Page 261 of Starside

I slip Stellaris into the scabbard, right against his sword, to keep him from calling either of them.

Everything has gone both right and wrong at the same time. I wasn’t supposed to survive this. I didn’t plan for this.

The God of Travels’ words have been etched into my very soul. I can bring my family back. There’s hope.

But killing Raker is clearly not as easy as putting a blade through his heart.

I am death, he said. How does one kill death? I’m not sure. But I’ll find out, even if it takes years. Decades. Lifetimes.

For now … I think about what the Astral Queen said. These swords cannot be united. Raker is the God of Death … and now the God of War too.

Who knows what immeasurable power he might have? Who knows what chaos he could unleash if he were to forge these blades back together?

I could see a glimpse of humanity in him—and I watched it harden as I left with his sword. Now he must truly hate me. He knows I meant to kill him. He could see the surprise in my face when he didn’t die.

Once something like friends … back to enemies.

His words are in my head again.

I know you, Aris. You claim you don’t care about anything but revenge, but I have watched you unfailingly, stupidly care about everyone else’s life over your own. You are not the monster you think you are.

He’s right. I do care. Even though this world has taken everything from me, I don’t want to watch it burn.

This world doesn’t need gods. It doesn’t need a blade that claims them all. It needs peace.

I vowed to kill all of them … I killed one. Raker killed another. Two are now dead. The rest will follow. Somehow, some way, I will make sure they all fall. Even him.

But first I must make sure he never gets these weapons.

We fly through the day and night for nearly a week, only stopping to rest when absolutely needed. My dragon is fearless, unflinching, untiring. It’s as if she knows how important it is for me to outrun him. As if she is invigorated by the goddess she ate.

Because I can feel that thread … Even with his sword in my possession, I feel him. I feel his fury. His determination.

He’s getting closer. He’s chasing after me.

No. Not me, I think. The swords. It’s what he’s wanted this entire time.

His rage washes over the world. The night flickers with it. The day bleeds with it. Of course. I told him I loved him, and then I stabbed him through the heart. The worst thing is, I don’t regret it. If killing him will bring back my family, then I will try again and again until his death finally sticks.

We’re not just racing against him—we’re racing against time. At sunset on the fiftieth day, the gates will close, and I feel the hours counting down.

When that day arrives, my dragon’s wings push harder. The sun begins to dip. She flies faster still.

Finally, the gates come into view, towering and glittering, and relief slithers down my spine. They’re still open. So close. So close.

The sun is melting against the horizon. There are minutes to spare.

My dragon lands just short of the gates, and I turn, realizing only now that I can’t bring her with me.

“You belong here, among the magic,” I say, tears stinging my eyes. “I don’t have anything to feed you over there.” Gems don’t exist. Even if I raided the king’s entire castle, she would starve after a few years.

No. She deserves to be in a place just as glimmering as she is.

I throw my arms around her nose and make her a promise. “I will come back one day. And then … then you can finally tell me your name.”

She nods, brushing against my cheek. We stay there, together, for a few stolen seconds.

Then, the world begins to tremble as those massive sheets of metal begin to close.