Daughter of the Red Dawn (The Lost Kingdom of Fallada) by Alicia Michaels

should be preparing for the battle fulfilling the prophecy.”
    Selena sighed, burying her face in her hands. She had left Titus in the brig after their conversation and was now in the ship’s galley with Wil and Jake, who had offered her a warm drink. Who knew that flying through space would prove to be so cold? Selena sipped the hot tea they’d given her gratefully, warming her hands on the tin mug.
    “Maybe you guys didn’t hear me the first time. I am not going to get involved in some crazy war I don’t have any stake in. After my grandmother gets well, I want to help Titus and then go home.”
    “Damu is your home,” Wil insisted. Jake sat beside him, staring at her silently. “Whether you like it or not, that is where you belong.”
    “I’m not having this argument right now and I’m pretty sure I don’t need anybody’s permission. If this Queen Adrah won’t help me then I’ll find my father and he’ll help me.”
    “King Eldalwen will agree with me, I think,” Wil scoffed. “Your rightful place is in Damu, preparing for the Red Dawn.”
    “We’ll see,” Selena said before draining the last of her tea. “I just thought I’d give you the courtesy of telling you my plans. I was hoping you’d help, but I am going to find someone to do this with me .”
    “Suit yourself ,” Wil said. The scrape of his chair echoed through the galley. “I am done trying to talk sense into you, you silly young creature. I will be glad to leave you to Adrah; she can talk sense into anyone.”
    With that he was gone, the stomp of his boots heavy on the wooden stairs as he descended to the deck once more. Jake continued to watch he r, his hands clutched around another one of his notebooks. His fingers were stained with ink .
    “If you ever get the pleasure of meeting your father, you’ll learn that you are much like him. Once he latches on to an idea, he does not let it go either. I take it that you are not going to change your mind about rescuing the boy’s family.”
    Selena shook her head. “Not a chance.”
    Jake smiled. “Good. We should be coming upon the portal soon. You should come up on deck, you will want to see it.”
    Selena watched the Jake’s retreating form with raised eyebrows. It was nice to know that she had the younger brother in her corner. She followed behind him, finding both Zoe and Titus on deck. Behind them, the black night of space loomed, filled with twinkling stars. It was hard to remember that it was nearly dawn when it was so dark, yet Jake had told her it was almost time to enter Fallada, which meant it had to be dawn. The portal within the wall didn’t work until the sun had risen on the other side of it.
    She joined Zoe and Titus at the ship’s railing, trying not to notice the way the whipping wind blew his dark hair around his face. His jaw was tense and his mouth tight, but he’d never been more gorgeous, surrounded by the beauty of space. One of the crew had given him clothes; a white button-up shirt and brown sued e pants that showcased his long legs. A tan vest hung open across his broad torso.
    “The brothers let me out of the brig if I promised to behave myself,” Titus said with a nervous laugh. “Your friend has been given a weapon with a poisoned dart just in case.”
    Zoe lifted the silver pistol and smiled. “How badass is this?”
    Selena rolled her eyes at her friend and leaned against the railing between them.
    “Jake says it’s almost time to cross over.”
    Titus nodded. “You see that constellation there?”
    “You mean the Big Dipper?”
    Titus frowned. “In my world we call it Dynathine. That is where we’re headed. Once we’ve passed through the brightest star of tha t star formation … ” Titus smiled, “ … well, let’s just say you’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”
    He fell silent, propping himself up on his elbows as he stared into the great beyond. Selena gave Zoe a pointed stare for a few seconds before her friend got the