Prologue

"And every night, I want you to look up at the sky in the east part, and whichever star you think is prettiest, that's me. But the moon? definitely, that's you." Xion whispered to her. "That bright, round shining thing, surrounded by darkness and dotted lights? That's you, doing your best to not let the darkness consume you inside out. And you can't comprehend just how proud I am, especially after all the shit you've been through in my eyes since the first time I caught you."

That conversation is the last thing that Xion remembers clearly.

Sitting on his last breath after an unknown battle, Xion is just waiting as he can see the snowflakes dancing in the air… his mind wanders…

I might have forgotten the sound of your voice, the sound of your laugh, some jokes you used to make, some of our moments together, I might have forgotten a lot of things after all these years but... I will never forget your smile, your smile that made me so happy, I will never forget your beautiful eyes that made me blush every single time, I will never forget the feeling of your touch, I will never forget you, I love you...I miss you.

I remembered the first time I took my dad's sword and plunged it into someone's side, killing the so-called enemy for good.

I didn't care that there was blood everywhere. On my suit, sword, hands, and even hair. Remnants of those who tried to kill me or maybe tried to survive... I can't recall anything of the cause but the effect is in front of my very own eyes now...

It soon got all too much. Standing hurt, breathing hurt, oh my god it *hurts, damn..*. I've never felt pain like this.

Someone, unknown, yelled from somewhere far away, although they were pointing at you. Your eyesight blurred. Colors were the only definitive thing you could see. Odd tiredness settled over you. 'Maybe a nap would help? Yeah,' You thought. 'A nap would be great.'

But someone just kicks his feet, and drowsiness runs away from his body…

"Have you ever heard of the phrase 'No one person can please everyone or 'There's no such thing as a perfect people pleaser?" another stranger person questioned Xion as he looked down on him, smirking sarcastically

Xion coughed and trembled from the fatigue of battling nonstop. He struggled for a bit until his arms gave out and he laid still. The stranger clicked his tongue and bent down to turn Xion's face to where his companions were fighting. Upon being forced to turn his head, Xion finally saw the burning city's damaged state and the people he had just given up to protect were all looking at him with desperate eyes or pitied expressions.

"Do you see it?" He questioned further. "They will never be satisfied with your work, your care, and your self-sacrifice. All they care about is their self-serving lives. You'll soon be replaced with another if you fail now."

Xion's breathing became shaky, and his eyes trembled, terrified of the faces his beloved people were giving him. The Stranger saw this but kept his expression neutral.

He sighed, "If that alone terrifies you, how would you have handled the fact that every person who is called villain-- that you've caught and let the government execute – was once a part of a family that loved them."

Xion's pupils dilated.

"You're no different from a murderer in their eyes. Killing someone desperate to help his family survive. You're no different from us villains. The only reason why you're perceived as a hero is that the majority thinks you're advantageous.

The reality is that: the majority wins, those are the rules in this society. You can even say that you're the reason why evil is being sowed and will soon be reaped by the next generation of heroes. So even if new heroes arise, there will be a never-ending cycle of war between us, your so-called enemies. Did it matter? Really?

Yes, they won. They had victory. They had glory. They had the world at their feet.

They realized though,

but for you, It would never be worth the cost.

It feels like... it feels like our generation is catching the fallout for the lack of love that was given to the generation before us. It was like our generation was set on a path from the moment the generation before us. We're soldiers fighting a war that wasn't meant to be ours but was postponed and passed down to us as we grew old. Our parents, tethering weight to our ankles and letting it drag us down into the depths of what should have been their emotions but turned into ours.

We never stood a chance. This is not what should be written for those Lord of Ages.

The stranger left as a girl came and kneeled before him.

"Hey..." Xion struggled to breathe but managed to get the simple amalgamation of words to roll out of his tongue as one of his last fading breaths. "Look at me."

As Xion slowly drifted away into an eternal, red-bathed sleep, he could see the acceptance in their eyes, the people whom he tried to run from.

The realization that the moment he had been fearing, the blanket of death he had been expecting was there, enveloping him slowly through their gazes

Where are you going?" she asked desperately, seeing bits of his body start to get cold and encased like a stone

"Hopefully heaven, hehe." Xion jokes, but the way his eyes hardened, she took it wasn't a good joke.

"This isn't fu…."

Grabbing her face in his right hand, Xion leaned her forehead against his, closing his eyes.

"You're a truly kind person, and don't let anyone or anything ruin that."

"Don't you understand?" You were now fighting against the urge to close your eyes.

"I was never part of this world, your reality, your.. life.." Words choked her as she held Xion's bruised body which was now becoming hardened and cold.

Soon eyes darted at Xion and his company and their surroundings.

You won't be able to be saved even if they tried, You were far from any magical attention, she started sobbing...

"Hey.." You faintly spoke, bringing their attention back to you.

"You'll have a happy life, surrounded by your true love, Your friends, your family and it'll finally be back on track, we were never supposed to interact or to be intertwined.."

Xion's lips started to feel dry, his lids became so heavy, It was harder to say a single word.

He gulped and mustered up the strength to say more, "Hey.." His voice is too obscure to be heard.

"Hey" Xion's throat is now hurting. She looked at him with acceptance of his death and nodded to let him know that she was listening.

"Please don't leave me." She said silently…

The words left her lips before Xion could process the true weight behind them.

'

"It's okay, I'm oka—" He tried to comfort her, console her in any way he could, perhaps that's what brought devastation upon the girl for a moment.

I was destined to be apart, to suffer from her nonexistence at my side. Yet here I was. In her reality, trapped as fragments of memories

"You don't get to say you're okay, you're stoning to death right now!" She shouted, concerned, shining in her glassy eyes.

Xion heaved, his breath starting to become shallow, "I—I mean… I'm okay because... I finally feel... what it's like to—to be trusted…"

Xion tried to gaze at her, only to see tears trailing down her face.

But when he did, his entire universe shattered into unfixable pieces...

Darkness envelops the skies with no stars reflected in his stoned eyes….