Collide: The Memory of Stars

Selene's POV

It stretched endlessly, wrapping around me like a suffocating shroud. I stood within an empty, infinite white void, neither floating nor grounded.

There was no sky above, no floor beneath—just an endless nothingness. My breath came out slow and steady, yet I could not feel my own heartbeat.

"Why am I still here..?"

My voice barely echoed in the vast expanse. There was no answer. No presence. Nothing.

I had been here before, hadn't I? In the spaces between dreaming and waking, I had felt this stillness.

But now, it was different. More real. More absolute. My fingers curled slightly, testing the sensation. I could feel them, yet at the same time, I couldn't. It was like my very existence was uncertain here.

And then I heard it.

A whisper. Soft, almost teasing. Familiar.

"You don't belong here."

I turned sharply, my eyes darting around for the source. But I saw nothing—only the void, stretching infinitely in all directions. My own voice trembled when I spoke.

"Who's there?"

The voice laughed. It was my own, yet it wasn't. It was a shadow of me, mocking, twisted, and taunting.

"You already know. You've always known."

A figure emerged from the endless white, stepping into view like ink staining pure fabric. It was me—but not me. A silhouette, dark and flickering, like a reflection in shattered glass. Her eyes gleamed with something cruel, something knowing.

"You're afraid," she whispered, tilting her head as if amused.

"Afraid of what you are. Afraid of what you've always been." I took a step back, but there was nowhere to go.

"No... I—"

"You think you can control it?" she cut in, her voice laced with scorn.

"Power that can unravel reality itself? A force meant only to destroy?" I clenched my fists. The weight of my past pressed heavily against my chest. I had always known there was something wrong with me, something dangerous. Even in moments of peace, I had felt the void inside me, waiting, restless, hungry.

"I don't have to destroy," I said firmly, forcing myself to meet my own gaze.

"I can—"

"What? Restrain it? Suppress it? Pretend it isn't there?" The shadow sneered.

"Tell me, Selene, what happens when you lose control again? When the world realizes what you truly are?" I bit my lip, my heart pounding. She was right. The last time I had lost control, the world had nearly shattered. My existence had been branded a threat. The fear in their eyes, the whispers of doom—I remembered them all too well.

And yet... if I had truly been meant only for destruction, then why had I been given the chance to live? Why had I been allowed to return, even in this weakened state?

I exhaled slowly.

"Then I'll learn." The shadow laughed, slow and cruel.

"Learn? How do you learn to control something that was never meant to be controlled? How do you tame a storm, Selene? How do you silence the void?"

I met her gaze and, for the first time, I did not look away.

"By understanding it. By accepting it."

Something shifted in the space around me. The void trembled, like ripples in water, as if reacting to my words. My other self merely watched, her smirk fading slightly.

I closed my eyes. I reached inward, past my fear, past my doubt—deep into the place where my power slumbered. It was vast, terrifying, but it was mine. It had always been mine.

The darkness, the destruction... it had been part of me from the beginning. Running from it had only made it more unstable.

I took a breath and let the power flow—not in chaos, not in fury, but in understanding. I did not fight it. I did not suppress it. I simply let it be.

A flicker of light danced at my fingertips. Small, faint, but steady. A warmth spread through me, different from the all-consuming void. My vision blurred for a moment, and then—

I saw.

Not the endless white.

Not the twisted shadow.

But a world within myself—a place shattered yet whole, infinite yet contained. My own soul, vast and unknown, waiting to be explored.

And in that moment, I understood.

I opened my eyes, and for the first time in what felt like an eternity, I could see. The world had not changed.

But I had.

The shadow watched me in silence, her expression unreadable. Then, with a knowing smirk, she whispered,

"Good luck, Selene." And just like that—she was gone.

For the first time, the void did not reject me. It did not consume me. It simply existed, and I existed within it. The power that once threatened to erase me had settled into something else—a force I could now grasp, if only a small piece of it.

It was enough.

And the world trembled in response.

