The glider filled with light. I still didn't understand how the powers of the Surtu worked. I did not know if Jidden summoned the light or if he was the light, but it was a wonder all the same. When the glider returned to normal, not only had Godfrey's wounds healed, but so had my own.

"Thanks," I mumbled, troubled by how close Godfrey and Jidden stood together.

"When are you going to teach us how to do that?" Godfrey asked innocently.

My jealousy disappeared instantly. I was intrigued. The Surtu were capable of many extraordinary things, like healing and moving objects with their mind, but I had never considered that those were abilities humans might have as well.

"Is it possible?" I asked.

"I don't know," Jidden shrugged. "We're all made of light, so it's a possibility."

"It's something we should investigate," Godfrey insisted. "If the Surtu military ever finds our refuge here, a human army with the ability to heal would be an ideal defense. We wouldn't be dependent on the women of the Fortuna to act as our military."

My remorse returned. "Where are my sister warriors?" I asked Jidden.

"Not too far away. They're at the ocean where the fire can't reach them. I told them to go ahead, but they're waiting for us."

I knew why they were waiting.

"And where is my ship?" Godfrey demanded.

"It's attempting to catch up with the other ships as they head towards the lagoon. There is cargo on your vessel the colonists need to begin rebuilding."

Godfrey immediately went to the dashboard. "I'll take the glider to my ship, but I'll drop you off first. Circle the area. See if there is a way we can use the ocean water to our advantage. The water is too acidic to drink, but maybe it can be used to put out the wildfire before it burns down the entire planet."

"That's a good idea," I said quickly. "I can handle it, Jidden. Why don't you go with Godfrey? Colonists might need healing."

"No," Jidden flatly refused. "There are already Surtu there who can heal them." Then he said something that shattered my breaking heart. "Wherever we go, it'll be together."

It was a promise we had made to each other when we reunited after the long, arduous months I spent as a slave to Captain Fore, a Fleet Captain in the Surtu military. Captain Fore was cruel to me. His beatings were a punishment for orchestrating the escape of the female warriors off the Fortuna. I eventually escaped too, hiding in a cargo box transported back to Earth. With the help of a Surtu soldier named Kista a woman dressed as a man Jidden and I were reunited, and we promised never to part again.

It was a promise I was about to break.

I could smell the ocean immediately. It was a dull mix of brine and acid, but there was also a pleasant fragrance that masked its toxicity fresh, like rain dancing upon the wood.

"Do you have your communicator?" Godfrey asked Jidden as she lowered the loading door of the glider.

"I do, General," Jidden replied. With three words, he gave her the respect of a colleague and the warmth of a friend.

Godfrey maneuvered the glider so that we were within jumping distance of the sand below. "Good. Call if you need anything."

He nodded. "We'll catch up soon."

No, we won't, I thought, but Jidden didn't know that.

We went to the back of the glider. Jidden grabbed me around the waist and pulled me in close. I breathed in his aroma, knowing this was the last moment we had together. I prayed it would not be forever, just for a little while, but even a short time away from my light bonded was hard to bear. I couldn't think about it too deeply. Otherwise, I would never be able to take action.

"I love you," I said, tucking my head into his shoulder as he held me. I wanted to absorb him.

"I love you," he whispered softly. "After our fight earlier, I wasn't sure you'd come back to me."

"I'll always come back to you," I insisted. On Godfrey's command through the communicator, we both jumped.

The leap wasn't far, and the white sandy beach cushioned our landing. As soon as we stood up, we started brushing the sand off our clothes. We felt the wind of the glider as it sped away towards the lagoon. It carried all the hope the Surtu and humans had of living in harmony as one.

The ocean was reminiscent of Earth, but because the glow of two suns illuminated the atmosphere on the new planet, the ocean was a rosy pink, as brilliant as tourmaline. Against the white sand, the water was breathtaking. It was a dream even the most jaded and weary could appreciate.

Jidden's ship was only a few feet away. We landed on its doorstep. Bellona waited for us outside, her long fiery red hair a contrast to the ocean.

"You survived," she said, grinning. "I knew you would."

"I certainly enjoy being alive."

Her grin disappeared. "Don't get too careless, Nightshade," she warned. "You can protect yourself from nature, but that doesn't make you immune to predators."

She wasn't referring to the danger on this planet. She meant the dangers on Earth and the threats we would soon face again.

Jidden squeezed my hand. "I'll keep her safe. The fire won't touch her again."

Bellona looked down at his hand, understanding he knew nothing about our plan. "As her man, it's not up to you to keep her safe. Your only duty is to love her, even if that means loving her from a distance so she can pursue her destiny."

Her words twisted my soul. Knowing I would soon lose my will to leave, I directed the conversation away from all talk of love and duty.

"Is everything ready?" I asked solemnly.

"Yes," Bellona answered. "The women are all in position."

"Good," I said. "I'll meet you inside."

She left, leaving me to explain things to Jidden.

