MILES POV
"How… Do you know my name?"
The words hung between us, sharp and thin against the noise of the yard.
My lips parted, but nothing came out. My tongue felt heavy, like it didn't belong in my mouth anymore. The wind brushed past, drying whatever little moisture was left on my lips, but I still couldn't force an answer out.
Her eyes didn't leave mine.
She stepped closer—not rushed, not hesitant. Measured. Like she already knew exactly what she was looking for and was waiting to see if I would give it to her.
"Who are you?" she asked again, her voice lower this time. Tighter. "And what else do you know?"
Something tightened painfully in my chest.
The name had come out before I could stop it. Like it had always been there, sitting at the back of my throat. Like I'd said it before.
But I hadn't…Had I?
I looked at her properly then.
Those eyes.
The same amber eyes from the dream. The same ones that had found mine through smoke and blood and warned me before everything fell apart. Only now they were clearer. Sharper. Real.
Tessa.
This wasn't the first time I've seen you. It's the first time you've seen me.
Her brows pulled together slightly, like she'd caught something in my expression she couldn't place. Her fingers curled into her palm.
"Sergeant Grayson."
The voice behind her cut through the moment.
Deep. Firm. The kind that didn't need to be loud to be obeyed. A soldier stood a few steps away, posture straight, hand raised in salute.
"A word."
She exhaled softly through her nose, annoyed, then looked back at me.
Just for a second.
Long enough for me to catch the shift in her eyes. Not confusion, not curiosity. Something sharper.
Like she was trying to decide if I was dangerous.
Then she turned and walked away.
No explanation. Just that one look left behind.
I stood there longer than I should have, staring at the empty space she'd occupied like something of her might still be there.
It wasn't.
The yard moved around me anyway.
Soldiers crossed between buildings carrying crates, rifles, medical supplies. Everything flowed with a kind of order I wasn't used to seeing. No shouting. No scrambling. No one looked like they were barely holding the place together.
A bitter scoff left me before I could stop it.
Everything we never had.
I stepped forward, and a man walking straight toward me shifted at the last second, moving just enough to avoid brushing shoulders with me. He passed like I wasn't even there.
Didn't look back.
My jaw tightened.
It meant nothing. At least that's what I told myself.
Ahead, a group stood near the fence speaking in low voices. I moved toward them slowly, hands buried inside the folds of the purple cloth hanging off my shoulders.
Their conversation didn't stop. But something changed. The circle tightened, shoulders angled inward. Space closed in on itself before I could enter it.
One of them glanced at me briefly.
Then he looked away.
"…shouldn't he be with the rest of them…?" The wind carried the words just enough.
"…badlands…"
A pause.
"…what do you expect…"
My steps slowed. Then stopped completely. Silence settled between us. Not because they stopped talking.
Because they'd already said enough.None of them looked at me anymore.
Like I'd stopped existing the moment I got close enough to hear.
My fingers twitched at my sides.
I turned away first.
The yard stretched wide around me—bright, clean, open and somehow there was nowhere in it that felt like somewhere I was allowed to stand.
Then I saw them.
A small gathering near the far wall.
Bandaged, bruised. Wrapped in the same purple cloth as me.
Survivors, I registered in my mind.
Something tightened in my chest as I made my way toward them. My eyes searched every face before I even reached them.
No Noah, no Dylan— no Shawn— None of them.
"Miles?"
The voice hit me before I saw her.
I turned sharply.
Ava stood a few feet away, arms folded tightly across herself, fingers twisted into the sleeves of her coat.
Her eyes were red. Tears streaked down both cheeks. A broken laugh escaped her when our eyes met.
My chest tightened so hard it hurt.
"Ava." I breathed.
That was all it took. We crossed the distance at the same time.
Her arms wrapped around me so tightly it almost knocked the breath out of me. Like if she loosened her grip even slightly, I'd disappear.
Warm,familiar.
My arms closed around her instantly.
"I thought I lost you," I whispered into her hair.
Her fingers dug into my back.
"I thought… you were… you were right there…" She stuttered as the words broke apart against my shoulder.
I pulled back just enough to look at her.
"What about the others?" I asked quietly. "Dylan. Shawn. Noah?"
She shook her head immediately. Fresh tears spilled down her face.
"You're the first I've seen."
Something dropped inside my chest.
Her hands trembled where they held onto me.
Her whole body shook like some part of her was still standing in that smoke.
"We were all together," she said, voice barely steady. "Then the blast…"
Her eyes shifted to the side. Distant. Like she was watching it happen again.
"I didn't know what to do," she whispered. "They were screaming… the commander…"
Her voice cracked, completely. I'd never seen Ava like this before.
I pulled her back into me and held her there.
Not too tightly. Just enough.
"It's going to be okay," I murmured.
The words felt hollow as soon as they left me.
But I said them anyway.
After a while, her grip loosened. She pulled back and wiped at her face with the back of her sleeve before looking up at me.
"How did you survive?" She asked.
I frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"The blast," she said. "You were right there."
I shook my head.
"No. I wasn't."
"You were."
The certainty in her voice made my stomach drop.
"I was behind cover."
"No, Miles." She swallowed. "You were with the commander."
I stared at her.
Then the memory came back all at once. The commander beside me.
The light,the blast,the wall. My breath caught in my throat. I had been right there.
I saw it clearly now.
I'd been close enough to feel the commander's blood hit my face.
Close enough to lose him. Close enough to die with him.
I should be… dead.
The realization settled somewhere deep and cold inside me.
Ava saw it hit me, saw it in my face. Neither of us spoke. A chill ran up my spine.
Then the sirens screamed. Sharp. Violent. Mechanical. My head snapped upward before my mind could catch up.
No.
Not again.
The announcement blared across the sector, echoing through the yard.
"ATTACK. ATTACK. SECTOR THREE UNDER BREACH. SENTINEL PRESENCE CONFIRMED."
Everything around us changed instantly. Soldiers broke into motion. Commands were shouted across the compound.
Boots pounded against concrete.
Ava's fingers tightened around my wrist.
I looked at her, then toward the distant gates.
My pulse kicked hard against my ribs.
They are here…Again.