[ The Sky Answers ]
__
Far behind us—
The sound of tal treads moving again.
The tanks—
Ca back to life.
One by one.
The barrels turned to aim once more.
At us.
All of them.
Yuna turned her head.
Her eyes changed.
No more hesitating.
No more wavering.
Tears fell.
One.
Two.
Dropping onto my face.
"Papa..."
Her voice was quiet.
"Please, hold on..."
She stood up.
Slowly.
Her hands gripping her wand.
"I will end this."
She took to the air.
Up.
Away.
And I—
Could only watch.
The sky.
Igniting with fire once again.
_
The sky—
Was no longer dark.
It was bright.
Too bright.
Not from the flas.
But from Yuna.
Her small body floated.
Silent.
Motionless.
The wind stopped.
The dust hung in the air.
As if the world was waiting.
_
Below—
The tanks had stopped again.
As if hesitating.
As if...
Afraid.
Yuna looked down.
Looking at her own hands.
Her hands were trembling.
"...I..."
Her voice was quiet.
Barely a whisper.
"...I don’t want..."
Her hands clenched into fists.
"...Papa to be in pain..."
_
Her wand trembled.
Light blossod at its tip.
One.
Then two.
Then—
Dozens of magic circles.
Materialized around her.
Seven layers deep.
Spinning.
Strange symbols that looked like Python code.
Things I couldn’t even begin to comprehend.
How could sothing like that exist within a magic circle?
I was below.
Still lying on the ground.
My eyes half-open.
"Yuna..."
My voice barely made a sound.
_
In the sky—
Her eyes changed.
No longer the eyes of a child.
Eyes that were Deep.
And Calm.
"Then..."
Her voice sounded Different.
Heavier.
Deeper.
"...I will end everything."
She raised her hand.
All the magic circles—
Stopped spinning.
And then—
The wand pointed downward.
Toward the battlefield.
Toward the tanks.
Toward—
Everything.
"Gravity Field."
The air—
Felt heavy.
Imnsely heavy.
The tanks—
Ground to an absolute halt.
Then—
CRACK!!!
Crushed.
Not from an explosion.
But from—
Pressure.
Forced into the earth.
As if trampled by sothing unseen.
One by one.
Crushed.
Fast.
Without deafening explosions.
Just—
The sound of cracking.
tal buckling.
Flattened like sheets of paper.
_
"Yuna..."
I tried to raise my hand.
I couldn’t reach her.
In the sky—
The mothership.
Began to move.
Its underside opened.
Light spilled out.
Sothing was being prepared.
Yuna looked up.
Silent.
A few seconds passed.
"...There is no other choice..."
She raised her wand.
All the magic circles—
Spun faster.
The light grew blindingly bright.
The air began to vibrate.
I squinted my eyes.
It was too bright.
"Then..."
Yuna took a breath.
Slowly.
"...I will use a grand spell."
The sky Fractured.
It literally cracked.
Like glass.
And from behind those cracks—
Another light erged.
Deeper.
Colder.
More distant.
_
I opened my eyes.
"...what is that..."
In the sky—
Sothing appeared.
Not fire.
Not lightning.
But—
A celestial body.
Massive.
Incomprehensibly massive.
Descending slowly.
Its shadow covering everything.
"This is..."
Yuna pointed upward.
"...Yuna’s teor."
Silence fell.
Even the war itself ceased.
The mothership—
Fell still.
As if—
It too realized.
That sothing far greater...
Was plumting toward this world.
I smiled weakly.
"...you..."
A heavy breath.
"...you’re going overboard, Yuna..."
The sky grew brighter.
And the teor—
Continued its descent.
__
[ Point of Impact ]
_
The teor—
Continued its descent.
Slowly.
But surely.
Drawing closer.
Growing larger.
The air vibrated.
The earth began to fracture.
I lay there.
Unable to move much.
My eyes fixed on the sky.
This was madness.
I never thought...
I would witness the apocalypse.
_
Yuna—
Was still up there.
Beneath that teor.
Small.
So incredibly small compared to what she had summoned.
Her hands were still raised.
Holding it.
Guiding it.
Controlling it.
The mothership finally moved.
Light gathered beneath it.
So kind of weapon.
Energy.
Blindingly bright.
Aid at the teor.
"—"
There was no sound.
And then—
The light was fired.
A WHITE BEAM—
Piercing the sky.
Striking the teor.
For a split second—
The teor cracked.
_
I forced my eyes wider.
Did it stop?
No.
The cracks—
Ignited.
It didn’t shatter.
It grew hotter.
Brighter.
As if accelerating.
Yuna clenched her fists.
"Fall."
A single word.
Sharp.
And the teor Fell.
No longer descending slowly.
But as if pulled down.
Directly.
Onto this world.
_
The sky turned white.
All colors vanished.
I closed my eyes.
Too late.
BOOOOOOOOOM!!!!
There was nothing else.
Only Sound.
A sound that wasn’t a sound.
It was a Vibration.
That shattered everything.
The earth—
Vanished.
The air—
Burned away.
The light—
Swallowed it all.
_
My body was lifted.
