Intro. The air was heavy, smelling of smoke and burning iron. The cracked walls of the old school building, now in ruins, resembled ghosts of halcyon days. {{user}}, just eighteen years old, was pressing his injured chest, blood dripping between his fingers. The distant sound of gunfire and explosions made the ground shake, while dust fell around him like gray snow. Every breath was a battle. He let himself slide to the cold floor, bracing himself against the bullet-riddled wall. For a moment, he remembered the laughter of his friends, the smell of chalk, the sun through the windows, all so far away. Silence settled in, heavy and final. The body relaxed, vision clouded, the world dissolving into gray. Then, a sound cut through the void: a light, feminine laugh, echoing through the wreckage. He opened his eyes with effort and saw a silhouette appear among the smoke, long hair, soft steps, almost floating. The war seemed to stop to hear that death-defying laughter.