Forging Ash of the Beloved
Book One: Air and Ash and All We Lost
By Jesse Annette
Posted: Apr 9th, 2026
Approx. Length: 2.6k words
Content Note: 3x Hot
Austra- Useful
Her salute came back after a flawless scouting mission. Daria stood at the ridge giving orders, perfectly poised, perfectly composed, fire made mortal. Austra walked past her on a rush of adrenaline and pride and sheer affection and, before she could stop herself, did it. Half-bow. Snap of both hands. Finger guns. One quick wink. “Nice work out there, Commander.”
Daria froze. Austra’s grin widened, until she caught what flashed in Daria’s eyes. Warmth. Affection. And something softer, deeper…something dangerous. Daria cleared her throat like it was a weapon and turned away, shoulders squaring back into discipline, but Austra had already seen it. And Austra’s chest burned.
Because Daria liked it. A lot. And Austra couldn’t stop thinking, bright and unhinged with satisfaction: Who knew finger guns would be so useful.
Daria- Nightmares
Daria knew she was slipping. She let Austra sit close during meals. Let her nap against her thigh during long watch rotations, a warm weight that made Daria feel strangely… comforted. Let her kiss her in the shadows of the lava vents like it was normal. Like it wasn’t treason.
And gods help her, Daria began reaching for Austra, too. Sometimes without thinking. A hand at the small of her back. Fingers brushing her wrist as they passed. The kind of touches that weren’t orders. She told herself it was strategic unity. Squad cohesion. Leverage. It was none of those things.
But she couldn’t admit it. Not to Austra. Not to herself. Not when every heartache Daria had ever carried came from expecting too much, wanting too much, and being punished for it.
Late one night, the dream came the way it always did. Smoke. Stone. Screaming. Daria stood in the ash-lit cavern again, the one she hadn’t let herself revisit in years. The ceiling shook. Dust rained down. Someone’s ragged breathing echoed beside her, someone she had sworn to protect.
“Kira?” Daria’s voice cracked in the dream. She hated that it cracked. The girl beside her, dark hair, bright eyes, clutched her injured leg. Blood darkened the stone beneath her palm.
“Commander…” The title sounded wrong on that voice.
“Don’t move,” Daria said. “I’ve got you. I can—”
Another explosion. Zephyrian voices in the distance. Flames licking along the walls like hungry animals. Daria grabbed Kira’s arm. “We need to go. Now.”
Kira’s grip tightened weakly. Her breath caught. Her gaze unfocused.
“Daria…?” Small. Scared. Trusting.
Daria dragged her up anyway. She had to. She wouldn’t fail. She couldn’t…but in the dream, like in life, her grip slipped. Kira fell. Not far. Not dramatically. Just enough.
Enough for the soldiers to find her first. Daria saw the flash of flame. Felt her own scream rebound off the cavern walls. And Kira, wide-eyed, terrified, reached for her one last time. Then the fire took her.
Daria jolted awake with a gasp that tore her lungs raw. Her body snapped upright, sweat cold on her skin, heart slamming against her ribs hard enough to hurt. The ceiling was too close. Too dark. Too much like the one where she’d failed…a hand touched her shoulder.
Not a dying girl’s. Austra’s.
“Daria?” Soft. Concerned. Warm.
Daria flinched, not away this time, but toward her. Desperate for something solid. Something living. Something now. Austra slid her arms around her carefully, slowly, grounding her with touch instead of questions.
“Hey,” Austra whispered, brushing hair off Daria’s forehead. “You’re okay. You’re here.”
Daria’s hands trembled. “She was right there.”
Austra went still. “Who?”
Daria swallowed, hating the thickness in her throat. “Kira. One of my squadmates. Years ago.” Her voice rasped. “She trusted me to get her out and I…”
Her breath caught…jagged and humiliating. “I misread the terrain,” Daria forced out. “I thought we had time. I thought…”
Her voice broke. She dragged it back into shape like she always did. “It was my failure. My mistake.”
Austra’s fingers tightened gently on her shoulder. “You were young.”
“I was responsible.” Daria’s jaw clenched. “And I got her killed.”
Austra didn’t argue. Didn’t offer forgiveness Daria didn’t believe she deserved. She just leaned her forehead to Daria’s, steady and sure. “Do you know what I see?” Austra whispered. “A commander who carries every life she touches like it matters. A leader who still wakes up shaking because she cares so fiercely it hurts.”
Daria closed her eyes. Austra cupped her cheek. “You didn’t fail because you were weak. You failed because you were mortal.”
The word hit Daria harder than any blow. Mortal. Allowed to make mistakes. Allowed to grieve. Allowed to survive them. She didn’t realize she was shaking until Austra pulled her fully in, holding her against her chest like she belonged there.
“You don’t have to hold it alone,” Austra murmured.
Daria hated how much she wanted that to be true. Hated it…then leaned into her anyway. When she spoke again, her voice was barely a breath. “Stay.”
Austra tightened her arms. “Always.”
