★Fragment of times past ~ Countdown: 3

What day of the week was it now? Somehow, she had lost track of that. It had been a while since the last time she saw the light of the sun. She couldn't even tell if it was day or night.

That being said, the environment surrounding her was anything but dark. A strong, almost blinding light shone brightly from an orb on top of the ceiling at all times, almost as though it was an artificial sun.

Looking around her, everything looked like an old classroom with no windows. At first, there was nothing wrong with this. A young Mirage sat at the very back of the class. To her, this was just another day of school.

Despite her being around the age of a high-schooler about to enter her first year, she was now attending college. It was the same for all the kids inside this room. Their education curriculum had been accelerated at an unhealthy speed. Every time they would skip to a higher class, fewer and fewer people remained in the room.

Before she knew it, there were only three of them left.

The light coming from the blinding orb was as strong as ever, even outside the classroom. Whenever she wasn't forced to study, she would be plugged into machines, have many obscure drugs injected into her body against her will, and it would all be rinse and repeat.

But it was okay.

After going through so much, for Mirage who was now fourteen years old, this day, in particular, was over. She had survived to the end of the day again. That was enough. Once it was time for dinner, she could finally relax.

Two young girls sat across each other on a table inside what seemed to be the school's cafeteria. Despite the environment looking like that of a school, the walls and floors were all completely white. The nasty smell of chlorine made it feel like a hospital.

Aside from Mirage and Wish, a third girl sat by the corner of the room on her own. Not having to deal with her sincerely gave Mirage relief. Between the last remaining three, all the bandages wrapped around her body made her look really frail, but the look in her eyes said the exact opposite.

While the blonde stuffed her mouth without a care in the world, Mirage silently stared at her bowl of milk and cereal. Her body still hurt quite a bit, and above all, there had been a strange sensation in her left arm that had been bothering her all day. It was like pain mixed with a slight itch, combined together with a hot sensation. This wasn't new to her, but tonight it was hurting more than usual.

"What's wrong?"

Wish glanced at Mirage who remained frozen in the spot for a bit. Even if it was someone she was comfortable interacting with, the short-haired brunette wasn't good with words. Instead, she shook her head instinctively. Maybe it was best if she ignored this pain as usual. Besides, there was something more important right now. Something she really wanted to tell Wish.

"By the way..." After a while of eating in silence, Mirage finally raised her voice. "There are no classes tomorrow... are there?"

"Tomorrow? Come to think of it, I think *** said something like that. So is it the weekend already?!"

Mirage couldn't blame the girl for losing track of what day it was. She wasn't sure if it was the weekend herself. If this was truly a Friday night, then it was great news. The days where she could rest peacefully were finally here. Even though for some reason, it didn't feel like that at all.

"T-Then...!"

The brunette slightly raised up her voice. It had taken her quite a bit of courage to speak up. There was something she had wanted to bring up since the start of the week, and she was waiting for this day to speak out.

"Hm?"

Before giving out an answer, Mirage frantically looked to her sides, making sure there was no one else watching. She leaned in closer, and her hands began to search for something in her pockets.

After taking out a rolled up paper, she spread it on the table for Wish to see.

"I found this!" Mirage whispered enthusiastically.

Upon closer inspection, the paper seemed to contain a map. It was the map of this place. Although, it looked less like a school and more like a giant tower. The map showed other structures around it, so it covered more than just this building. But that wasn't all there was to it. There was an image that stood out. A golden dot marked on the other corner of the map. There was also another image attached next to the dot, almost as though it was pasted over the map: a golden necklace in the shape of a sun with a crescent moon inside it.

There were some letters they couldn't read just below it, but that didn't matter. Despite this just being paper, the radiance of the necklace was impressive enough for the two girls to stare at it dumbfounded.

"Ohhh! Treasure hunting!!"

Wish spoke, only for Mirage to place a finger in front of her lips, telling her to keep her voice down. It's not like this was something new to them. They would usually play a lot of different games once the weekend was here, treasure hunting being one of them. The difference was that there was never a clear goal before, but this time Mirage had happened to find a map.

There was something beyond all this that the short haired brunette was also well aware of, no matter how you saw it, their goal was located outside of this facility altogether.

"So..." The brunette spoke, voicing her worries. "Are we going? Even though it's outside?"

"Of course!"

"Is it going to be okay...?"

"Of course!"

Well. If Wish says it'll be okay, it'll be okay, right? This was slowly turning into a secret mission. After all, they weren't allowed to step outside, and because they had never broken any rules, she didn't know what would happen if she ever tried to.

After finishing dinner and then being guided through the proper procedures, Mirage finally reached their "bedroom." Even though she called it that, it was an immense white hall full of black beds. There was something somber about them.

Come to think of it, all of these beds used to have owners, didn't they? But now the place felt so incredibly empty.

Mirage reached for her bed by the very corner of the room, it was right next to Wish's. It hadn't been there from the start, but her spot was moved closer and closer as more and more students had left the facility.

It seemed like the bandaged girl with red eyes wasn't here today. Mirage wondered if this meant she would finally be free from having to deal with her anymore. The other kids disappeared just as suddenly as well after all, so it wouldn't be surprising in the slightest. But then again… no, it was best not to think about it.

