It was three days since the rescue of Mihye. 

Tiffany awoke to a frantic Taeyeon shaking her, pleading eyes making her sit up instantly. 

“Tae?” She questioned, voice still hoarse from just having awakened. 

Taeyeon could no longer cry but it looked like she was on the verge of sobbing.

“Hyejeong’s dead.”

Their plane touched down back in Byulyi’s bunker only a few hours later, Yuri greeting Taeny with a crushing hug, stifling her cries in Tiffany’s shirt. No words were exchanged as they broke apart, faces devoid of hope. 

The General led them down the narrow winding corridors silently until they reached the briefing room.

Taeyeon froze in motion as the doors opened, revealing the coffin shut at the end of the room. She let out a pained wail as she glanced the figure leaning against the mahogany case.

Seolhyun was clinging onto the coffin, tears streaming down her hollow cheeks. Her happy persona was gone, replaced with a grieving mess. Still sobbing, she lifted her head to look at Tiffany and Taeyeon in the doorway, hair so wet from crying that it stuck messily to her skin.

“Come here baby.” Tiffany whispered, rushing forwards and pulling the girl into a desperate hug, cradling her against her chest as if she was a child. Taeyeon dropped to her knees infront of the pair, pulling them into her.

The trio were alone for some time, but gradually the room began to fill with their friends. They got to their feet, as Yuri entered with some soldiers and asked everyone to take a seat. She pulled a crumpled paper from her pocket and opened to try and read, but couldn’t form the words. 

Taeyeon got to her feet and placed a hand on Yuri’s shoulder before speaking.

“When I arrived at the resistance Hyejeong was the one who led me through everything. I can’t picture a single memory fighting where I wasn’t confident knowing she was by my side. Even as a kid, she achieved so much in pushing for equality and peace - I can’t think of anyone more talented than her.”

She paused for a moment, trying to suppress the numbness creeping through her body. 

“She deserved to see this through to the end. This whole revolution is because of people like her, and it would be ignorant to think the Resistance could have achieved so much without her leading us.”

Taeyeon bowed her head and walked to sit next to Tiffany and Seolhyun, pulling the young soldier into a side hug and lacing her fingers into her girlfriend’s trembling ones.

Yuri seemed to have gained her composure and began to speak, when a rumble reverberated through the thick steel walls, knocking her to the floor. Dust drifted through newly made cracks in the ceiling as the doors burst open revealing Byulyi.

“RUN!” She screamed, shepherding people out of the room just as the ceiling started to crumble as bang sounded, rattling the bunker once again. “THE JETS, LET’S GO!” 

“Not without Hyejeong!” Seolhyun screamed, writhing in Yoona’s grip as she pulled her into the corridor. “Let me go!” Her feeble hits did nothing to stop the AI from carrying her towards safety.

“We can’t Seol - I’m sorry.” She spoke softly as the young woman seemed to collapse in her grip, shouts of protest turning to stifled weeping as she buried her face into Yoona’s chest.

Everyone was racing through the base, struggling to find their footing as the ground underneath them shook and debris began to fall. Hundreds were rushing onto ships as they entered the hangar.

“It’s no use.” Byulyi exclaimed to Yuri. “There’s 10 jets up there, we can’t get out.” 

“You don’t have tracking missiles?” Yuri replied, throwing on her jacket and loading a rifle. 

“They were damaged in the initial hit.” The teen was in such distress as she buried her hands in her hair, threatening to tear it out. “Someone needs to go out there and shoot them down.”

“I will.” 

All heads whipped round to the newcomer in the conversation. 

Seolhyun stood defiant before them, wiping her nose with her sleeve as she strapped on her helmet and loaded her rifle, slinging it over her shoulder.

“No.” Yuri replied, frowning. “We’ll send Taeyeon or Yoona. We’re not losing you too Seol.” 

“You need them, if they’re destroyed in this then it’ll be days until you can get them back and functional. Besides…” Seolhyun just sighed and smiled sadly. “I need to do this Yuri. There’s nothing left for me here anymore. I can’t live without her.” 

“Seolhyun…” Taeyeon pleaded but she knew it was no use.

“I want to be with her again - please. Let me have one last fight first?” 

No one had the heart to reply as Seolhyun boarded a single person fighter jet, the one kind that would be fast enough to make it out of the base without being blown up. 

“Prepare the doors.” She shouted, climbing the ladder into the cockpit and preparing to shut herself inside. Her head spun towards her friends for one last time as she spoke her final words. “You’re the best family I could have wished for.” 

Yuri stepped forwards and saluted, lip trembling once again as the jet began to inch forwards. The scene seemed to stand still as another wave of bombs hit and Seolhyun pushed down the throttle,  just in time for the bombing to cease, and the hangar doors to open to the outside world. 

Taeyeon’s hand gripped into Tiffany’s as they boarded Byulyi’s jet, barely able to comprehend the fact their friend just walked into her suicide. The silence inside the ship was deafening as they nervously watched the radar, waiting for the Senate bombers to flicker off of the screen. 

The passing time felt like hours, but it was only seconds before the sound of an explosion above followed by the disappearance of a bomber on the radar let them release a breath they didn