Leo woke to the sound of his father's voice.
"...and then he told me, straight-faced, that the 'Songbird' codename was non-negotiable. I said, 'Son, you're a logistics coordinator, not a pop star.' He said, 'Why can't I be both?'"
Jamie's laughter followed. "That's our Leo. Stubborn to the point of absurdity."
"He gets it from his mother."
Leo opened his eyes. He was in the Ember Network's medical bay, bandages wrapped around his torso, an IV drip of something that glowed faintly amber attached to his arm. And sitting beside his bed, looking thinner than Leo remembered but unmistakably, impossibly alive, was David Chen.
"Dad," Leo croaked.
Both men turned. Jamie grinned. David's expression - tired, haunted, but full of something that might have been wonder - softened.
"Welcome back,
