Zephyrus. His name brought a sour taste to Ava’s mouth. To make matters worse, she touched the swines hand. Disgusting. No matter how hard she scrubbed, the feeling wouldn’t go away. It was there like a permanent scar forever burned in her brain.

She needed to calm down. Now was the perfect opportunity to capture a picture of him somehow, then the UFE would finally have a face to the man who’d been orchestrating this entire war. It’d be hard. Being both a god and Primordial’s Head Advisory, he had to be swarming with personal guards.

Ava wasn’t sure what to expect at this dinner, but they needed to prepare for the worst. Zephyrus was someone who always had a Plan A, B, and C. The UFE was lucky they survived this long. They really needed to make a plan.

She undressed. The scrubs fell to pale carpet. One wall was a complete mirror, easily catching Marc’s seal in its reflection. The curse mark was ruined, scratched with hundreds of tiny lines. She felt grateful the mark hadn’t disappeared, yet, considering once it did, she’d face a painful death. Ava squeezed the medallion.

This walk-in closet had nothing short of a full wardrobe, displaying dresses and flats and underwear, all in the color black. Surprised Primordial had enough decency to use black when it was the UFE’s celebratory colors.

Ava pulled on a simple black dress, one reaching just above her knees, and flats that sculpted to her feet, perfect for running. Someone trimmed her hair into a bob to fix the Black Rabbit’s treachery. They’d seen it all. No point in hiding the curse mark anymore.

When she left the confounds of the closet, she went into Mika’s room and found the closet door wide open. He was in the middle of changing and she didn’t say a word. She just watched him, his movements were calculative. He tucked a dark shirt into his new fitting pants until every wrinkle was smoothed out, then sifted through the collared shirts, choosing one that fit his style. Does he always wear a shirt under his formal clothing?

Mika finally caught Ava standing by his bed, her arms crossed. He jumped back, face turned red as a tomato. “Can’t you see I’m in the middle of changing!”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re practically dressed already.”

“I feel so exposed.” He grabbed his head, burying the shame into his hands.

This felt like déjà vu all over again. They didn’t have time to deal with this. Ava took his hand. Before he could get a peep in, they were locked inside his bathroom with all the water facets running at full capacity.

The close proximity didn’t bother him until she stepped close. His back hit the wall, face bloomed a shade of rose. He was so easy to tease. “We need to make a plan,” Ava whispered. “This might be our only chance before he comes back.”

Mika hastily tried dressing, doing a horrible job at it, too, snapping buttons in the wrong places and forgetting to fix his hair. “Now you want to make a plan.”

She smiled. “You’re right. Maybe I should just give the gods a little pain in return for all the pain they’ve caused me.”

The god of war and desire may have crashed their party, but who said they weren’t on this spaceship. Yeah, she had revenge on the brain.

Mika didn’t seem to enjoy her comment, frowning deeper than usual. “Or you will run straight into your deathbed.”

“Do you have a better idea? Because I’m all ears.”

He dragged fingers through his hair, trying to fix it. He only made it stick up like a porcupine’s back. Ava’s hands twitched. This brat is just impossible.

Mika said, “I think we need to keep our guard up and not let ourselves be influenced by curiosity. The gods are more powerful than you understand—”

Ava tugged him forward, and he just stared at her as she fixed the mess he created. She buttoned him to the stiff collar, tugged out the wrinkles and made sure the golden embroidery had no frays. They needed to look their best. He was a prince for star's sake. He needed to look a hundred times better than her, enough to show Zephyrus he shouldn’t be trifled with. Hopefully, he’d take Mika seriously.

When she finished, she lightly brushed the lint off his shoulders. “So here’s the plan. Since we’re stuck in space, we will play nice for the day and scout out the area as best we can. After dinner, we’ll come up with a way to get off this ship and back to Earth. And maybe we’ll have time to eat dessert on the way out.”

He cocked an eyebrow as she smoothed back his hair. “I’m shocked you don’t want to leave the second we get out the door.”