I didn't have to. He could see everything in my face, and he was furious. "You're not going to the lagoon, are you. You're leaving for Earth."

I couldn't deny it. It had always been the plan of the women to leave at the soonest opportunity.

"I am."

We moved to a private location away from the ship. We were talking in a small cove about a mile away. The sand was scorching, but it wasn't as uncomfortable as the conversation Jidden and I were dancing around.

I wanted to say goodbye. He wanted me to stay. By the time we left the cove, we would both be heartbroken.

"Isn't it sad that the ocean is too acidic and temperamental for the colonists to live here?" I mused, gazing out onto the waves as they crashed onto the shore. "This would be the ideal spot to rebuild."

"Is that what you think of me?" Jidden asked distantly. "That I'm too acidic and temperamental?" He was still fuming, but it was a guise to cover his pain. He shook his head for no reason as he attempted to process my decision to leave.

"Of course not," I answered. "You know it's not about us. It's about my family. They need me. I know nothing of their fate, but I can assume it is ill-met. The Surtu military will kill off all human men and claim the women as their own. Is my mother now a plaything because she is too old to bear children? Have my brothers been slaughtered, or are they fighting in the resistance? Is my father a casualty or a slave?"

"Not as many men have been killed off as you imagine," Jidden said. "The military has found your men make better slaves than they do corpses."

"That's disgusting."

"It was meant as a reassurance."

"Reassurance is for only those who can't do anything. I can help. I may be the only chance my family has. They're your family too. We are light bonded. My brothers are your brothers. My parents are your parents."

Jidden paused thoughtfully. "The Surtu do not think like this."

I was hopeful. "Does that mean you'll come with me?"

He sighed. "I can't. I have to stay for same reasons you feel you have to go. I didn't betray my fellow soldiers to kill them on the battlefield, no matter how corrupt they might be. I left my position in the military to find a better way for my people. You say you must honor your family by leaving. I must honor my people by staying. I am a fugitive on Earth and Surt. Here, I am free from my past, and this is where I will find my prestige."

Prestige seemed like a meaningless word compared to our promise to stay together, but I sensed it had a more profound meaning to the Surtu than myself. It was why Jidden liked to be in charge and have control of his destiny. He felt he could save his people in a way that honored the values of his ancestors values the Surtu had held before desperation made them cruel. That's what prestige meant to him reclaiming the integrity of his people while also preventing their extinction.

I understood Jidden's point of view now, but it didn't alter my selfish hope that he would change his mind and come with me. I didn't want to leave him. The knowledge our separation would soon be reality was devastating.

I lifted a strand of my dark auburn hair, reminding him how he had used his power to make the color change permanent. "You said you stood by me, no matter what. I choose to fight. So stand by me. Help me find our family. Please." A tear rolled down my cheek.

He wiped the tear away. "I do stand by you," he said carefully. "And I will continue to do so right here. Terra, no one is leaving. Don't forget it's my ship. I won't let you take it, for your sake as much as mine."

Before, when he had forbidden me to go, I was furious. Now, I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. "You don't have a choice. We're flying your ship to Earth, regardless of whether or not you give us permission."

This time, his hurt showed through his anger. Leaving him was a betrayal, but stealing his ship was a knife in the back. I forced myself to look at him and own my betrayal so it would not haunt me when I left.

"You can't leave. If they take you captive again, or if Captain Fore finds you, I'm worried you won't survive. And neither will I. I can't lose you, not again."

"You won't lose me. I'll come back, just like I did before."

"I believe you'll try to, but you might not have the choice. Captain Fore hasn't forgiven you for allowing the women of the Fortuna to escape. He will continue to hunt you. He will continue to hunt all of you. If he catches you, he won't let you escape again. Your fate will be sealed, and so will mine, my light bonded."

"Then come with me. Don't fight with the resistance but help the network. The network is your people. They're looking for a better way, just like you are. If you're with me, then you will know I am safe. We'll do this together."

"Terra, I've made up my mind."

He spoke sternly, reminding me that not long ago, he had commanded the invasion of the Fortuna. He cared little for the lives of the women he ruined and viewed us as a means to an end. I wouldn't hold his past against him. He deserved forgiveness after everything he had sacrificed to save us, but I couldn't deny that he was capable of great indifference. He displayed it to me these last few weeks, pushing me away and allowing a distance to grow between us as he fought a battle with himself.

I also couldn't deny that while I fought for the cause of Earth, he still fought for the cause of the Surtu.

More tears spilled down my cheeks. "I'm going, with or without you," I declared, feeling like I was betraying our love. Like him, I left no room for compromise.

There was nothing left to say. We were both raw and hurting, full of the anguish of heartbreak. So we kissed, falling into the sand, needing a moment to forget.

Tenderly, Jidden pulled off my clothes, layer by layer until I was naked, my flesh exposed to the scorching heat. Appreciative of my body, he lifted a handful of sand and let it fall onto me, watching the grains cascade down to my stomach. It felt like a thousand soft kisses.

