Fifth Loop, Chapter 22 : 砕けた地平線 (The Fractured Horizon)

Daichi gasped, his body slamming onto solid ground. He lay there for a moment, his chest heaving, his mind racing. When he opened his eyes, he found himself back in the ruins of the facility.

The sun streamed in through the shattered ceiling, bathing the destruction in golden light. The air was warm, a stark contrast to the icy cold of the ship.

In his hand, the vial glowed faintly, its light a reminder of everything that had just happened.

Daichi sat up slowly, his mind swirling with questions. The man's face lingered in his thoughts—his words like echoes in the silence.

"Who was that…?" Daichi murmured, his voice barely audible.

But as his gaze fell on the vial, his confusion gave way to something stronger. Determination.

Izumi was waiting.

Daichi rose to his feet, clutching the vial tightly. His path was uncertain, the answers he sought shrouded in mystery. But one truth burned brightly in his heart:

Daichi sprinted through the ruins, his breath ragged and his muscles screaming in protest. The city around him was crumbling—fractured buildings collapsing in slow, agonizing groans, their skeletal remains vanishing into clouds of ash and smoke. Fires burned chaotically along the streets, their orange glow flickering like dying stars in the chaos.

"Daichi!" Izumi's faint voice pierced through the cacophony, and his heart clenched. Her silhouette was just ahead, barely visible through the smoke. She was turned toward him, her gaze steady despite the destruction unraveling around them.

For a fleeting moment, relief coursed through him. She was safe.

But then the air itself seemed to crack.

A deafening, low hum reverberated through the ground, shaking loose the very foundations of what remained of the city. Daichi stumbled, nearly falling to his knees. He whipped around just in time to see the sky tear itself apart—a jagged rift of swirling red and blue light splitting the air like a festering wound.

The air turned electric, a violent gust slamming into him as the rift expanded. Daichi shielded his face with his arm, but his eyes stayed locked on Izumi.

And then she appeared.

A figure emerged from the rift, stepping through the jagged vortex as though it were merely a door. Her presence radiated power, the kind that suffocated everything in its wake. Long strands of hair flowed unnaturally, caught in an invisible current. Her body shimmered like a fractured mirror, a terrifying blend of elegance and chaos.

Daichi's breath caught in his throat. His blood turned cold.

Because it was her face.

"Izumi…" he whispered, his voice trembling.

But it wasn't her.

The woman—no, the entity—stood tall, her crimson eyes glowing with a cruel, unearthly light. She smiled faintly, and the gesture sent chills down Daichi's spine. It wasn't the warmth he knew. It was hollow. Twisted.

The entity tilted her head slightly, as if observing him for the first time. "So this… is the other side," she murmured, her voice soft yet dripping with disdain. "How quaint."

Daichi stepped forward, his voice breaking. "Izumi? Is that you?"

Her glowing eyes snapped to him, and for a brief moment, something in her expression wavered. Her lips parted, her voice quieter now—shaking, almost human.

"Daichi?"

His heart stopped. That was her voice. He knew it.

She took a step closer, the cruel energy around her faltering for just a moment. Her lips quivered as tears began to pool in her glowing eyes. "You're still alive…" she whispered, her voice trembling. "That means… I'm not too late."

Daichi blinked, confusion flooding him. "Not too late? Izumi, what's going on? What happened to you?"

Before she could respond, her hand shot out with blinding speed.

Daichi's stomach dropped as her fingers closed tightly around the throat of the real Izumi—the one standing just feet from him.

"No!" he screamed, surging forward, but the energy radiating from the entity slammed him back, forcing him to the ground.

The real Izumi gasped, her hands clawing at the entity's grip. "D… Daichi…" she choked, her voice barely a whisper.

"Let her go!" Daichi roared, his voice breaking.

The entity turned her gaze to him, her smile returning—a twisted parody of something beautiful. "You want me to let her go?" she asked mockingly. "You don't understand, Daichi. She is me."

Daichi froze. "What are you talking about?!"

Red veins began spreading from the entity's hand, snaking across Izumi's neck and face. The real Izumi cried out, her body glowing faintly as if being consumed.

"No!" Daichi struggled to his feet, his fists pounding the ground. "Stop it! Please!"

The entity tilted her head, her expression calm, almost pitying. "She's weak, Daichi."

Izumi's screams filled the air, then faded into silence as her body dissolved into glowing tendrils of crimson mist. The mist coiled like living snakes, spiraling into the entity's outstretched hand.

Daichi's knees buckled. "Izumi…" His voice was a broken whisper.

The entity clenched her fist, absorbing the last of the mist, and let out a long, satisfied breath. The ground trembled violently beneath them, and above her palm, energy began to coalesce. A swirling black sphere laced with streaks of white and yellow formed, its gravity pulling at the very fabric of the world.

Daichi's voice cracked as he screamed again. "Why are you doing this?!"

The entity turned her gaze to him, and for just a moment, her eyes softened. "To save you," she said quietly. "To save us."

Her voice carried a strange sadness, but her words were laced with something darker.

"I'm going to destroy humanity, Daichi," she continued, her tone unwavering. "And then, finally, we'll be at peace. Together. For eternity."

Daichi staggered to his feet, his fists shaking. "No…" His voice trembled, anger rising like a wildfire in his chest. "This isn't peace! Izumi would never want this!"

The entity's smile faltered, and her expression darkened. "You don't understand. They don't deserve you. After everything they've done to hurt you, to hurt us—I'll erase them all."

Her words struck him like a hammer, and he felt the weight of her grief, her desperation. But he couldn't let her win.

"Then you're wrong." His voice steadied, his tears glistening in the crimson glow. "Izumi… if you're in there, I'll save you. No matter what it takes."

The entity's eyes flickered, something unspoken flashing across her face. Her hand trembled slightly before the energy sphere above it expanded, crackling with raw power.

"Then you've already lost," she said, her voice heavy with finality.

Daichi clenched his fists, his heart pounding as the ground beneath him fractured. "I'm not giving up on you, Izumi. Not now. Not ever."

And as the black sphere surged, ready to consume the world, Daichi surged forward—ready to fight for the one person he couldn't lose.

The city lay in ruins around them, jagged towers of debris silhouetted against the crimson-tinted sky. Fires crackled in the distance, their embers floating like lost souls amidst the devastation. The wind carried a haunting melody of distant screams and the faint rumble of collapsing buildings. Yet, amid all this chaos, Daichi stood trembling, his legs barely supporting him.