The void faded. My breath hitched as I blinked against the sudden shift, my vision adjusting to something new—something familiar.

A soft breeze kissed my skin. The scent of tea and fresh flowers lingered in the air. I stood on a grand balcony, overlooking a kingdom bathed in golden light. Below, the streets of Eldoria bustled with life—people talking, children laughing, the distant melody of a song being played somewhere in the city. My heart twisted at the sight.

I knew this place.

At a table set by the railing, a golden-haired girl sat, delicately sipping her tea as if she had been expecting me all along.

"You're late," she said without looking up.

I swallowed.

"I—"

She finally met my gaze, a knowing glint in her striking eyes.

"You're not here by accident, Selene. Sit. We have much to discuss." The teacup was warm in my hands, the delicate porcelain pressing lightly against my fingertips. Steam curled lazily from the amber liquid, carrying a floral aroma—subtle, yet grounding. I stared at it for a long moment before taking a small sip.

The taste was unfamiliar, neither bitter nor sweet, but smooth and earthy. It settled in my throat, a quiet warmth spreading through me.

The golden-haired girl watched me with patient eyes, her hands folded elegantly on the table. She had the air of someone who had seen much—far more than she let on. Her posture was relaxed, yet there was an undeniable weight to her presence, as though the very air around her bent to her will. I could feel it, the same way I could feel the pulse of energy still coursing through my veins, restless and unstable.

"Tell me, Selene," she finally said, her voice soft but firm.

"What do you feel right now?"

I hesitated, placing the teacup down.

"Like... I'm still on the edge of something," I admitted.

"Like the world hasn't fully accepted me yet."

She nodded.

"That is because it hasn't. The balance is still shifting. You have taken a step forward, but your presence remains a contradiction—a force that should not exist, yet does." She leaned forward slightly.

"Your power is vast, Selene. You are the void, and the void is you. It is not something you merely wield—it is something you embody. And when something as immense as that exists in a world that does not understand it, the world fights back."

I swallowed, her words striking deep.

"So how do I stop it? How do I make the world accept me?" She smiled faintly, her golden hair catching the light as the wind played with it.

"By making peace with it yourself. The world does not move for those who do not move with it."l frowned, thinking.

"You're saying that my own hesitation is causing the instability? That the world is rejecting me because, deep down, I'm still rejecting myself?"

"Precisely." She picked up her cup again, taking a small sip before continuing.

"Power is not simply about control, Selene. Many think it is—many try to suppress, restrain, or command it, believing that force alone will grant them mastery. But true power lies in understanding. In balance. The moment you truly accept yourself, the world will have no choice but to do the same."

Her words settled over me like a thick fog. I had spent so much time fearing my power, trying to suppress it, to hide from it. Even now, after all I had been through, part of me still wondered if I should exist at all. If I deserved to.

The ground beneath us trembled faintly, as if sensing my thoughts.

The golden-haired girl sighed. "You are still uncertain. That is why the shaking has not stopped. The world reflects your state of mind, Selene. The moment you waver, it wavers with you." I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply. I could feel it—the void, the vastness of it, still stirring within me. But this time, instead of trying to suppress it, I focused on understanding it. It was neither friend nor foe. It was simply... there. A part of me, as natural as my breath, as inevitable as the rising sun.

"How do I find balance?" I asked, opening my eyes. She studied me for a moment, then gestured toward the city below.

"Look at Eldoria. What do you see?"

I turned, gazing at the streets sprawling beneath the balcony. People moved about their daily lives—talking, laughing, working. The world had continued despite everything.

"Life," I said quietly. "Movement." She nodded.

"The world does not resist change, Selene. It only resists chaos. When something disrupts the natural flow, it fights to restore harmony. Your presence is an anomaly, but not an impossibility. If you learn to move with the world, rather than against it, the shaking will cease." I let her words sink in. Move with the world. It sounded simple, but I knew it wasn't. It meant more than just controlling my power—it meant truly accepting it. Accepting myself.

She stood then, her golden hair shining in the sunlight. "Come," she said. "I will teach you. But first, you must be willing to step forward without fear."