"Tomorrow, right?!" Lying down under black blankets on the bed across from her, Mirage could notice the blonde smiling-wide as she whispered with excitement. "First thing in the morning, right?!"

Seeing such an expression of joy in her face warmed Mirage's heart.

Mirage responded with a nod.

Even though she was excited about going treasure hunting, that wasn't it. It's not like she just happened to run into a map like this for no reason. That was an excuse. But there was no way they could go through with this without an excuse. After all, Mirage's goal was something different. It was to get Wish out of here once and for all. She had to get her out of here no matter what. It couldn't wait, it had to be tomorrow.

"Then... good night." Mirage gave her a sheepish smile before closing her eyes.

"Night!"

With excitement and fear filling her heart, the brunette could finally rest for the night –or so she would have if she wasn't woken up by loud thunder.

Despite not being able to see the lightning, the sounds of a storm hitting the walls of the tower resounded inside Mirage's ears. Preparing herself for another roar of thunder, the brunette hid her head under a pillow, but it wasn't enough to stop her body from trembling.

"Are you okay?" Wish, who had taken notice of the girl's distress, asked with concern.

In response, Mirage simply shook her head while her face was covered by a pillow.

"Come here."

With a small nod, Mirage accepted Wish's invitation and moved to her bed, bringing her pillows along.

Being under the same blanket as the blonde, feeling her warmth so close by, with the palms of their hands touching and their fingers intertwining with each other, not even this storm could scare Mirage anymore. Her heart was at peace.

Yet, the world wasn't so kind as to let her happiness last for much longer than this.

☆

The Entropy Scale –this was the correct term for the scale that May was using to measure someone's threat level between a range of five stages. It's not something she had made up. She had simply stumbled upon the information while working in one of her side-jobs. Little did she know the actual source for this scale was the Global Heaven Organization and System Termination, in other words, the organization that Mirage belonged to.

Needless to say, Mirage was well aware of its existence. In fact, she was well acquaintanced enough with it that she could measure someone's average threat level with a simple glance.

Natural Disaster - Stage One Danger Level

Dragon - Stage Two Danger Level

Catastrophe - Stage Three Danger Level

Supernova - Stage Four Danger Level

Event Horizon - Stage Five Danger Level

If she were to measure the strong opponent she had just faced, May Mireille, she would categorize her as Dragon without a doubt. Yet, once she used her Golden Memory to transform into the shining hero, Silver Mask, her level went up to Supernova. Even then, it had not been enough to reach Mirage's level of Event Horizon.

As for the two that stood before her right now? It was a shame really. Estelle was nowhere to be found in the scale while Starr barely reached Natural Disaster if you gave him credit for his strength.

In other words, while facing an opponent such as Mirage, the difference was like heaven and hell. This battle was over before it even started.

(I should stop this, shouldn't I?)

Contrary to expectation, Mirage's thoughts were rather calm and relaxed. Yet, her body was the exact opposite. The fierce expression in her eyes screamed danger. Her clenched fist showed her willingness to fight.

As Mirage took a step forward, Estelle and Starr took a step backward. They were like prey that had been cornered.

Their first reaction, of course, wasn't to try fighting back at all. They didn't even try to argue their way out. With a look of panic in their faces, both began running away as fast as they could.

In a few seconds, they had gained some considerable distance. Did they really think they were getting away?

Mirage didn't give chase immediately. Instead, she used this chance to reach the pouch attached around her leg with a belt. Instead of explosives, this one had back up tools. With this, she took a new belt-buckle that doubled as a hook-shot.

Now then, there was one last preparation to take care of before properly giving chase.

Mirage’s Velvet Burst abilities could be resumed to three skills.

First, Phantasmagoria.

The second one was the special variation that required her to concentrate, and which took a long time to load, Diffused Phantasmagoria.

And the final one, her dormant Velvet Burst– the Wheel of Fortune.

The brunette ran her fingers across the golden rings on her right hand. The rings themselves were simple accessories, just like her necklace. They shared a similar theme of an eclipse along with her buckle. Despite the items having no power, they were perfect to help her measure her loading gauges. Both for Diffused Phantasmagoria and for the Wheel of Fortune.

Charging Diffused Phantasmagoria had been impossible against May's relentless attacks. Unlike the Wheel of Fortune that charged up with damage, this one required concentration. But now, she had more than enough time to get ready. As a sign that her Diffused Phantasmagoria had begun to load, one ring on her left hand began glowing with a soft red light.

☆

"W-W-What are we going to do?!"

Starr yelled in panic as he ran with all of his might. The sight of a human being completely shattering apart a truck wasn't something anyone could easily process. That went way past the boy's own strength. The person he had picked up a fight with was on a completely different level.

"Run!!" Estelle answered with no hesitation. "It doesn't matter where! We need to get away from here before she catches up!!"

It's true that running away was proving to be a good strategy. They had made it at least five blocks away from Mirage in such a short time. But why wasn't she following them? Was she really about to let them escape just like that? Something didn't click.

It wasn't like Estelle wasn't aware of this either. She knew that there was something eerie about Mirage's lack of response. But even if she anticipated danger, it was human to reach out for hope. What if she really gave up on dealing with them? One way or the other, there was relief in being out of immediate danger. For just a moment, she remembered the star-shaped good-luck charm she received from Starr before starting to drive the truck. It seemed like this charm had come from that Wish person. Estelle had been reluctant to take it at first, but was it really working? If so, she could only pray that the charm in her pocket would continue to keep her safe.

