Piloting cargo was boring, but it paid well, well enough for them to be able to get a place within a month; good thing, too, as sleeping in the Whistle blew. That leaky old thing smelled damp.

Nalini returned to her habits soon, growing her plants and making a mess in the lounge. Adaptable as ever, Kronos found simulation games to amuse himself.

The one thing that truly changed was the sense of Kai’s presence. For years, she’d felt it there, but it had seemed entirely ignorant of her. Now, it watched. Listened. She was sure that if she ever reached into it, so much as said his name, he’d be there.

She never did.

One day, at the market, she saw it. The most beautiful beast she’d ever seen; white and blue fur, a presence that was entirely out of place around people. It was huge, close to the size of a pony. The wolf didn’t snap his jaw at anyone, but it certainly acted like it wanted to.

Unable to resist the desire to greet the magnificent creature, Nalini remained still and held out her hand, inviting him to check it out.

“Hello, handsome one,” she called.

The beast approached slowly and sniffed. Then it huffed, but, as it didn’t snap its jaw, she took it as a win.

“Well, look at this!”

She lifted her gaze and immediately tensed, her smile disappearing. She knew that man.

He was in his prime, with salt and pepper hair and a well-trimmed beard. His imposing frame, working hands, sun-kissed skin, and common cloak didn’t fool her.

She’d never seen him before. But she knew him. Who—what—he was.

“I know how to use my blaster and my knife,” she practically growled, low and threateningly.

They were in public, so there was a chance that he might not mean to make a scene.

Right?

“No doubt, little lady.”

She froze and glared. Only one person had ever called her that, although she was, in fact, quite short for an Evris.

“Where are my manners. Ian Krane,” he introduced himself, offering his hand in greeting.

She looked at it like he might keep a venomous snake in his sleeve.

“I don’t bite, Nalini.”

Each word coming out of his mouth made things a hundred times worse. He knew her? Her name. Her location.

“Why don’t we go speak somewhere, hmm?”

“Speak,” she spat. “When your kind would have us all dead?”

“I don’t speak for the Council, child.”

“But you’re a Wise.”

The male didn’t deny it, shrugging. “Don’t hold it against me. You hang out with crazies for a mere hundred years and peeps will associate you with them for a damn millennium.”

Still frowning, and mistrusting, Nalini shook the man’s hand. She looked around, searching for his backup, but no one she could see or sense in the market seemed to pay them any mind. Except the beast.

“Is he yours?” she asked, pointing to the wolf, who she would have sworn seemed to raise a brow, piqued at the idea.

“Hardly. These beasts don’t belong to anyone. But he hangs out with me right now, yeah. We were looking for you. Took us a while to get your trail. Which is saying a lot.” The male tapped his own temple. “I ain’t all that bad at seeing things myself.”

Nalini was a little lost; she didn’t feel animosity coming from Ian Krane, and if he meant to subdue her, he hadn’t brought any weapon to do so. She adjusted her stance as to not look like she was about to pounce or flee, all the while remaining careful, wary of the strange old mage.

“Why were you looking for me?”

“You know,” he said, not immediately answering her question, “back in the day, we had classes for kids like you. Show you how to distinguish past, possible futures, and actual, unchangeable prophecies. Otherwise, it can get pretty jumbled up in your head. A little scary, too. Makes some of us paranoid. Others go mad.”

She glared and stayed silent.

“Not saying you should trust me. You shouldn’t. I have my own agenda. Just saying, I know a thing or ten, and you need help if you want to make it to thirty before going completely bonkers. I could teach you.”

Nalini might have loved hearing that ten years ago.

Might.

“Why would you want to help?”

“I don’t,” he point-blank stated. “Not really. But I need to. I live in this galaxy, and the fate of it depends on one big boy we both know. There’s one person in this entire universe who can make sure he doesn’t destroy it. One girl who wastes her time transporting crap and doesn’t practice her skills. So, yeah, I’d say that’s my problem.”

