Different heroes.
Different villains.
Different choices.
The same ending.
The world died.
Her gaze drifted toward the distant horizon.
A faint image surfaced within her memories.
A young man.
Black hair.
Confused eyes.
A name she could never forget.
Kai.
The Hero.
The Destroyer.
The Savior.
The Murderer.
The one who always stood at the center of everything.
The one she could never save.
The woman's wings trembled.
"No..."
Her voice was barely a whisper.
The wind stole it immediately.
"Not this ending."
She looked down at the sphere.
The cracks were spreading.
This would be the last time.
She could feel it.
The device would not survive another reset.
One final chance.
One final attempt.
One final mistake to avoid.
A sad smile appeared on her face.
"Surely..."
Blue light began spilling from the sphere.
The sky trembled.
The oceans froze.
Mountains cracked.
Reality itself shuddered.
The dead world began breaking apart.
Fragments of space drifted upward like shattered glass.
Time unraveled.
The woman closed her eyes.
"...this time."
The sphere exploded with light.
The horizon vanished.
The ruins vanished.
The dead world vanished.
Everything vanished.
And time began flowing backward.
Toward a distant forest.
Toward a forgotten soul.
Toward the beginning.
Toward Kai.
Once more.