And this time, Daria slept without dreaming.
Austra- Beloved
The softness started slipping into everything.
One day the squad trudged back from a scouting run, dusted in ash and sweat. Daria walked ahead, all crisp efficiency and sharp eyes, until Varn tripped on loose stone and muttered something obscene. Everyone laughed. Everyone looked at Varn. Except Daria.
In that flicker of distraction, Daria reached back and brushed her fingertips along Austra’s wrist. Barely there. A silent I’m here. It was nothing. It was everything. Austra’s breath caught. Her heart kicked hard against her ribs. Daria’s fingers lingered only a heartbeat before she pulled away, jaw tightening back into her commander mask. She didn’t look back, she didn’t have to. Austra could feel the softness Daria tried to swallow.
Another time they were reviewing maps in the common space, lanterns low, steam rising from mugs of bitter cavern tea. Mika and Rill argued over whether a tunnel bend was safe to traverse during tremor season. Daria leaned over Austra’s shoulder and pointed to a contour line.
“Here,” she murmured.
Her breath brushed Austra’s neck, warm and unintentional, and it shattered Austra’s focus so completely she straightened too fast, elbow knocking Daria’s. Daria didn’t move away. She stayed close. Close enough that Austra felt the quiet hum of her body, the heat that always clung to her like an aura. When Rill made a sarcastic remark about “Commander Cross breathing down everyone’s necks,” Daria stepped back instantly, face sharp again. Austra had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling.
Later, in Daria’s quarters, Daria lay half-asleep on her bed with one arm flung over her eyes, sprawled in a way she’d never allow in public. Austra paused at the foot of the bed, warmth spreading through her chest at the sight.
“You’re staring,” Daria mumbled.
“You’re adorable,” Austra whispered back.
Daria groaned. “No. I’m lethal. Stop saying things like that.”
Austra crawled onto the bed and straddled her hips with lazy confidence. “Lethal can be adorable.”
“That’s not how words work.”
“That’s exactly how words work.”
Daria’s hand shot up and grabbed the back of Austra’s neck, dragging her down into a kiss that tasted like heat and hunger and surrender. Austra melted instantly, because with Daria, soft and fierce were the same thing.
They kissed until breath stopped mattering. Until Daria rolled them and pinned Austra’s wrists above her head. Until their legs tangled and the world blurred. It was slow…sensual…achingly tender.
And Austra had never felt more wanted. More chosen. With Daria settled on top of her, one hand exploring in between her thighs while the other held her wrists above her head, their moans mixing in the haze surrounding them, Austra felt her heart swelling too full to contain. She let herself drown in her as Daria straddled her face, fire dancing along her arms as she arched back. Austra basked in the glow of Daria’s curves above her and memorized the sound of her moans.
Once they collapsed into a molten puddle of intertwined limbs, time slowed to the pace of their syncing heart beats. Austra lay sprawled beneath her, hair a mess, skin warm, chest too full. “Daria?” she whispered.
“Mmm?”
“Can I… tell you something?”
Daria’s hand tightened lightly at her hip. Permission. Austra swallowed. She could feel it in her bones, this was dangerous. But she couldn’t stop it.
“I don’t… let people see me,” she admitted, voice unsteady. “Not really. I’ve spent my whole life pretending to be sharper than I felt. Hiding anything that could be used against me.”
She hesitated, choosing her words with the precision of a blade. “But with you…” Her throat tightened. “With you, I don’t want to hide.”
A beat of silence. Terrifying.
Daria’s fingers brushed Austra’s cheek. “Austra.”
Her breath hitched.
“I don’t need all your truths yet,” Daria murmured. “I just need the ones you want to give me.”
The gentleness nearly undid her. So Austra gave her a truth, real, bright, vulnerable, and still safely curated. “You’re the first person I’ve ever wanted to come home to,” she whispered.
Daria inhaled sharply. She didn’t pull away. She didn’t shut down. She curled closer, forehead to Austra’s, like she couldn’t help it. “Stay,” Daria breathed.
Austra smiled softly and kissed her mouth, slow, beloved. “Always.”
And for a few stolen days, Austra truly believed that promise could last. Even while some part of her kept the locked door inside her chest firmly shut. Even while the sending stone waited.
Daria- Losses
Daria didn’t mean to tell her. They were sitting on the floor of her quarters, backs against the stone wall, the room lit only by the low glow of the lava channel beyond the far vent. Austra leaned comfortably against her side, legs stretched out, absentmindedly tracing slow circles on Daria’s wrist with her thumb. It was quiet. Too quiet. The kind of quiet that invited things to surface.
“You’ve been different,” Austra said gently.
Daria huffed. “I’m always like this.”
“No,” Austra murmured. “This is heavier.”
Daria stiffened. Gods, she hated that Austra could do that, name things without accusation. She stared at the far wall, jaw tight. “There was a different person on the squad before you,” she said suddenly.
Austra went still. Daria swallowed. The words tasted like old ash. “Before you and the other initiates were brought in. Before Crosswinds.”
