Everywhere she turned, Taylor found people who needed to be saved – people underneath rubble, underneath upturned cars, trapped between two large bits of debris, or simply needing to be pulled out of a fire. Most of them thanked her before vanishing entirely. She thought, at first, that she might've gone entirely crazy, that she'd lost what little was left of her mind and was seeing ghosts, but then... Sukuna saw them as well, refusing to heal them when she pulled them to safety. And Taylor was pretty sure she understood why he couldn't. And that was because there was nothing to heal. The people she'd been helping – most of them, at least – were already dead.

Those were ghosts. She was somehow pulling ghosts out of the ruins, each of them thanking her before they dissolved into... something that looked akin to motes of light, fluttering in the air and into the night sky.

Confusing. But she couldn't stop helping people – not even if most of them were already dead.

"Not quite," Sukuna said, his tone – once again – uncharacteristically on edge. "They're more like imprints of the soul – remnants of who they were in life, perhaps. That you can touch them at all is... it seems your other passenger has reached an epiphany."

"What?" Taylor asked, only for Sukuna to disappear entirely, leaving her with an emptiness. Taylor shook her head and marched into a ruined store. She'd heard a woman's cry inside and, dead or no, she wasn't taking any chances.

Inside, the store was a wreck. Shelves were toppled, merchandise strewn across the floor, and smoke filled the air, making it hard to see and breathe. Taylor moved quickly, her instincts guiding her toward the source of the cries. She climbed over the debris, ignoring the sharp edges and the burning sensation in her lungs. Her heart pounded in her chest, and she could feel the desperation growing inside her.

"Help! Please, someone help me!" The voice was clearer now, filled with panic and pain.

"I'm here!" Taylor called back, forcing her way through the rubble. "Just hold on!"

She finally found the woman pinned under a collapsed beam, her leg trapped and bleeding. Taylor dropped to her knees, her hands trembling as she tried to lift the heavy piece of wood. It wouldn't budge. She cursed under her breath and looked around for something to use as leverage.

"It's okay," she said, trying to sound reassuring despite the fear gnawing at her insides. "I'll get you out. Just hang on a little longer."

The woman nodded, her eyes wide with terror.

"Thank you," she whispered, tears streaming down her face.

Taylor found a metal rod and wedged it under the beam, using all her strength to lift it just enough to free the woman's leg. The woman cried out in pain as she was pulled free, and Taylor quickly checked her injuries. The leg was badly mangled, but there was still a chance to save her.

"This is probably going to hurt." Taylor said, supporting the woman as she tried to stand.

The woman winced but nodded. "It's fine."

They made their way out of the store, Taylor practically carrying the woman as they stumbled through the debris. The air outside was a little clearer, and Taylor could see emergency responders in the distance. She waved frantically, trying to get their attention.

"Over here! She needs help!" Taylor shouted, her voice hoarse from the smoke.

A group of firefighters and paramedics rushed over, taking the injured woman from Taylor's arms. They worked quickly, administering first aid and loading her onto a stretcher. Taylor watched, relief flooding through her as she realized that this woman was going to make it. She'd saved someone – someone real, someone alive. Idly, Taylor wondered if she should've used Sukuna's power to heal the woman, before ultimately deciding against it. That monster's power was precisely the one thing that led to this mess. Still, she'd use it if absolutely necessary, such as bringing someone from the edge of death for instance; she only had twenty three uses left before Sukuna took over again. And she wasn't gonna let that happen.

As the paramedics carried the woman away, Taylor took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. She felt a strange mix of emotions – relief, exhaustion, a ton of guilt, and an equal amount of determination. There were still more people out there who needed her help, whether they were alive or spirits. It didn't matter. The blood of untold thousands, maybe even millions, stained her hand. She needed to save as many people as she could, no matter what. It didn't even matter if harm befell her; what mattered most was that she saved people.

She couldn't stop now. She wouldn't stop now. If she stopped, then the silence and inaction would only serve to remind her of her sins, the weight of all the death and desolation over her shoulders.

Zipping overhead, across the clouds and above the ruined structures, were various flying capes – heroes and heroines. The flickering flames and dancing shadows made it difficult to see them, but they were here to help and Taylor was glad for that. She was certain of the fact that Sukuna's battle against Lung had taken the lives of more than a few capes. Taylor didn't know who among them perished, but she hoped most of the heroes survived. The battle against Lung hadn't taken that long; surely, only a few of them were involved?

Whatever the case, they had their own purpose for being here and she had her own.

Taylor turned and headed back into the ruins. She moved from one wreckage to the next, searching for any signs of life. Each time she found someone, she pushed herself harder, lifting debris, pulling people to safety, and never once stopping to rest. Some were real, their cries and thanks echoing in her ears as they were taken to safety by the emergency responders. Others faded away as soon as she touched them, their souls released from whatever had bound them to this place.

