Until We Break by Scott Kinkade Page A

could be with Maya one last time. If only I could hear her voice.
          
    Suddenly, he heard something in this desolate void: “Thank you, Professor. But I can’t just stand by while Ev faces his execution. I’m going to save him.” It was far off, yet distinct. Someone was speaking.
          
    He moved his arms and legs to swim through the gulf that separated them. Further and further he went—as least, he thought he was moving—until he spotted a light up ahead. He reached out. He could almost touch it…
     
    * * *
     
    “Please don’t do this, Maya,” Freya said as Maya got up to leave.
          
    “I won’t change my mind,” she said.
          
    “Ev wouldn’t want you getting yourself killed.”
          
    “It doesn’t matter what he wants,” Maya insisted. “You said it yourself; love is selfish. We both know you’d do the same thing for Professor Strong. We’ve all seen how you look at him.”
          
    “That has nothing to do with—”
          
    Maya held up a hand to silence her. “You know it doesn’t matter what you say to me. I’m going.”
          
    Sighing, Freya said, “Jaysin, please talk some sense into her.”
          
    He shrugged. “That would make me quite the hypocrite, dontcha think? Me, who risked my life to save her , telling her not to do the same for someone else? I’m afraid I can’t do that. In fact, I’m inclined to go with her.”
          
    “This isn’t a game!” Freya said, her emotional control almost gone. “You can’t just go running off to die! If you die, how will that make Ev feel?” Her hands were shaking.
          
    After an awkward silence, Maya said, “This has happened to you before, hasn’t it? Someone you loved went on some mission and died, didn’t they?”
          
    Freya explained, “I have loved many people during my life. Mortals, they think they have to do something grand to impress a goddess. In those days, they would go off on epic adventures, risking their lives to win my favor. It’s not like the old tales; instead of succeeding and living happily ever after, they inevitably got themselves killed. I didn’t want to burden you with my problems, Maya, but you’ve left me no choice. I know I said love is selfish, but there is such a thing as being too selfish. Think about what it would do to Ev if you got butchered by Zero Grade. Think of what it would do to your friends. What about CiCi? She’s counting on you being there for her during her recovery.”
          
    There was another uncomfortable pause. Maya balled her fist, doubt wracking her soul. What should she do? It was an impossible choice.
          
    Finally she said, “I—”
          
    He words were cut off by a figure falling from the ceiling. Her eyes went wide as she saw who it was. “Ev!”
          
    He was unconscious and covered in black ooze, but it was definitely him. “Where on Narska did he come from?” Jaysin said.
          
    They looked up. A mysterious black hole had formed in the ceiling. They could see nothing beyond it. Within moments, it closed. “Hades,” Freya said.
          
    Maya blinked. “What?”
          
    “Ev got swallowed up into Hades of the Flawless Few. He should have been lost forever. I’ve never heard of anyone escaping before.” She felt his pulse. “He’s still alive.”
          
    Maya hugged his limp body. She didn’t care if she got slime on her clothes. Ev was alive and her world remained complete.
     
    * * *
     
    They promptly took Ev to the infirmary and laid him down next to CiCi’s bed. “Ev!” she said upon laying eyes on him. “What happened?”
          
    They explained the situation to her and Dian Cecht. He took it in with his usual stoic attitude, while she expressed shock. They hadn’t even told her Ev had left the Academy.
          
    After examining him, Dian Cecht made his diagnosis. “Ev is in a coma