The night sky was veiled in a silver glow, the full moon casting its quiet radiance over the old ruins where Aki and Hoshikiri now stood. The stars had retreated behind wisps of cloud, as if giving this moment to the earth alone.
Aki's breath was calm, but his heart raced. The fragments of his encounter with the Shattered Mirror still echoed within him. He had glimpsed the other versions of himself—some noble, some monstrous—and now, standing beneath the gaze of the moon, he knew what he had to do.
"I've seen what I could become," he said quietly.
Hoshikiri turned to him, her silver eyes reflecting the moonlight. "And which path will you choose?"
"The one I believe in. The one where I protect those I love, even if it means defying the gods."
She smiled, but there was a trace of sorrow in it. "Then there is no turning back."
From the shadows of the ruin, an ancient spirit emerged—a guardian bound to the Celestial Thread. Its form was mist and memory, flickering with starlight. It spoke not with words, but with thoughts that rang in the air around them.
You seek to change fate. Then you must form a pact under the moonlight. Speak your vow, and the world will listen.
Aki stepped forward. He held the pendant close to his chest, feeling the warmth of his mother's voice within it.
"I vow to walk this path by choice, not by destiny. I will guard the light of the stars, but I will no longer be their puppet."
The spirit pulsed with light. It drifted toward him, wrapping around his wrist like a ribbon of silver. The air shimmered, and a mark appeared—an ancient sigil of choice, glowing faintly.
Hoshikiri stepped beside him, placing her hand over his.
"I vow to stand by him," she said. "Not as a guide of fate, but as someone who believes in his choice."
The sigil spread, pulsing between them. The pact was sealed.
In the heavens, a ripple passed through the Celestial Court. Tsukihikari-no-Kami rose from his throne, while Amaterasu's eyes narrowed.
"They've made their vow," she murmured.
"And so the loom begins to fray," Tsukihikari replied.
Back on earth, Aki looked up at the sky, defiance and hope burning in his eyes.
The moonlight bore witness to a new chapter—not of fate, but of freedom.
To be continued…