Chapter 13: The Reunion

The underground base was unusually quiet that morning, the steady hum of machinery and voices reduced to whispers. Alexis had grown used to the constant sound of the resistance members preparing for battle—plans being laid out, resources gathered, and tension simmering beneath the surface. But today, there was an unsettling calm in the air, a sense that something was about to change.

She stood in one of the smaller rooms, tinkering with a piece of technology they had salvaged during their last mission, when she heard the distant sound of raised voices echoing through the halls. Alexis set the equipment down, her pulse quickening as she moved toward the noise. Her heart was already heavy with the weight of the conflict within the resistance, but this felt different—urgent, personal.

She stepped into the main chamber just in time to see Kayden standing at the center of the room, his body rigid, his face a mask of shock and disbelief. Across from him stood a tall, striking woman with silver hair that cascaded down her back, her sharp features softened only by the gleam of her golden eyes.

Liora.

Alexis had heard the name once before, whispered in the middle of the night when Kayden thought she was asleep. She had known there was someone in his past, someone who had been important to him, but seeing Liora now—standing in front of him, alive and very real—sent a jolt of something sharp and bitter through her chest.

Kayden’s voice broke the tense silence, low and hoarse. “Liora… What are you doing here?”

Liora’s lips curled into a sad smile, her golden eyes flickering with something unreadable. “I could ask you the same thing, Kayden.”

Alexis stood frozen near the doorway, her mind racing. She had never seen Kayden like this—so unguarded, so vulnerable. His usual calm demeanor had cracked, and beneath it, she could see the rawness of old wounds, reopened in an instant.

Liora stepped forward, her gaze softening as it lingered on Kayden. “I’ve been looking for you for years,” she said, her voice quiet but filled with emotion. “I thought you were dead. We all did.”

Kayden shook his head, his expression still one of disbelief. “I thought you were gone too. After everything that happened on Aeloria, I… I didn’t think anyone had survived.”

Liora’s eyes glistened, and for a brief moment, Alexis saw the depth of the bond they had once shared, the unspoken history between them. It was palpable, like a force that had existed long before Alexis had come into the picture.

“I survived,” Liora said softly, her voice filled with both sorrow and strength. “And I’ve been searching for you ever since. I never gave up.”

The room fell into a heavy silence, and Alexis felt a knot tighten in her chest. She should have left, should have given them space, but her feet refused to move. The sight of Kayden standing there, torn between his past and the present, was like watching a storm gather strength.

Finally, Liora’s gaze shifted, landing on Alexis. Her golden eyes narrowed slightly, and Alexis felt the weight of the scrutiny. “And who is this?”

Kayden’s posture stiffened, and he took a step toward Alexis, his voice firm. “This is Alexis. She’s been helping me.”

Liora’s lips twitched into something resembling a smile, though there was a sharpness to it that made Alexis’s stomach churn. “Helping you? Is that what we’re calling it now?”

Alexis’s heart skipped a beat, the bitterness in Liora’s tone stinging more than she expected. She had known this moment would come—the moment when she would have to confront the reality of Kayden’s past. But standing here, in front of the woman who had once been everything to him, felt like a punch to the gut.

Kayden turned to Liora, his voice tense. “Liora, this isn’t the time—”

“No, Kayden,” Liora interrupted, her voice rising. “This is the time. You disappeared. You left me, and now, I find you here with her?”

The room seemed to shrink around them, the air thick with tension as the words hung between them like a blade. Alexis’s heart pounded in her chest, her hands clenched at her sides. She had no claim on Kayden—no right to feel the surge of jealousy or the ache of betrayal—but it hit her all the same.

“Liora,” Kayden said, his voice low and filled with frustration, “I didn’t leave you. I thought you were gone. I thought everyone was gone.”

“And yet, you moved on,” Liora said coldly, her eyes flickering toward Alexis again. “While I spent years searching for you, you’ve found someone new.”

Alexis’s throat tightened, the bitterness in Liora’s words cutting deep. She knew she had no place in this conversation—this was about Kayden’s past, about the life he had before they met—but the weight of Liora’s presence was suffocating.

Kayden’s voice softened, but there was an edge to it now. “It’s not like that.”

“Isn’t it?” Liora challenged, her gaze sharp. “Because it sure looks like you’ve forgotten everything we fought for. Everything we were.”

Alexis’s heart pounded as she stood frozen in place, feeling like an intruder in a moment that wasn’t hers to witness. The connection between Kayden and Liora was undeniable, and it was clear that their history was as deep as it was painful. Alexis had always known Kayden carried scars from his past, but seeing them laid bare like this, with Liora standing in front of him, made her feel like she was the one being torn apart.

Kayden ran a hand through his hair, his voice thick with frustration and regret. “I never forgot, Liora. But you have to understand—everything changed after Aeloria. I’ve spent years running, hiding, trying to survive.”

“And you survived with her,” Liora said, her voice trembling with both anger and sadness.

Alexis opened her mouth to speak, to explain, but the words wouldn’t come. What could she possibly say? That she didn’t mean to come between them? That whatever had grown between her and Kayden wasn’t planned? It didn’t matter. The hurt in Liora’s eyes told her all she needed to know.

“Liora,” Kayden began, but his voice faltered, the weight of their shared past pressing down on him.

“I don’t blame you for surviving,” Liora said, her voice softening, though her eyes remained hard. “But I need to know—was I just a memory to you? A part of the life you left behind?”

Kayden’s breath hitched, and Alexis felt her heart ache for him. He was trapped between two worlds, two lives—one with a woman who had been his past, his home, and one with her, the woman who had stood beside him in the fight for their future.

He looked at Liora, his voice barely above a whisper. “You were never just a memory.”

The words hung in the air, and Alexis felt something inside her break. She had known Kayden had a past, had loved someone before her. But hearing it, seeing it, made it all the more real. More painful.

Liora’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears, but she held her head high, her voice steady. “Then why didn’t you come back for me?”

Kayden’s face was a mask of regret, his voice trembling as he answered. “I thought you were gone. I didn’t think there was anything left to come back to.”

The silence that followed was deafening, and Alexis felt like she was drowning in it. Liora had been a part of Kayden’s life before everything had changed—before the war, before the destruction of his world. And now, she had come back, bringing with her all the emotions, all the memories, that Kayden had tried to leave behind.

But what did that mean for Alexis? For them?

Before anyone could say another word, Mara stepped into the room, her voice cutting through the tension like a blade. “We have a situation. Our scouts spotted movement near the base. We need to prepare.”

Kayden and Liora turned toward her, the tension between them momentarily broken by the urgency of Mara’s words. Alexis exhaled, her heart still racing, her mind swirling with the aftermath of the confrontation.

The enemy was closing in, and they didn’t have time for old wounds or unresolved emotions.

But as Kayden glanced at Alexis, his expression conflicted and filled with unspoken apologies, she knew that the rift between them—the one Liora had reignited—was far from over.

And as much as they needed to focus on the battle ahead, Alexis couldn’t help but wonder if their bond had just been shattered beyond repair.