The golden-haired girl stood by the balcony's railing, her gaze fixed on the horizon as if she could see beyond what was visible. Her teacup was still in her hands, but she had long since stopped sipping from it. She was waiting—for me.

I, on the other hand, remained seated. My fingers curled against the smooth surface of the table, tension still lingering in my body despite our conversation.

Her words had settled deep, stirring something within me that I wasn't sure I was ready to confront.

"How long will this take?" I asked at last, my voice quieter than I intended. She finally turned to me, amusement dancing in her golden eyes.

"Time flows differently here, Selene. What may feel like hours could be mere moments in the waking world—or an eternity. It all depends on you." An eternity. The thought was unsettling, yet somehow, it made sense. This place, this space where I had been wandering, was not bound by the rules of the world I once knew.

I exhaled, steadying myself. "Then tell me what I need to do."

A small smile tugged at her lips. "Very well." She set her teacup down with a soft clink and took a step toward me.

"First, you must understand this—your power is not the enemy. The void is not an external force. It is you."

"I know that," I muttered, though it came out more defensive than I intended.

"I've accepted it." Her head tilted slightly, eyes piercing. "Have you?"

I opened my mouth to argue, but she raised a hand, silencing me.

"If you had, the world would no longer tremble at your existence. If you had, you would not be struggling to stabilize it." I clenched my jaw. She was right, and I hated it.

"The void is not something to be controlled," she continued, stepping closer. "It is something to be understood. And you, Selene, are still at war with yourself. You fear the destruction it brings, so you fight against it. But tell me—when has fear ever granted power?"

I swallowed. "Then what do I do?"

"Stop fighting it," she said simply. "Embrace it. Listen to it."

I frowned. "And if it consumes me?"A chuckle escaped her lips.

"You are already the void. There is nothing left to consume." The words sent a shiver through me. Was it really that simple? Had I been making this harder than it needed to be?

She reached out, placing a hand over my chest, right above my heart.

"Feel it," she whispered. "Not as a weapon. Not as a curse. But as part of you."

I hesitated before closing my eyes. I reached inward, deeper than I ever had before. The familiar darkness greeted me, shifting and swirling like a living thing. But this time, I did not try to suppress it. I did not try to force it into submission.

I listened.

It pulsed, slow and steady, like a heartbeat. Like breathing. It was neither violent nor chaotic—it simply existed. Waiting for me to understand it.

The world trembled around me, but this time, I did not flinch.

When I opened my eyes, she was smiling.

"Good," she said. "Now, let's begin."

The lessons were not easy.

The golden-haired girl did not teach me through words alone. She guided me through experience. She made me confront the power I had long feared, forced me to walk through the storms I once avoided.

Time stretched endlessly as I learned—falling, failing, breaking, and rebuilding again.

There were moments when the void surged wildly, threatening to break free of me entirely. The ground cracked beneath my feet, the sky darkened, and reality itself seemed to ripple under my presence.

But each time, she was there, her calm voice grounding me.

"Breathe, Selene."

I breathed.

"Feel it."

I listened.

"Accept it."

I embraced it.

Slowly, bit by bit, the trembling lessened. The world no longer fought against me as fiercely as before. It was not instant. It was not easy.

But I could feel the shift. The world was beginning to understand me—because, for the first time, I was beginning to understand myself.

Finally, on the last day—if days even existed here—I stood on the balcony once more, staring at the world that no longer rejected me.

The golden-haired girl joined me, her expression unreadable.

"You've done well," she said. "But this is only the beginning."

I nodded. "I know."

A pause. Then, she turned to face me fully. "Before you leave, you should know my name."

I blinked. It had never occurred to me that I did not know it. "What is it?"

A gentle breeze passed between us as she smiled.

"My name," she said, "is Eltharia."

The name rang through me like a forgotten melody. Something deep inside me recognized it, even if my mind did not. Before I could speak, the world around me blurred.

And then—I woke up.

To be continued.