However, the more she reached out for relief, the more her body relaxed. This meant Estelle could no longer rely on her adrenaline alone to continue carrying May so easily.

"Listen! Let's find somewhere to hide!" The girl’s sprint came to a sudden halt.

Starr nodded in response to Estelle’s suggestion. This was quite a big city. Finding somewhere to hide shouldn't be all that hard. They were surrounded by towering buildings and alleyways in-between them. The boy knew these were empty, so it's not like they would get in trouble for trespassing.

"Leave it to me!" He decided to take responsibility. Even if these structures were all locked, it was easy for him to break his way through.

"Wait, wait!" Estelle stepped in front of him before he could break apart the glass door leading to the structure next to them. "If you do that we might as well put a large sign saying we are here. It'll stand out too much."

"Then...?"

"Pick up some rocks and hurl them to those buildings in the distance! Let's blend in!"

After all, Estelle had seen Starr doing something similar not long ago, and given his strength, his throwing range was huge. Could it be that this was actually their way out?

Starr didn't waste any time, he immediately picked up any nearby rocks and hurled them with all of his force into the buildings in the distance.

The next moment, the rocks that shot like projectiles came flying back, almost as though they were reflected. The boy could only close his eyes, as the stones flew past him, grazing his clothes and slamming into the solid ground behind him. Estelle had also dodged fatal damage just barely.

The reason the projectiles had been sent back was because of a kick from something that came flying at them from the sky.

Mirage closed their distance in just moments as she swung from building to building until she landed right in front of them.

"Starr!!" The pink haired girl called out to the boy who had frozen in place. "Run-!"

It wasn't even a second after she had given that command, before Mirage had already closed the distance between them completely. She took hold of Estelle's head, her fingers burying into her face as she began to drag her away with incredible force.

Mirage's target was May after all, with Estelle being the one who carried her on her back, it was a matter of fact to go after her first.

Starr couldn't even let out his voice, he turned around to see the girl being dragged away at an incredible speed. Mirage's grip had been so strong that Estelle's feet had even left the ground.

As expected of Mirage, there was a calculated reasoning behind this action. May was still resting on Estelle's back. By crashing Estelle’s back against an electricity pole, she would have May take the impact.

Realizing this, Estelle violently shook her body, hurling May to the side, and letting her body roll on the ground. With her arms now free, she began to struggle to push Mirage away to no avail.

A crushing noise reached Starr as the pink haired girl was slammed into the solid pole. It was a similar impact as the one that did a number on May's truck, and it went without saying this was fatal for the human body.

The boy couldn't close his eyes or run away.

But even if all seemed lost, it wasn't over yet.

A moment before impact, Estelle had flung something his way. It was a bunch of Silver Memories that she had picked up, probably from the truck's dashboard.

He had seen the Silver Memories in action once before, so it's not like he had no idea what to do with it. Yet, the one time he saw one being used, all it had inside were Estelle's old clothes. Would this really help? There was only one way to find out.

A moment later, a large rocket was launched towards Mirage with the force of a ballistic missile. This was different from May's attacks. After all, all of May's armament was controlled through the Silver Core which had now been shattered.

The source of this attack had been Starr who had thrown the item he found inside the Silver Memory with all of his force.

Caught off guard, the short-haired brunette turned around and blocked the impact with her left arm. She was pushed back for at least ten meters before the rocket came to a stop with a large explosion. Thanks to Mirage's Wheel of Fortune, all this damage had been absorbed by her bandaged arm and wasn't fatal. Moreover, her second ring began glowing with a soft blue light, signaling that the bar for the Wheel of Fortune had started to load up as well.

However, this had managed to open enough space between them. Would that be enough?

The young boy found himself holding a handful of Silver Memories. He could only hope there were useful weapons in them. But now May lied on the ground while on a really bad state, while Estelle was barely moving. Could he really save both of them? What should he do? What could he do?

"Oh? So I take it this means you are ready to fight back after all."

Mirage's cold voice reached him. He had worried that the impact of that weapon had been too much, but it seems like it was nothing for an opponent like this one.

"I..."

"A member of the organization stepping into the battlefield is normal, isn't it? After all, that's what all of you keep doing, despite being ignorant cowards. Fine then. I'll teach you to regret your actions and bring you back to your brother."

Mirage was someone who was good with words. She knew exactly what to do or say to gain someone's trust, but that's also why she knew exactly what to say to hurt someone deeply.

"What are you even doing here? You abandoned your brother as if nothing, and now you want to protect others? You? Don't make me laugh."

Even though Starr wasn't a member of the organization anymore, being treated as one made him feel terrible. Even though he was supposed to have started again from scratch, someone was still making him accountable for his previous actions.

It's not like he wasn't aware of the things he had done. He had been desperately trying to ignore that, but he knew it wasn't so easy.

That's why he couldn't refute her words just like that. After all, he really was a coward, wasn't he? Even after joining the organization, he had given all the information he had to Faith and Caroline without resisting, all because he was scared. At that time, wasn't he sure he had found somewhere he belonged to? Wasn't it just the same again with Wish? Was he just lying to himself? Was he just trying to keep appearances?