She wet her fingers in the sink and placed the finishing touches on a loose curl, tucking it behind his ear. “As the General of the UFE, I can’t run away from this opportunity,” she said, letting a corner play up her mouth. “And what better way to get to know your enemy than by having dinner with them.”

Ava rested a hand on her hip, taking in the lovely work. “There. Now you don't look like a mess. You look like a genuine prince.”

“What do you mean look? I am a prince.” Mika tugged his suit jacket straight with a huff, then glanced her way. “Thank you.”

“Yeah. Yeah.” After waving him off, she checked herself in the mirror. And then her day just got even worse. A set of new bangs hung across her forehead. The end of one curled. Great. Another bad hair day. Another thing to worry about.

“Your hair is short,” Mika said, gazing at her neck rather than the style. He pursed his lips. Ava didn't have to read minds to know he was thinking about the curse mark.

Silently, he drew out the koto character for scarf and pulled out a long, narrow material, doused in luscious Prussian blue, sprinkled in gold flaked stars. He wrapped it around her neck and tied it into a bow; the ends fell over the front and back.

Ava stood there stunned. Shocked that she let Mika touch her neck. Shocked that she was wearing his colors as a prince. More shocked that her heart wouldn’t stop racing. Be still. This is the brat you’re thumping for.

“Now no one will see it,” he said, sounding so proud of himself. She didn’t have the heart to tell him how futile it was. Hell, she didn’t have the heart to speak at all.

There was a buzz at the door. A man's voice filtered through the bathroom monitor with a hint of sophistication. “Dinner is ready to be served.”

Mika stepped close. His lips moved briskly against her ear, and a shudder ran through her. “I don’t want to be on this ship any longer than we need to be,” he said, voice grew heavy and dark. “They might try to kill us. We might not live through this dinner.”

They were too close. Ava turned away from him. “Just don’t eat the food.”

When they approached the main door, it opened without command. The man wore a navy blue uniform, with gold embroidered lining sewn on the upturned collar. It was almost too similar to Mika’s clothes.

The man bowed, one arm crossing over his chest. “Zephyrus has requested I escort you to dinner. Please follow me.”

The hallways were stark with little decor, built by identical faux wooden, white doors. No numbers. Anything to pinpoint their location was whipped clean. The same tiny ventilation covered the walls. Ava dragged her fingers across, only to remember their path without sight as darkness never slept.

They walked through a living room with a large sunken blue couch. A tree stump sat in the center as a makeshift coffee table with the beautiful scenery of Earth illuminating as a background against the endless walls covered in windows. It was so amazing, Ava stopped to gaze at its magnificence.

Mika took her hand and lightly tugged forward. The escort already left them behind. They took a sharp turn down a new hallway, through a massive corridor and straight towards a set of dark blue double doors. Carvings stuck out like weapons of their own. He touched the monitor and informed Zephyrus they were here. Soon, the doors slid open, unveiling a massive room as big as the house back home.

He had simple tastes, neat and orderly with hints of blue mixed with the overwhelming white. Dim lights filled the room as fake candles illuminated a round table, placed by the void of space and a thick glass wall. A plain couch with two chairs was on one side of the room, and a large desk was dead center of this travesty.

Ava gravitated toward the delicious, steaming meal decorating the marble tabletop. Expensive dinnerware made the food appear even more delectable; crystal glasses, an assortment of silver utensils, napkins shaped into origami birds. He went out of his way to make this a grand dinner. God, I loathe him.

Zephyrus confidently stood by the table in a hideous crisp white suit, gold laced in forever symbols of triangles, Primordial markings. Reality set in once more. Ava took a deep breath. Seeing white, all the time, was something she’d never get used to.

“I was planning on giving you a personal tour, but we must cut our dinner short as I have a pressing meeting to attend. I’m sure you can understand,” he said.

That felt like a personal dig. “Actually, I don’t. Meetings are something I rarely attend when I have others to go for me.”

His fake smile dropped. “I wasn’t trying to offend you, my apologies, but I’m surprised the UFE hasn’t given you more authority considering you’re only a year away from becoming a full-fledged immortal being.”

