I signed on to map the unknown, not to die in it.As an Omega cartographer, I joined a Syrix explorer's crew to chart the unmarked edges of the Veil-a nebula so dense it eats ships whole. The Alpha captain is brilliant, arrogant, and entirely too calm when everything goes to hell.One wrong jump. One silent predator. One ship torn open like aluminum foil.Now it's just the two of us, stranded in the hollow of an ancient alien ruin that's somehow still alive.Its walls hum. The air shimmers. Our pheromones spike every time the lights pulse.He's trying to keep me focused on survival. I'm trying not to melt against him.But the ruin seems to want something from us-something tied to our bond, to heat and instinct and touch.We came here to chart the stars.We might end up rewriting the laws of biology instead.Exploration romance - Alien ruins - Forced proximity - Dark outer space fantasy - Standalone in The Allied Zones Omegaverse