Tokyo, Studio B-Komachi, 3 weeks after Aqua's death

  The night sky appeared ordinary, as if hiding a secret. Yet for Ruby Hoshino, the world had lost its color. She felt as though she was walking among fragments of memories — the scent of her sister's perfume now felt like a distant dream, diminishing the once bright reality.

  Dim streetlights illuminated the wet sidewalk, casting strange reflections in the girl's eyes. She walked alone, wearing an oversized hoodie and a mask, wishing to remain unrecognized and to keep her sorrow hidden. Inside her heart, there was a surge to scream, but that voice was trapped, ensnared in a painful silence. She didn't want anyone to witness the remnants of a star who now lacked direction, adrift in the darkness.

  She stopped in front of an old building — the former secret training ground of B-Komachi. To the public, it might have seemed like mere ruins, but for Ruby, this building was a silent witness to dreams that once soared high, a flashback of hopes that had faded with the passage of time.

  Her small hand touched the door, and a soft creak echoed as it opened. She entered, greeted by silence that enveloped her like a thick fog. In the empty training room, mirrors lined the walls, seemingly mocking her weary reflection. In that hazy reflection, she glimpsed a familiar yet strange figure — a young girl who now resembled a lost soul.

  Here is where they once danced. She and her older sister. Memories of dancing together, laughter filling the space, now reduced to an empty echo.

  Here is where they dreamed of becoming stars. The dreams they wove night after night now feel more distant, eroded by the passage of time.

  Now, only one star remains. And she feels its light is too weak. Each second that ticks by is like a knife slicing through her soul, adding fresh scars to her heart.

  Ruby collapsed onto the cold wooden floor. Tears began to stream down her face, painting a portrait of unquenchable sadness. Not for the first time, and certainly not the last. A profound sorrow rolled within her chest, as if there were a cocoon of feelings yearning to break free, drawing a deep breath from the edge of her despair.

  However, tonight is different. A gentle breeze whispers something—hope or perhaps an illusion?

  A voice emerges from the darkness.

  “Are you trying to kill your memories?”

  Ruby is startled. She gets up and steps back, gazing into the shadows. It feels as though she is waking from a nightmare, surprised yet yearning for the presence of this enigmatic voice. The unseen face feels strangely familiar.

  Out of the shadows, a tall man approaches slowly. His height is unusual, and his aura is anything but ordinary. His long silver hair reflects the moonlight streaming through the window. His pitch-black eyes hold a depth filled with stars, like a long-dead night sky. Ruby feels as if time momentarily freezes, captivated by his presence that seems to have emerged from the nightmares that have haunted her for years.

  “Who... are you?”

  “Me?” The man nods slowly, then sits cross-legged on the floor. “My name is Fitran. I am lost... or perhaps I have been called.”

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  Ruby bit her lip, feeling as though she should be afraid. Yet strangely, she wasn't. This hollow heart of hers didn’t perceive any threat; perhaps it was because the presence of the man filled the empty spaces of her soul. There was something in his voice that felt warm and soothing. In her emotional void, his voice acted like an anchor, a reminder that she could still feel, even though she had long felt dead inside.

  “You’re not Japanese.”

  “No. I’m not from this world.”

  Ruby held her breath. Delusion? An actor? A madman? The uncertainty spun in her mind, yet her body remained still. Perhaps… it was because she too felt she didn't belong to this world after losing Aqua. The deep pain made her question the reality surrounding her, as if everything were an illusion detached from her true existence.

  “So then, why are you here?”

  Fitran looked at her deeply. There was empathy in his gaze, as if he could feel the suffering buried within Ruby's heart.

  “Because I can hear your cries. Even when you try to be silent. Even when the world silences them.”

  Ruby froze. Her heart was pounding. For the first time in three weeks, someone claimed to be able to hear her. Hearing this, the loneliness that enveloped her seemed to tear slightly, allowing a bit of light to enter.

  “I’m not crying…” she whispered weakly. It was a lie, one of the few defenses left to preserve the remnants of her dignity in front of this almost unreal being.

  Fitran nodded. “Sometimes the deepest wounds make no sound.” This truth resonated deeply, as if every word he spoke etched itself into Ruby's soul, awakening memories she longed to bury, creating an inescapable emotional resonance.

  They sat in silence for a long time. Ruby finally leaned against something a few meters from him. Silent, yet not alone. The stillness felt strange, yet calming, as if they shared a burden that didn't need to be expressed in words.

  “I… lost my brother.” As she uttered those words, it felt as though her heart sank deeper. The pain she felt was not only from the loss but also the helplessness of conveying the vast cosmos that had shattered within her.

  “I lost everything,” Fitran responded softly, his voice trembling. “But I’m still alive. And I don’t want to see anyone else drown in the same darkness, spending their life in unforgivable sadness.”

  Ruby stared at him, the air thick with tension, as if time had frozen and the space around them was weighed down by a shared sadness. “Why? You don’t even know me,” she said.

  “We don’t need to know each other to save,” Fitran replied. “We just need to care.”

  Suddenly, Ruby felt her soul crumbling. She covered her face and cried out loud, this time without shame. In her tears, she felt every longing and bitterness she had buried deep, a reflex action that could no longer be contained. Her voice echoed in the empty room, creating a resonance of sadness that she had kept suppressed for so long. Memories of beautiful yet painful moments with her brother flooded her mind, and every shadow that cloaked those memories felt like an invisible shackle.

  Fitran sat there, silent, listening, bearing witness. He realized that Ruby's sorrow had deep roots, as if trapped in an endless labyrinth of memories.

  After a long pause, Ruby took a few steps closer, her voice trembling as she said, “If you're really not from this world... then please don’t leave me. You’re the only one not bound by my past.”

  Fitran looked at her intently. There was something in that request—neither love nor dependency, but a flickering hope that was almost extinguished. The longer he looked at Ruby, the more he sensed the tremendous weight she carried—an existence laden with burdens, seeking a way out of the shell of sorrow that enveloped her life.

  He reached out his hand, feeling the warmth that could connect them in the deep darkness.

  “If you're willing... I will be your new light.”

  Ruby held that hand tightly. In that grip, she felt something more than just hope; it was a promise to no longer walk alone in the terrifying darkness. And the night slowly began to change, the wind whispered gently as if offering support, conveying the assurance that there was hope even when the world felt so heavy, providing light at the end of the dark tunnel that surrounded them.