Chapter 2: Across the Stars
The silence stretched between the three of us, thick and charged with tension. Sorin’s eyes, intense and dark, flickered with emotion as he held my gaze. Kaira stood behind him, her expression sharp and unreadable, every line of her body poised for a confrontation. I could feel the weight of their unspoken histories pressing in on me, suffocating me, making it impossible to think clearly.
“Elara,” Sorin’s voice was soft, pleading. “We need to leave. Now.”
Leave? The market around us was buzzing with life, oblivious to the chaos unfolding between the three of us. My mind raced, struggling to make sense of what was happening. Who were these people, and how did they know me? How could I trust either of them when I didn’t even trust myself to remember what was real?
Kaira’s voice broke through my thoughts, sharp and accusing. “You have no idea what he’s done, do you?”
I looked between them, my head spinning. “What are you talking about?”
Sorin stepped closer, his presence calm but urgent. “Elara, I’ll explain everything, but we don’t have time right now. We need to get away from here.” He reached out, his hand hovering in the air between us, waiting for me to take it.
But Kaira’s words hung heavy in the air.
“Do you really think he hasn’t told you the full truth?” Kaira’s voice was a low, dangerous whisper. “He’s the reason you’ve lost everything. Your memories, your life as you knew it… all because of him.”
Sorin’s expression tightened, and I saw something flicker in his eyes—something dark and pained.
“Come with me,” Kaira continued, her tone softening as she stepped closer. “I can help you, Elara. I can show you what really happened.”
I stood there, torn between two paths that I couldn’t understand. Sorin’s hand was still outstretched, a lifeline in the storm, while Kaira’s words clawed at the edge of my mind, begging me to question everything.
I took a breath, steadying myself. I needed answers, but I couldn’t get them here, surrounded by strangers and flickering neon lights. I glanced at Sorin, then at Kaira. There was something in Sorin’s eyes—a sincerity, a sadness—that made me believe him, even if I didn’t fully understand why.
“I’m going with him,” I said quietly, stepping forward and taking Sorin’s hand.
Kaira’s face darkened, her eyes narrowing. “You’ll regret this,” she warned, her voice cold as ice. But she didn’t move to stop us. Instead, she turned and disappeared into the crowd, leaving only her parting words behind: “You have no idea what you’re walking into.”
Sorin squeezed my hand, and I felt a surge of warmth spread through me—calming, steadying. Without a word, he pulled me through the market, weaving between stalls until we reached a small, hidden dock on the outskirts of the colony. The gravity here was lighter, the stars above brighter, shimmering like they were alive. A sleek, silver spacecraft hovered in the air, its engines humming quietly.
“Get in,” Sorin said, his voice low.
I hesitated for just a moment, the reality of what I was about to do sinking in. But the moment my feet left the ground and I stepped onto the ship, I knew there was no going back. The door slid shut behind us, sealing us into the dimly lit cabin. Sorin moved quickly, taking the controls, and with a soft whoosh, the ship lifted off.
Through the viewport, the sprawling floating market shrank into the distance until it was nothing more than a speck among the stars. We were flying—across time, across space—into the unknown.
For a while, there was only silence between us, broken by the steady hum of the ship’s engine. I stared out into the vast expanse of the galaxy, my mind racing with questions. Who was Sorin, really? What had Kaira meant by saying I had lost everything because of him?
“Where are we going?” I asked finally, my voice barely above a whisper.
Sorin didn’t answer right away. He kept his eyes on the controls, his expression tight, like he was holding something back. “A place where we can talk,” he said after a long pause. “Where it’s safe.”
I frowned. “Safe from what? From Kaira?”
He didn’t respond, and that only made my heart race faster. The quiet tension between us was growing unbearable, thick with unsaid things.
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. “Sorin, I need to know what’s going on,” I said, turning to face him. “You can’t just expect me to follow you blindly across the stars without answers.”
He sighed and ran a hand through his dark hair, looking more weary than I had ever seen him. “You’re right,” he said softly. “You deserve answers.”
