I sat on a fallen tree long since hollowed out and gently traced my fingers over the moss that covered it. The bioluminescent plant seemed to react to my presence. It glowed brighter at my touch.

All around me, the forest was alight. Plants glowed in the falling dusk. Dim light still fought its way through the canopy overhead, but even as I watched, it started to fade.

Part of me recognized this place. A small voice insisted that I crawl into the log and hide from the creatures that lived in the darkness. But I knew, deep in my heart, that it was wrong.

Because this wasn’t Ankau. This wasn’t a planet crawling with monsters.

There were no carnivorous vines here and no gigantic spiders. Those things were bedtime stories—myths designed to keep children from going too far astray.

This forest had no monsters. This planet had no monsters. I was safe here and always had been.

“I told you it was beautiful.”

I turned to the voice, smiling as Axtin stepped into view.

“You’re right,” I said. “It was worth the trip.”

He sat beside me, stilling my hand as he took it in one of his.

“What was that?” he asked, smiling mischievously, “Srell, Leena, are you saying I was… right?”

I laughed, swatting playfully at his shoulder. “Okay, okay, don’t get used to it.”

“Oh, believe me, I won’t.”

The comment earned him another swat, but I smiled even wider. “You shouldn’t let them go too far.” I turned back to the forest.

“Ah, you worry too much. They’re just having fun.”

“Still…”

“They know not to wander, Leena. Besides, this gives us a minute alone. When was the last time we had that?”

I tapped my chin, looking up to the side in dramatic thought.

“Hmm, that would be… well, never,” I said teasingly.

He chuckled, pulling me closer to plant a kiss on my neck. Even that had sparks flooding through me. Even after all this time, I was nothing but putty in his hands.

“You see my point then?” he asked, nuzzling against me with a groan.

“I’m starting to.”

Just then, the sound of laughter reached my ears, quickly followed by the rustling of leaves.

“Momma!”

I laughed, perfect timing as usual.

They tore into the clearing, both of them beaming in delight. Their clothes were mussed, and their faces were smudged with dirt.

“Guess what we found!” Zyta demanded, turning to smile at her giggling brother.

“What did you find?” Axtin asked, leaning over in genuine curiosity.

“Show them!” Zyta insisted, nudging her brother forward.

He crossed to us, palms cupped before him and a smile pulling at his lips.

“Look!” He opened his hands the barest inch, gazing down at his discovery in pure wonder. “It’s a firebug!”

I leaned in to look, noting the blue glow emitting from his hands.

Sure enough, there it was. The little creature crawled frantically along his palms, its light shining brighter than I would have thought possible, like a small ember in a forest of living flame.

“It’s amazing,” I said, genuinely meaning it.

“I know,” Zyta said, “and there’s more! They’re all over the place!”

Axtin turned to me, looking every bit as excited as the children. “Care to go for a walk?”

I nodded. “Show us the way.”

We stood, watching as the children turned in the general direction from which they’d come.

“It’s this way!”

I followed, my feet sinking into the densely carpeted ground.

We’d only gone a few steps when I heard the rustling. I stopped mid-stride, gazing around in question.

“Wait, did you hear that?”

“Hear what?” Axtin asked, coming to a stop along with the kids.

“I think there’s something out here.”

“It’s probably a rabbit.”

I shook my head, feeling chills that I couldn’t explain break over my skin. “No, no I don’t think so.”

Axtin laughed, walking back over to me. “Sweetie, there’s nothing out here. No monsters, okay?”

He looked at me patiently, offering his hand.

Of course, there was nothing out here. This was a safe place.

I opened my mouth to apologize when I heard it again, closer this time. Very close.

“Axtin…”

But it was too late.

She tore into the clearing. Her crystalline legs churned up the untouched earth as she charged toward us.

My mouth fell open in shock, and my feet seemed to glue themselves to the ground.

A Xathi sub-queen. And she was going to kill us all.

“Run, kids!” Axtin screamed, turning toward her.

A hammer had somehow materialized in his hands. The shape of it was achingly familiar, though I’d never seen it before.

