Suddenly, the air shifted.
A low hum vibrated through the room, faint at first, but growing louder with each passing second. The ground beneath me trembled, sending a sharp jolt up my legs. Then, without warning, a gust of freezing wind tore through the chamber, whipping against my skin, stinging like ice.
I staggered back, throwing an arm up to shield my face. "What the—?"
The ship groaned as the lights flickered erratically, their weak glow struggling against the chaos unfolding around me. The wind howled louder, screaming through the cracks in the walls, making the entire room feel like it was coming apart.
And then—
A blinding flash of white light exploded into existence.
I flinched, instinctively squeezing my eyes shut. The brightness burned against my eyelids, an unbearable radiance that seemed to swallow the entire room. My breath hitched, my heart pounding in my chest.
And then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the light began to fade.
The hum died down. The wind stilled.
Silence.
Cautiously, I lowered my arm, blinking against the lingering brightness. My pulse was still racing, but the room had returned to its previous, eerie stillness.
Or so I thought.
Because I wasn't alone anymore.
My body tensed.
At the far end of the chamber, a shadowed figure stood motionless, half-hidden in the dim light.
I felt my stomach tighten. My fingers curled into fists at my sides. Who…?
The figure stepped forward, moving slowly, deliberately. His face remained obscured in the darkness, but the glow from the vial in my hand cast just enough light to reveal his silhouette.
And then—I saw him.
I sucked in a sharp breath, my entire body locking in place.
It was like staring into a fractured mirror.
The man standing before me—he looked just like me. Almost exactly. Same sharp features. Same build. Even the way he carried himself, the weight in his stance—it was me.
But there were differences. His hair was slightly longer, streaked faintly with gray, like a ghost of time I hadn't yet lived through. His face was lined with exhaustion, shadows carved deep beneath his eyes. And those eyes—sharp, piercing—held something I couldn't quite understand.
A sadness.
A knowing.
For a long moment, neither of us spoke.
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. My voice came out quieter than I intended, barely more than a whisper.
"Who… who are you?"
The man didn't answer. He just looked at me—like he was seeing something beyond what I could grasp. Like he knew things I didn't.
The silence was suffocating. Then, finally, he moved.
Slowly, he closed the distance between us, his footsteps echoing hollowly against the floor. Each step sent a sharp pulse of unease through me, but I stood my ground, forcing my breathing to stay steady.
When he stopped just a few feet away, I could see him clearly now. See the way his eyes studied me, searching for something.
Then he spoke.
"You don't have much time."
His voice was calm, but there was an urgency beneath it—a quiet pressure, like he was holding something back.
My heart stuttered. "What… what do you mean?"
"If you hesitate," he continued, his expression unchanging, "you'll lose her."
The words sent a bolt of ice through my veins.
Lose her.
I took a sharp step forward, my voice rising in panic. "Lose her? What are you talking about? How do you know about Izumi?!"
His gaze flickered to the vial clutched in my hand. Something unreadable crossed his face, but he didn't answer my question.
Instead, his voice lowered, almost quiet enough to be a whisper. "You already know what you have to do."
A knot tightened in my stomach.
"Stop asking questions," he continued, "that you're not ready to hear the answers to."
I clenched my jaw, frustration flaring in my chest. "What the hell is that supposed to mean? Who are you? How do you know all this?"
His jaw tightened. His eyes darkened. But behind all of it, there was something else.
Something vulnerable.
Something regretful.
His voice, when he spoke again, was softer. "I've seen it." His gaze flickered, distant, like he was reliving something painful. "The choices you'll face. The price you'll pay."
My fists clenched. The air around us felt heavier now, charged with something I couldn't name.
"If you know something," I ground out, stepping even closer, "then tell me. Stop speaking in riddles!"
His eyes snapped back to mine. There was a fire in them now.
"It doesn't matter who I am." His voice was sharp, cutting. "What matters is what you do next."
Before I could even process his words, the ship shuddered violently beneath us.
The humming returned, louder than before, the walls trembling under the force. The floor beneath me felt like it was breaking apart.
The man's expression shifted—urgency flashing in his eyes.
"Go back to where you came from," he said quickly, his voice firm. "She's waiting for you."
A chill ran down my spine.
She?
Izumi?
"What do you mean?" I demanded, stepping closer even as the ship groaned under us. "Who is 'she'?! What are you talking about?!"
He didn't answer.
Instead, he took a slow step back, his gaze lingering on me for just a moment longer.
"You'll understand soon enough," he murmured. His voice was softer this time. Almost… sad. "But only if you move forward."
And then—
The light surged again.
Blinding. Overwhelming.
I barely had time to react before the force of it ripped through me, like a tidal wave crashing over my body. I gasped, reaching out—
"Wait!"
But the man was already gone.
The light swallowed me whole.
I felt myself falling.
Through time. Through space. Through everything.
Out of the blue—