He stood up from the controls and motioned for me to follow him into a small lounge area at the back of the ship. The room was dimly lit, cozy, with plush seats and a window that opened out to the endless sea of stars. He gestured for me to sit, and I did, my heart pounding with anticipation.
Sorin sat across from me, his eyes searching mine as if trying to find the right words.
“Elara,” he began quietly, “I didn’t lie when I said we were in love. We were—once. But something happened that changed everything.”
I swallowed hard, the weight of his words settling over me like a fog. “What happened?”
His gaze dropped to his hands. “I made a mistake. A terrible mistake. I thought I could save you… from a future that was too painful to bear. But in doing so, I broke the timeline. I erased your memories, your life as it was, and created this version of you. The version you are now.”
My head was spinning. “You erased my life?”
“I thought I was doing the right thing,” Sorin said, his voice heavy with regret. “I thought I could fix everything. But instead, I made it worse. I lost you.”
His words hit me like a punch to the gut. I felt a deep ache in my chest, as if some part of me—some forgotten part—remembered what he was talking about. And yet, it was all so foreign. A life I didn’t know. A love I couldn’t recall.
I looked out the window, the stars blurring in my vision. “Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?”
Sorin’s voice was soft, almost broken. “Because I was afraid. Afraid that if you knew the truth, you’d hate me. And I couldn’t bear to lose you again.”
There was a long silence between us, filled only by the distant hum of the ship’s engines and the soft glow of the stars outside. I didn’t know what to feel—anger, confusion, sadness. But above all, I felt a strange, undeniable pull toward him. Despite everything, despite the lies and the secrets, I couldn’t shake the connection we shared.
“Sorin…” I whispered, my voice barely audible.
He looked up, his eyes full of that same longing I had seen before—deep, raw, and full of regret.
And before I could stop myself, I leaned forward. His breath hitched as our faces drew closer, the air between us charged with electricity. My heart raced, and I hesitated for only a moment before closing the distance. Our lips met softly at first, hesitant, as though testing the waters of a love that had been lost to time.
But as the kiss deepened, I felt something awaken inside me—an old, forgotten feeling that sent a warmth flooding through my chest. His hand cupped my cheek, his touch gentle but desperate, like he was afraid I might slip away again. The stars outside seemed to spin faster, blurring into a whirl of light as the universe shifted around us.
For a moment, there was only the two of us—caught between the present and the past, between who we were and who we had once been.
When we finally pulled apart, I was breathless, my heart pounding in my chest. Sorin’s forehead rested against mine, and I could feel the weight of everything we had lost hanging between us.
“Elara,” he whispered, his voice filled with a raw vulnerability. “I’ve spent lifetimes trying to find you again.”
I closed my eyes, my mind swirling with emotions I couldn’t untangle. “And what happens now?”
Sorin pulled back slightly, his eyes searching mine. “Now,” he said softly, “we try to make things right.”
Just as the words left his lips, the ship’s alarm blared, jolting us both out of the moment. Red lights flashed across the control panel, and Sorin jumped to his feet.
“We’ve been tracked,” he muttered, his voice tight with urgency.
“Tracked? By who?”
He didn’t answer, but the look on his face said enough.
“Kaira,” I whispered, dread creeping into my chest.
Sorin’s jaw tightened. “She’s coming.”
The ship jolted suddenly, and I grabbed onto the seat to steady myself. Sorin raced back to the controls, frantically pressing buttons as the alarm continued to blare.
“Hold on!” he shouted, and before I could even ask what was happening, the ship lurched forward, speeding into the unknown, with Kaira hot on our trail.
***
The ship hurtled through space, the stars blurring outside the window as the red lights flashed and the alarm screamed. My heart pounded in my chest as Sorin desperately tried to outmaneuver Kaira’s ship, his knuckles white as he gripped the controls.
But then, without warning, the lights flickered, and the ship’s engines sputtered to a halt.
We were caught—trapped in the void, with Kaira closing in fast.