Diago exhaled slowly, head lowering. Everyone else had gathered behind Daiki, caught in the moment. The walls were vibrating. The guards twitched like overloaded circuits. The air burned.
"DAIKI!"
Yona suddenly rushed forward, kneeling beside him, yanking at the panel.
"Help me open it..we can do this together!"
But it was no use. The lock was fused from inside. Every override burned out. Diago's prison was now a tomb. From inside, Diago spoke..clearer this time, and stronger.
"Guys… please…"
He looked at each of them now. Yona. Noir. Lena. Ayumi. Aria. And finally..Daiki.
"…Just go."
Noir stepped forward slowly. His voice cracked.. quiet, raw.
"…I'm sorry, Diago."
Diago nodded, tears shining in his eyes.
"It's okay."
Daiki was frozen. Shaking. Hands clenched. Chest heaving.
"No… no, I won't.."
Suddenly, Aria ran to him , dropping beside him, grabbing his arm with both hands. Her eyes were wide with panic, tears spilling as she shouted over the chaos.
"DAIKI, PLEASE!"
He looked at her, stunned.
"I don't want to lose you.." her voice cracked, breath breaking, "I still want to have moments with you..please..we have to go, NOW.."
She gripped his hand tightly, pulling him. Daiki's eyes flicked between her and Diago. His coppy. Diago gave a small smile.
"I'll hold them off. I'll give you time."
Daiki opened his mouth..then shut it. His legs wouldn't move. Yona reached up, grabbing his shoulder.
"We can't lose you too."
And finally..Daiki let his forehead fall against the cell wall.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, his voice splintering.
Then..he stood . He took Aria's hand. The second their fingers locked..she pulled him into a run, both of them sprinting back toward the others.
The exit was beginning to open..Mia triggering the final panel with her palm. But just before they reached it..Daiki looked back. Diago was still watching. Still standing. Still smiling.
The ground trembled beneath them. Dust rained from the ceiling, alarms shrieked in distorted pulses. The world behind them was collapsing.. But Lena wasn't moving. She was staring ahead, wide-eyed, breath caught in her throat. Because she knew. It wasn't a trick.It was her...Lira.
Standing still as the chaos swirled around he.. real, alive, and just feet away. But something was wrong. Lira's eyes weren't on her. They were fixed on Yona . Locked. Heavy with love, longing, and something that hadn't faded with time or death.
Lena's breath hitched. Yona, confused, stared back at the girl in front of him..her eyes reflecting all the memories he'd locked away. Her gaze pierced him. Held him. Pulled him.
"Lira…?" he whispered.
She didn't speak. She didn't move. But her eyes.. they were full of everything she couldn't say . Yona blinked, stunned. His heart was pounding in his ears, the air tight in his lungs. He felt it.. That old ache. That unanswered feeling. He looked at Lena..her hand still tightly gripping his, but he was frozen .
Lira didn't look at anyone else. Not Daiki. Not Ayumi. Not even Noir. Only him. And in that stillness, everything broke. Yona shifted. He started to pull his hand away. But Lena clutched it tighter , her voice trembling,
"Yona…?"
He turned to her slowly. Her eyes were full of questions and fear . She didn't say it out loud. She didn't have to.
"Don't choose her. Don't leave me."
His eyes flicked between them..Lena in front of him, real and breathing, and Lira, watching from the storm like a memory refusing to fade. Then he whispered..
" Lena? "
The word cracked something inside her. Her tears came fast. She didn't answer. She couldn't. She just looked at him, like she was trying to understand what he was about to do, Or say, Or choose. The sirens screamed louder now.
The air trembled with collapsing walls and the thunder of sirens..dust and smoke curling like ghosts through the fractured corridors. But time slowed for Yona. Because he felt it. Something deep in his chest snapped into place. Not a memory. Not confusion. Truth.
His eyes locked on her..The one he loved before everything burned. The one who was gone.
But wasn't. His hand was still wrapped in Lena's trembling grasp, but his heart was already slipping from it.
"Yona," Lena whispered, voice breaking, "please… don't go to her."
But it was already too late. He felt it.
