The kiss was not the gentle homecoming Elara had dreamed of in her loneliest nights as a stray. It was a collision of star-fire and seawater, a desperate, bruising claim that tasted of salt and ancient, unwashed grief. Kaelen’s hands were buried in her silver hair, pulling her against him as if he could merge their very marrow.
For a heartbeat, Elara let herself drown. She let the heat of his skin melt the permafrost that had encased her heart since the Rejection. She was no longer the Tidal Luna or the Queen of Athalassia; she was just a girl who had finally been caught by the boy who let her fall.
Then, the Sun-Core let out a high-pitched, metallic shriek.
The golden sphere above them began to spin, its liquid light turning a violent, angry crimson. The temple walls groaned, marble cr