I turned to the children and watched as they disappeared into the trees. I could hear their screams as they ran, their sheer terror making my heart skip a beat.

“Run, Leena!” Axtin shouted.

But I couldn’t. My legs were cemented to the earth, and my voice was lost in the horror of the creature before us. I was paralyzed.

The Xathi queen turned to me, and her eyes seemed to bore into my mind. I wanted to run, to fight, to do anything… but all I could do was watch as she ran toward me.

“I said run, Leena!”

She was so close now. It was almost over.

I knew it, deep in my core. This was how it ended.

The thought brought a strange sense of déjà vu—a memory, buried deep.

I’d never know where it came from, though. There was no time to figure it out. She was almost upon me.

“Leena!”

Axtin came into view, hurling himself before me just as she arrived. His body shook with rage, that odd hammer still clenched in his fists.

“No!” he yelled, swinging his weapon with every ounce of his might.

I watched it as if in slow motion, a small flicker of hope sparking to life in my chest. Axtin could save me. He could save all of us.

His weapon descended in a perfect arc. The air around it seemed to ripple with the sheer force of his swing.

It landed with a small clink. It wasn’t the sound of a hammer striking flesh, or crystal, or whatever that thing was made out of. It was like an ice cube dropped into a cup, so quiet as to barely be heard.

The beast roared, her fury loud enough to shake the earth.

“Axtin!” I screamed, finally finding my voice.

As always, it was far too late.

The monster reached down with her insectile arms, plucking the hammer from Axtin’s hands as if she were taking a toy from a small child. She tossed it aside, her mouth twisting into a sick imitation of a smile.

I knew what was coming.

I tried to look away, but my eyes refused to close, and my head refused to turn.

I opened my mouth to scream, but the sound was lost as the sub-queen roared once more.

Then, with grotesque ease, she reached for Axtin. In a single, fluid motion, she had him in her grasp. His feet lifted from the ground, his legs kicking futilely as her claws began their ghastly work.

Blood rained down on the luminous plants, on the vines, and on me. Hot and slick, it poured down around us, drenching the forest floor.

Axtin didn’t scream. He didn’t even make a sound as she tore into him, spilling his life and blood in a seemingly endless stream.

I opened my mouth again, willing myself to scream, to move… to do absolutely anything.

This time, it worked.

I woke to the sound of my own horrified scream, jolting upright as the noise tore its way through me.

My head spun, my body swayed. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as my lungs struggled for air. All I could see was Axtin, his limp body clutched in the hands of the sub-queen.

I shook my head, trying to erase the image as I gazed around the room.

“Leena?”

I turned towards the sound, finding Mariella at my side.

“What? Where?”

“Leena, are you alright?” she asked, reaching for my hand.

I turned away, searching the room.

My eyes fell on him in the next moment, laying perfectly still in the bed beside mine.

Axtin.

My heart raced faster as I stared across his unconscious form. Bandages lined his body, his chest rising in small, uneven spurts.

The dream came rushing back to me—the horror. I could practically feel his blood and could hear my children’s screams.

“Leena,” Mariella repeated, squeezing my hand. “Talk to me.”

I could hardly breath.

“I need to get out of here,” I said, throwing one more look at Axtin. “Get me out of here.”

“Leena, you need to stay and rest…” she began, but I didn’t let her finish.

I didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t want to hear anything.

Axtin was hurt. The thought of him dying to save me made me feel ill and made my head swim all over again.

“No,” I said, pulling the blankets quickly aside, “I have to go.” I jumped from the bed, swaying only slightly before I steadied myself.

“You’re confused,” Mariella started, but I didn’t stick around to hear more.

I reached for the door, almost running in my need to escape. I couldn’t handle it—not any of it. So many people had died, and so many others were hurt.

I needed to get away from it. I didn’t want to think about it or feel it.

I rushed into the hall, flying down the corridor in an outright panic. I just couldn’t do it—not anymore.

The lab doors appeared, looking at me like a shining beacon. I threw myself at them, stumbling into the lab with a sigh.

This was where I belonged.

I would never leave again.