A month had passed since the Prismic Gathering left Earth.
Now, under the eternal night of Vrasnia—a planet reborn from ruin—seven women soaked in the warmth of a private hot spring. Steam curled lazily into the air, rising toward a purple moon that hung impossibly large in the sky, casting its soft glow across the obsidian terrain. It was always night here. But somehow, it wasn't dark.
The water shimmered faintly, infused with Vrasnian minerals that tingled against the skin. A strange, beautiful calm had fallen over the gathering—until Gendai broke the silence.
She gazed up at the sky, her voice barely above the sound of bubbling water.
"Why is the moon purple here?"
Vanessa, her pale blue hair floating lazily across the water, didn't open her eyes. She only spoke, slow and serene. "Because we're in a different galaxy. A whole different side of the universe… where Nebula reigns."
Everyone except Riah and Jessie turned sharply toward her.
Gendai blinked. "W-Wait. You're saying… we're inside her domain?"
Vanessa's voice didn't change. "Yes. But there's no need to panic. This planet has a Disciple of Nullity now. Actually… two."
Her silver eyes opened slowly, reflecting the moonlight.
"She won't bother us. Not yet."
Neve furrowed her brow, her pale hair damp against her neck. "So… planets without a Disciple aren't safe?"
Vanessa tilted her head, her eyes locking on the moon. "I suppose not. But I don't think that's her main focus. Nebula's attention isn't on us. It's on the other side of the Equation. The light half. That's where she wants to break through."
Lihanna swam a little closer, her tone thoughtful but firm. "So her goal… is domination? Of the entire Equation?"
Vanessa nodded. "Or worse. She might be going after other universes. Ones with gods we've never even heard of. She's already killed Solaris."
Lihanna's eyes widened. "Wait—other universes?"
Jessie spoke then, calm but cold. "Yes. The multiverse is real. And if Nebula wants it all… then this isn't just about our world. It's everyone's."
There was a pause—long and heavy.
Riah finally spoke, her voice low but determined. "The battle with Nebula will come. And when it does… we'll have to give everything."
Felicia tried to smile, forcing some warmth into the space. "Hey. We've survived everything else, haven't we? We always win. That's what we do."
But no one answered.
Even Riah, the one whose light burned hottest, didn't echo that optimism.
"…That's the one battle I'm not sure we can win," she admitted quietly.
Felicia blinked. "Riah?"
Riah didn't look at her. "I'm not saying we won't fight. But if we believe we're invincible—if we think just being together means we'll win—then we've already lost."
Lihanna nodded. "If that were true… there'd be more of us in this water."
Silence again. Then Gendai's voice cracked.
"Mia. James. Tojo. Xavier. Lilly. Angelly…"
She trailed off. Her shoulders trembled just beneath the water.
"I miss them so, so much," she whispered.
Jessie closed her eyes, speaking almost like a prayer. "I do too. But that's why we fight. Not for revenge. For them. So their deaths weren't in vain. This world was cursed by parasites, twisted by gods. If we don't change it—no one will."
Neve looked down at her reflection in the water. Then up at the stars—faint, distant, veiled behind the moon's glow.
"…I feel the same. We've already lost so much. So while we still have time—while we still breathe—we need to live. Even just for these small moments."
She glanced at each of them, one by one.
"Because when the day comes that Nebula is among us… it might be our final goodbye."
Riah slowly reached over the water and clasped Gendai's hand.
"Then let's make these days count. Every laugh. Every night like this."
Gendai wiped her eyes, then nodded.
In that dark spring beneath a purple sky, no one spoke for a while. They simply stayed. Together.
And even though the stars were far…
The warmth they shared kept the cold of despair away.
For now.