The signs began the next morning.
Birds didn't sing.
Dogs wouldn't bark.
And Crescent Lake—usually calm and glassy—twisted in slow, unnatural circles, like something underneath was stirring from a centuries-long sleep.
Lina felt it before she saw anything:
A pressure behind her ribs, like her heartbeat was being pulled in two directions. She staggered, grabbing the railing of the old bridge.
Eiren appeared beside her in a rush of cold wind.
"It's starting," he said.
There was no calmness in his voice now—only urgency.
"What's starting?" Lina asked, breath shaky.
"The Merge," he said. "My world is trying to overwrite yours."
The sky darkened at the edges, clouds swirling in tight spirals. The lake churned harder, the spirals widening. A low rumble echoed from beneath the ground.
"And we have to stop it," Eiren said. "Right now."
He held out his hand.
Lina didn't hesitate.
The moment their fingers touched, a surge of cold warmth—like moonfire—shot through her arm, linking her pulse to his. Eiren inhaled sharply, eyes flashing with silver light.
"We need to seal the core breach," he said. "It's forming under the lake."
A massive crack ripped through the center of Crescent Lake, forming a jagged whirlpool that opened into a chasm of glowing blue darkness. The wind shot upward, nearly pulling Lina off her feet.
Eiren caught her, pulling her against his chest.
"You stay with me," he said, breath unsteady. "No matter what happens."
Something enormous shifted beneath the water—something with a shape Lina couldn't fully see, but could feel: ancient, hungry, aware.
The entire lake exploded upward.
Water spiraled into towering streams, twisting like serpents. One shot toward Lina, teeth of water forming at the tip.
Eiren yanked her close, threw up his arm—and a shield of silver light burst around them, the water crashing over it with a deafening roar.
"Eiren!" Lina cried. "You're shaking!"
"It's using our connection," he gritted out. "It's trying to break me."
And then he looked at her—truly looked—eyes wide with fear and something else.
"I need you to anchor me," he said. "Focus on me. Keep me here."
"How?" she asked.
He hesitated only a second. Then—
"Like this."
He cupped her face in both hands and kissed her.
It was quick—almost desperate—but everything inside her aligned in that instant. The world snapped into sharp focus. The fear quieted. Their shared pulse steadied.
When he pulled away, the silver around them blazed brighter than ever.
"Good," he whispered, foreheads touching. "Now breathe with me."
They inhaled as one.
Exhaled as one.
The whirlpool shrieked, collapsing inward. The creature's shadow recoiled. The crack sealed from the edges inward, glowing hotter, brighter—
Until the entire lake snapped still.
Silence.
The danger retreated, heavy and exhausted, like a monster forced back into its cage.
Eiren dropped to one knee, breathing hard. Lina knelt with him, gripping his hand.
"We're not done," he said softly. "But we survived this one."
He looked at her—the girl who anchored him, saved him, kissed him.
"And I'm not losing you," he whispered.
Not now.
Not ever.