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“Let's get out of here.” Leo, ever being the voice of reason, beckoned their squad towards himself. “Elysium and Kunlun are still at large, we wouldn't want another fighter jet crashing down on us.”
While hums of agreeance resounded through the group, Yumo stopped in her tracks and stared blankly at where the final battle had just taken place. It had been a year since everything went down with Nemea, and she thought this time things would be alright but.. it didn't sit right with her.
Nemea wasn't here. She thought that maybe the anger Typhon had expressed was the same that Nemea had experienced a year ago, but the difference was that Nemea got sympathy. She was just a little girl, Yumo herself had dived in and saved her. Typhon.. had a group of adults yelling at him about how much of a brat he was, and had been taken down with the frustration of a group who wanted revenge. But.. for what? They hadn’t even known what Vandak was trying to achieve. Even he was worried about what Typhon was doing in the end, and yet Raven had pushed him over the edge, and now he was gone too.
“Yumo?” Her train of thought was cut short by Leo and his usual worrying. By this point, everyone else was preparing to leave but she was still standing motionless, fixated upon the wreckage. “Yumo, let's go.”
Yumo’s breath staggered.
“What do we tell Nemea.. when we get separated?”
Silence.
“We.. killed her brother. She wanted to meet him, she kept saying how he was calling out to her..” Suddenly, her emotions were bubbling over and she couldn't help but muddle her way through her tears. “I know he fooled us all, but Nemea was hurting once so maybe he could come around too.”
As her tears stained her cheeks, Leo made his way towards her to put a reassuring hand upon her shoulder.
“We didn't kill him, Nemea. He chose his own fate. We can try to get Meng Zhang to finally open up, and see if anything can be done. But for now, we need to get out of here, it isn't safe.”
“What about Vandak?”
Heels clicking on the hard floor, along with a momentous groan gave Raven’s presence away immediately.
“That bastard hurt Shoel, he wasn't going to survive anyway after I was through with him.”
Tears welled up in Yumo’s eyes again.
“What if it was Mister Shoel who was left to die..? Vandak didn't kill him, he..” She balled her fists into her eyes. “Why does anyone have to die? Nobody died last time! We didn't even know what he was trying to do!”
“Yumo, let's go.”
And like that, the party scrambled and began to run away from the furnace core, away from the sweltering heat and the explosions erupting around them. Away from everything other than the guilt which lay heavy on Yumo’s chest for the events that had transpired. There was so much she hadn't known about Typhon, or about Vandak, and yet she was meant to accept that was the end for them. Unlike a year ago, where what she thought was the end for not only herself, but for Nemea too, where she had the luxury of finding herself safely in Leo’s warm embrace, those two had to spend their final moments in a giant furnace.
As the group made good time on their escape, something in Yumo’s brain clicked. The whole base was built upon water. If by some small margin someone fell into the furnace, maybe, just maybe, they could've fallen through it and into the water below.
Without second thought, she activated her D.ARMS and dove over the railings, bracing herself not only for landing, but against the screams of Leo, who understandably, was scared out of his mind at her rash actions.
The state of the space below the core was another world from the chaos above. The sheer sound resounded throughout but there was no fire, no explosions. Just debris from above falling and either dropping down into the water, or piling up on already fallen rubble. With each new piece which dislodged and crashed down, Yumo assumed it was only a matter of time before the whole thing collapsed.
“Yumo!” Leo had jumped right after her, his worrywart nature obviously not allowing her to put herself in danger alone. “What are you doing? We need to get out of here!”
She didn't have time to discuss the details, the only thing on her mind was the need to scan the area and.. the red of Vandak’s suit stood out from a mile off. Leo caught on pretty quickly, the two of them wading through the water to pull him free of the wreckage. He looked pretty beat, having lost his suit jacket and much of his shirt being torn to shreds, unsurprising after Raven’s plans to mince him with her chainsaw. With parts of the core still falling and daring to put an end to the three of them, Leo hoisted the man over his shoulder and urged Yumo to finally focus on leaving. They could check him over once they were safe.