She looked around frantically, checking whether anyone was hearing a word of what they were saying. She should have listened for once, and spoken to him in private. But no one was paying attention to an irrelevant cargo pilot and an old man.

“You know Kai.”

“You could say that, kid.”

She sighed. “Well, as a Wise, you probably know exactly what he is. No one can control him, let alone me. I just see stuff. He’s about a million times stronger than me.”

She wasn’t a bad psychic, and she could take care of herself, but she wasn’t deluding herself into thinking that she’d ever be strong enough to take Kai on, even if she’d wanted to. Twelve years ago, maybe – not now.

“Darkness reborn, yada, yada. Yeah, I know the prophecy. Probably a little better than you, given the fact that I freaking wrote it.”

She froze. Then, she had to ask, “Are you insane?”

The older male laughed and held his hand up again.

“I’m sane enough for this. Come with me.”

“Sorry, but I don’t do politics. I have zero interest in fighting against, or for, Kai, for that matter. I just want to live my life in peace.”

And if that made her a coward, so be it.

Krane carried on his pitch, like she hadn’t even spoken. “You can bring the boy. You know you’re meant for more than this, kiddo. Someone like you shouldn’t spend her life transporting crap in a stinking ship.”

She crossed her arms on her chest.

“It pays.”

The old male sighed. “For the sake of everything holy in the universe, I’ll pay you to get some training. Happy?”

“No.”

She started walking away, done with this conversation. She wasn’t getting herself pulled into this.

“Nalini,” the male called her back.

She sighed and turned.

“What now?”

“I can guarantee that I’d never even attempt to make you fight anyone’s war. I’m just a damn seer who knows how this story ends if you can’t take care of yourself.”

She had to consider it, feeling her resolve falter. She didn’t know her future. He was implying that it wasn’t all that good.

“You basically told me not to trust you. And I don’t. Why should I listen to a word you’re saying?”

“Because you want to remain sane, and safe. Because you’re curious about getting some actual training by someone who knows what he’s talking about. And, mostly, because your job bores you to tears and you’d literally eat your own leg rather than doing it for the rest of your life.”

Damn old psychic male.

“I’m not leaving with a Wise without any sort of guarantee or proof that you won’t just dump us in a ditch and set it on fire.”

Ian Krane nodded. “Smart girl.”

He removed the gray glove covering his hand before extending it again; after a beat, she took it, knowing he meant it as more than a greeting this time.

When their palms touched, she investigated his mind. The process could be painful for both parties when the subject was strong enough to resist, and there was no doubt that Ian would have been strong enough, but he’d lowered his mental shield. He let her read him. His intentions. His thoughts. His feelings.

He was still shielding part of him—his past, the deeper part of his thoughts—but the rest was laid bare, proving that he’d meant every word he’d said. He let her see the future he saw. Her deaths. By fire, an exploding space ship, screaming on the ground. Three times, she saw her death; she didn’t look much older in any of those visions.

Shit.

Nalini’s resolve straightened. She was going with him. The moment she decided that, the future changed. She was in a colorful garden. In front of a waterfall. Dancing in the street. Laughing.

She was alive.

Through his mind, she also saw what he intended for her. What he was really offering. She gasped and let his hand go.

“So, what do you think?” he asked.

She stared, entirely incredulous.

“Is that possible? I didn’t think anyone could go there. It’s warded and unmappable.”

Ian shot her a smile that showed all of his teeth.

“You said it yourself, girl. I’m a Wise. And whether they like it or not, as a member of the Council, I can do what I damn well please.”

She blinked.

“What do you say, kiddo?”

There was only one thing to say.

“I’ll start packing.”

Kronos wasn’t hard to convince either. A few hours later, he and Nalini were trailing the Zonian in the Whistle, en route for Tejen, the mythic original planet their entire race came from.

