The city healed slowly. Not in a rush, not with noise but like something breathing again after being held underwater too long. The sun rose warmer now. Streets once filled with smoke and ash were alive again. Vendors swept the front of their shops. Children ran barefoot through puddles. The air smelled like wet earth and new beginnings.
Taye walked through it all, quiet, watching.
Every face he passed looked a little brighter, even if the eyes still carried what they'd seen.
Nnena walked beside him, her hands in her pockets. "Feels strange, doesn't it?"
He nodded. "Yeah. Like the world's trying to remember itself."
At the bridge, the river shimmered under the morning light. It no longer whispered like before, it just flowed, calm and wide.
But if you listened close enough, it almost sounded like someone breathing.
They stood there for a while, just watching.
"Do you think she's really gone?" Nnena asked.
Taye didn't answer at first. He stared at the reflection of the clouds in the water.
Finally, he said softly, "Not gone. Just changed."
Nnena smiled a little. "You sound like her."
He chuckled. "Maybe she finally rubbed off on me."
By afternoon, they reached the heart of the city, buildings were being rebuilt. People had painted bright marks on walls,circles crossed by crescents, the same symbol once feared.
But now, the colors were warm, gold, red, sky-blue.
Taye paused in front of one.
"What's this?" he asked the man painting.
The man smiled without looking up. "It's for the Lady of the River. They say she stood against the dark when everything fell apart."
Nnena glanced at Taye quietly. "Where did they even hear that?"
The man shrugged. "Nobody knows. Just started spreading. Some say they saw her in dreams."
Taye nodded slowly. "Dreams…"
He and Nnena walked on. He didn't tell anyone the truth that the Lady of the River had a name. That she was real. That she'd once smiled at him through the storm.
Maybe she'd become something bigger now, not just Lira, but a story that made people believe again.
As they passed through the markets, life pulsed everywhere.
Children sold charms shaped like tiny waves or suns, saying they brought luck.
Old women burned herbs by the roadside, muttering prayers to "the one who walks on water."
Taye smiled softly. "Looks like the world doesn't need to see a miracle to believe in one."
Nnena grinned. "Guess faith's stronger than fear."
He nodded. "Maybe that's how light really spreads."
That night, they camped near the river again. The moon was full, bright enough to touch the ripples with silver.
Nnena leaned back on her hands. "Feels peaceful now," she said.
Taye looked up at the stars. "Yeah. Like the city's finally sleeping."
For a while, they didn't speak. The water moved gently, and the fire crackled beside them.
Then, from across the river, a faint glow appeared soft, pulsing, familiar.
Taye stood slowly, heart beating fast.
The glow grew brighter, shaping into the outline of a woman in white light.
Her hair flowed like the river itself. Her face calm, kind.
"Lira…" he whispered.
She didn't speak at first. She just smiled, warm and sad at once.
"You're still here," he said quietly.
Her voice was soft, carried by the wind. "I never left, Taye. The river remembers, and now so do you."
He took a step forward, the water cool under his feet. "People talk about you. They think you saved them."
Lira tilted her head. "Then maybe they saved themselves. I only gave them the chance."
Taye swallowed, his voice low. "What happens now?"
"Now," she said gently, "you live. You protect the balance. The Veil isn't gone, it flows through every choice you make. Every act of kindness. Every light you leave behind."
Her glow began to fade, little by little.
"Lira…"
She smiled. "Goodbye, Lightbearer."
And then she was gone.
Only the soft ripples on the river remained, spreading slowly until the surface was still again.
By dawn, Lagos shone brighter than it had in years.
Sunlight spilled over rooftops and water, painting everything in gold.
People filled the streets again.
Laughter replaced sirens.
Nnena found Taye standing on the old bridge, staring at the horizon.
"She came again, didn't she?" she asked.
He nodded. "Yeah."
"What did she say?"
He smiled faintly. "To live."
Nnena chuckled softly. "Typical Lira."
He turned to her. "You still thinking of leaving?"
"Maybe," she said. "The world's big again. Might as well see it."
"Then go," he said. "The balance doesn't need to stay in one place."
She smirked. "And you? What will you do?"
He looked back at the city, the rebuilt towers, the bridges glowing under the sun. "Watch. Protect. Listen."
She laughed. "Still the detective, huh?"
"Always," he said. "But this time, I'm not looking for crimes. Just signs of light."
They walked together until the streets grew busy with people.
Children laughed, running past them.
One boy drew in chalk on the ground, a circle crossed with crescents, surrounded by bright yellow rays.
Taye stopped. "What's that?"
The boy grinned. "My teacher says it's the Lady's mark. It keeps bad dreams away."
Taye knelt, smiling. "Then keep drawing it, okay?"
"Okay!" the boy said proudly.
As Taye stood, Nnena nudged him. "Looks like she's still doing her work."
He smiled softly. "Yeah. Maybe she always will."
That evening, Taye returned to the river one last time.
The sunset turned the water gold and red.
He sat on the stone steps, feeling the cool air touch his skin.
He looked at his hands, no glow now, no shadow. Just light and flesh, whole and still.
"The world's breathing again," he said quietly.
The wind stirred gently, brushing past him like a whisper.
He smiled. "Yeah, I know. Thank you."
Nnena joined him, sitting beside him without a word. Together they watched the city lights come alive.
They weren't harsh like before, just soft, steady, human.
Lagos wasn't haunted anymore. It was alive.
And for the first time, so was he.
Far beneath them, deep in the river's heart, something pulsed not darkness, not warning....just rhythm.
Like the heartbeat of a world reborn.
Taye listened, eyes half closed.
He didn't hear whispers... only peace.