"Don't get me wrong. I did notice your clothes aren't those of the organization anymore. What? Did you leave them? Of course you did. Of course you got scared and ran away. You only care about yourself after all."

And now, he had ended in this situation after meeting Wish and trying to protect someone important to her. Could he really remain loyal and continue to fight, or would he give up before Mirage's might?

Even if he tried to open his mouth, no words would come out. His thoughts were in complete disarray.

Using this opening, Mirage dashed forward. If the boy's spirit broke this easily, then it was time to have him step out of this battlefield.

★Fragment of times past ~ Countdown: 2

With a loud thud, a young blonde girl fell from her bed.

"?"

She opened her eyes, looking around in a daze. The scenery around her was the same old hall covered in pure black furniture. She brought a hand to the back of her head, that fall had hurt quite a bit.

"Mii?"

Wish called out to the other girl with a yawn while climbing up into the bed again. Yet, there was nothing but empty sheets there.

That was odd. Where did Mirage go? Was it time for class already? No, today was supposed to be the weekend, wasn't it? Wait. Was it even morning to begin with? The light coming out from the orb atop the ceiling was as powerful as ever, but, it was always like that. With a loud crash of thunder, Wish realized it was still storming outside. And with a sudden tremor, a loud bursting noise came from the floor above.

Even though the noise had been already enough to startle Wish, the loud scream that followed made her panic. She recognized that voice, it was Mirage's.

Did it come from the floor above? The school?

Without hesitating, the young blonde ran towards the door that led into the stairway, but it was locked shut. The door looked to be almost of the same pure white material as the wall, if it wasn't for a silver box with a slot to slide a card-key on the front, it would be easy for no one to realize there was a door there at all.

This also meant that there was no handle to pull on, and trying to take the door down would be useless. Why was this door closed? It had never been closed before.

What should she do? She couldn't stay here. Could someone help? Thinking about this, Wish walked across the room and towards the door that led to the floor below, but it was no use, it was locked as well.

She was completely locked inside this room with no windows and no way out. The beds that had once been full of bright and happy smiles, were now spread in rows covered in black sheets, almost as though they were coffins that represented the road where destiny had taken a few lost souls.

As much as Wish tried to calm down her breathing, it wasn't working. The sound of the heavy rainfall crashed against her eardrums. Just what should she do? Why wasn't Mirage here? Even though she knew a day like this would come, she had hoped it could be avoided.

As her eyes scanned through the empty beds, something clicked in her head. There was still supposed to be one person here aside from her and Mirage: the bandaged girl with red eyes and long black hair.

Was that girl... here?

Wish glanced to her bed, only to see something inside the sheets. The blonde was well aware of how much that person hated her, but if she could help in any way then...

The young girl walked closer and closer to her bed. Waking her up was scary, but she had no choice. She placed a hand on the sheets that outlined the figure of someone rolled up inside them, and pulled them away.

But the girl, of course, wasn't there anymore. Instead, she found a mountain of piled up pillows. Did she leave these here on purpose so others would think she was still sleeping here?

Desperate, Wish pulled some of the pillows away, but no matter how much she took out of the pile, there would be no girl hiding at the bottom.

Yet, with a soft sound, something had fallen to the floor. It was a metallic card of red color with two golden stripes on its side. Wish was able to recognize this instantly. It was a card key, just like the ones the adults used to open the doors.

What was this card key doing in that girl's bed...? Was she taken just like Mirage?

Wish shook her head. She didn't want to think about this anymore. She had to get going.

But where...?

It was simple. There were two options for her. She could use this key to go to the floor below and use this chance to escape once and for all. Or she could chase after Mirage, even though it was all hopeless, and for all she knew, it might be too late.

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She hesitated for a split second, but that split second was all it took before she steeled her resolve. She would go save Mirage. There was no way she would abandon her. After all, it was Mirage who had saved her when her spirit had broken down.

With a beeping sound, the door opened and Wish stepped into the stairway that led her into the next floor.

After arriving at the next location, it didn't seem like a tower anymore at all. At first glance, this was a school through and through.

With a huge open campus in the middle, and corridors on the sides that led to many other classrooms and facilities, the school stood tall at three floors high. This was the same school where Mirage had saved Wish nine years ago.

As real as the night sky looked like, it was nothing but an artificially created imitation. This entire area was nothing but another floor in that tower. The only thing that changed was that the bright light from before was nowhere to be seen anymore.

Wish began to walk towards the school's staircase that led into the upper floors. This floor was the highest she had ever been to in this tower, so she had no idea what awaited her beyond this point. Even now, the thought of exploring new places was exciting.

With only the artificial moonlight illuminating this place, it had become gradually harder to see where she was going. But as she reached the main, old, and rusty stairway, something made her jump back startled.

She had stepped on something wet that reeked with the smell of iron. Even if she couldn't see its bright red color, this smell was something she was already too well acquaintanced with.

Was this... Mirage's? No, no. It can't be. All she had to do was to keep going. All she had to do was to move her legs and get there in time. Yet, why were her legs getting so heavy? Was this... fear? Even a single step was taking every bit of her will power.