"She's not a ghost," he breathed. "She's not a lie."
He pulled away..quickly ,sharply, and ran. Lena reached out,
"Yona, no! Don't do this to me!"
But he didn't stop. In two steps, he was across the space..his arms wrapping around Lira, pulling her into him. She gasped. Eyes wide. Tears spilled immediately down her cheeks..like they'd just been waiting for someone to give her permission to feel again. Yona held her tighter, trembling.
"It's you… Lira. I was feeling something was off..so strange with her…"
His voice cracked as he leaned into her shoulder.
"It was always you."
Behind them, everything seemed to freeze. Lena stood there, frozen, shattered, her hand still outstretched. Her eyes filled, her mouth opened to speak, but nothing came.
"Yona…" she finally choked out, barely a breath. "Don't…do this to me…"
But Yona didn't turn around. Didn't even hear her.
His whole world had closed around one heartbeat, and it was the girl in his arms.
Ayumi's voice came in a broken whisper, confusion and disbelief tangled in every syllable:
" Yona…? "
Even Noir's voice, low and steady, cracked slightly as he stepped beside Lena and whispered under his breath,
"He'll know the truth… soon."
The ground shook again..a violent jolt. Cracks raced across the walls. Fire sparked above. Pipes screamed under pressurspan. Then Mia's voice rang out, clear and final:
"We need to go! Now! "
Everyone began to move..running for the exit, ducking through falling debris. Daiki grabbed Aria's hand, shielding her. Noir pulled Ayumi close, guiding her forward. Even Mia moved, backing away, eyes on the ceiling.
But Yona didn't move. Still holding Lira..her body trembling in his arms. And behind them.. Lena stood frozen. Her breath shallow. Her chest tight. Watching them. Watching him. Her tears fell silently, streaking her cheeks, lit by the glow of flame.
The chaos was swallowing everything. And she could only whisper one word, barely audible beneath the sirens and collapse:
" Yona…"
Chaos continued to unfold all around them, the ground trembling beneath their feet as the walls cracked and the flames roared.
"Yona! Come on!"
Lena's voice was a desperate, heart-wrenching plea as she tugged at him, pulling him toward the exit. But Yona didn't move.
He held Lira tightly, his eyes searching her face, disbelief still flickering in his gaze.
"It was you...all this time... How did I not notice?" he whispered, his voice shaking.
Lira's eyes welled with tears as she pulled back slightly, her hands trembling in his. She swallowed hard, voice tight,
"I'm sorry, Yona. I couldn't say anything. I didn't have a choice."
Yona shook his head furiously, his fingers brushing over her face, as if memorizing every detail.
"I miss you. I thought I lost you forever…"
But before Lira could reply, Lena suddenly appeared from the shadows, running toward them. Her hand shot out, grabbing onto Yona's shirt in desperation, pulling him away from Lira.
"Please, let's go!"
lena's voice was frantic, and her eyes were wide with panic. Yona barely seemed to hear her. His gaze remained locked on Lira, his heart torn between two worlds.
"Please," she whispered, "come with me ."
Lira shook her head, her expression filled with sorrow.
"It shouldn't be me, Yona. You belong with her."
Her voice wavered as she turned to look at Lena. "It should be her. I belong to this world… the one you're fighting to leave. I wanted nothing more than to see you again… and be with you. But…"
She faltered, tears slipping down her cheeks. She gathered her strength and continued, her voice cracking,
"I betrayed her. I betrayed the real Lena. If you still love me, you need to go with her. Please. I should be going back to Diago."
Yona's eyes widened in horror at the mention of Diago's name.
"No . Lira..please..don't say that…"
Lira stepped back, her heart breaking as she held Yona's hand for just a moment longer. She squeezed it tightly, and then released it, her fingers lingering on his for the briefest of seconds before they parted.
" Please, just go with her. "
Lena's voice came softly from behind them, trembling,
"Yona, please…come with me."
But Lira shook her head once more, her resolve clear in her eyes. The trembling ground beneath them grew louder, cracks beginning to widen in the floor as the ruins of the place threatened to swallow them whole. Lira stepped forward, her gaze fixed on the ground as she made her choice.
