There was nothing but black.
Thick, unmoving black — like drowning in tar.
No voices now. No chaos. No thunder. Not even pain.
Just… weightless silence.
Was this death?
Was this what came next?
I didn't know how long I drifted. Hours. Days. Or maybe only seconds stretched out into eternity. My memories were fraying — torn between old wounds and promises I hadn't kept.
And then… something changed.
A light.
Soft. Gentle. Familiar.
I blinked — or tried to — and the darkness around me pulsed. The heavy void rippled, and slowly, like petals brushing against water, she appeared.
Her feet didn't touch the ground, because there was no ground here.
Just her.
Akira.
Her white dress flowed like wind. Her hair shimmered with silver strands braided through the red. And her eyes… those eyes, still full of fire and sorrow.
I tried to speak, but my throat didn't move. My mind—sluggish, fading—could only whisper her name inside.
Akira...
She smiled. "Hey, you idiot."
My heart twisted.
I felt like a kid again. Small. Broken.
She walked forward, light following in her steps, and stopped in front of me. Her voice softened.
"You're not done yet."
I couldn't look at her. Guilt swirled in my chest like a storm. "I failed."
"You didn't."
"I lost control. The world's falling apart because of me. I couldn't protect anyone. I couldn't protect you."
Akira's face fell for a moment, and then she stepped closer. Her fingers brushed my cheek — I felt it, warm, real.
She leaned down, pressing her forehead to mine.
And whispered, "You did protect me."
I clenched my fists in the dark.
Her voice cracked. "Anos… You saved me. Maybe not from death, but from the pain. I wasn't scared in the end because I knew you were out there. Fighting. Loving me."
I wanted to cry.
But she kept going.
"You've carried so much. Too much. And now, you're thinking of giving up. Of letting go. But what about them?"
She raised her hand, and the shadows shifted — showing me flickers like stars: Diamond screaming in the middle of the battlefield, bleeding, but still standing. Eliza shielding civilians with her broken arms. Izuku on his knees, trembling. Riley frozen in fear, eyes darting to the sky.
Zane — covered in ash and blood — refusing to move from my body.
"Look at them," Akira said, her voice breaking. "They still need you. They're still fighting because of you."
I whispered, "I'm so tired, Kira."
She held me tighter.
"I know. But you don't get to leave just yet, flameheart. The world hasn't felt your full fire. Not until you choose to live — really live."
She pulled back and smiled through her tears.
"I love you, Anos. Always will. But now it's my turn to protect you. So get up… and fight."
Light burst from behind her.
And with her final whisper — like wind through my chest — she vanished.
"Don't let go."