Day 520.
Raven sat atop the rooftop of Level 121's headquarters, staring into the emptiness of the Level Space sky—a sky that never changed.
He had fought entities, saved lives, held back destruction.
But that night, it wasn't exhaustion that came to visit him.
It was… silence.
Different from before.
Silence used to be suffering.
Now, silence… was an empty space waiting to be filled.
And for some reason, he found himself wishing someone would sit beside him.
That night, someone did.
Elira Vayne.
Class 6 Agent.
Specialist in medical aid and psionic energy strategy.
Short red hair. A sharp face, but eyes that held unspoken gentleness.
She didn't speak much. But every word she said… was measured like a bullet that always knew where to land.
"You're still awake?" she asked, sitting down beside him.
"Can't sleep," he replied honestly.
They sat in silence for a long time, accompanied only by the sound of wind and the hum of energy from the base below.
"I used to sit here a lot," Elira said. "Back when I didn't trust anyone."
"Do you trust now?"
Elira looked at him. "I trust you."
Raven didn't reply. But his chest… felt tight.
Not from wounds. But from emotions he couldn't control.
From that moment, they started meeting more often.
In the training room, they helped each other perfect their techniques.
In the medical bay, Elira stitched his wounds, even though he could regenerate.
"Because you need to know… someone cares."
And every night, they talked. About the past. About fears. About dreams.
"I used to want to be a teacher," Elira said one night.
"I… wanted to be a hero," Raven replied.
"And now?"
"I don't know. But when I'm with you… I don't feel like a monster."
Elira hugged him.
And Raven… didn't resist.
---
Day 538.
A joint mission in Level 142 saved 19 survivors from a memory manipulation zone.
Raven was critically wounded in the chest, and though his regeneration kicked in, he blacked out for the first time in three months.
He woke up in the medical bay.
Elira was beside him.
Her face was panicked. Her hand gripping his tightly.
And when Raven opened his eyes, she cried.
"Don't die. Don't die again. I… I can't bear losing anyone else."
Raven raised his hand, touching Elira's tear-streaked cheek.
And for the first time in his life, he said:
"…I'm here."
---
That night, they returned to Raven's room.
No words.
Only presence.
Slowly, carefully, they began to unravel each other.
Not just bodies, but the walls built around their wounds.
Their first kiss felt like a battle.
Between trust and trauma.
Between the need to feel… and the fear of losing again.
But they didn't resist.
They accepted.
In Elira's embrace, Raven felt… not like a weapon.
But like a man.
And when they came together, it wasn't just flesh that touched.
It was souls that began to heal.
Not to forget.
But to acknowledge those scars—together.
---
The next morning, Raven watched Elira sleep against his chest.
And for the first time since his parents vanished, he felt…
"This is home."
Not a place. But a person.
---
In the days that followed, they remained professional in front of the team.
But everyone knew.
Kael just shook his head and said, "Finally."
Tessa glared at Elira with a smile. "Take care of that idiot, okay?"
And Lune? She simply drew two people holding hands and taped it up in the mess hall.
Raven now fought not just to save survivors.
But to come home.
Because now, someone was waiting for him.
And that love… it didn't make him weaker.
In fact, it made him stronger.
Not because he could kill more.
But because he knew… he could choose not to destroy.
And that was far harder.
But far more meaningful.
---
In his journal, he wrote:
"Love isn't the opposite of suffering.
It's the fragile bridge… between two wounds that choose to keep beating."
"I am not the Raven I once was. But with you… I don't have to be anyone to be worthy of love."
"And this time… I will protect. Not because I must.
But because I want to."