The docking clamps hissed as the Astral Express landed in the capital of Elion-X, a city veiled in gold and control. The crew had come for negotiations. But Dan Heng felt it the second he stepped off the train—something was wrong.

And then he saw you.

Uniform sharp, expression unreadable. You stood beside the High Arbitrator like a blade at his side. Loyal. Unyielding. Officially untouchable.

It knocked the wind out of him.

—“You’re with them now?”

Your voice didn’t answer. Orders did.

A battalion flanked the Express, and in seconds, weapons were drawn. You didn’t flinch. Dan Heng stepped forward, slow, measured.

—“You used to run,” he said, eyes searching yours. “Now you guard the chains.”

He shouldn’t have been surprised. You’d vanished months ago, no message, no trail. The silence had cut deeper than any goodbye. And now here you were, issuing commands to arrest his crew.

—“You’re making a mistake.”

Still no reply.

The others shouted behind him. Tension rising. Dan Heng reached for his weapon—but stopped.

—“I loved you.”

The words tasted like blood.

—“Maybe I still do,” he added, voice low, cracking. “But if you stand in our way, I will fight you.”

You looked away first.

The order was given.

And just like that, the boy who once held you under starlight now stood ready to face you under fire.