Austra turned slightly, careful not to break the moment. “What happened?”
Daria closed her eyes. “My mother ordered an assassination attempt on the Queen,” she said flatly. “Not a strike. Not a warning. A kill.”
Austra’s breath caught, but she didn’t interrupt.
“We were told it was a necessary escalation,” Daria continued. “That the risk was acceptable. That failure would be… corrected later.” Her mouth twisted. “I led the team.”
Her hands clenched in her lap. “It went wrong.”
Daria didn’t describe the fire. Or the screams. Or the moment she realized extraction wasn’t coming. She didn’t need to. “I got everyone out except for him.”
Silence stretched. Austra’s thumb stilled against her wrist.
“They all followed my orders,” Daria said. “They trusted my judgment. And I walked them into it.”
Austra shifted closer, her shoulder pressing firmly into Daria’s side. “Daria…”
“I don’t know if I can do it again,” Daria cut in, voice low and shaking now. “I don’t know if I can lead another mission like that. Not after…” She broke off, breath hitching. Her voice dropped to almost nothing. “Not now. Not with you.”
Austra’s chest tightened.
“If I lost you like that…” Daria swallowed hard. “I wouldn’t survive it.”
The admission sat between them, raw, terrifying, unguarded. Austra didn’t tell her she wouldn’t lose her. Didn’t promise safety. Didn’t deny the danger. She turned fully then, cupped Daria’s face with both hands, thumbs warm against her cheekbones.
“I’m right here, now. We are safe, now. Let’s stay here. You don’t have to be unbreakable,” Austra said softly. “You don’t have to carry their deaths alone. And you don’t have to decide tonight what kind of commander you’ll be tomorrow.”
Daria’s breath trembled. “You shouldn’t make this easier for me.”
Austra smiled faintly. “I know.”
She leaned in and kissed Daria, slow and steady. A kiss that said I see you without asking for anything back. When she pulled away, she rested her forehead against Daria’s. “I’m here,” she whispered. “That’s all I can give you now.”
Daria’s hands rose, hesitant, then gripped Austra’s shoulder like it was the only thing anchoring her. “That’s enough,” she said hoarsely. “That’s more than enough.”
And for a long time, they stayed like that, no plans, no strategies, just shared breath and borrowed steadiness.
Austra- Choices
Austra didn’t sleep much after Daria shared her loss. She lay awake in Daria’s bed, listening to the slow, even rhythm of her breathing, Daria’s arm heavy and warm across her waist. The confession replayed over and over in her mind, each pass tightening something painful beneath her ribs.
Commander Lavista was the cause of Daria’s lost squadmates.
The words felt unreal. Sharp. Treacherous. Austra knew her mother believed in decisive ends, in pruning threats before they could grow. She had been raised on those lessons. Honed by them. But now those doctrines had real consequences.
One squadmate. Trusted. Loyal. Dead. And Daria…strong, controlled, relentless Daria…still carried him like open wounds. Austra stared at the ceiling, the basalt patterns flickering with lava-light she had memorized without meaning to. Her sending stone rested cold and silent in her discarded clothes on the floor.
Daria shifted in her sleep, murmured something unintelligible, and tightened her arm unconsciously around Austra’s waist. The choice settled then. Quiet. Certain. Whatever loyalty Austra still owed her mother, it would not be paid with this.
She slipped out of bed before dawn, slower than usual, careful not to wake Daria. The room was cool and dim, the lava glow faint this early. Daria rolled slightly onto her side, hand reaching for warmth that wasn’t there, brow knitting for just a moment before sleep reclaimed her. Austra dressed quickly and silently.
The corridors were empty at this hour, the caverns hushed except for the low, living hum of Pyronous waking. She climbed toward the upper exit, breath fogging faintly as the air cooled. Outside, the sky was still dark, bruised with early ash-violet light.
She knelt at her usual outcropping and unwrapped the sending stone. It warmed immediately, eager. Austra closed her eyes and stripped herself down to intention. Month three continuing. Embedded. No change in command structure. Pulse. Captain Cross remains operationally effective. Squad cohesion strong. No indications of fracture or dissent. Pulse. She kept her thoughts flat. Neutral. Clean. Recent missions routine. No actionable intelligence regarding rebel escalation.
She did not mention Daria’s hesitation. She did not mention the names of the dead. The stone hummed, probing, searching for emotional residue. Austra forced her breathing steady, her mind shaped into something narrow and unyielding. Recommend continued observation. No intervention advised. The stone pulsed once more. Stored. Sent. The warmth faded.
Austra exhaled slowly, pressing the stone to her sternum as if to keep it from ever listening again. Behind her, deep in the caverns, Daria would wake soon. They would eat breakfast with the squad. Mika would joke. Rill would scowl. Varn would pretend not to notice anything. And Daria would look at Austra like she was safe. Austra stood, heart heavy but resolved. For now, that would have to be enough.
© 2026 Jesse Annette. All rights reserved.
Forging Ash of the Beloved 
Leave a comment