"That feels good," I cooed.

He reached for another handful, but instead of the sand, his hand fell empty beside me, and he fixed his eyes on my stomach. Jidden was a tall, brooding soldier, but beneath his exterior was a depth I had fallen into a long time ago.

"It's okay," I said, reaching for him. "It's going to be okay."

We kissed again, desperate to make ourselves whole and to fill the void of losing each other. As we kissed, I helped Jidden undress, first pulling off the top of his uniform to reveal a hard, well-trained body. When I removed his pants, his cock came into the light, large and erect.

We wanted to please each other and to express our sadness and loyalty together. When I reached down to taste his cock, he positioned himself underneath me. My knees were in the sand, and my feet were close to his ears. I licked the tip of his cock, enjoying the tenderness of his hard, pink flesh as he ran his tongue over my clit.

I had felt the power and arousal of his warm, moist tongue against my clit before. This position was especially intimate. He had access to all of me, and he took me in, sliding his tongue around my opening, up inside me, and back to my clit. He pleasured me with enthusiasm, wrapping his arms around the small of my back and pushing me downward so that his face was buried in me, allowing him to taste everything I had to offer.

The sensation of his tongue exploring my pink folds sent arrows of euphoria across my body. It propelled me forward so that I took his cock into my mouth and sucked hard. It filled my throat the way his tongue did my core. We were an endless circuit of raw, sexual energy that made us seep with love and brought us to the edge.

Before either of us came, Jidden lifted me up and spun me around so that I was underneath him.

"I want to look at you when I come," he murmured.

Once I was comfortable in the sand, he set his hand on my thigh and pried my legs apart before thrusting his cock inside me, filling me with the joy of his stiffness. He slid in and out of me, the intensity of his thrusts increasing as the seconds we had together counted down.

I grabbed my thighs and lifted my hips up to allow his large cock to sink further inside of me, to penetrate me deeply, moaning with every push of his flesh against mine. A glorious heat built up inside my body, possessing me until we both climaxed, crying our bliss out loud as we came together, our orgasms amplified by the light bond we shared. I felt his release as much as he felt mine. It blinded us with ecstasy.

"I love you," he said, burying his head in my hair. "Don't go."

I ran my hand across his head. "I'll come back," I promised quietly.

We lay there for as long as we could. When I couldn't keep them waiting any longer, I kissed him in the sand one last time. I silently slipped out from under his arms and walked away as rain started to fall.

Unable to bear the elements, I looked down at the ground. Two sets of footprints went into the cove, but only mine left it.

The women of the Fortuna gathered around me on Jidden's ship. We were close to Earth. It felt like we were traveling with the light, but I'm not sure the description was accurate. As I understood it, the ship moved faster than light. I was taught to imagine our vessel became light, seared a hole in the universe and brought us where we wanted to be.

When I had transformed to light myself, the experience had been different. My body had changed physically. It was as spiritual as it was scientific. Now, on the ship, I remained in my physical form. At least, I thought so. Perhaps we were the light after all, all of us, and we didn't realize it. Maybe the light was relative. I had not asked Jidden these philosophical questions, and it would be some time before I had a chance to speak with him again.

The thought of Jidden made me feel week. I missed his presence. I was thankful that I had my sisters around me for support. They were excited. Most of them had not stepped foot on Earth's soil in years.

In our previous life, we were stuck on the space station. Only those who manned the cargo ships between the Fortuna and Earth remembered what it was like to be home.

"We're here!" one of the women shouted as Bellona settled the ship beside a riverbed in the woods.

When the loading doors at the back of the spacecraft opened, an army of three hundred dangerous women stepped into the light.

We were home.

We did not wear white jumpsuits that had been our typical uniform on the Fortuna. Godfrey had been right about one thing if the Surtu discovered us, they would follow our trail back to the refuge on the new planet.

We didn't want to make it easy for them to catch us, so we all wore civilian clothes. They were clothes we could easily fight in and clothes that symbolized our strength. Many of us wore flexible leather leggings and armbands. Leather protected the skin and reminded us that we came from a long line of warriors. I wore a black sleeveless tunic over a pair of leather leggings. I changed on the ship as soon as we left, rejoining my sisters and reclaiming my role as their Commander.

Taking joy in the feel of the dirt beneath their feet and familiar air in their lungs, many of the women ran to the river and gleefully splashed around.

"Cannonball!" Juventas yelled, stripping off her clothes and jumping straight in.

Smiling as much as my heart would allow, I looked up at the soaring waterfall that rushed down the hillside into the river. We had landed in a familiar spot. Not long ago, Jidden and I had made love up in the rocky cliffs that surrounded the waterfall before boarding a rescue ship to the refuge.

"Where is the Surtu encampment?" Bellona asked. Her outfit was the most similar to our uniform on the Fortuna a form-fitting red leather jumpsuit.