From No where.... Welcome HoMe ...

[Kaelon Virex]

Kael didn't look back.

He ran.

Tunnel lights flickered as he tore down narrow stairs, Sommer clutching his shoulder

 

[Sommer Dai]

whispering between breaths.

"I felt him. In me. I—I think he left something…"

 

[Kaelon Virex]

"Then we'll burn it out," Kael growled. "With fire, whiskey, or whatever the hell it takes."

 

[Sommer Dai]

"She's not done," Sommer said, her voice barely audible.

"Neither are we."

 

[Zori Galea]

The skies above Euphoria Vale were no longer pink.

They were grey.

Thin cracks appeared in the holographic clouds. Residents staggered from their homes, blinking, confused, as if waking from a dream with missing teeth.

Something was wrong in paradise.

And somewhere behind those illusion-wrapped villas…

Zori rose slowly from the obsidian rubble, her face slightly burned, her body trembling — but her eyes gleamed with a new certainty.

"You felt him," she whispered, blood trickling down her temple.
"You touched divinity… and you ran."

She smiled with cracked lips.

"Then I'll make you crawl back."

 

[Sommer Dai]

Orbiting Zeltros – Emergency Drift Pattern

The stars outside the viewport no longer shimmered with temptation. They hung cold and honest, bearing witness to the silence that filled the dark vessel.

Sommer lay inside the med bay of Kael's freighter, swathed in soft medical mesh and draped in a thermal wrap. Dull lights bathed her in pale violet. The steady chime of vitals filled the quiet.

She was safe.

But not whole.

Not yet.​

 

[Kaelon Virex]

Kael sat beside her, arms resting on his knees, unshaven and raw. A cut on his temple still bled slightly. His coat, streaked with ash and mirror dust, lay crumpled on the floor. He hadn't slept. Hadn't moved in hours.

 

[Sommer Dai]

She stirred.

"You're staring," she murmured, voice hoarse but real.

 

[Kaelon Virex]

Kael looked up, his tired smirk blooming like muscle memory.

"Well, I did just save your life. Seems fair I get to watch you breathe for a bit. creepy, I know."

 

[Sommer Dai]

Her lips curved, just slightly.

"How long was I out?"

 

[Kaelon Virex]

"Three hours. You crashed when we left orbit. Ship's running a silent drift. Zori's not tracking us. Not yet."

 

[Sommer Dai]

Sommer winced as she shifted, the ache in her body still dancing through her nerves like echoes of Azis's grip.

"I still feel it. Him. Like… a shadow made of silk. It's gone, but it's not."

 

[Kaelon Virex]

"Whatever he did," Kael said, gently adjusting her wrap, "you fought it. You're still you. That's what matters."

 

[Sommer Dai]

She blinked, tears forming.

"I could've hurt you. Or worse. If you hadn't come…"

 

[Kaelon Virex]

He cut her off, his voice suddenly firm.

"If I hadn't come, I'd still be out there lying to myself about who I am. Who we are."

A silence hung between them — not heavy, but sacred.

Kael reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small, folded piece of flimsiplast. A crumpled photo. Two kids — a formal family gathering. He and Sommer. He was fifteen. She was maybe ten, in a too-big dress, frowning up at the camera.

"I kept this," he said softly. "Even when I didn't want to."

 

[Sommer Dai]

Sommer reached out and took it, her fingers brushing his. She stared at it for a long moment before nodding.

"There's a place… my home. Where I actually feel like me again. You can take us there."

 

[Kaelon Virex]

Kael looked at her, brow raised.

"Where?"

 

[Sommer Dai]

"1Z255 Gainton Hills. Nar Shaddaa. It's a cliffside unit. Malibu-style penthouse, soft blue lights at night, smells like home and tastes like moonwine."

She smiled, suddenly tired and warm.

"You can stay there. Until you figure out what's next. No rush. No pressure."

 

[Kaelon Virex]

Kael exhaled, visibly stunned.

"You sure?"

 

[Sommer Dai]

"Yeah," she whispered. "Because for the first time in years… I don't want to run. Not from you."