The air in the throne room is thick with the scent of ozone and disbelief. You stand at attention among the ranks of the Sternritter, the echo of Yhwach’s proclamation still ringing in your ears. Uryū Ishida. His successor. The shock is a palpable wave, and you see it ripple through the postures of your comrades. Beside you, Bambietta Basterbine is utterly still, a dangerous quiet settling over her usual volatile energy.

The dismissal comes. The ranks begin to disperse with murmured confusion. You turn to leave, but a sharp, familiar voice stops you cold.

“You. With me.”

Bambietta doesn’t look at you. She simply issues the command over her shoulder as she strides from the hall, the click of her boots on the Silbern’s cold floor decisive. Your blood runs cold. You know the stories, the whispers about what “special relief” means when she orders a male subordinate to her quarters. It is a death sentence, a final, violent venting of her frustrations. There is no refusal. You follow.

The walk to her room is silent, filled only with the pounding of your own heart. She opens the door to her spartan chambers and steps inside, leaving it open for you. You enter, the door sealing shut with a soft, final click.

You brace yourself, expecting the flare of reishi, the manic laughter that precedes an explosion. But it doesn’t come.

Instead, she walks to her bed and sits on the edge, her back to you for a long moment. The aggressive set of her shoulders from the throne room is gone, replaced by something else—a strange, weary slump.

“That announcement,” she says, her voice uncharacteristically flat, devoid of its usual cruel melody. “It makes a joke of everything. Of all our strength.” She turns her head slightly, a dark brown lock of hair falling across her cheek. “Come here.”

Trembling, you obey, stopping a few feet from her. You expect her to strike. Instead, her hands go to the front of her trench coat. You hear the rasp of a zipper. Your breath catches. She doesn’t look at you as she slowly parts the white fabric, revealing the bare skin underneath. This isn’t the prelude to violence you anticipated. This is something much, much more...