The journey back to Tumaz Mart was an exhausting one. Everyone managed to make it out of the base in time, and with Ull’s jet ready and waiting to pick the group up, he was able to safely fly them back to Ximending. The choice to bring Vandak aboard wasn’t exactly a welcome one, but the shared exhaustion saved Yumo from any bickering.
The days following the final battle were strained. Shoel returned to Hesperia with Raven, following through with his plans for the good of Ximending despite the company being a front, and Meg worked hard to separate Nemea from Yumo, while also working on plans to separate Boss from Yusha, which left the rest of the store’s crew to continue business as usual. Or, to the best of their ability without arousing suspicion, anyway.
As with how Meng and Shoel were brought back to Tumaz Mart to recover after being betrayed, Vandak too was placed under their care. Being Kunlunian himself, it likely wasn't viable to take him to a hospital, especially since they couldn't exactly explain what had happened to him to an unknowing human. Yeah, he was attacked with a chainsaw and kicked into the Dragon Vein Furnace Core, before being fished out of the rubble like a wet rag. It just wasn't possible.
Luckily, the store had plenty of medical supplies thanks to their usual ventures into Youshanding, so he was making good progress. Though, Yumo knew anything used on him would be coming straight out of her paycheck.
“Mister Vandak,” Accompanied by a light knock on the staff lounge door. “I brought you some medicine, and a treat so you better be awake..!” She tried to keep it lighthearted. After everything, she didn't see the need to antagonise him, especially with it being blatantly clear that he didn't have a place with Hesperia anymore. As she let herself inside, she could see him shuffling himself to sit up in the bed he had been bound to for the past few days.
He took the medicine, no questions asked. It was working, and he was appreciative of that. His torn shirt had been replaced with a spare Tumaz Mart uniform polo, which Yumo felt Boss would find amusing, given the store was looked down on and she had always berated Vandak for being some rich guy.
“Um, I got you a chocolate mianjian cake. I passed the stall on my way back from visiting Yawen..” She carefully offered the take-out bag to him, and he accepted it in an equally gentle manner. A small smile curled at the corner of his lips as he opened the bag. “Think of it as repayment for the one you gave me that one time.”
It was difficult. She knew this was the Vandak that was backing up whatever it was that Typhon was doing, who had attacked everyone on multiple occasions and would have likely sent them to their deaths if not for Raven’s intervention, but as he recovered, she couldn't help but recall the Vandak who she'd bump into every now and then who would offer to share whatever food it was that he had gotten on his breaks, the Vandak who was concerned about Shoel fraternising with Yusha..
“Are you going to try to go back to Hesperia?”
The smooth trademark laugh she had gotten to know escaped from his lips. “Oh, no. Raven said I was fired. Besides, I think she'd try to kill me again if I showed my face there again.”
Awkward silence. She didn't mean to make it heavy, or to bring up what had happened. Maybe it was a silly question, but she needed a lead up to what she had actually intended to say.
“You're welcome to work here at the store, I'm sure I could get Boss to agree if she saw it as repayment for.. everything. And that way we can keep an eye on you. I think it'll take a while for the others to trust you.”
“Ah.. You trust me, Yang Yumo? I'm flattered.”
“I think everyone deserves a second chance. We gave Nemea a second chance, and I couldn't imagine life without her. I can't say I trust you a hundred percent, but I don't think you're a bad guy.”
The silence set in for a moment as he took another bite of the dessert. After swallowing hard, he gave her an earnest smile. “Well, you kind convenience store workers have already given me the uniform, so who am I to decline?”
Somehow, it was a weight off her chest. Maybe partly on Nemea’s behalf. If there was any chance of getting Typhon back, then perhaps he’d feel more comfortable with Vandak being around rather than just the people who had pushed him to his limits. He had referred to him as “big brother Van”, afterall. She really hoped that if that were the case, then Typhon could also be a normal boy so he and Nemea could be real siblings. Unknowingly, Yumo took a sigh of relief, catching his attention.
“Thank you, Yang Yumo. Your kindness shall not be misplaced.”
She nodded, dismissing herself. It would take time to get everyone else on board, but she felt hopeful. If they could save Ximending from disaster twice, then surely they could get over another small hurdle together.