Ethan's heart jolted. His gaze cut past the trembling observation window and out into the void.
Two figures hovered in the emptiness beyond the hull.
One radiated an icy, blue-white glow. The flow of energy around him had been pressed so pale it looked bleached, and even the warship's outer plating had frosted over with a thin, biting rime.
The other was wrapped in pure gold.
The light wasn't scattered—it clung to his body like layered molten streams compressed to the limit, quiet and controlled, turning the surrounding darkness bright as day.
The instant Ethan recognized their faces, his expression dropped.
"Kaelthar. Veyrakas."
As the names left his mouth, he was already out of the pilot seat.
They'd been to Emerald Castle before.
That time, they'd come for Lily.
But back then, both of them had still been under seals. A lot of what they could do had been locked down—so Ethan had beaten them into the dirt and forced them to flee in disgrace.
