I gasped as my body slammed onto solid ground, the impact jolting every nerve in my being. Pain shot through my limbs, but I barely registered it. My breath came in ragged gasps as I lay there for a moment, trying to process what had just happened.
Slowly, I opened my eyes.
The ruins of the facility stretched out before me, bathed in the golden glow of the afternoon sun. Shattered glass littered the floor, reflecting the warm light like fractured stars. The air was thick with dust and the lingering scent of rust and decay—a stark contrast to the sterile, cold environment I had been in just moments ago.
I forced myself to sit up, my mind still reeling.
The vial in my hand pulsed faintly, a soft glow radiating from within. Its light was steady, unwavering—a reminder that what I had just experienced was real. That he was real.
My fingers tightened around the glass.
"Who was that…?" I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper. The memory of his face lingered, his words echoing in my mind like a haunting refrain.
You don't have much time.
If you hesitate, you'll lose her.
I shook my head, forcing the doubt aside. Now wasn't the time to dwell on questions without answers. There was only one thing I knew for certain—Izumi was waiting.
I shoved the vial into my pocket, pushing myself to my feet despite the dull ache in my muscles. My legs felt unsteady, but I couldn't afford to stop. Not now. Not when I was this close.
Then I heard it.
A distant rumble.
I turned my head sharply. Beyond the ruins, beyond the shattered remains of the city, a column of smoke coiled into the sky like a serpent. Fires burned in the distance, flickering orange against the deepening blue of the sky.
The world was collapsing around me.
And somewhere in that chaos… she was there.
I took off running.
Each breath burned in my chest, each step jarring my already exhausted body. The city was falling apart—cracked roads gave way beneath my feet, buildings groaned as they tilted dangerously, ready to crumble at any moment. The air was thick with ash, swirling around me as if trying to drag me down.
But none of it mattered.
Because then, I heard her voice.
"Daichi!"
My heart clenched.
I looked ahead, eyes darting frantically through the smoke. And then—there. A silhouette, barely visible, standing amidst the wreckage.
Izumi.
Relief crashed over me like a wave. She was safe. She was—
The air cracked.
A deafening hum reverberated through the ground, sending a violent tremor beneath my feet. I stumbled, barely managing to keep myself upright. My eyes darted to the sky just as it tore itself apart.
A jagged rift split through the air, swirling red and blue light bleeding into the world like an open wound. The wind howled, carrying an unnatural energy that sent every nerve in my body screaming in alarm.
Something was coming.
No—someone.
From the heart of the rift, a figure stepped forward.
The moment I saw her, my breath caught in my throat.
Long hair flowed like strands of liquid silver, her body shimmering as if caught between reality and something else. Her presence was overwhelming—powerful, suffocating. And yet, despite the unnatural aura surrounding her, my heart clenched with something far more terrifying.
Because I knew that face.
"Izumi…?"
The name barely left my lips, trembling with disbelief.
But something was wrong.
Her crimson eyes flickered with an eerie glow, her expression unreadable. And then—she smiled.
Not the warm, gentle smile I knew.
This one was cold. Hollow.
She tilted her head slightly, as if observing me for the first time. When she spoke, her voice was soft—almost amused.
"So this… is the other side," she murmured. "How quaint."
A chill ran down my spine.
This wasn't her.
Or at least… not the Izumi I knew.
I took a step forward despite the fear clawing at my chest. "Izumi?" My voice was hoarse. "Is that… really you?"
For a moment, something flickered in her expression. Her lips parted, and when she spoke again, her voice wavered.
"Daichi?"
It was her.
My breath hitched.
She took a step closer, the cruel energy around her faltering just slightly. Her lips trembled, and for the first time, I saw it—tears. They pooled in her glowing eyes, her voice barely a whisper.
"You're still alive…" she said, almost as if she couldn't believe it. "That means… I'm not too late."
"Too late?" I repeated, my stomach twisting. "Izumi, what are you talking about? What happened to you?"
Before she could answer, she moved.
Too fast.
Her hand shot out—and in the next instant, her fingers closed around Izumi's throat.
The real Izumi.
"No!" I screamed, lunging forward, but an invisible force slammed into me, sending me crashing to the ground.
Izumi gasped, her hands clawing at the entity's grip. Her eyes locked onto mine, wide with desperation. "D… Daichi…" Her voice was a broken whisper.
"Let her go!" I roared, struggling to push myself up.
The entity turned to me, her smile returning—twisted, mocking. "You want me to let her go?" she mused. "You don't understand, Daichi. She is me."
My blood ran cold.
"What…?"
A sinister glow spread from her fingertips, red veins slithering across Izumi's skin like creeping vines. Izumi let out a strangled cry as her body trembled, her form flickering—splitting apart.
"No!" I thrashed against the invisible force pinning me down. "Stop it! Please!"
The entity's expression softened slightly, almost… pitying.
"She's weak, Daichi," she said.
Izumi's scream rang out—then cut off abruptly.
I watched in horror as her body dissolved, breaking apart into tendrils of crimson mist. The mist coiled like living shadows, slithering into the entity's outstretched hand.
And then… she was gone.
Just like that.
My knees hit the ground, a broken sob tearing from my throat. "Izumi…"
The entity exhaled slowly, closing her fingers as if savoring the moment. Above her palm, a swirling black sphere formed, crackling with raw power. The ground trembled beneath us, the air growing heavier with something indescribable.
I forced myself to look up, my hands trembling. "Why… why are you doing this?" My voice was barely holding together.
