Location: Rooftop Garden, Outer Sector of Neo-Terra
Time: Early evening
Characters: Lia and Kairo
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The sun set low behind broken skyscrapers, turning the sky into molten orange. Lia sat cross-legged at the edge of the rooftop, watching the wind stir the dry grass and half-dead vines of the abandoned garden.
Kairo leaned against the railing, arms crossed, his eyes on her more than the view.
"You've been quiet," he said.
"I'm always quiet," Lia replied, not turning. Her voice was soft, but calm.
He smirked. "Not like this."
She plucked a wilted flower from the stone planter and twirled it between her fingers. "I had a dream last night. About my mother. She was smiling… like before everything."
Kairo's expression softened. "You miss her?"
"She's still here," Lia said. "But she's different. We all are."
There was a beat of silence. The city hummed faintly below—electric life, always moving.
Then Kairo moved beside her, sitting with a slight grunt, the metal of his gear clinking as he settled. "You know, when I first met you… I thought you hated me."
"I did," she said instantly.
He barked a laugh. "Wow. Honest."
"You were loud. Reckless. Always trying to prove something."
"And now?"
Lia glanced at him, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. "Now you're… still all of that. But you're mine."
His breath caught slightly. For once, Kairo had no smart comeback. He looked at her, searching her eyes, then looked away quickly.
She watched the city lights flicker to life one by one.
But just as they sat in that rare peace, the sky above pulsed faintly with a wrong kind of glow. Far off in the distance, where the horizon met the remnants of the Genesis scars, something shimmered—like the air itself was breaking.
Kairo noticed it too. His body tensed. "You see that?"
"Yeah," Lia said softly, standing. "It's starting again, isn't it?"
He nodded once. "Looks like we're out of time."
She didn't move for a moment, just stared at the far-off pulse like it might swallow everything.
Then, calmly, Lia reached into her coat and slid her gloves on.
"Let's go, partner."