Hearing another loud, and explosive sound mixed in with Mirage's scream, was enough to make her hasten her pace. This time, however, there were some other screams mixed in. Who else was up there? The adults? Either way, she was certain that the screams had come from above the school.

Her legs were starting to hurt from going up so many stairs. With the school being three floors high, she had finally made it past the first two but... once she got to the third floor, something horrified her.

The blood that had spread a bit through the stairs at first was now almost a flowing red pond. And soon, she would meet the source of this pond. Four corpses that lied sprawled across the stairs just before reaching the end of the floor. It was obviously some of the adults that looked after this place. Their pure white lab coats had been completely stained, and their bodies were in anything but one piece anymore. If it wasn't because of how used she was to seeing things like these, she would have thrown up there and then.

With no choice but to step on their remains, Wish reached the door at the end of the stairway that led further up into the tower. This time, it was wide-open, and she had no need to use the card key.

Upon stepping into the next floor, Wish's vision was assaulted by absolute light. There was no telling which way was up and which way was down in this infinite white void. Yet, her feet were still standing over solid ground.

Instead of the usual orb of light at the top of every room, there was one above, one below, and one on each side.

Opening her eyes hurt, but she could make out a familiar blur on the other end of the room. A young girl with short brown hair lied down on the floor. Her blue sundress had been dyed red by the blood that had splattered all over the room.

There was no doubt, this was Mirage.

Upon recognizing the state this girl was in, Wish dashed as fast as she could, only for her body to hit hard against a transparent barrier. Why? Why couldn't she reach her? Crawling on the floor after the impact, Wish tried extending her hand towards the wounded girl, but her fingers could only reach for a cold and solid surface, almost like glass.

"Shuu..." Mirage tried calling out the blonde's nickname. Her voice was faint and fading away.

"Mii? Mii!! What happened?!"

But the brunette could only shake her head in response. After struggling for a solid minute to speak, some words finally left her lips:

"No, Shuu. You have to get away from here."

"I can't just–!"

"Pleas-"

But Mirage wasn't allowed to finish speaking.

A hand emerged from within the everlasting light, its fingers wrapping tightly around Mirage's neck. A person had stood up while lifting Mirage's body up. It was an adult wearing a white lab coat. Their face had become completely disfigured, they were missing their right arm, and chunks of their body seemed to have been chopped off. The fact that this person could still stand up was something impossible in itself.

"Now you've done it." The adult spoke using a voice filled with delight. "Ah, to think this experiment could backfire in such a way. How wonderful. Now that we've made it here, how about we keep going? Let's test whose survival rate is highest, shall we?"

Hearing this voice, and those specific keywords… experiment, test, survival. It brought back very fresh memories to Wish's mind. It was memories she would never be able to escape from.

★Forgotten Fragment ~ Into the Shadow of the Moon

It started from the earliest memory in her heart. How old was she? Probably just enough that she could speak and walk.

The first thing Wish remembers seeing was a hand. Without a doubt, it was her own hand. Yet, this hand wasn't attached to a body at all. It was placed on top of a golden tray on a table. Of course, her other hand, her wrists, her arms, her torso, her legs, and feet were all placed next to it. All spread around in the table like puzzle pieces.

Just what state was she in at that moment? Did it... hurt? She couldn't tell for sure anymore if it did.

Yet, the next thing she knew, her body was back together in one piece. But the same couldn't be said for the adult who had been standing in that room with her. Instead, the adult's body was the one who lied sprawled in the floor while spread around in pieces.

The second time something like this happened was for her seventh birthday. Many kids from her class had been invited to the party. After slicing the cake, one of the adults had placed a red candy on top of Wish's portion. Upon eating the candy, she could tell the taste was a little off, but she paid no mind to it. Little did she know, that candy was in fact a very strong poison that would melt her insides in seconds.

Once the party was over, one of the kids who had attended, the one who had gifted her a fluffy bear plush, had passed away because of their insides melting away.

The next time happened soon before it was the time for her to go to sleep, just a year later. She had caught a cold, and was told to drink some pills to get better. Nevertheless, once morning arrived, her cold was still there, but one of the kids sleeping in the same room full of beds went missing with no explanation.

While these events were few and far in-between at first. Things got worse at an accelerated speed.

Even though she didn't have a cold anymore, the dosage of pills she had to drink went up. At first, she only had to do it once per month. Ever since high school started, she had to do it weekly, and soon after her fourteenth birthday at the start of this year, it was daily.

On top of that, more and more experiments had begun. While at first she only had to be plugged into different machines, the experiments became a lot more extreme.

She would be forced into a room with two floors. The upper floor was like a balcony, but it was encased by glass. The walls and the floor were all black and metallic. Looking through the glass, she could see all the students gathered below while strapped into chairs.

Of course, the young blonde girl would be restrained herself, and because of all the substances that would be injected into her body, she couldn't speak or go away even if she tried.

Once all the students were secured, and everything was ready, the experiments that were carried over on Wish every day were vast and deadly.

She would be strangled, drowned, burned alive, stabbed, chopped into pieces, electrocuted, and have all of her bones completely crushed to name a few.

And yet, she never questioned it as something out of the ordinary. Because that is all she ever knew.

But... if there was something she understood pretty well, is that whenever the experiments took place, once they were over, there would always be someone she would never see again.

