Chapter 80

Ariadne looks at the wall, a soft, neutral blue with off-white old trim. It's pretty, too pretty for a hospital room.

The Omega stares at it in confusion, a hand shooting to her belly. There's no swell there, and she panics, looking down, pulling up her dinosaur t-shirt.

Her stomach is flat and taut, skin clinging to her hip bones. There's no scar or marks, nothing to indicate that she'd ever been pregnant. How long has she been out? Where is her baby?

"Ariadne, get up!" an oddly familiar voice calls from down the hall. "It's time for breakfast."

The Omega stumbles out of bed, catching herself in a mirror. Simultaneously, Ariadne's confusion is doubled and cleared.

Forgetting to breathe, she studies her own face.

She's young again. Instead of tired panda eyes staring back at her in the glass, there are these vivid, bright blue sapphires, full of mischief and humor. Her body feels different, too, with no injuries, no pain, or aches in any of her worn-down joints.

What's going on?

Ariad