I wanted to say yes immediately. To be certain. To be the confident leader they needed. But I was tired and broken, still grieving.

"I don't know," I said honestly. "I want to say yes, I want to believe that freeing everyone from the Council's control is worth any price. But when I see the bodies. When I count the dead. When I visit the families..." I trailed off.

"Then why continue?" Ravenna pressed.

"Because stopping now makes their deaths meaningless. Because the Council and League are both still threats. Because if we quit, nothing changes and more people die anyway." I met her eyes. "And because I'm too stubborn to surrender."

Seraphina laughed softly. "That's the most honest thing you've said in days."

"It's true though." Marcus spoke up. "If we stop now, the League will keep killing. The Council will keep manipulating. At least if we fight, we're trying to change something."

"Even if we die trying?"

"Especially if we die trying." Lucille's voice was hard. "I'm an assassin. I've killed people. I've accepted that I might die violently. But I'd rather die fighting for something real than live safely in a lie."

"Easy to say when you're not the one permanently weakened," Ravenna muttered.

"You think I don't know that?" Lucille's eyes flashed. "You think I don't see what this cost you? But Ravenna, you chose to use that technique. You chose to go beyond your limits. No one forced you."

"I know that....."

"Then own it, it's the choice you made, we all make choices. That's the point of breaking the cycle. Agency. Choice. Freedom." Lucille looked around. "Yes, people died. Yes, we're injured. Yes, the cost is terrible. But we're here. We're alive. And we can still fight. That's more than the two hundred and thirty-seven have. So let's not waste it questioning whether we should."

Silence.

Then Ravenna laughed, biitter, tired but genuine.

"You're right. That was annoyingly inspirational."

"I'm an assassin. Inspiration isn't my strong suit." Lucille almost smiled. "But I meant it, we're in this, all of us, until the end."

"Whatever that end looks like," Marcus added.

"Probably death," Damian said cheerfully. "But meaningful death."

"You're all insane," Ravenna said. But she was smiling slightly. "Fine. I'm in. Still. Despite everything."

Seraphina looked at me. "What about you? Still leading this suicide mission?"

"Someone has to." I tried to sit up straighter. Regretted it immediately. "Besides, I'm the villain. Suicide missions are kind of my thing."

"Then we're with you." Seraphina extended her hand. "All of us. Until this ends or we do."

I took her hand and the others joined in to form a circle of hands. A promise of sort.

We were broken. Injured. Traumatized.

But we were together.

And that was enough.

☆☆▪︎▪︎☆☆

That afternoon, I had one more visitor. Adrian knocked, entered cautiously.

"Bad time?"

"I'm in a hospital bed recovering from trying to fight you and then an SSS-rank entity. It's all bad time." I gestured to the chair. "But come in anyway."

He sat. "Your team seems solid. Saw them leaving earlier. They were laughing about something."

"Probably about how we're all going to die horribly."

"Ah. Gallows humor. My team does that too." He was quiet for a moment. "I talked to Victoria last night. After she met with you."

"She told you about the five years?"

"And the technique. And everything else." His jaw was tight. "She's dying. And she's acting like it doesn't matter."

"It matters to her, she's just choosing to spend her remaining time fighting instead of mourning."

"Is that brave or stupid?"

"Both, most brave things are."

Adrian smiled slightly, then it faded. "She offered to teach me. The Fate's Severance technique. Said I'm SSS-rank, so my success chance is higher. Maybe fifty percent instead of thirty-three."

"Are you going to learn it?"

"I don't know. One in two chance of death or crippling." He looked at his hands. "But if I don't, and the Council comes, will I be strong enough? Will raw SSS-rank power be enough against entities that control reality?"

"Probably not."

"Thanks for the honesty."

"You asked."

He laughed. "I did." Silence stretched. Then: "Ezra. Why are you doing this? Really. You could have played along. Been the villain who loses and lives. Accepted your role. Instead you fought. Built a faction. Nearly died multiple times. Why?"

I considered the question. The real answer.

"Because I read the story. I knew how it ended. And I decided I didn't like it."

"That's it?"

"That's enough." I met his eyes. "You're doing this because you want to know who you really are. Victoria's doing it because she has five years and wants them to matter. My team is doing it because they believe in something. Everyone has their reason. Mine is just that I read ahead and decided to change the ending."

Adrian was quiet for a long moment. "Can we? Change the ending?"

"We're already changing it, you're supposed to be the perfect hero right now. Beloved. Supported. Destined for greatness. Instead you're disowned, questioning everything, and allied with the villain. That's not in the script."

"No. It's not." He smiled. "Feels good though. Choosing my own path."

"Wait until the consequences start piling up. Then ask me if it feels good."

"Fair point." He stood. "I'm going to try it. The technique. Victoria said she'd teach us both. You, me, and anyone else strong enough." He moved to the door. "Will you try?"

I looked at the scroll on my bedside table. Black leather. Crimson seal. One in three chance of death.

"Probably. If I survive the broken ribs first."

"Then we'll learn together. Hero and villain. Learning a technique meant to cut fate itself." Adrian shook his head. "Six months ago, I'd have said that was impossible. Now it's just Tuesday."

After he left, I picked up the scroll.

Broke the seal.

Read the first page.

The technique was brutal. Dangerous. Required channeling power through your life force itself. Risk of immediate death was high. Risk of slow death was higher.

But the reward...

The ability to cut through fate threads. To sever destiny bonds. To break Council manipulation at its source.

Worth it?

I didn't know.

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