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years with Angie through training and various team assignments. He would have to know about her as well.
    "Only last night," Gwynn said. "Odd thing is, I can't remember a single dream since I got here."
    Jason cast a sideways glance at Fuyuko. It asked, Do you know why that's important?
    She gave a slight nod, hoping the teasing Gwynn had endured would leave him flustered and not notice.
    Gwynn dropped his fork to his plate, finally accepting he wouldn't be eating anything more.
    "I'm going to head back to my room and try to rest before our scheduled debriefing."
    "C'mon, Gwynn, we were just playing around." Jason seemed to be making an effort to lighten his voice. "You don't need to bolt. Besides, even if you really did have a thing for Angie, it's not shocking. I think most guys in Suture have at one point or another."
    "Really?" Fuyuko asked. "Including you?"
    Jason began to stammer.
    "I'm out of here before you two have a full on domestic." Gwynn laughed. "See you later."
    Fuyuko stopped chastising Jason and watched Gwynn leave.
    "Geez," Jason said. "The way you're watching him go, maybe I'm the one who should be jealous."
    "It's not like that, and you know it." She punched him lightly on the arm. "Sometimes, seeing him here, especially when he seems lost like he was in Brantfield…it feels odd, like what happened was just a day or two ago. It also seems like a different life." Her voice shrank. "A different me."
    Jason let his hand rest on her wrist.
    "You'll be fine. You've come a long way. I'm sure you'll be in ready condition within another month, tops." When he saw her expression he quickly added, "Probably sooner."
    She pushed the tray aside, no longer hungry, folded her arms, and rested her head on them.
    "You'll be sent out on another mission before I'm ready. Maybe even a long term mission. The last few were so hard. I don't know how many more times I can bear watching you go. Especially if it's more than a few days."
    His eyes hardened. He went still for a moment, the way he always did when he weighed his words. He didn't need to answer, they both knew what she said was true. The world had changed. It seemed the pressure of the world killing tear had caused numerous cracks in the Veil throughout the world. Every division of Suture was running on high alert. Ansuz had only done shorter missions while they trained Gwynn and learned to mesh with Njord as the new commanding officer.
    "We have a new mission briefing after breakfast," he said, averting his eyes.
    Fuyuko sat upright—a little too fast, her head spinning. "You just got back. I thought Gwynn said you were having your debriefing this morning."
    He shook his head. "We were, initially. Njord messaged me this morning, told me to prepare for the team's reaction. Seems there's something big going on that won't wait."
    Her heart fell into her stomach. From the start, they knew there was never a guarantee of coming back from any mission. But when they went together, there was some security they could watch each other's backs. In bad situations, they synced together. It was why everyone knew they had something before they could admit it to themselves. Every time he left alone, Fuyuko wad filled with dread.
    "Refuse to go." The words were barely a whisper.
    Jason's eyes widened. This time, his lack of movement was entirely from shock. Yes, she had changed. She guessed he saw that now. Before, the Fuyuko she used to be, would've never suggested such defiance. Perhaps that was the part of her soul Elaios had shattered. Maybe because she hadn't been able to feel the Veil, somehow blindly following orders just didn't seem important anymore. Finding someone to love, a life with routine and joy, seemed the only goal worth pursuing. Funny, she'd snapped at Gwynn just a few weeks ago for suggesting the same thing.
    "I can't do that."
    "You sound like my brother." She even managed to burn herself with the venom in her words.
    Jason sighed—his shoulders trembling like