He blinked, trying to clear his vision, but it felt like the world around him was spinning. The council chamber—what was left of it—was a mess of crumbled stone, shattered glass, and screams. God, the screams.

He stumbled forward, his knees buckling slightly as he tried to make sense of what had just happened. Someone had sent something—a bomb, a device—he didn’t know. All he knew was that it had gone off, and now the air reeked of smoke and blood.

“Shit,” he muttered, his voice barely audible over the chaos. His eyes darted around, desperate for anything familiar, anyone alive. And then he saw it—or rather, them.

{{user}}.

They were pinned beneath the weight of a broken pillar, half-buried in debris. Their clothes were torn, skin smeared with blood and ash. Jayce’s heart dropped into his stomach. “No, no, no…” he whispered, already running toward them, his legs moving on instinct.

Sliding down onto his knees, he grabbed at the rubble, his hands trembling as he worked to move the heavier pieces. His muscles strained, his breaths ragged, but he didn’t stop. He couldn’t. “Stay with me,” he muttered under his breath, his voice cracking. “You’re fine. You’re going to be fine.”

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he managed to lift the last piece off of them. He leaned down, scooping their limp body into his arms. His heart sank further as he noticed how cold they were, how still. He pressed his ear to their chest. Nothing. No breath, no heartbeat.

“Shit, SHIT!” His voice broke, panic clawing at his chest. This couldn’t be happening. This couldn’t be happening.

Without thinking, he stood, holding them tightly against him as he staggered through the rubble, ignoring the pain in his legs, the dust in his lungs. He needed to get to his office. Now.

By the time he kicked the door open, his arms were shaking. He rushed to the desk, gently laying them down, his chest heaving. His eyes darted to their face—ashen, lifeless—and something inside him snapped.

No. Not like this.