Chapter 120
Chapter 120
The convoy rolled through the gates of Faction 12 just as dawn painted the sky in molten gold and rose, the sun—unfiltered, unashamed—spilling over the compound like liquid hope. The orange haze was gone. The air tasted clean, sharp, alive. Soldiers who had spent years behind masks and filters stepped out blinking, mouths open, eyes wide at the impossible blue above.
A roar rose from the walls.
"Captain's back!"
"The sky—look at the sky!"
"Renault—he's human again!"
Men and women poured from barracks and watchtowers, clapping, shouting, some openly weeping. They slapped Axton's shoulders, reached to touch Ren's unmarked skin as if to confirm the miracle. Rhys, Kael, and Corvin stood on the vehicle's ramp, arms slung around each other, grinning like fools while the crowd chanted their names.
Axton lifted Ren off the ground in a single motion, carrying him through the crush of bodies. "Home," he said against Ren's ear, voice rough with pride. "Our home."
Ren laughed, bright and free, and kissed him right there in front of everyone—no more hiding, no more ranks, just two men in love under a brand-new sun.
Upstairs, in the Captain's quarters, the glass wall faced east. Sunlight poured in, warm and golden, turning the room into a prism of light. Axton set Ren down, hands sliding to his waist, thumbs tracing the bare skin above his belt. They stood in silence for a long moment, foreheads touching, breathing each other in.
"I promised you forever," Axton whispered.
Ren answered with a kiss—soft, slow, endless. "And I'm keeping you to it."
___
Before she could hunt down her own object of desire, Mira found her way to her father, Renault Sr. He was standing by a holographic map, already planning the logistical rollout of the life-restoring flora.
"Father," Mira said softly, approaching him.
Renault Sr. turned, a rare, warm smile on his face. "Mira. You're well. You look… free."
"We all do," she countered, her own smile radiant. "And I have to say, the new sky is much better than the one I spent years looking at in the infirmary." She paused, her smile fading slightly. "I know. About your research. About Ren."
Renault Sr.'s face grew solemn. "Ren told you?"
"No. I already knew. I kept the secret for you. To protect my brother, and my memories of you," Mira admitted quietly. "It's over now, though. The science that almost ruined us also saved us. I forgive you, Father. For trying to do what you thought was right."
He pulled her into a tight, relieved hug. "Thank you, Mira. Now, go. Go live that beautiful life you saved."
She hugged him back fiercely, then broke away, her mission clear. She needed to find her warden. She found Tide in his newly assigned, small, spartan room on the ground floor, meticulously putting away his gear.
"Tide," she said, leaning against the door frame, a sultry smirk on her face. "My warden,"
Tide looked up, his movements freezing. He was out of his heavy coat, clad in a simple undershirt that showed the powerful musculature of his arms. His eyes, usually so calm, held a hungry depth.
"My Lady," he acknowledged, his voice a low drawl.
"Drop the title. We aren't being guarded anymore. And I'm not here for a history lesson," Mira said, stepping into the room and kicking the door shut behind her. "You have twenty-four slash seven to make up for."
Tide crossed the small space in two swift strides, trapping her against the door. "An assessment, My Lady?"
"A confirmation," she breathed, wrapping her arms around his neck.
He didn't waste a moment. His mouth crashed down on hers, fierce and passionate, and he swept her up, walking backward to the single bunk and dumping her onto it.
"Missed you," Tide growled against her throat, lifting her legs around his waist.
"Show me," Mira gasped, nails raking down his back.
___
Across the hall, Dorian kicked Reed's door shut behind him. The Commander looked up from his desk, startled, papers scattering.
"You," Dorian snarled, stalking forward, "owe me an apology for every snide word."
Reed opened his mouth—
Dorian kissed it shut.
It was messy, teeth clacking, tongues warring, hands ripping at uniforms. Dorian shoved Reed onto the desk, papers crunching under them.
"Still think I'm beneath you, Commander?" Dorian hissed, yanking Reed's belt free.
Reed's laugh was breathless, wicked. "Fuck my rank. Fuck me."
"Should've just said you wanted me," Reed rasped, smirking through the haze.
Dorian kissed the smirk off his face. "Shut up, sir. I'm not done."
___
Back in the Captain's quarters, the sun climbed higher, flooding the room in liquid gold. Axton and Ren stood at the glass wall, naked, arms wrapped around each other, watching the new world unfold below—children running in the courtyard, soldiers laughing, the sky endless and blue.
Axton turned Ren in his arms, cupping his face. "Look out there," he said, voice thick. "That's ours. Because of you."
Ren's eyes shone. "Because of us."
They kissed—slow, reverent, a vow sealed in sunlight.
"Forever," Axton whispered against his lips.
"Forever," Ren echoed, and the sun rose higher, bathing them in light that felt like the first day of the rest of their lives.
Letting her taste herself on his tongue. "Need you," he rasped, guiding her hand back to his cock. "Need to be inside you."
Mira nodded frantically, pushing him onto his back. She straddled him, sinking down in one slow, needy glide, both of them groaning as he filled her. The stretch burned perfectly; she paused, savoring the fullness, the way his hands gripped her hips like he'd never let go.
Then she moved.
Slow at first, rolling her hips, watching his face contort with pleasure. His hands slid up to cup her breasts, thumbs teasing her nipples, and she leaned forward, kissing him deep and filthy, tongues sliding, moans swallowed. She rode him harder, thighs burning, the bunk creaking beneath them.
"Love you," she whispered against his lips, voice trembling. "Love you so much."
Tide's eyes flashed open, raw and vulnerable. "Mira—" He surged up, flipping them so she was beneath him, legs hooked over his shoulders. He thrust deep, slow, deliberate, each stroke dragging against that spot that made her sob his name. "Love you," he growled, forehead pressed to hers, breath mingling. "Always."
