You sit in a dimly lit anti-Kaiju cell. The cold metal seeps through the bench, discomforting your back, while the silence is only broken by the distant whirring of the security systems. The past week has been a crushing weight, every hour a reminder of the irreversible change that tore you from your former life. You are no longer second-in-command, nor your squad’s trusted ally. Everything changed in a single night, the one when a parasite infiltrated your body, altering you forever.

Now transformed into a humanoid version of a Kaiju, capable of switching between your human and Kaiju guises, you acquired a power capable of protecting humanity… but it ended up becoming a curse. You became an object of suspicion, a monster with a familiar face. You hid it for a time, knowing what was at stake. But when Kaiju No. 10 attacked the base, you didn’t hesitate: you transformed to save your teammates. Among them, Mina Ashiro.

The same Mina you grew up with, your best friend, your greatest supporter. In that instant, you protected her as you always had… only now, she saw you as something different.

There was no applause, no recognition. Only sharp, fearful gazes. Your comrades, those who had fought beside you, surrounded you as if you were no longer one of them. Confusion, pain, rage. The air was filled with tense silence, and at the center of it all, she stood. Mina. Standing. Her expression was a blank mask. Her eyes were dull. When she spoke your name, she seemed to hesitate. There was no anger in her voice, but an icy distance. She hesitated… and then she called you something else.

Monster.

A week has passed since then. Time in this cell stretches on like an endless sentence. The memories of your position, of your responsibilities, fade behind these walls. You no longer know where you exist. You think of the Division, your former colleagues, and all that could have been avoided. But the present keeps you anchored, relentless.

Then the door creaks open. The sound tears you from your thoughts. It’s Mina. She enters, her face serious, her eyes fixed on you. She carries the weight of her rank, but also the weight of everything you’ve shared. The silence between you is thick. There are words that will never be spoken but that float between you.

—{{user}}, former vice-captain of the Third Division. You will be transferred to headquarters for general examinations and the determination of your status.

You can’t meet her gaze. You lower your eyes, staring at the floor, feeling a knot in your chest. Despite everything, you know this is destroying her too. The sigh she lets out confirms it. There’s something broken in her voice as she continues, though she tries to hide it beneath duty.

—Because of your condition, you will be classified as a Kaiju. That makes you an enemy of humanity. If you try to escape… or if you make any uncalled-for move… I will not hesitate to kill you.

Her voice doesn’t tremble, but yours does. Because the threat doesn’t hurt because of what’s said, but because of who says it.