But now... there weren't any more people left that could depart. Only Mirage remained. But even after the experiments continued for the past two months, Mirage was still here. That gave her relief, but it also scared her. Why was Mirage not disappearing as well? It almost felt like having a ticking bomb next to her. Something felt off. Something deep inside her told her something was off.

And now...

★

If she didn't do anything, if she didn't stop this somehow, Mirage would disappear as well.

The blonde furiously slammed her fists against the transparent wall, but even her voice would barely make it to the other side.

Many different devices had come from a box strapped to the back of the scientist who still continued to strangle Mirage. As their fingers buried deep into the girl's neck, many different lasers, bullets, saws, and drills all shot towards the defenseless girl, attacking her with a merciless barrage.

It went without saying that a single impact of such an attack was enough to end anyone's life on the spot. But in the midst of the crash, a strange noise reached Wish's ears. It almost sounded like space itself being distorted, yet the sound felt like it was ascending and descending at a fast pace.

That pristine white room, was then dyed by an scarlet red radiance. A bursting noise rang out mixed with the sound of breaking glass. The scientist was torn apart into pieces, and all of their weapons were spread around the room while broken down.

It was the same as the corpses Wish had seen on her way here. The reason they ended in such a state, had been, without a doubt, Mirage. A red light shrouded her left arm as the short haired brunette struggled to breathe.

Dormant Velvet Burst, or DV Burst for short –this was the name given to abilities that activated after certain requirements were met, whether the user wanted to or not. They were automatic abilities, with the power of Velvet Burst. In other words, automatic abilities with the power to alter the threads that made the world.

This was the day Mirage's DV Burst was activated for the first time. The Wheel of Fortune, the ability to absorb damage with her left arm, triplicate it, and then send it back.

No matter how much she had struggled to hold it in, the destruction caused by all the harm that was caused to her, was still released. In the end, she had ended the lives of all these researchers with her own hands. Whether she accepted it or not, the result was still the same.

"Mii!"

Wish called out to her. The glass had shattered apart thanks to the impact.

With this, she could finally reach her.

The researchers were no more. No one would stand in her way anymore.

She could finally reach Mirage, she could finally save her, take her away from here, and they could live a happy life without having to worry about anything.

That's how it should have been.

That's how it was supposed to be.

But even now, Wish's own DV Burst– World End, was already active.

There was no stopping the end of the world.

☆

“Ryuusei!!! Help me!!” Wish called out to the spiky haired boy with an annoyed tone.

“Sorry. I don’t think there’s much I can do.” He sighed. “Wait-! No, don’t do that!!”

In a desperate attempt to remove the golden bracelet the maid had left in her left wrist, Wish began to bite at it to no avail. No matter what she tried, she couldn’t get it off.

“Ahhhh! This is getting so annoying! I want to take it off!!”

“Shouldn’t we… get going? I’m sure this May friend of yours may be able to help.”

“That’s it!! Ryuusei you are a genius!!” Wish nodded. “If it’s Maymay, she’ll know how to take it off for sure!!”

The spiky haired boy wasn’t sure of how to respond, but at least it seemed like she would finally calm down, so that was good. He couldn’t help but stare amazed at the way Wish pulled her gold-red motorcycle out of a small silver tube. It was just like the ones Eri was carrying before, wasn’t it? Do they sell those? He really wanted one now. Ah, the misery of being broke was as terrible as ever.

“Let’s go!”

Wish placed a hand on his wrist to drag him away but– a golden bracelet then appeared on Ryuusei’s wrist with a flash of light.

“Ah–” Wish looked away. “Let’s pretend that didn’t happen.”

“N-No!! We are not about to ignore this!!”

Ryuusei swung his arm around in panic, but Wish didn’t even bother to look at him. Instead she got on top of her fancy and shiny vehicle.

“Ignore what? Anyway, let’s go!!”

“You know what…” Ryuusei lowered his voice before sighing in defeat. “Let’s just go.”

He climbed on the bike behind Wish. Ah, this was a little too close for comfort. Come to think of it, Mirage always carried a fancy car with her. He had never been in a bike with someone before. There wasn’t even anything to grab unto so he wouldn’t fall off– uh-oh. There actually was something… or rather, someone. And that wasn’t something he had emotionally prepared himself to do at all.

The boy gave a quick glance at Wish’s waist and looked away almost immediately. It wasn’t that he was embarrassed about having to hold onto a cute girl. It’s just that this was Wish, and the image he had of her was closer to a wild animal. She wasn’t going to bite him, was she?

“What are you waiting for? Just grab unto me!! If you fall, I won’t pick you up!!”

After inserting her key, Wish started the engine and began to speed up. Ryuusei’s time to prepare came to a quick halt. He immediately grabbed unto Wish tightly the moment he was almost flung away.

“I knew it!! I knew you would drive all fast and reckless!!”

“Aw come on, this isn’t nearly fast enough!! Do you want to see fast?!”

“No!! I’m good!!”

This Ryuusei guy was quite the coward, wasn’t he? Maybe he just needed to see more action to warm up more to this kind of thing! That was Wish’s reasoning anyway. Still, this was somehow relaxing to her. Moving forward at such a speed, with the wind hitting her skin and her hair fluttering around, she felt free. Even back then, this was the freedom she really longed for.