She met my gaze, and for just a second—just a fleeting moment—her eyes softened.
"To save you," she said.
My breath caught.
"To save us."
Then, her expression hardened.
"I'm going to destroy humanity, Daichi," she continued, her voice calm. "And then, finally, we'll be at peace. Together. For eternity."
The words crashed into me, suffocating, crushing.
"No…" My voice shook, but my fists clenched. "Izumi would never want this!"
Her smile faltered.
I took a shaky breath, my heart pounding in my chest.
"If you're still in there… I'll save you." I lifted my gaze, meeting hers with unwavering resolve. "No matter what it takes."
The entity's fingers twitched, hesitation flickering across her face. But then, the black sphere above her hand expanded, radiating an overwhelming force.
"Then you've already lost," she whispered.
The ground split beneath us.
But I didn't hesitate.
Because I wasn't giving up on her. Not now. Not ever.
The air was suffocating, thick with dust and the acrid scent of burning metal. Each breath I took felt like inhaling the remnants of a world that had already crumbled. My chest rose and fell rapidly, my heartbeat pounding in my ears as I stood amidst the ruins of what was once a city.
And there she was.
Hovering above me, wrapped in a storm of dark energy that crackled and twisted like a living beast. Her long hair whipped wildly in the wind, her crimson eyes glowing—cold, unrecognizable. She looked like a specter of destruction, an avenger born from the ashes of despair.
But I knew the truth.
No matter how much darkness surrounded her, no matter how distant she seemed… she was still Izumi.
My Izumi.
"Izumi…" My voice was barely more than a whisper, shaking with desperation yet firm with conviction. "I know you're still in there."
For a moment, there was no response. Just silence. A silence so deep it felt like a void stretching between us.
Then, she smirked.
A cruel, twisted smirk that didn't belong to her.
"Still clinging to that delusion, Daichi?" Her voice was sharp, cutting through the ruins like a blade. But there was something beneath it—an imperceptible hesitation, a crack in her confidence. "The woman you knew is gone. She died the moment humanity betrayed us."
"No!" I shot back, my voice breaking against the emptiness around us. "You're wrong! This isn't you! The Izumi I love—she wouldn't want this!"
For a fleeting second, her glowing eyes flickered. A tiny shift. A shadow of something familiar.
Hope.
But then, like a mask snapping back into place, her gaze hardened, and her smirk disappeared.
"Love?" she scoffed, her tone laced with bitterness. "Do you think love can undo what's been done? Can it erase their sins? Their lies?"
I clenched my fists, feeling the pulse of energy beneath my skin, the warmth of my power rising. "It doesn't have to erase anything, Izumi! We can move forward—we can heal! But this… destroying everything… it won't bring peace!"
She laughed. A hollow, broken sound that sent a shiver down my spine.
"You're naïve," she murmured. "You always were."
I took a step forward. The ground cracked beneath my feet, a reminder of the fragile world we stood upon.
"Maybe I am," I admitted. "But I'd rather be naïve than give up on you."
Her breath hitched. I saw it.
"You told me once—back then—that even in the darkest moments, there's always a way to keep moving forward. Do you remember that, Izumi? Do you?"
Her crimson eyes darted away for the briefest second.
"I…"
Her lips parted, uncertainty flickering in her expression. The black energy swirling around her wavered, pulsing unsteadily, as if even it was unsure of its existence.
But then she shook her head violently, her hair lashing through the air.
"No," she hissed. "Don't do this to me, Daichi. Don't make me doubt."
My heart clenched. She was fighting me. But more than that… she was fighting herself.
"Izumi," I said, softer now, letting my voice carry every ounce of emotion I had left. "Please. You don't have to carry this alone. You don't have to fight anymore. Let me help you. Let me save you."
Her hand trembled. Just slightly. The dark sphere forming in her palm flickered, as unstable as the conflict in her eyes.
"Daichi…" she whispered.
For a moment, she looked like she might reach out. Like she might let me pull her back from the edge.
But then—like glass shattering—it was gone.
"No!" Her scream ripped through the air as her aura erupted outward. A shockwave tore through the ruins, sending debris flying in every direction. "You don't understand, Daichi! I've already made my choice! And you… you'll hate me for it, but I'm doing this for us!"
"For us?" My voice cracked, raw with anguish. "How is this for us, Izumi?! Destroying everything we've ever fought for—everything you believed in—how is that for us?!"
Her lips trembled. She hesitated.
"Because… because it's the only way," she whispered.
I gritted my teeth. "No, it's not! You're just scared! Scared of what happens if you let go of this anger—this pain!"
"Shut up!" she roared, her crimson eyes blazing as she hurled a bolt of black lightning at me.
I barely dodged in time. The spot where I had stood exploded into a crater of shattered stone. But I didn't stop. I couldn't.
"You think I don't know what it's like to be scared?!" I shouted. "I've lost everything, Izumi! My family, my friends, my home… even you! But even so, I refuse to give up! Because that's what you taught me!"
She froze.
Mid-air, with the storm raging around her, she faltered.
"I… taught you?" she murmured, her voice barely audible.
"Yes," I said, taking another step forward. "You were my light, Izumi. Even when everything fell apart, you were the reason I kept going. And I know—deep down—you're still that same person. You're still my Izumi."
Tears welled in her crimson eyes.
Her grip on the dark sphere weakened.
"Daichi… stop." Her voice was fragile, barely holding together. "Please. Don't make this harder than it already is."
I shook my head.
"I won't stop," I said, reaching out. "Not until I bring you back."