The pace turned messy, urgent, hips snapping, skin slapping, sweat-slicked and desperate. Mira's nails raked down his back, leaving red trails; Tide's mouth found her throat, sucking a bruise that would bloom purple by morning. She clenched around him, the coil tightening, pleasure coiling hot and low.
"Come with me," he panted, hand slipping between them to circle her clit. "Let me feel you."
She shattered, back bowing, a cry tearing from her throat as she came, pulsing around him. Tide followed seconds later, burying himself deep, spilling with a guttural moan, hips stuttering as he filled her.
They collapsed, tangled and breathless, Tide's weight a welcome anchor. He kissed her slowly and sweetly, tasting salt and love. "Twenty-four/seven starts now," he murmured against her lips.
Mira laughed, soft and sated, fingers tracing the sweat on his spine. "Better not stop at seven."
___
Across the hall, Dorian kicked Reed's door shut behind him. The Commander looked up from his desk, startled, papers scattering.
"You," Dorian snarled, stalking forward, "Don't you think you owe me a thank you for tolerating your stuck-up ass?"
"And you owe me an apology for every snide word –"
Dorian's mouth crushed Reed's, no finesse, just teeth and fury and months of pent-up venom. Reed's lips parted on a surprised grunt, but he kissed back just as viciously, tongue shoving against Dorian's like he was trying to win the argument with spit. Papers fluttered to the floor; a coffee mug tipped, dark liquid bleeding across reports. Neither cared.
Dorian fisted Reed's collar, yanking hard enough to rip two buttons free. "Still think I'm beneath you, Commander?" he snarled, voice gravel and smoke, shoving Reed back until the desk edge bit into his hips. He ground forward, thigh wedged between Reed's, feeling the hard line of the man's cock already straining against his fatigues.
Reed's laugh was breathless, wicked, eyes glittering with challenge. "Fuck my rank," he taunted, hands sliding down to grip Dorian's ass, squeezing hard. "Fuck me, soldier. Or are you all bark?"
Dorian's answer was a growl. He spun Reed, slamming him chest-first onto the desk, papers crunching under them. Reed's breath fogged the polished wood; Dorian's hand cracked across his ass, once, sharp, the sound echoing like a gunshot. Reed hissed, hips jerking, but the smirk never left his face.
"Big talk for a man bent over his own desk," Dorian rasped, yanking Reed's belt free with a metallic hiss. The leather snapped against his palm before he tossed it aside. He shoved Reed's pants down in one rough motion, baring the commander's ass—pale, tight, already clenching in anticipation.
Reed pushed back, deliberate, teasing. "You gonna stand there admiring the view, or—"
Dorian spat into his palm, slicked two fingers, and shoved them in without warning.
Reed's taunt cut off on a choked moan, back arching, knuckles white on the desk's edge. Dorian twisted, scissored, ruthless, crooking just right to make Reed's thighs tremble.
"Still cocky?" Dorian leaned over him, teeth grazing the shell of Reed's ear. "Say it again."
Reed's laugh was ragged, broken. "Fuck—you—harder, you bastard."
Dorian added a third finger, stretching him open with brutal efficiency, the wet sounds obscene in the quiet room. Reed's cock leaked against the desk, smearing precome across scattered reports. Dorian pulled his fingers free, lined up, and slammed home in one thrust.
Reed's shout was raw, half-pain, half-relief, body locking tight around Dorian's cock. Dorian didn't give him time to adjust—just gripped his hips and fucked him like a punishment, hips snapping, desk rocking, wood groaning under the assault. Each thrust drove Reed forward, chest sliding through spilled coffee, papers sticking to sweat-slick skin.
"Thought you were untouchable," Dorian snarled, one hand fisting Reed's hair, yanking his head back. "Thought you could sneer at me forever." He punctuated every word with a brutal thrust, angling to nail Reed's prostate until the commander's moans turned desperate, wrecked.
Reed's hand scrabbled for purchase, knocking a lamp to the floor with a crash. "Dorian—fuck—right there, don't you dare stop—"
Dorian's other hand snaked around, wrapping tightly around Reed's cock, stroking rough and fast. "Come on my cock, Commander," he hissed, teeth sinking into Reed's shoulder, marking him. "Show me how much you hate this."
Reed came with a strangled cry, spilling hot over Dorian's fist, body clenching so hard Dorian saw stars.
The sight—Reed undone, shaking, 'his'—pushed Dorian over. He buried himself deep, groaning Reed's name like a curse and a prayer, pulsing inside him until they both collapsed, foreheads pressed to the ruined desk, breath ragged.
For a long moment, only the sound of their breathing filled the room. Then Reed, voice hoarse but still infuriatingly smug, murmured, "Took you long enough to admit you wanted this ass."
Dorian's laugh was low, dangerous. He pulled out slowly, watching Reed shudder, then flipped him onto his back amid the wreckage. "We're not done," he said, leaning down to bite Reed's lower lip. "Next time, I'm tying you to this desk."
Reed's grin was all teeth. "Promise?"
"A man of my words, sweetheart," Dorian whispered.
\---
Back in the Captain's quarters, the sun climbed higher, flooding the room in liquid gold. Axton and Ren stood at the glass wall, naked, arms wrapped around each other, watching the new world unfold below—children running in the courtyard, soldiers laughing, the sky endless and blue.
Axton turned Ren in his arms, cupping his face. "Look out there," he said, voice thick. "That's ours. Because of you."
Ren's eyes shone. "Because of us."
They kissed—slow, reverent, a vow sealed in sunlight.
"Forever," Axton whispered against his lips.
"Forever," Ren echoed, and the sun rose higher, bathing them in light that felt like the first day of the rest of their lives.