Donna was almost an ocean of shadows at night. Only when the two moons climbed the sky at the same time did the darkness become bearable. We walked side by side through the damp pasture, lit by AX’s soft glow. Tariel, now wearing the boots he had brought earlier, stepped carefully, as if the ground might crumble beneath her newly regenerated feet.

  I watched her long hair dancing in the cold wind.

  “Shall we go back? It’s getting too cold,” I suggested.

  She didn’t answer right away. She was caught by the sky, by the stars.

  “I’m afraid to go back,” she confessed. “It still feels… like I’m dead.”

  I gently squeezed her hand.

  “That’s what Julis talked about. The feeling of death joins fear; it turns into anxiety. And anxiety makes you feel alone, vulnerable, as if your body believes it’s in danger.”

  She kept staring at the firmament as she spoke:

  “Everything I understand about life, I learned by observing humans from afar. I don’t know who I would be if I had grown up with my own people. Those who were captured… they didn’t last long. They didn’t speak my language. When I fell ill, I already knew what would happen.”

  That painful simplicity pierced me. I pulled her to me and wrapped my arms around her. She pressed herself against my chest like someone finding shelter for the first time.

  “But then you appeared,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “And you treated me in a way I had never seen a human treat anyone. It feels like this single day with you lasted longer than my entire life. It was the only day I ever felt happy.”

  She rested her head on my shoulder.

  “I don’t know what love is. It’s the first time someone has told me they love me… but this feeling I have when I’m with you… it makes me feel safe. Cherished. And I want to give that back. I want you to feel good when you’re with me.”

  Hearing that was like breathing after being submerged for a long time. Knowing that what I felt found an echo in her… there was nothing more precious.

  “Then let’s discover together what love is,” I replied. “And experience the strength of the Sekvens’ love.”

  She hugged me tighter.

  “Do you also think hugging is good? It feels so nice to have someone like this…”

  “Before you, I hugged a pillow,” I confessed. “Now that I feel your warm body, I don’t want to let go.”

  She laughed softly.

  “But a pillow is good too.”

  My laughter mixed with hers as I pulled back slightly, just enough to look into her eyes. I moved closer slowly and touched my lips to hers. Warm. Moist. Innocent and, at the same time, intense.

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  My heart raced.

  “What was that?” she asked, touching her own lips.

  “A kiss. Haven’t you ever seen humans do that?”

  “No. But it’s… good.” Her eyes searched mine. “May I… again?”

  I kissed her again. And again. Until she smiled like someone discovering a secret capable of lighting up the whole world.

  Hand in hand, we walked back to the ship, where Jazzia was waiting for us with dinner.

  Seeing Tariel eat eagerly, with that almost childlike sparkle in her eyes, reminded me of how much she had suffered. How much she had been deprived of.

  “I think I’ve discovered my new purpose,” I said, offering her a piece of pineapple.

  “What is it?” she asked, tasting the fruit with curiosity.

  “To spoil you.”

  Jazzia laughed.

  “A different way of saying you love her.”

  “I want to give her everything,” I continued. “Let the universe be hers.”

  “That she already has,” Jazzia replied. “She belongs to the Sekvens.”

  “But my love, my affection, and my time… those I want to be hers too. And I need to give them priority, because my lifespan is much shorter than hers.”

  Tariel’s eyes widened.

  “What?” Jazzia found it strange.

  AX approached.

  “A human lives about a hundred years. Tariel can exceed a thousand. But Willian, you should already know what is happening.”

  “I haven’t received any explanation,” I retorted.

  “Sekvens don’t explain the obvious,” said Jazzia. “Tariel, don’t worry. Julis told you: you don’t have permission to die. Your DNA will be adjusted. You will live… forever.”

  Tariel looked at me, frightened.

  “But what about Willian?”

  Jazzia smiled, as if revealing something inevitable.

  “It was only possible for you to exist within the Known Universe because Willian already belonged to us. He is your partner. And he will live forever by your side.”

  Tariel relaxed — though without fully understanding.

  I explained calmly:

  “We won’t age, we won’t fall ill, we won’t die. We’ll be almost immortal. But this transformation takes years… many years.”

  She took a deep breath.

  “Then… I’ll think about that later. For now, what matters is now. I already have more than I ever imagined I would have one day.”

  AX laughed.

  “Melissa, Sacha, and Kane are laughing with you. They want to talk to you later.”

  “Who are they?” she asked, biting into a yellow uti.

  “The first Sekvens trio born on Antéia,” I explained. “Five millennia of living history. And they’re the ones who take care of us humans. They will love you as they love each one of us.”

  Tariel grew tense.

  “I don’t know what to do…”

  “Just smile at them,” I replied. “They return more love than any being you’ve ever seen.”

  We finished dinner. My whole body burned with the desire to bathe with her… but I didn’t want to force anything.

  “Tariel, do you want to take a bath? You can go before me, or…”

  “Alone?” she interrupted me, frowning. “But I… I thought I was yours. I don’t want to be alone.”

  I hugged her immediately.

  “I really want to bathe with you. I just thought maybe you’d want some time to yourself.”

  “No, you silly,” she murmured, pouting. “I was alone for far too long. I like being with you.”

  After that, I never doubted her feelings again — nor my own.

  In the bathroom, I undressed and entered the bathtub first. The hot water rose up to my chest. Tariel came in right after, undressing with the natural ease of someone who had never known shame. She lay on her side, fitting herself against me, her head resting on my shoulder.

  Her naked body pressed against mine… it was almost too much.

  But she was still being flooded by new sensations, too much information, too many emotions. I didn’t want to add sex to that whirlwind. I wanted every step to be safe for her.

  I simply held her, feeling her gentle breathing against my collarbone.

  And for the first time in a long while, I felt that the entire universe fit right there — in that reborn body, in that pure trust… in that love being born like fire and light at the same time, illuminating every small instant, every discovery still waiting for us. Everything seemed possible; every gesture, every touch, every shared sigh carried the weight of who we were and the promise of what we would become together.