Wings of Hope

She stares once more at the book, the open page still marked by Jackson's blood.  The calculations are beyond her skills to understand, but the picture is clear - and it offers hope, perhaps the first she's had in a long time.
Zephyr...the project they'd all worked on together, abandoning when the world was fixed.  The diagram for it stares back at her as she fights back tears, finally keying in the code Jackson had given his life to give her.
She waits in the burning city - which one, she's not sure.  There's 3,718 chances that it won't matter.
The wind suddenly picks up, a sharp, familiar whine filling the air, and she smiles as Zephyr lands before her.  She'd never though to see it again...
It takes her several minutes to suit up, her movements lit by the glow of the fires.  Eventually she settles into the seat, her hands running over the familiar controls.  Zephyr...it had been too long.
More memories begin to flood over her, but she shoves them back.  Later, she thinks; for now, she must use the chance she has been given.
Firing up the controls she flares into the sky, gaining altitude before flipping into a sharp descent.  She increases speed, shoving her terror and reflexes aside as she soars towards the fire. At the last moment she closes her eyes as she flies through the ground.
A flash of light, the relief of pressure...Kaylin drifts in a sea of white, her worries let go.  Even her victory over yet another gate seems meaningless.
A face comes to her, as familiar as her own.  The long black hair swept back by her hands, the crooked, broken nose...his green eyes are wide as he touches her, kisses her, claims her for his own.
Darus...