"It's time for me to go… back to him."
Before Yona could stop her, she stepped back toward the crumbling floor, her eyes never leaving Yona. The weight of her decision hung in the air. Then, the tremor became a violent quake.
"Yona! Get out of there!"
Noir screamed, his voice raw with panic. Lena's hand shot out, pulling Yona toward her with all the strength she could muster.
"Come on, Yona!" she urged, her voice trembling.
But as she pulled him, he hesitated..his heart torn. And then, just as they made it out of the crumbling doorframe, they heard a voice..the last one they'd expect.
"Yona…"
Lira's voice was a soft whisper, breaking through the chaos. But she didn't say more. She just watched them go. With one last glance toward her, Yona turned and sprinted toward Lena. The door was closing fast behind them, the ground beneath them shaking even harder.
"MIA!"
Ayumi screamed suddenly, her eyes locking on the woman standing by the door, silent as ever. Mia turned toward them, her expression unreadable. She pressed a button on the side of the door, sealing it tightly.
"I still have something to do."
Her voice was steady, even as she prepared for the next phase of their escape.
"The tower… it's the way out of this world. But you need to hurry."
With a final, cold look, Mia stepped away, turning back to the chaos unfolding around her. Suddenly, the loud, echoing sound of a slip rang out across the chamber.
"DAIKIII!"
Aria screamed, her voice breaking as she saw Daiki tumble, slipping from the edge of the crumbling doorway. He hit the ground with a sickening thud, unable to regain his footing in time. Lena's heart skipped a beat.
"No!"
Yona shouted, his eyes wide with shock, but they were all running, forced to keep moving or be swallowed by the chaos. Aria dropped to her knees, panic consuming her.
"DAIKIII!"
But they couldn't stop. Not now. The walls were coming down..everyone needed to keep running.
And yet..Lena couldn't shake the feeling that somehow, somewhere, they had left something behind.
The ground gave one last violent shake , groaning beneath them like something ancient and wounded. And then..The passage behind them collapsed. A thunderous crash of stone and metal..dust shot through the air as the corridor sealed shut, the world behind it buried.
Silence.
And then:
" Why?! "
Aria screamed .
She dropped to her knees, the floor biting cold beneath her.
" Daiki, why did you do that?! " Her voice cracked, raw with pain.
"You said we'd make it out..together!"
She pounded her fists on the stone, helpless rage pouring out in waves.
"You promised…"
Beside her, Ayumi knelt down , slowly, quietly. She didn't speak. She simply reached out, her hand resting gently on Aria's trembling shoulder. A silent comfort. A silent grief. No words could fix what had just broken. Not this time.
A few steps away, Yona stood still , unmoving, his eyes fixed on the place where the door had once been. Now just rubble. Silence. Finality. But in his mind..Not Daiki...Lira. Her face when he hugged her. The way her voice trembled. The way she let go.
"It was you all along."
"How did I not see it?"
His fists clenched. His heart felt carved open, ripped in half between two lives, two names, two impossible truths. Behind him, Lena watched him. Watched how still he was. How far his thoughts had drifted. And she felt it. Deep, low, in her chest. That ache. That tearing. Her breath trembled as she whispered under it,
"Why…? Why did you come back?"
She looked down at her hands..at the one Yona used to hold.
"He loved me," she murmured, barely audible. "He chose me. And then you came back... Lira..."
Her voice cracked.
"Why now?"
And still, Yona didn't turn. Didn't speak. His silence said everything. Watching from the side, Noir's eyes lingered on Lena , catching the tremor in her stance, the shimmer in her eyes she didn't let fall. And inside himself, the thought stirred:
"You've tried to hide the truth from him… but you can't anymore, Lena."
He looked away, jaw tightening. This was only the beginning. Far ahead, the air still trembled with distant crashes. The world wasn't done falling apart. Not yet.
They stood there, in the quiet after grief, with the smoke of sorrow hanging heavy around them. The taste of loss still thick in their mouths. But soon..they'd have to run again.
To be continue ...