I could sense it—we were in danger. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. I’d led us into a death trap. I’d dragged both of us to our graves.  This was my fault. All of it.

Reika slowly raised her right hand to her left glove.  She was shaking.

Was she… going to use her weapon?

The glove slipped off her fingers and fell to the floor. Instead of the pale, bony hand, she had a silver, mechanical-looking hand that gleamed beneath. It shimmered with a soft, warm green light—alive, glowing, powerful.

Before I could react, Reika spun around and threw her hand outward.

The hand expanded.

Metal shifted, unfolded, and grew until it was the size of a queen-sized bed.

She pulled me close and wrapped the massive metal hand around both of us, shielding us like a cocoon.

Purple beams blasted against the metal shell—dozens of them—crackling, screaming, burning. The sound echoed in my ears for what felt like forever.

“On the count of one, I’m letting go,” Reika whispered. Her voice shook. “You need to swing your chain and hit as many as you can. Ready?”

I glanced at her.

Her skin—her real skin—was turning obsidian-black.

The virus was spreading.

They were killing her.

“Three… two… one.”

She released me.

I burst out from her shield and hurled my chain with everything I had. The dagger flew, slicing through the walls like a blade of green lightning. The connection vibrated through my hands—I could feel it cut through demon bodies.

“You got ten,” Reika said weakly. “The rest… got away.”

I turned.

Blood dripped from her lips.

More smeared her hands.

A small pool gathered beneath her feet.

“Reika—stop. We need to end the mission here.”

She shook her head. Her voice was raw but firm. “Let’s finish what we came here to do.”

She pushed herself up, using the wall to steady her trembling legs.

“You take the ones on the right,” she said. 

“I’ll take the left.”

I hesitated. “Don’t get killed.”

For the first time ever, I saw it—  a spark of fire in her eyes.

She spat blood into her palm, wiped her mouth, and let her hand drop to her side.

Then she walked into the darkness, leaving a trail of red behind her.

Demons rushed at me the second I moved.

I whipped the chain in fast, vicious circles.

I leaped over beams, dodged blasts by inches, spun, kicked, rolled—anything to survive. My arm felt like it was on fire, but I ignored the pain.

One demon fell.

Then another.

Fall. Next. Fall. Next. Fall. Fall. Next. Next. Next. Fall. Fall. Fall. Fall. Next. Next. Next. Fall. Fall.

Until—

Silence.

Nothing was left.

The basement was finally still.

I clipped the chain around my neck, and it instantly transformed back into a necklace with the silver dagger at its center.

The thought of Reika alone jolted through me like a shock. I sprinted toward her side of the basement.

Lights flickered overhead. Debris crunched under my boots. Glass shards glittered across the floor.

And in the far corner—

Reika sat alone.

Her metal hand had shifted back to normal size, resting lifelessly on the ground beside her. Her head was leaning back against the wall. Her eyes were closed.

My heart stopped.

“Reika?” I whispered, rushing to her side. I shook her arm gently. “Reika, are you alright? Hey—can you hear me?”

“I can hear you loud and clear,” she mumbled, eyes still closed. “But could you be quiet? I have a massive headache…”

Relief hit me so hard I nearly cried.

“Sorry,” I whispered. “Can you walk?”

She shook her head slowly. 

“No energy left. My body fought off the virus and the demons at the same time. It… took its toll.”

“Stay here. I’ll get Eren.”

I sprinted up the stairs.

Eren was waiting right where we left him.

“Whoa! What’s the—Ari?! What happened?” he asked, eyes widening.

“Reika needs help. She can’t walk—she’s infected with the virus.”

All the color drained from his face.

He bolted down the stairs, and I followed.

Reika hadn’t moved an inch.

“So she’s not a normal weapon holder, huh?” Eren breathed in awe.

If she had been normal, the virus would’ve turned her to dust within seconds.

But she wasn’t normal.

The god’s jewel—Mani—was carved into her left hand, shining a bright, beautiful green. It protected her, kept the virus from killing her, and acted like a living vaccine.

She was lucky.

I was lucky.

Eren lifted her into his arms bridal-style and carried her out.

Gilbert rushed toward us. “I-Is the job done?”

“Yes, sir,” I said as Eren gently placed Reika in the back seat of Gilbert’s car.

“Thank you so much! You youngsters, are incredible!” He grabbed my hand and shook it hard enough to nearly rip it off. I yanked it back.

“Sir, we need to go,” I said quickly.

“Right! Right—of course!” He jumped into the driver’s seat.

I climbed into the back beside Reika.

“Will she be okay?” I asked.

Eren looked at her, then back at me. “She’ll be fine.”

I brushed my hand through Reika’s hair. It came away damp with sweat. She was burning up.

If she hadn’t acted so fast…

I would be a pile of dust.

“Thank you,” I whispered. “For saving me.”

Reika stirred slightly. “No worries… We’re family. Aren’t we?”

I smiled through the ache in my chest.

Gilbert drove us to the station as snow fell softly outside.

One thought kept nagging me some families are meant to be broken just like glass.