* * *

Kai had conquered Haimo early, making it one of the first systems he’d annexed. Not for sentimental reasons; he’d simply believed that owning those forges, which didn’t have any equal in the Ratna Belt, and the treasures of the mineral planet, would give him a strategic advantage.

He’d been right.

A few surprises had awaited him. He’d genuinely believed that after all these years, most of those he had known would have died. Most slaves didn’t live past their forties. But Mae was still alive, so was Balu, his uncle Isha, and even that suborn old Kumi. She was blind, and mostly bedridden, but she still made the best drinks when she was able to be up and around.

They all regarded him with fear and suspicion; he couldn’t blame them. The vibe he emanated wasn’t ever friendly. Particularly not toward those who’d let him die in the cold.

Most of the workmasters died in their short, pathetic offensive against his forces. The Hora surrendered after five days of siege. Akia accepted the demand to free the slaves and waited to hear his fate, no doubt expecting a death sentence. But Kai was utterly indifferent. He hadn’t reclaimed this world to exert his vengeance upon his past. His past was irrelevant. Only the future mattered to him.

“You’ll supply my armies with the weapons they need. We will pay fairly. A fair salary will be distributed amongst the workers. Some of my men will remain here. If I hear that you returned to your old ways, I’ll take pleasure in signing your execution warrant,” he told the male who’d fathered him.

Speaking to his mother was… difficult. She was glad to see him, he could tell. She cried tears of joy and said things that should have moved his cold heart.

They didn’t.

Mae had given him life and cared for him as best she could, so he attempted to feel some sort of kinship toward her, but failed.

The wolves liked it back here. Space was cold, but whenever he’d been grounded on any planet, they’d struggled in the heat. Perhaps that was one of the reasons why Kai spent most of his time in space; to ensure his pack was comfortable.

Kai watched them play in the snow and found himself smiling. His smile stilled quickly. They were always fleeting.

He’d returned to Haimo periodically over the years. Wench joked it was for Kumi’s beverage, and he wasn’t entirely wrong; but it became his escape because of the forge.

Isha had the complete run of the place without any interference from overlords in there now. The male kept Kai’s old work station empty, as he turned up without warning from time to time.

Only popping by for a day at a time when he had a chance, Kai had taken months to create weapons that fitted him perfectly—deer horn knives made of fyriron and energy. No one else could use them; they were just hilts until he pushed his power through them. Then, curved blades of energy-coated fyriron appeared out of the hilt. He’d let others attempt to activate the weapon, and all had failed; the hilts only reacted to his specific energy. He liked that, a lot.

They were beauties. Wench had moaned and groaned until Kai caved and made him an axe designed the same way. Working at the forge was therapeutic; he generally went there without a clear goal in mind. He’d also ended up forging weapons for his most loyal supporters, Hart, Star, Evi, Park, and Ollis. Some of his other creations, he’d just left behind in the forge. They’d be sold to someone, somewhere. He didn’t care.

Today was different. He knew what he was doing when he formed the long, slim hilt, which would be perfectly comfortable in a small hand. He carved it with care and encrusted it with red crystals.

“This won’t be stable,” Isha frowned, watching over his shoulder. “Whatever blade you fit in there will be shot through with too much energy for any man.”

Kai shrugged. “It’s not for a man.” It was for a goddess who’d hold it without flinching. “And it’s not a blade, either.” He lifted the long tress of carefully braided fyriron strands.

Isha winced. “A whip.”

No ex-slaves liked those. The whip represented their master’s power over them. Which was why it was so extremely perfect for the female who owned him.

He shrugged. “Girls like whips.”

Isha wrinkled his nose. “You know some strange girls.”

The old master waved toward the weapon. “I’d use a black diamond as an activator. Girls definitely like diamonds.”

Kai laughed and removed the crystals. His uncle did have a point there.

Kai wore that whip at his belt every day for the next imperial year. Until they met again.