SMOKE AND SILENCE

The last thing Leon saw was Cassian's smile.

He pressed the trigger hidden beneath his sleeve—not for a bomb, but something worse.

The estate shook violently. A deafening boom tore through the walls like thunder unleashed. Explosives planted deep in the foundation detonated one by one, ripping through stone, steel, and bone.

Ayla screamed as the floor beneath her feet gave way.

She reached for Leon—he tried to grab her—but the ground cracked and swallowed her whole into blackness.

"AYLA!" Viper roared, trying to push forward, but the firestorm blasted him back against a pillar. His shoulder slammed into it—dislocated. Blood trailed from his temple.

Leon was knocked into the wall. His gun clattered out of reach as smoke flooded the room.

Everything was chaos.

Flames devoured the staircases. Glass shattered in waves. The roof collapsed over the control room. Then…

Silence.

Later…

Ash floated like snow over the wreckage.

Leon lay unconscious beneath a pile of rubble, his leg twisted awkwardly. Viper's breathing was shallow—his body limp but alive.

Cassian was nowhere to be seen.

And Ayla… was gone.

Unknown Location…

Her eyes fluttered open.

Everything hurt. Her head throbbed, her ribs ached, and her vision blurred.

She was in a dimly lit room—not the estate. Not the ruins. Somewhere new.

A rough cloth covered her body. She lay on a soft surface—a makeshift bed.

Someone moved in the shadows.

"You're awake," a calm, unfamiliar voice said.

She tried to sit up, but pain shot through her side.

"Don't move," the voice continued gently. "You inhaled too much smoke. You're safe now. I pulled you out before it all came down."

Ayla blinked, struggling to focus. "Who… are you?"

The figure stepped forward—revealing a woman, cloaked in black with a scar down her cheek and an expression hard as stone.

"You don't know me," she said. "But I've been watching from the outside for a long time."

She poured water into a cup and held it to Ayla's lips.

"My name is Rhea," she said.