t know if she could actually fulfill. One she never should have made in the first
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