The dawn was a cruel thief, stealing the night's shadows and leaving the city exposed—raw and unforgiving. I could feel it in my bones: something was about to shatter.
The air hung thick with anticipation. Every breath tasted of smoke and distant thunder. The streets that had once been my hunting grounds now felt like a cage closing in.
Inside me, a storm raged—quiet but relentless. The truth I carried was heavy, a burden that no silence could lighten.
Remi's voice echoed in my mind, steady as ever, reminding me of what we were fighting for. But sometimes, his hope felt like a fragile thread, barely holding me from falling into the abyss.
I stood on the rooftop, watching the city wake—lights flickering out, people moving unaware of the war brewing beneath their feet.
I clenched my fists, nails digging into skin. The past and future collided inside me, and I was the fault line.
How much could a person carry before breaking?
The answer was becoming clear.
Memories clawed at the edges of my mind — the screams muffled by sterile walls, the cold gaze of the men who made me, the endless nights of training where humanity was a lesson to forget.
But beneath the surface, something else lingered — a fragile shard of who I used to be.
I took a breath, steadying the chaos inside.
This wasn't just a mission anymore.
It was a reckoning with myself.
Every choice had a cost.
Every truth demanded a price.
And I was ready to pay it.
The rooftop door creaked behind me.
Remi stepped out, eyes hard but kind.
"You ready?"
I nodded, my voice steady despite the storm.
"Let's finish this."
Together, we moved down the fire escape, the city's first light casting long shadows behind us.
The building awaited — cold, unyielding, the birthplace of everything I was running from.
But tonight, it would face its breaking point.
Because I was no longer the girl they built.
I was the reckoning they never saw coming.