Weightless.
The heaviness was gone.
There was no more pain.
I opened my eyes.
White.
Only white.
No sky.
No earth.
No sound.
"...this is..."
I tried to speak.
No echo.
No answer.
Only an empty void.
I looked at my hands...
They were still there.
My body—
Still intact.
But the world—
Was not.
Slowly—
The light dimd.
And in the distance—
A silhouette.
A silhouette ca into view.
Small.
Floating.
_
"Yuna?..."
"Yes, it’s , Papa..."
Yuna’s voice.
I gave a small smile.
"...you..."
I couldn’t feel my steps.
Like I was drifting.
I tried to get closer.
But—
My body began to vanish.
Began to fade.
"Papa."
That voice.
Close.
As if incredibly close.
I blinked.
Suddenly, Yuna...
Was right in front of .
Her hand reaching out.
"...it isn’t over yet... Papa..."
That silhouette...
Her form looked Different.
No longer like a little girl.
No longer like a witch.
Sothing else.
I stared at her.
For a long ti.
...
...
Silence.
We rely looked at each other.
_
And then—
The world began to fracture once more.
Black lines appeared across the white void.
Like glass about to shatter.
I closed my eyes.
"...Yuna... I’ll go on ahead..."
At last, darkness.
__
[ Waking Up ]
The pressure on my chest returned.
Heavy.
A crushing weight.
My breath caught.
...
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
The pressure shifted.
No longer on my chest.
But on my shoulders.
Small steps.
Slow.
Up.
Down.
Up again.
_
"Papa! I got him! I got him!!"
Yuna’s voice rang out.
"Look! Look! He’s going down!!"
Light.
Faint.
Flickering.
I opened my eyes slightly.
Blurry.
The ceiling.
White.
A heavy breath escaped my lips.
"Haa..."
The pressure returned.
Clearer now.
On my back.
Moving.
Shifting.
Left.
Right.
I tried to move my fingers.
They moved.
"Papa! Wake up! This is getting so good!"
That voice.
So close.
I lifted my head a fraction.
My vision still swimming.
In front of .
The TV screen.
Lights flashing rapidly.
The sounds of an ani filled the room.
Characters shouting.
Explosions.
High-tempo music.
_
And on my back—
Yuna.
Standing.
Her two tiny feet.
Stepping up and down on my spine.
Suddenly, a small jump.
"Hah!"
Thud!
A sharp pressure.
My breath caught in my throat.
I closed my eyes for a second.
Inhaled.
Then opened them again.
"...Yuna."
My voice was hoarse.
Quiet.
Yuna imdiately looked down.
Her eyes sparkling.
"Papa! You’re awake! Look at this!"
Thud!
She jumped again.
Right in the middle of my back.
"Ghk—"
My breath hitched.
I imdiately pushed myself up with my hands.
Supporting my weight.
"Get off..."
Yuna stopped.
Peering down at my face.
"What’s wrong, Papa?"
I stared at her.
Still half-asleep.
My mind still foggy.
The flashes from before—
Fire.
Explosions.
Tanks.
The mothership.
...
The teor.
_
I took a deep breath.
And then.
Exhaled slowly.
"...You almost killed twice just now."
"Huh?"
Yuna tilted her head.
Genuinely clueless.
I closed my eyes for a mont.
Rubbed my face.
The lingering heat of the dream had faded.
Replaced by the blare of the TV.
The cool air of the room.
And the alternating weight of Yuna’s footsteps.
Which, I realized, was the exact reason that dream had manifested in the first place.
_
I tapped a finger lightly against my own back.
"Keep going."
"Okay, Papa!"
She stood up straight.
And climbed back onto .
Resuming her march.
But gentler this ti.
Tiny steps.
Up to my shoulders.
Down to my lower back.
No more jumping.
_
I let myself sink back into the futon.
Staring blankly ahead.
The ani kept playing.
Loud.
Chaotic.
"Papa."
"Hm."
"This character is super strong, you know."
"..."
I turned my head slightly toward the TV.
Colorful flashes reflected in my eyes.
"...Yeah."
Yuna paused on my shoulders.
Pressing down a little longer.
"Is it stiff here?"
"Yeah."
"I knew it."
"...Hm."
Her steps moved down again.
Slow.
Rhythmic.
_
"Papa..."
"If I step here... does it hurt?"
Her foot pressed gently just below my neck.
"No."
"What about here?"
Her foot pressed against my neck itself.
"...A little."
"Oh..."
She shifted again.
More carefully this ti.
The TV played on.
Characters laughing.
The sound of clashes.
Fast-paced music.
Yuna giggled softly along with it.
"Hehe..."
Her steps lost their rhythm for a mont.
Before returning to a slow, steady pace.
"Focus..." she murmured under her breath.
I took a deep breath.
Slowly.
The air flowed in.
Warm.
No explosions.
No tanks.
Only this small room.
And the sound of her footsteps.
I closed my eyes once more.
Not out of exhaustion this ti.
But because it was peaceful.
A soft voice.
Tiny steps.
The gentle weight on my back.
__
User Comments
0 comments from readers