Just as she thought, it was her end, and now finally she could no longer open her eyes.
When all the hope has died down. Suddenly, she felt her stiff body was returning to its normal state. She could feel the energy that had left her returning back again slowly.
From within her soul realm, the shadows began to rise.
They emerged slowly like wisps of dark energy unraveling from her spirit, moving like smoke and mist, curling around her body protectively. One by one, they dissolved back into her, pushing warmth into her frozen veins. A rush of life swept through her chest—powerful, but fleeting. Aeris knew what it meant.
Her shadows... were sacrificing themselves.
They were giving up their essence to keep her alive, just for a few more minutes.
Her time was slipping.
She held her baby tighter, and her heart ached. She didn’t have time to think. She had only one purpose now: to make sure her child was safe.
He was the only one who could protect the child. The only one she could trust.
Atlas was still too far. She didn’t know where he was or when he would arrive. She couldn’t wait any longer. She couldn’t risk losing the child to that man.
She closed her eyes, whispered a quiet plea, and the shadows responded.
They wrapped around her body like a cloak, lifting her gently, and the ruined building disappeared from view.
In the blink of an eye, she reappeared in front of Xu Kai.
He was already in a frenzy, pacing a silent corridor in a distant safe zone, his expression wild with fear. He had been trying to find her for hours and failing. The moment he saw her, his entire body froze.
Aeris stood there, bloodstained and injured, barely holding herself upright. Her hair was tangled, her skin pale, but her arms cradled a tiny, living child.
Xu Kai’s face crumbled.
He rushed forward and caught both of them, tears streaming down his face. His hands shook as he reached for the baby, carefully pulling it into his arms, his eyes never leaving Aeris.
"I’m sorry," he whispered, choked with guilt. "I’m so sorry... I couldn’t find you. I...I failed..."
But Aeris shook her head, weak but firm.
"No," she said, her voice dry and trembling. "No time for that."
He tried to hold her closer, but she pulled back slightly, her hand pressing against his chest.
"Listen to me. You have to keep her safe. That’s all that matters now."
Xu Kai’s arms tightened protectively around the child, but his eyes remained on Aeris, confusion and pain burning in them.
"I don’t understand. What happened to you? Who did this? Let me help—"
"Nothing happened to me; I am fine. There’s no time for this!" Aeris said louder now, though it hurt to speak. "You must hide her. Hide her presence. Don’t let anyone find her. Not by scent, not by trace. Use any gadgets or high technology, or simply keep her in your presence. Do you understand?"
Xu Kai swallowed hard and nodded, his face twisted with grief. "I will. I swear it. I’ll protect her with my life."
Aeris looked down at her daughter, her lips trembling.
"Good... You have to... because I won’t be there."
Xu Kai reached out, trying to steady her again. "No, wait. Please, don’t go. What happened, Aeris? Please tell me; don’t leave me ."
Aeris smiled faintly, painfully.
"You have to wait for me," she said softly. "I’ll come back. Just... wait for me. Keep her safe, and wait."
And before he could stop her, the shadows surged once more, lifting her out of his grasp, and she vanished.
For a moment, he just stood there.
The air still smelled faintly of her, that mix of blood and the shadowy cold she always carried with her. His arms felt hollow, as if the warmth had been ripped straight out of them the instant she vanished.
He stared at the space she had been in, his mind refusing to accept that it was empty now. It was like his body didn’t know what to do without her there—his hands kept twitching, reaching for someone who wasn’t coming back.
The baby whimpered softly in his hold, and that sound cut him deeper than any blade.
His knees almost gave out. He staggered back until his shoulders hit the cold wall behind him, sliding down until he was crouched on the floor, clutching the child as if holding her tight enough would somehow bring Aeris back.
His breath came in short, broken bursts.
He replayed every second: her pale face, the way her voice shook but still tried to sound strong, and the faint curve of that final smile. She had been slipping away in front of him, and he hadn’t even realized until it was too late.
"Damn it..." His voice cracked. He buried his face into the baby’s soft blanket, which was actually a torn fabric from Aeris’s cloth. His tears soaked into the fabric. "Why didn’t you let me help you... why..."
The corridor was silent except for the sound of his choked breathing.
Every instinct screamed at him to go after her, to tear through everything that dared to hurt her, every world if he had to, but he didn’t even know where she’d gone. She had left him with nothing but a promise he didn’t know if she could keep and a child who now held every shred of her life in her tiny heartbeat.
He had never felt this useless in his entire life. First, he could not even protect her or find her, and now she left him. It felt like she left both of them to take the fall of danger all alone by herself.
He tilted his head back against the wall, eyes burning as he whispered to the empty air.
"I’ll wait... I’ll wait, Aeris... But you better come back. Do you hear me? You better..."
His voice broke entirely.
And there, alone in that endless corridor, Xu Kai sat with the weight of her absence pressing on his chest until it was hard to breathe, clinging to the child as if she was the only thing keeping him from falling apart completely.