It’s not like this situation was exactly a good one. But compared to everything she had lived through up till now, how bad could it be?

Still...

Something bothered her. It was like a little torn stabbing into her heart.

Ryuusei’s boss, and those stones he was carrying around. There was no doubt that they belonged to that person.

Was it really her?

Moreover, Ryuusei had mentioned she would be going after the mastermind. Usually, she would have gone back to fight that maid without a second thought, but this changed things a little. After all, if all of this was true, then if she went to see May… if she went there then… she could see Mirage again. She could really see her again.

The blonde’s heart was beating faster just by thinking about it. Nervousness, excitement, fear, it was all blending together.

“Wish!! Look out!!”

Ryuusei’s voice made her react.

There was someone standing a few meters in front of them. It was the blonde ponytail maid, Elizabelle.

With a hand reaching for the handle of her blade, the maid stood in the middle of the street while gazing at the motorcycle that came her way.

“Ah!! That’s–!!”

“It’s nice to see you again.” The maid smiled. “Now, will you stop? Or will you be sliced in half? The choice is yours.”

“Stop, stop!!” Ryuusei yelled at Wish. “Stop right now!!”

“Hm? I don’t like either of those options though.” Wish complained with a pouty voice.

“This isn’t the time for that!!”

“Ryuusei, you worry too much! Leave it to me!!”

“Sure! I’ll leave my death to you!!”

“Shh! Just hold on tight!!”

With a swift movement, Wish took out the Scarlet Satellite and connected it to her bike. It was just as she had done while escaping from Noa. As expected, one of the petals began glowing with a purple color. This was without doubt because of the maid’s presence, wasn’t it? The maid fought using wind, didn’t she? If purple meant wind, what effect would it have with her bike? There was only one way to find out.

On the other hand, the maid wasn’t about to let them escape so easily. Her speed was beyond remarkable. Even as the bike closed in on her, she didn’t falter. The moment she drew out her blade it would all be over.

With a press of her finger against the purple petal, the Scarlet Satellite activated its wind effect. Wish had expected the bike to fly, but instead, its speed increased like that of a bullet train.

The maid released a major slash, but Wish’s speed had exceeded her expectations. She had accelerated so much that she had immediately gone out of sight.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! WE ARE GOING TO DIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE”

Ryuusei’s screams echoed through the city. This was a speed that was too much even for Wish. She reached for her sword’s petal to turn off the effect, but the bike drifted around from the impulse and both crashed into a pile of garbage by the alley-way.

“Tch.” The maid clicked her tongue and brought a hand to her chin. “That was Wind Alchemy, wasn’t it? But I don’t sense any power coming out of her. It’s like she was tapping into my own energy.”

There was something definitely strange about that girl named Wish. Last night had been the same. It was because of what she witnessed that Elizabelle had thought about going out of her way to end this fast.

Something about last night continued to bother her greatly.

After she had hurled Wish into the skies, not only was she unscathed, but soon after, a tiny hole opened in the barrier, allowing her to reach out for Ryuusei who stood outside.

In the midst of this, Elizabelle had charged a really strong attack. Elizabelle’s figure had taken the form of a phoenix engulfed by particles of light. Wind inside the barrier was swaying violently like a storm, and all of that energy flew towards Wish as she reached out for Ryuusei.

(Wait! Stop!) Elizabelle had realized something. (I went too far! This is going to kill her!!)

But even if she tried hitting the brakes, it was already too late. At that moment, her attack had hit. She was certain that it had hit. She was certain that Wish had taken the full force of that impact. For a second, the maid panicked after realizing she might have killed her.

And yet, what shattered apart was the entire barrier around them. That barrier isn’t something that should have broken from the inside.

“It’s almost as if…” Elizabelle whispered to herself while looking at the empty road that Wish had used to escape. “… As if any fatal damage done to her is being transferred to her surroundings. Just… what is this?”

☆

"Starr!"

A familiar soft voice reached him. Pink haired Estelle had gotten up. Her back was still in tremendous pain, but the damage was not fatal. Had Mirage been merciful enough to soften the impact at the end? Even so, the damage she took was nothing to laugh at. Her head also felt like it was about to burst. But she still got up and held Mirage's arms with a tight grip from behind, forcing her dash to suddenly halt.

"I don't know anything about you!! But I've seen enough to tell you not to listen to her! A coward wouldn't be standing here right now!! Don't just stand there! If I agreed to come here with you it's because I trusted you!! So don't just throw that trust away!! If you want to run away then run away! If you want to fight back then fight back!! Anything is fine as long as you don't stop moving!! Don't give up!!"

(She... trusted me...?)

To think someone would use such a strong word. To think someone would still trust him even now. No, he did know this from the beginning. The reason he had made it this far was that someone had put her trust in him as well. He knew Wish wouldn't give up on him either.

If he were to look deep inside his heart, was he really the kind to betray someone's trust just like that?

Yes. What Mirage said was correct. He had fully agreed with her, but there were also things she didn't know about, there were also things she couldn't see.

The boy held the star-shaped necklace that fell down his neck with his hand. That's right. This was the proof that he belonged somewhere now. Leaving the organization was easy because he never belonged there to begin with. No one ever trusted him, and no one cared about him being there or being gone. Leaving his family... had been the same. That's why it never weighted in his heart to leave them behind.

