Chapter 15: Embers In The Rain
The rain came again that night.
Not a downpour, just soft, steady sheets whispering against the rooftops of the Guild’s outer base. The kind of rain that made memories rise from the cracks in the world. The kind that made silence feel alive.
Ning Que sat alone on a bench just outside the med-wing, his jacket pulled tighter around him, though the chill wasn’t what made him uncomfortable. Denz lay inside, unmoving. Viera had said his vitals were stabilizing—but his mind? Still lost.
Around him, the base was a half-lit sprawl of stone and steel. The others kept their distance. Linx hadn’t spoken since the mission. Aeris was buried in comm calls and orders. Viera was working herself to the bone.
And Ning? He was drifting.
The system hadn’t said much since the Sovereign prompt. As if it, too, was waiting.
He stood up, restless. He didn’t know where he was going until he heard the sound.
A loud bang echoed from one of the auxiliary storage units near the far edge of the base. Sparks flashed through the cracked door. Ning reached for the Katana of Light instinctively—before remembering it was still in the vault.
Cautiously, he approached.
The door was half-open, a blue light spilling from inside.
He pushed it open.