INT. THE ARK – LIMINAL MEMORY – TIMELESS
For a heartbeat, she still walks.
Lyra Mei moves down a corridor of light, her hand brushing the wall as if searching for something unseen. Her chest is unmarked, her steps steady. Somewhere behind her, faint echoes of battle sound, but distant, like a storm fading away.
Her voice is quiet.
Lyra Mei (whispering): If they keep fighting... even when I can't... that's enough for me.
The corridor fades. Darkness swallows her, and with it, her voice.
INT. THE ARK – CENTRAL HALL – SAME TIME
Reality crashes back. Lyra Mei's body lies still. Blood stains the stone where she fell. The survivors can't stop to mourn, not fully — the Sigils press too hard.
Arven grips his sword tighter, rage burning in his chest.
Arven (shouting, voiceless): Damn you!
He throws himself at Nyxira's shadows with reckless fury, every strike fueled by grief.
Grace stumbles back, tears streaking her face, her blade trembling. She blinks rapidly, refusing to let her vision blur. The memory of Lyra's final stand burns in her mind, keeping her moving even when her body wants to collapse.
Kwame slams the ground, tremors blasting through Mawreth's coils. His face is twisted, not just in rage, but in raw anguish.
Kwame (roaring): She stood for us! Stand for her!
The survivors rally, shouting even though Nyxira's silence swallows their voices. Their grief becomes violence, every strike against the Sigils heavier, sharper, desperate.
INT. THE ARK – SURVIVORS' LINE – SAME TIME
The young fighter Lyra saved stares at her still form. His eyes overflow. Tears streak his face as he grips his broken spear with both hands.
Young Survivor (hoarse whisper): Why her...?
Another survivor shouts Lyra's name in fury as he charges Druval. Another chokes back sobs mid-swing. The line wavers not from weakness, but from pain made into fire.
Narration: Some wept. Some raged. But none could deny the truth. Lyra Mei was gone.
INT. EARTH – WATCHER'S CHAMBER – NIGHT
Far away from the Ark, in the quiet of a candlelit chamber, Gabriel kneels before a circle of burning sigils. His hands hover above the flames, eyes glowing faintly as visions of the Ark ripple across their surface.
He watches as survivors clash with monsters in endless silence. He sees Lyra Mei fall, blood spilling across black stone, her body growing still in Arven's arms.
Gabriel gasps, clutching his chest as if the wound were his own. The flames flicker violently.
Gabriel (hoarse): No... not her.
The visions shift, showing the scattered survivors — their grief, their rage, their trembling line.
Gabriel lowers his head, shame burning in his eyes.
Gabriel (whispering): Another lost. Another I could not save. How many more before we break again?
He grips the edge of the circle, trembling.
Gabriel (to himself): What if... it's happening again? What if even with all this... we still lose?
The candles gutter low, shadows stretching across the walls. His power lets him see everything — but it cannot change anything.
Narration (closing):
In the Ark, Lyra Mei had fallen. On Earth, Gabriel felt the weight of it crush his soul. For the first time, he feared not just their deaths — but their defeat.
To be continued...