I didn’t argue. I just picked up Maggie and got a faceful of licks for my trouble.
As I looked around, surrounded by so many familiar faces, I struggled to remember the man I’d been before the Event.
Magnus set up, chasing Dean and the dogs, and everything felt right.
“We did it,” Mary said in my ear as she wrapped her arms around me from behind.
I spun around and kissed her again, this time not caring about first-kiss protocol. I heard James yell, “Get a room.”
He had the right idea, but we had the reception to get through first.
The night wore on, and soon there were only a handful of us left outside our house. Isabelle and James had gone to our guest room, staying with us while they visited from Terran Five.
Clare, Nick, and Slate all sat down at the outdoor fire pit, where embers were glowing hotly in the night air. So much had changed, but so much about us had stayed the same.
“I need to get Suma to bed soon.” Sarlun wore what must have passed for formal wear back home and was as colorful as a flowerbed. He wore it with dignity and grace befitting a man of his stature.
“Thanks for coming. I’m looking forward to spending our honeymoon in your hot springs,” I said, amazed that such a spellbinding place existed. Sarlun had offered his second home there to us, and when he showed us images of the area, we couldn’t say no.
“Dean.” His translator said my name after he spoke. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.” His eyes narrowed, and his extended nose twitched. He was nervous about something.
I took a pull from my beer bottle. “No better time than the present.”
“The Theos may be back.”
I spit out the beer I’d sipped and wiped my mouth with my shirt sleeve. “How do you know?”
“One of the Gatekeepers found something,” his speaker translated.
“What is it?”
“I cannot tell you. Only Gatekeepers may know.”
My stomach clenched, and I looked around at what I had: a wonderful small home on a large piece of land on New Spero, with a newly-wed wife, and a dog that followed me around everywhere I went. That was the dream. It had always been mine.
“We’ll do it,” a voice from beyond the fire pit’s light said. Mary walked over, her dress traded for something more functional. She had a beer in her hand too, and she clinked the near-empty one I was holding.
“We will? He hasn’t asked us anything.” I wasn’t sure we should be rushing into this, but our path had already been forged.
“I will ask you. Dean and Mary, will you join our ranks as Gatekeepers? My daughter was right about you. You are special.” He looked me in the eyes without breaking the gaze.
My hand found Mary’s, and I gave it a squeeze.
“We’re in.”
THE ANCIENTS
(The Survivors Book Four)
“The Theos await you. Only then will we stop the Unwinding.”
The threat of invaders is gone, and Earth has been bartered away as a price for peace.
Yet, the human world of New Spero is thriving and full of hope.
Joining the rank of the Gatekeepers, Dean and Mary set off to explore worlds connected by the mysterious portals.
When they stumble upon a strange symbol, they are led to an ancient object, one that sets them on an unstoppable path.
The journey takes them through multiple worlds, before they can find what they’re searching for. Long ago, the ancient race called the Theos vanished without a trace, and have been next to forgotten for centuries. Do they still exist?
Dean intends to find out, but when he’s faced with the truth, he fears everything he loves will be lost.
Books by Nathan Hystad
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The Ancients is now available. Get the exciting continuation of the Survivors series.
Nathan Hystad is an author from Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada. When he isn’t writing novels, he’s running a small publishing company, Woodbridge Press.
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