???

Ah.

Am I dead?

It hurt so much. I... could barely think.

A high-pitched ringing noise fills my head.

Everything around me spins. My body is screaming at me.

It hurts. It hurts so much.

I'm falling. Falling through the sky, the ground hurtling towards me.

My limbs felt numb and heavy. I couldn't move.

...

Whatever the masked woman had hit me with, it was crippling. I was probably done.

My aura felt like it had holes poked through it, leaving my body open and vulnerable to the cold of the atmosphere.

I tried to gather up my magic to try and fly, or something. Anything.

Nothing.

I... nothing's happening.

Am I... really going to die?

Maybe it was for the better.

I was such a screwup, after all.

It was a short life, but I guess I did my best.

I'd tried so hard.

Was it a waste?

How had I gotten here?

I should have known better.

I should have cherished my loved ones more.

Maybe then I wouldn't feel like such a failure.

I couldn't help but wonder.

What if I hadn't showboated that day? If I had just taken my shot at it instead of trying to show off?

I was so arrogant. Such a stupid kid.

I should have just finished the job right there. Then none of this would have happened.

Why... did it have to happen like this? Why... couldn't it have just been me instead?

Why couldn't I just have died alone instead of them?

The air rushed past me, the wind howling in my ears, but it didn't drown out my memories. They all flooded back to me in that moment, a lifetime of mistakes and regrets.

Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

What if I hadn't said I'd save everyone?

If I had just stayed back like they wanted me to, maybe things wouldn't have ended up so badly.

I could still remember that day.

It was such a beautiful day. I could never forget it. The sky was so blue. It was so peaceful.

Would I have failed anyway? Would they still be alive, happy, safe?

But what good would dwelling on my failures do me now?

My life was over.

Maybe there'd be some solace in death.

I was only fifteen, freshly making my way into adulthood, but I was already so tired.

Even the music I made was starting to feel stale. I wasn't as interesting as I used to be.

Back when the Lustrous Valiants and I were a team at least, everything was more carefree.

What if I'd already lost my charm?

My fans would forget me eventually, right?

Little ol' me?

Right?

Right.

Just like the promising Magical Girls of generations past.

Another tragedy. A waste. A star that burned out early.

Forgotten and buried beneath time. I would be just a fleeting memory at the end.

And yet, I found myself... frustrated.

I'd fought so hard, honed my skills and grinded my way to the top, and now this?

Taken out by some mysterious lady riding a chaos beast in the middle of nowhere?

Really?

Was it really that easy? Just go into the night?

The injustice of it all, the pain of the unfairness of it all, made me feel a strange pull.

An urge to fight. The indignation and frustration, it was overwhelming.

All I'd done for others.

It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair.

My fists clenched tightly as a tear slid down my cheek.

I swallowed hard, fighting back the tears as the ringing in my ears grew louder.

Everything hurts.

A shout in the distance.

What are they saying?

I felt a warmth in my chest.

Why?

A blurry face smiled in my mind's eye.

A messy mop of black hair. Brown eyes.

Unusual features, for sure.

Yet I could not put my finger on who it was.

A memory?

He was gone. The world was a dark place now. I was falling.

The wind howled past me, a cold and unrelenting force. The earth below was a blur of colors, a kaleidoscope of shapes that twisted and warped in my vision.

I'd barely talked to anyone as... myself since the Incident.

Not since... since my team had broken apart.

It was so lonely. I'd been lonely.

He's so silly. It's such a relief.

His clumsy honesty was so heartwarming. His passion and drive were inspiring.

I'd only talked with him briefly, but he was so funny, so awkwardly earnest in his efforts to cheer me up.

But who?

The pain was too much.

My mind was racing, searching for a way to escape.

Somehow, it felt like the blurry image was close.

The world was a blur of color and noise, a chaotic whirlwind that threatened to swallow me whole.

The ringing in my ears grew louder, drowning out everything else. My head felt heavy and sluggish, as though weighed down by a thousand invisible anchors.

It was so strange.

It was as if time was moving in slow motion.

"As you wish!"

A soft, familiar voice cut through the ringing in my head as the blurry figure turned to me with a goofy grin.

The sound was gentle, almost comforting, like a warm breeze on a summer day.

What are they talking about? Who are they?

Everything around me slowed to a crawl as the spark grew from the image.

That's right...

I didn't want to die.

Not yet.

Not without doing more, saving more people. Atoning for all the mistakes I'd made.

The distorted shout echoed again.

Somehow, I felt a spark light in my chest.

Of course.

They have to make sure they finish me. The monsters.

There were still people counting on me.

I couldn't give up.

Not yet.

Why had I thought it was hopeless?

It was never hopeless.

Fighting against the pain, I snapped my fingers.

Numbly, I felt my Signature activate, unleashing a wave that swept over the fields below.

I had stopped something.

What did I stop?

I couldn't tell.

All I knew was that I was alive.

I didn't know how I knew.

I wasn't alone.

So alone.

People below were alive.

I could work with that.

The wind rushed past me, causing my dress to flutter in the night sky.

My fall stopped faster than I could have believed, and I felt my world tilt and spin. A crash and explosion that sent me reeling as dust from my crater filled the air.

Pain throbbed in my head, and a distant ringing screamed in my ears.

What... happened?

I felt my fingers rake across dirt.

And then, everything went dark.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.