The world did not shatter in a single sound, for it broke in fragments within her, each moment layering upon the last until the weight of it became unbearable, and Elara felt it then, not as pain alone, but as something deeper, something older, something that had waited far too long beneath silence and restraint.
Her breath caught.
Sharp.
Uneven.
As Alessandro staggered beneath Cassian's strike, as Rhea struggled to stand behind her, as Sarah stood caught between two worlds she no longer understood, and something inside Elara twisted violently, pulling tighter with every second she remained still.
"Enough…" she whispered, her voice low though strained, her fingers trembling faintly at her sides as she tried to hold herself together, though the effort began to fracture.
The memory rose.
Unbidden.
Voices.
Whispers.
"She's fake."
"She used him."
"She's nothing."
