Collide: The Memory of Stars

Third person's POV

Selene's eyes fluttered open, the dim light of the fire casting warm shadows across the room. For a moment, everything was still—silent, peaceful.

Then, as her vision adjusted, she realized something was different. The blurred edges, the eternal darkness she had grown accustomed to, were gone.

She could see.

Her breath hitched. The flickering flames, the wooden beams above her, even the worn rug beneath her fingers—all of it came into focus. Her heart pounded against her ribs. It was real.

Slowly, she sat up. Her movements were sluggish, her body still weighed down from the meditation. Across from her, Khael was sprawled out on the floor, his tiny chest rising and falling steadily.

Aldric sat near him, his staff resting against his shoulder, eyes half-lidded as if he had never truly been asleep. Axel, however, was alert.

He was the first to notice.

His blue eyes locked onto hers, sharp as ever, but there was something else there—a flicker of emotion she couldn't quite place. Then, before she could even think of what to say, he reached into his coat pocket and pulled something out.

"Put these on," he said, his voice firm yet gentle. He tossed her a small case, and as it landed in her hands, she realized what it was. Contact lenses.

Her fingers tightened around the case. "You carried these?"

Axel let out a small breath, almost like a chuckle. "Just in case."

Selene swallowed hard, touched by the simple act. He had always thought ahead, even for something she hadn't expected.

With careful movements, she placed the lenses over her eyes, the unnatural glow of her irises vanishing beneath them.

Only then did she realize the others were watching.

Khael, who had begun to stir, blinked at her before sitting up abruptly.

"Wait—wait, are you actually looking at me?!" His golden eyes widened.

"Selene! You can see?!"

The excitement in his voice made something warm bloom in her chest. She gave him a small nod. "Yeah."

Khael's face split into a wide grin before he practically tackled her, wrapping his small arms around her.

"That's awesome! Does that mean you can finally see how cool I am?!"

She chuckled, ruffling his hair. "I always knew you were cool, Khael."

Aldric, however, was unphased, merely stretching with a satisfied groan.

"Well, that didn't take as long as I thought it would."

Selene raised an eyebrow. "You knew?"

The old scholar grinned. "Of course! I figured if you were meditating in there long enough, you'd start getting back a few things." He tapped his temple.

"Not much escapes these old eyes, you know."

Khael's head snapped toward Aldric, his expression shifting from joy to shock.

"Wait—hold on. You knew? You actually knew she'd get her sight back?" Aldric let out a hearty chuckle.

"Oh, little flame, I know a great many things. You'll get used to it." Khael opened his mouth, then closed it, frowning.

"You always act like you have all the answers…" He narrowed his eyes.

"Do you know everything about me, too?" Aldric's grin widened.

"Now, that would be telling, wouldn't it?" He leaned on his staff, watching Khael with an amused glint in his eyes.

"Besides, some answers are best found by the seeker himself." Khael crossed his arms, looking both frustrated and intrigued, but before he could say anything else, Axel cleared his throat.

"Now that you're awake, we should move on to what's next."

Selene turned toward him, sensing the shift in the atmosphere. "Training?"

Axel nodded. "We're not strong enough yet. Not for what's coming."

Aldric grinned. "And I suppose that means I'll be playing the wise mentor for our little fire mage here."

Khael, who had been lost in thought about Aldric's cryptic words, blinked.

"Wait, what?"

Axel smirked. "You need to control your fire magic, don't you?" He glanced at Aldric.

"And there's no one better to teach you a few spells."

Khael groaned dramatically. "Ugh, training?" But despite his complaints, the excitement was clear in his eyes.

Selene smiled, watching them interact, before turning her attention back to Axel.

"And you? What will you be doing?" Axel's expression hardened, the familiar determination settling over him.

"I'll be training too. My old power isn't enough anymore. I need to push past my limits. There's something more I need to grasp."

Selene watched him carefully. He wasn't just saying this out of duty—there was something deeper, something driving him. And she knew, without a doubt, that whatever it was, he would see it through.

