Lightning Destroyer: (Lighting Seeker Book 3)

Kill for Sanity

Pale skin glistened in the low light, more ghostly than Dash had ever seen. The steady heartbeat wouldn't stay steady for long if Sky wasn't moved to a different location, but Dash had no idea where Sky would be safe with a mind that had been tampered with. There was no way to know if Sky would run back to Kebar, try to kill them all, or even stay quietly asleep forever. 

Dash shivered at the thought, hating the idea that he couldn't trust Sky. His own flesh and blood. 

Midnight had all but said Sky couldn't join them as they fought to retrieve Vale. But to leave Sky behind felt like an impossible choice. He didn't know Midnight or her crew. And he couldn't leave him in the Dark Zone where his mechanical heart would slowly rust until it stopped beating. 

"I have learned to fix so many things..." Dash murmured, staring down at Sky, golden lashes stark against the deep bruises under his closed lids. "But I can't fix what I can't see... Not this..." 

Dash gripped Sky's hand both to offer comfort and to steady himself from where he sat in the medical hut on a small stool. "I can't fix your mind, Sky. My father could have... But—" Dash swallowed, feeling the sudden loss of his parents all over again. He felt alone with too many things that needed to be fixed and not enough knowledge or tools to make it happen.

"I can't lose you too, Sky."

Clearing his throat, Dash pulled his hand away, trying to collect his emotions into a box so he could organize them later. He didn't have time to break down now. Not with so much he needed to do. "I'm going to get her back. I know you would want that. And while I do that... you need to get better. Doctor's orders." 

Someone cleared their throat from the doorway. Dash stood, startled by the sudden noise in the silent room, sending the small stool crashing on its side.

"Dashell," Midnight said, watching him from behind her large glasses, eyes unreadable. 

"Dash," he corrected. No one called him Dashell. It was a family name he refused to acknowledge. 

"Time to go," Midnight said.

"Sky—"

"Will be taken care of," Midnight said, her voice growing soft for a moment. "We have a place for him. A small room that uses recycled air. It will keep his... enhancements from rusting. I will have one of my doctors monitor him. He will be kept sedated until we know the extent of the damage Kebar did."

Dash ran his fingers through his wild hair, tugging it through the knotted ends. "He seemed fine... Why... why didn't we see it earlier?"

Midnight walked over to the cot, looking down at Sky with a sad expression. "Triggered. You mentioned that he started to fall apart when he heard my voice on the ship. If Kebar searched his memories and found me, I have reason to believe that every memory that showcased a potential for rebellion has been hacked."

"Hacked?" Dash repeated slowly. 

"A form of adjusting someone's memories where they attach negative emotions to certain impulses. If he ever stood up to Kebar, those memories will have been tampered to showcase guilt and pain instead of pride and justice." 

A chill ran down Dash's spine. What did Kebar touch? What did he change? Will Sky be able to organize what is real from what was planted? 

"We need to go. The longer Kebar has the Lightning Bringer, the longer he has to play with her mind," Midnight said, an edge to her normally calm voice. 

Dash swallowed, pushing down the bile that threatened to unleash itself all over the medical hut. Giving his cousin's arm a farewell squeeze, he followed Midnight out of the hut, promising to save Vale. Promising to save Sky. Promising to fix everything.