And then there were those she couldn't save – the ones who were too far gone, whose injuries were beyond anyone's ability to heal. Each one was a knife to her heart, a reminder of her own helplessness and the destruction she had been part of. But she pushed on, driven by the need to do something, anything, to make up for the horrors she had unleashed.

Hours passed, or maybe it was only minutes. Time had lost all meaning in the chaos. Taylor was covered in soot and blood, her body aching and her mind numb. But she kept going, one step at a time, driven by a force she didn't want to think about. It was odd, however, how despite her exhaustion, Taylor had never felt as strong. She didn't know why. And, in that moment, she didn't care. She breathed in and steeled her mind as she walked into a ruined, half-burning building, from where she'd heard several voices. They might've been spirits, Taylor didn't know.

She didn't care. There were people in there and she was going to save them. A woman's voice cried out. "Help us!"

"Hang on!" She screamed, pushing through the ruined remnants of a mangled metal thing that used to be a door. Smoke and ash billowed as Taylor stepped inside, the remnants of some sort of grocery store coming to life around her. Nothing remained. Everything inside had been burnt to a blackened crisp. "I'm here to help! Just stay where you are!"

Were they in the basement? That seemed like a good place to hide in; smoke generally traveled upwards, due to the heat. So a basement was a good hiding place during a fire. Maybe. She was going to ask, anyway. "Where are you?!"

"Down here!" The same voice cried out again.

The basement, then. She found the basement door quickly enough, hidden under piles of cloth that'd melted onto the floor, which was likely what saved them from the heat, but was now preventing them from escaping. At the very least, the people down there were probably not in immediate danger. "Hang on!"

Taylor bent down and, piece by piece, began pulling away the layers of melted clothes and debris. She didn't know how much time she spent doing that, but Taylor eventually reached the basement door, which she then pulled open immediately, revealing... nothing. At least, Taylor saw nothing for a moment, until her eyes came upon the blackened skeletons at the very bottom. And her face fell as motes of silvery light escaped the basement. Spirits again?

Taylor brushed away the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes as she turned and walked away. She almost chuckled at the absurdity of it, honestly, the idea that she was somehow helping these... ghosts or spirits or imprints or whatever they were, pass on. A week ago, she didn't even believe in ghosts or the afterlife. Taylor shook her head and moved on.

She heard another voice the moment she walked out of the building.

The next cry led her to yet another collapsed building, where a bunch of people were trapped beneath a portion of the wall and ceiling that'd collapsed right over them. Taylor worked tirelessly, clearing as much of the rubble as she could and guiding the survivors to safety. As she helped the last person out – a woman clutching a small child – she felt a strange sense of calm wash over her. These people were alive, and she had saved them. It wasn't enough to erase the guilt, but it was something.

She also noticed, just as she rolled a piece of rubble out of the way, that she definitely shouldn't be this strong. That piece of rubble was solid concrete, about the same size as a large table and she moved it out of the way without even noticing. For a moment, Taylor stared at her right hand, before shaking her head. Now wasn't the time, she told herself, to be thinking about... whatever this was.

A sudden noise jolted her senses. And, when Taylor turned, she saw a bunch of firemen and paramedics with stretchers and all sorts of medical equipment.

As the rescued group was led away by the emergency responders, Taylor stood there, watching them go, before she let loose a sigh and sat down on one of the debris. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see a firefighter looking at her with concern.

"You should rest, kid." he said, despite the fact that he was clearly just as tired as she was. "I saw you helping a lot of people. You've done more than enough. Take a break."

Taylor shook her head, her eyes burning with determination. "I can't stop. There are still more people out there."

Breathing in, Taylor forced herself up and wandered ever deeper into the ruins. She took a deep breath, steeling herself for the next rescue. She didn't know how long she could keep going, but she knew she had to try. For the people who had died, for the city that had been destroyed, and for herself.

She had to keep moving forward. She had to find a way to make things right.

And as long as there were people who needed her, she wouldn't stop.

Never.

Not until the very end.

Taylor lost count of how many people she dug out of the rubble and she definitely lost count of how many of them were already dead when she found them – the spirits looking to her for aid. She continued until, at last, she lost the strength in her limbs and, in the middle of a desolate street, she fell to her knees, limbs like wet noodles. Taylor stared at the ground, wondering just how many here, now, were dead because of her. And then, tears began streaming from her eyes. She should've just listened to her father. She should've just stayed home and slept. None of this would've happened if she just...

Her ears perked up at the sound of mechanical footsteps approaching her. And, when Taylor turned and looked, she saw a weapon of some kind, pointed right at her, held by a man, wearing a very distinct blue armor. "Taylor Hebert, you are under arrest. Please, do not resist."

AN: Chapter 15 is out on (Pat)reon!