"Then let's get started," she said, her voice steady.

The real battle was just beginning.

Selenes POV

The crisp morning air carried the scent of damp earth and woodsmoke, mingling with the distant rustling of leaves. I sat on a fallen log, the rough bark pressing against my palms as I focused on the quiet hum of energy just beneath my skin.

A lingering warmth, a whisper of something greater—something I had barely begun to understand.

Not far from me, Axel and Khael had begun their training. Axel stood with his back straight, his usual composed expression set in determination.

The faint glow of his energy flickered around him, shifting like liquid gold in the morning light. He was testing the limits of his power, pushing beyond the remnants of what the god within him had once lent him.

I could hear Aldric's voice from where he stood with Khael.

"Fire isn't just about destruction, boy. It's about control, about will. Your flames listen to you because they are part of you. You need to command them, not just unleash them."

Khael frowned, his small fingers clenching. A spark of fire erupted from his palm, dancing like a playful ember before flickering out. He huffed in frustration.

"They don't feel the same. It's like… like they know me, but my body doesn't know them. It's weird!"

Aldric chuckled. "That's because you've been away from them for a long time. Like old friends meeting again, there's a bit of awkwardness before things feel natural. Try again."

Axel exhaled deeply, shifting his stance. I could feel the energy radiating from him, the sheer force of it pressing against my senses.

He wasn't wielding a weapon—he never had to. His sword was a part of him, a manifestation of his power. One that he could summon at will. But today, he wasn't calling for it.

Instead, he was reaching for something new.

His hands lifted slightly, fingers curling, and for a moment, the air around him shimmered with threads of divine energy.

They wove around him, forming a faint pattern in the air before dissolving. He muttered something under his breath, jaw clenched in concentration.

A sudden burst of heat drew my attention back to Khael.

His flames had returned, brighter and more intense than before. He grinned, golden eyes flickering in the fire's glow. "Hey! Did you see that? It listened!"

Aldric nodded approvingly. "Better. But we're not done yet."

I watched them train, absorbing every detail—the flickering of fire, the strain in Axel's muscles as he fought to mold his power into something greater, the steady patience in Aldric's voice. A longing grew in my chest, something restless and unspoken.

I wanted to try.

Closing my eyes, I reached inward, searching for that fragile thread of power I had felt during my meditation. It was there, just beneath the surface. Faint, but waiting. I reached for it, willed it forward.

At first, nothing happened.

Then, like a breath of wind through silent trees, something stirred. A pulse of warmth spread through me, not like fire, but like light—a presence that existed between the spaces of everything else.

My fingers tingled as if something was trying to respond.

And then, in the distance, something else responded.

A cold shiver ran down my spine. It was faint, distant, but unmistakable—a shift in the air, a ripple in something unseen. A presence, watching.

Aldric's head snapped up so fast I barely saw the movement. His jovial expression hardened, his grip tightening around his staff.

"…Selene."

The fire Khael had been playing with flickered, his grin fading. Axel's energy pulsed sharply before he turned to me, eyes sharp with unspoken warning.

The air grew heavier, colder. The presence lingered just at the edge of my senses, a whisper of awareness that sent my heart pounding. I didn't know what it was, but I knew—

It had felt me. And it was listening.

Aldric exhaled, his expression unreadable. "Well, that changes things."

I swallowed, my hands curling into fists. "What was that?"

Axel's voice was low, grave. "Not something we want to wake up."

Aldric straightened, dusting off his robes as if shaking off the unease.

"Guess we'll have to pick up the pace, then. No time to waste."

Khael, despite the tension, let out a small, nervous laugh. "Uh… does this mean harder training?"

Aldric grinned, but there was no humor in it. "Oh, you have no idea."

I tightened my grip on my own power, the weight of what had just happened settling deep within me. Whatever was out there… it had noticed me now.

And I had no idea what that meant.

To be continued.