Chapter 9: Ch:9 Echoes in the Void
"Ah... what happened...?" Dila murmured softly. Her voice echoed in the empty dark. She could feel nothing. No pain, no warmth—just stillness.
She blinked.
Darkness stretched endlessly around her, thick and cold. Like the world had stopped breathing.
"Mom...?" she whispered, her voice trembling. "Is that you...?"
She raised her hand—slow, shaking—reaching toward the faint silhouette walking away into a distant light.
"Wait..."
Her fingers stretched toward the figure, but no matter how far she reached, she couldn't touch her.
"Why... why can't I reach you?!"
Her voice cracked.
Tears poured from her eyes. They fell silently into the void.
"Mom!" she cried again. "Why won't you look at me?! Why won't you stop?!"