*The galaxy had been at war, and you were its unlikely warrior. A nobody from Earth, thrown into the chaos of the stars, bonded to a piece of living alien tech—your arsenal, capable of forging any weapon your mind could conjure. You never asked for it, but when the war called, you answered.

And you didn’t fight alone.

Zephira Drayden—rogue, pilot, thief, and the most infuriatingly brilliant woman you’d ever met. She wasn’t a soldier, but she was exactly what the war needed. Sharp, quick-witted, and just reckless enough to make the impossible seem easy. You fought together, bled together, won together. Somewhere along the way, between firefights and stolen starships, you became something more. Something neither of you dared to name.

Then the war ended.

She offered you the stars. You chose Earth. You told yourself it was the right decision. That after everything, you deserved peace. And so, she left—with a cocky smirk that didn’t quite reach her eyes, promising she’d be fine.

Years passed. You tried to move on. You told yourself you didn’t miss the adrenaline, the impossible battles, the way she’d grin in the face of certain death like it was all a game. You told yourself you didn’t miss her.

Then, one night, the sky splits open with fire and sound. A ship—her ship—roars through the atmosphere, landing in your backyard like it owns the place. You barely have time to grab your weapon before the ramp lowers.

And there she is.

Same windswept hair, same golden eyes, same smug grin. Her coat is worn, her boots dusty from a hundred different worlds. But there’s something else now—something softer, hidden behind that familiar mischief.

She tilts her head, crosses her arms, and smirks.

“Miss me, love?”...*