The water receded as suddenly as it had come.
One moment, the city was drowning.
The next, the impossible flood simply... drained away, as if Avalon itself had decided it had killed enough for one cycle.
Nana stood on the rooftop, watching the water level drop. It defied physics—thousands of gallons disappearing in minutes, leaving behind only wet streets and the bodies of those who hadn't survived.
So many bodies.
She forced herself to move. Her clothes were still damp, clinging uncomfortably to her skin. Her ribs ached with every breath—definitely cracked, possibly broken. But she couldn't stay here.
She had to check on Jisu.
Please be okay, Nana prayed as she began moving across the rooftops. Please, please let Darius's settlement have survived.
The journey was nightmare fuel.
Every rooftop she crossed, every building she climbed, was littered with corpses. Humans mostly, but also creatures—demons with their bodies twisted in death, hybrids whose wings had failed them, even a giant that had somehow climbed halfway up a building before succumbing.
They were all dissolving into mist.
That was Avalon's mercy, such as it was. Bodies didn't stay. Death in Avalon meant returning to whatever void had spawned this place. White mist for humans. Black mist for the corrupted.
Nana moved like a ghost herself, jumping from roof to roof with practiced ease.
Her aether core helped—gave her the strength to make leaps that should have been impossible, the speed to traverse the broken city faster than anyone else could.
Faster, she urged herself. Have to get there faster.
The closer she got to Darius's settlement, the more bodies she saw. And the more her dread grew.
No. No, they were fortified. They had high walls. They should have—
She reached the final building before the settlement and stopped dead.
The walls were broken.
The massive metal gates that had stood so impressively just hours ago now hung twisted and useless. Water had hit them with such force it had torn through reinforced steel like paper.
"No," Nana whispered.
She jumped down, landing hard on the waterlogged ground. Pain shot through her injured ribs but she ignored it, running toward the settlement entrance.
The gates were wide open. Torn from their hinges.
Inside was devastation.
The courtyard where she'd seen survivors cooking and organizing supplies was destroyed. Equipment scattered everywhere. Buildings collapsed or partially collapsed. And bodies.
So many bodies.
"Jisu?" Nana's voice came out hoarse.
"JISU!"
No answer. Just the echo of her own desperate scream.
Nana ran through the settlement, checking every room, every corner. The main building. The storage area. The sleeping quarters.
Bodies everywhere. Some already dissolving into white mist. Others still solid, eyes open and empty.
"No, no, no..." Nana was crying now, stumbling through the wreckage.
"Jisu, please. Please answer me."
She climbed to emergency stairs.
The rooftop. That's where survivors would have gone.
Nana climbed as fast as her injured body would allow, taking stairs three at a time, ignoring the protests from her ribs.
She burst onto the rooftop—
And felt her heart stop.
They were everywhere. Dozens of people, huddled together in death. They'd made it to the roof, just like Nana had taught Jisu.
They'd climbed as high as they could.
But it hadn't been high enough.
The building wasn't tall enough.
The water had reached them anyway.
Nana walked through the bodies like she was in a trance, checking faces. Looking for one specific person.
Please don't be here. Please have survived somehow. Please—
She found her near the center of the group.
Jisu.
She hugging another survivor—a woman Nana didn't recognize. They'd held each other at the end, seeking comfort in their final moments.
"No," Nana whispered, falling to her knees beside Jisu's body. "No, you were supposed to be safe here. You were supposed to—"
Her hands were shaking as she reached out to touch Jisu's face. Still cold from the water. Still beautiful, even in death.
"I'm sorry," Nana sobbed. "I'm so sorry. I should have stayed with you. Should have made sure you were somewhere higher. Should have—"
But what could she have done? The flood had been instant, overwhelming. Even Nana had barely survived, and she'd had her aether core enhancement.
Jisu never had a chance.
"You were supposed to be safer here," Nana said brokenly. "That's why I left you. To keep you safe. And instead—"
Jisu's body began to dissolve.
It started at her fingertips, turning to white mist that drifted upward. Slowly, inexorably, death's final transformation.
"No, wait!" Nana tried to hold on, to keep Jisu solid, but there was nothing she could do. "Please don't go. Please—"
The mist spread up Jisu's arms, across her chest. Her face was last—those features Nana had laughed with just hours ago, now peaceful in death.
And then she was gone.
Just white mist, drifting up into Avalon's gray sky.
Nana knelt there alone, her arms wrapped around nothing, sobbing so hard she couldn't breathe.
Mina And now Jisu.
Everyone she got close to. Everyone she cared about. They all died.
What's the point? The thought crashed through her with devastating clarity. What's the point of making friends? What's the point of caring? Everyone dies. Everyone leaves.
She looked around the rooftop at all the other bodies dissolving into mist. Darius—the strong leader who'd promised to keep everyone safe. The young man who'd been on guard duty, who'd smiled at Nana when she'd brought Jisu to the gates. The elderly woman who'd been organizing supplies.
All of them. Gone.
Nana forced herself to stand, her legs shaking. She walked to the edge of the rooftop and looked out over Avalon.
The city stretched endlessly in all directions. Broken buildings, destroyed streets, and scattered throughout—thousands of white mist columns rising into the sky. Each one a life ended. Each one someone who'd tried to survive and failed.
Below, the creatures were already emerging from their hiding places. Demons prowled the streets, hunting for easy prey among the survivors. Hybrids claimed new territory. Giants stomped through the ruins.
And humans. Always humans. Fighting each other over the scraps left behind by the flood.
The cycle would continue. Death and survival and death again.
What if I can't find Zayne? She thought paralyzed her. She'd been so certain, so determined. She'd jumped back into Avalon without hesitation, willing to face any danger to find him.
But what if he wasn't here? What if he'd died during his first rebirth and there was nothing left to find? What if she was searching for a ghost?
What if I jumped into this hell like an idiot, and there's no one to save?
"I can't do this anymore," Nana whispered to the empty rooftop. "I can't keep losing people. I can't keep fighting. I'm so tired."
For the first time since escaping Avalon the first time, since deciding to come back, since promising Mina and Zayne that she'd live—
Nana wanted to give up.
What's the point of living if everyone I care about dies?
Maybe it would be easier to just... let go.
The wind picked up, cold and harsh.
Nana shivered, but didn't move. Didn't open her eyes.
Just sat there, balanced on the edge between fighting and surrender.
Between living and giving up.
Zayne, she thought one last time. I'm sorry. I tried to find you. I really did.
But I don't think I can anymore.
I don't think I'm strong enough.
Below, a demon roared. Something crashedin the distance. Life in Avalon continued, brutal and merciless.
And Nana sat alone on the rooftop, surrounded by dissolving bodies, with no courage left to keep going.
No reason to survive.
No hope. Just exhaustion, grief, and the terrible temptation of the long fall waiting below.
.
.
.
.
.
To be continued.