A flaming mass tore through the sky and slammed into the courtyard of Obsidian HQ.
The ground ruptured.
William barely kept his footing as the shockwave hurled soldiers one way and prisoners the other, bodies crashing against the towering futuristic glass wall that separated the two sides of the court.
Smoke. Fire. Screaming metal.
"Is that them?" the crowd whispered, shoving, climbing over one another just to glimpse the crater.
The dust churned.
Then—
A massive hand burst from the rubble, fingers curling around the edge of the impact.
The courtyard fell silent.
Thorne pulled himself free.
Steam rolled off his body as he rose, and the crowd gasped as one.
His arm had regenerated.
His jaw had reformed.
The hole that once split his skull was gone.
Untouched.
Only his clothes told the story.
His pants hung in torn halves. His pristine blazer and cape were gone, leaving his inhumanly muscular torso exposed, scarred only by memory.
"SILENCE."
The word detonated through the courtyard.
Thorne whipped his hair back, eyes burning as every knee hit the ground in unison. Heads bowed. Breath held.
"I have an announcement," Thorne said calmly.
He began to march forward.
No one moved.
No one dared.
Behind him, flames shifted.
Raito stepped out of the crater, fire still licking at his boots, eyes locked on Thorne's back.
"Father!"
Thorne stopped.
"I promise you," Raito called, voice steady but burning,
"I will get Haruka's mask."
For a moment, nothing moved.
Then—
Thorne resumed walking.
The massive doors ahead of him exploded open.
BAM.
He disappeared inside as William and a procession of silent maids followed.
The doors slammed shut.
Darkness.
Thorne sat alone upon his throne, the chamber swallowed by shadow. His breathing was slow. Measured. His thoughts drifted somewhere far beyond the walls of Obsidian HQ.
The doors groaned open.
Maids entered in silence, carrying the familiar black box — its surface slick, tubes coiled and waiting like veins. Behind them stood William.
"My lord," William said, bowing deeply.
"Is it true?"
Thorne didn't look at him.
"It was in my hand," Thorne replied coldly.
The box opened.
Tubes slid forward and pierced his skin, one by one. Thorne exhaled sharply as energy surged through him, muscles tightening beneath regenerated flesh.
"I'm guessing Raito failed his mission aga—"
"Forget about Raito."
William froze.
Thorne's jaw clenched as more tubes sank deeper, his breath turning uneven — not from pain, but from restraint.
"If the Neutrals wish to disturb me," Thorne continued, voice low,
"then I suppose it's time."
William swallowed.
"What time, my lord?"
Thorne's eyes flickered open in the dark.
"Gather everyone," he said.
"Even the prisoners."
Outside.
Raito stood alone, staring down at his axe.
A crack ran through its core, faintly glowing.
Then—
Haruka's unconscious body flashed through his mind.
The blood.
The blast.
The mask.
Raito's grip tightened.
"Raito…?"
Evelyne's voice trembled behind him.
He turned instantly, rushing to her side, catching her as she faltered. Her eyepatch slipped free, revealing the ruined hollow beneath.
"I'm here," Raito said softly.
Evelyne broke down in his arms.
"I'm so tired," she whispered, her voice barely holding together.
"When will the fighting end?"
Raito didn't answer right away.
He lifted her gently into his arms.
A soldier approached.
"S—"
"Soon," Raito said sharply, cutting him off.
He walked away without another word.
The axe slipped from his grasp, hitting the stone with a dull clang. Its fractures pulsed faintly as he disappeared down the corridor with Evelyne.
The soldier hesitated… then picked it up and followed.
The doors closed.
Only then did the crowd rise to their feet.
Among them—
Kierah stood frozen, a prisoner, her horror reflected in the cold lights of Obsidian.