"The brightest stars cast the darkest shadows."
Scene 1: Tokyo Skyline – Observation Deck
May 6, 2011 – 4:11 PM
The wind was restless at this height, whipping through Souta's hair like unseen fingers, teasing but indifferent. He stood at the edge of the observation deck, the city sprawling below him in endless grids of concrete and glass.
But his focus was on the horizon—where the sky itself seemed to fracture, a shimmer like cracking ice spreading through its vast canvas.
His breath hitched.
"It's not just a reflection anymore…"
He lifted his hand, fingers trembling, and traced the shimmering lines in the air. Light pulsed at his touch, responding as if it recognized him.
It felt ancient. Too ancient.
"This… this wasn't made by a god."
"It was made by something older."
Something that had waited.
Scene 2: Yoyogi Academy – Empty Classroom
5:39 PM
Kana was on fire today—her voice raw, charged with so much emotion that it seemed to leave an imprint on the air. Aqua should've been listening.
But he wasn't.
His gaze flicked again to the mirror on the wall.
It looked fine. No cracks. No distortions. But his reflection—
It had no face.
Aqua's stomach dropped. He rose slowly, his pulse pounding in his ears.
"Kana."
She paused, mid-line. "Yeah?"
His voice was barely above a whisper.
"Do me a favor… don't look in the mirror."
She froze, something in his tone sending a chill down her spine.
"What…?"
Aqua didn't give her a chance to turn. He yanked her away just as a hand—pale, grasping—pressed against the other side of the glass, dragging fingers across its surface like skin against wet silk.
Scene 3: Hoshino Residence – Night
9:22 PM
The living room was thick with tension. Happy gnawed on his paw in anxious little bites while Ruby paced, her steps quick, erratic.
Ai sat with her arms crossed, rubbing her temples, eyes narrowed in frustration. "So what are you saying? This mirror thing isn't just symbolic?"
Souta was quiet for a long moment before speaking.
"It's real."
His voice was oddly serious, devoid of its usual warmth. He sat cross-legged, studying them all, as if measuring how much they could handle.
"And it's connected to something… older than concepts."
Aqua leaned forward, frowning. "Like a pre-god?"
"No," Souta whispered, his gaze dark.
"A concept that never became a god."
Happy's ears twitched. "That's not possible. You'd need consciousness to exist before time."
"Exactly," Souta murmured. "This thing doesn't want to become anything."
He exhaled, voice barely audible now.
"It wants to undo everything."
Scene 4: Dreamworld – Ai's Nightmare
Same night, 3:01 AM
Ai was back on stage—her stage. She could feel the heat of the lights, hear the electric pulse of the cheering crowd.
But then—
The lights flickered.
The faces in the audience melted, smearing into a mass of shifting shadows.
And standing at the edge of the stage, alone, was a figure cloaked in black. No eyes. No mouth. Just emptiness.
It lifted a hand.
"Your children. Your light."
"I will consume it all."
The scream ripped from Ai's throat before she knew she was screaming. The world shattered—
She woke, drenched in sweat.
The sound of her own breathing was ragged, erratic.
Ruby burst in. "Mama?! What happened?!"
Ai clutched at her chest.
"It saw me… it said…"
Her voice faltered.
"It wants to take everything."
Souta stood in the doorway, watching, silent.
His face had gone pale.
"It's targeting the core of our bond."
Scene 5: Souta's Hidden Sanctuary – Beneath Reality
May 7, 2011 – 12:44 PM
Souta hovered in a space that didn't belong to reality.
His sanctuary—his retreat beyond time.
Suspended around him were mirrors, each containing echoes of moments he had hidden, erased, or rewritten. Fragments of timelines that no longer existed—but should have.
At the very center, one mirror pulsed dark.
It didn't reflect.
It absorbed.
"You're the one…" Souta whispered.
The response didn't come from the mirror.
It came from inside him.
"You've touched every thread of fate…"
"But you left me untied."
A choice.
"Undo me," the voice urged.
"Or become me."
Souta raised his hand to shatter the mirror—
But then—
The voice shifted. Softened.
Ai's voice.
"Souta… my sweet boy… don't let them hurt me."
His fingers froze in mid-air. His breath caught in his throat.
His pulse thundered—
"No."
The mirror began to crack open.
Final Scene: Tokyo Sky – A Rift Appears
That Evening, 6:00 PM
The Hoshino family stood outside, staring at the sky.
The crack had widened, yawning open like the birth of a second world.
And within that rift—
A mirror planet loomed above them, inverted.
Ai clenched her fists. Ruby took an uneasy step backward.
In that reflection, none of them existed.
There was only one figure.
Souta.
Alone.
And his reflection—
It was smiling.