Another dig. “Let’s not dwell on trivial affairs and cut to the chase.”

Zephyrus’ hand rested on the fancy metal chair and sat with ease. He gave a grand show of the table, full of hot food and a delicious aroma of pork. “Please, sit.”

Mika and Ava glanced at one another before approaching the table. With determination in her stride, Ava walked up to Zephyrus and firmly grasped his hand to give a solitary shake. “Let it be known, this handshake is not from me, but as a representative of Earth hoping to create a peaceful resolution with Primordial.”

The stars in his eyes gleamed brightly with a curious smile. “You understand after the stunt Gregori pulled, peace treaty negotiations will be hard to discuss. Considering you’ve been hiding the Crown Prince this entire time.”

“Son of the late Crown Prince,” she corrected. “Gio is earthborn, making him a citizen of the UFE, and I can assure you he has been well taken care of.”

“I’m sure he has.” He quietly laughed to himself. “We should leave this topic for our governing branches to sort out. For now, we have personal details to discuss.”

“Personal details?” Ava cocked an eyebrow. “I hope you understand the position I’m in prevents me from getting personal with someone of your stature and reputation.”

The corner of his mouth slowly turned upwards. He racked those starry eyes over her dress. “I wouldn’t be so sure. We’re more alike than you can imagine, Avalyn. It’s common for civilizations to end wars through arranged… agreements.”

He meant an arranged marriage. Hah. I think I’m going to puke.

A chair screeched against the floor, stopping the conversation short. Ava briefly glanced at Mika and found him scowling. “Don't worry. It was only a harmless joke,” Zephyrus said. “An arrangement won't be necessary for peace in our case.”

Did he just imply Primordial already won the war?

As Mika sat quietly, radiating with royal elegance, Ava cautiously took her seat at the last remaining chair of three, making this circular table into a triangle. They were far apart with silverware and expensive gold china in-between. She didn’t like this. For once, she wished they were close.

Zephyrus cleared his throat. Ava had been staring at Mika for too long. Feigning ignorance, she placed the napkin on her lap.

“I’ve heard you’ve been having some trouble with controlling your abilities,” he said. Ava began to protest, but he cut her off. “Before you give me your spew on how evil Prim are, you need to know this isn't about them. This is about you and how I want to help.”

Help? Just like Primordial helped Earth by destroying part of the planet. Or the help Mars gave Earth by stealing their precious data and books. The help Earth got from Amaranthine, only to have Ava’s heart led around by their Crown Prince for years. Ava was tired of being helped and being let down—although that last one was her fault entirely.

Yet even with all this, she had to know what kind of help Zephyrus had up his sleeves. “And what will you get out of this if I let you help me?”

There had to be a catch. There was always a catch.

Zephyrus took a sip from an oversize glass, which appeared to be purple wine. “Nothing, but another family member,” he said, swirling the juice around. “I’m guessing Amaranthine hasn’t told you the complete truth about your weapon, and what’s worse, you flashed it out in the open for the entire universe to see.”

No, tell me he’s lying. Amaranthine always helped the UFE. It didn’t make sense for them to keep this a secret. This can’t be true.

Mika tensed. He balled his hands into tight fists on the tabletop. He said nothing, yet those actions alone were enough to confirm Zephyrus’ allegations. Ava had to close her eyes for a second to calm down. Breathe…

Zephyrus continued, “Why do you think you’ve had many attempts on your life? It’s not from being the General. It’s from your birthright and the power you crave.” He set his glass down. “I know exactly which god you are.”

She gripped the armrests for support. “And how would you know this? How do I know you’re not lying?”

It had to be a trick. She wouldn’t fall for it.

“The gods’ weapons are all color coded. For instance, my color is blue for wisdom, the goddess of war has crimson, and desire has a disgusting hot pink,” he said. “You are the only god left who hasn’t awakened, and I’m sure you can guess whose weapon is pure black.”

Ava dug into the wood.

“The god of death.”