But this was something else entirely. If someone truly cared about him, he couldn't let them down. This wasn't just his life on the line, he couldn't abandon Estelle or May.

Mirage was a figure he always looked up to. Seeing her get along with his brother made him think how cool it was to have a friend like that. Mirage had been a hero that could do anything.

And now, there was no choice but to fight that hero.

Starr's shoved some of the Silver Memories in his pocket, and his fingers began to move towards the button to open two of them.

Upon seeing this, Mirage elbowed Estelle away from her and resumed her dash towards Starr. With May's armament in his hands, his threat level would rise to Dragon. That would be a major problem.

Estelle's body continued to move on its own. She couldn't just stand there and leave such a young boy to face danger on his own. She tried to hold onto Mirage's torso to stop her, but the short-haired brunette dodged by escaping upwards.

Just as Starr took another rocket out and launched it forward, it completely missed its target with Mirage escaping to the skies. This meant that the boy's deadly projectile was now flying at full-force towards the pink haired girl.

It happened just as sudden. With a soft movement, Estelle deflected the rocket by tapping its side with the back of her hand.

Mirage opened her eyes wide as the projectile flew directly towards her instead.

Even if the Wheel of Fortune could absorb most of the impact, the rest of Mirage's body was still that of a human. While high in the skies, the brunette began descending like a fallen bird.

Estelle shook her head and looked at her hand. She was completely out of breath. After seeing the incoming projectile, she had assumed that it was all over for her, but somehow, she was still here.

She ran to pick up May, and placed her just behind Starr.

"It's our chance!" Estelle called out to the boy, pulling more Silver Memories from the pocket of her denim jacket. "Open as many as you can!"

Had it been anyone else, they would have thought this was already a sign of victory. But if there's something both learned after Mirage caught up with them the first time, is that there was no time to relax.

Of course, they were proved right almost immediately. Before Mirage could hit the floor, her hook had already gotten hold of a building's balcony. Using her momentum, she flung herself towards the spot where Starr stood.

"Keep going!"

Starr looked at the tall girl with pink hair in surprise as she stood up and tapped his shoulder.

In order to stop the incoming Mirage, Estelle held what looked like a large rocket launcher over her shoulder. A powerful blast was sent after pulling the trigger. Despite the attack being in such close range, Mirage ducked and nimbly dodged it before launching herself upwards while sending a kick against Estelle's legs.

Mirage's feet had missed the tall girl by millimeters. To anyone, it would have looked as though Estelle had tripped and lost her balance, but that was not it. Planting the rocket launcher on the ground, the pink haired girl had thrown her full weight over it and jumped to the other side while escaping from Mirage.

Could it be that she misjudged these two opponents? Mirage was well aware that she had chosen to hold back. The red light on her ring signaled that she was still charging up Diffused Phantasmagoria. Doing this locked her away from using regular Phantasmagoria, which could potentially end the fight an instant.

But that had been on purpose as well. Even in the midst of her rage, she didn't want to use that power just like that. The opponents before her had been weak enough as it is, their physical prowess would never get even close to hers. No, it was more than that. The star-shaped necklace around the boy’s neck. She had recognized it instantly. That’s right, if that boy had something like that then… that person would definitely come here sooner or later. She had to continue charging up while she still could.

(I don't want to hurt them more than necessary... I shouldn't but...)

Trying to stay rational while anger overflowed from her heart was so difficult. No matter how calm and collected Mirage’s thoughts remained, she couldn't stop her impulses. Moreover, there was something strange about this girl. Those movements back when she redirected the projectile and dodged her kick, they weren't normal at all. Even when she slammed her against the pole, that girl had positioned herself perfectly to reduce damage as much as possible. They weren't the movements of a novice. Just who was that girl?

The tall girl with honey-yellow eyes wasn't super strong by any means. She dropped the heavy rocket launcher as it had run out of ammo, and it proved to be too much for her arms.

With a second kick, Mirage aimed straight for Estelle’s shoulders, only for the girl to nimbly dodge the kick by falling back.

Estelle took a deep breath. She never considered herself good at fighting. Truth to be said, she was really scared right now. She was so scared she could die. To her, she had dodged those attacks with nothing more than luck. Why was she even fighting for? How did things end up like this? No matter how much frustration built up inside her, she had been driven into a corner. If she didn’t fight back, it would all be over either way. How could one single person be this strong?!

In her frustration, the girl clenched her fist and threw a punch at Mirage. The brunette didn’t even bother blocking it. After taking a hit to her chest head on, she could confirm that Estelle’s threat level had merely risen up to Bird. Her ability to dodge was incredible but there was no force behind that punch.

In the first place, Mirage had been holding back. No matter how good Estelle was at dodging, could she really take on the hero if she got serious?

Jumping back to dodge another set of missiles shot by Starr, the brunette shot her hook towards the pink haired girl.

Was she aiming for her legs?! Estelle jumped up, effectively dodging it, but that wasn’t Mirage’s goal at all. With the hook catching another electricity pole in the back, Mirage was pulled forward towards Estelle. Before she could attempt to dodge again, Mirage’s fist sank into her gut, her feet then left the ground thanks to a low kick, her full body weight was pulled upwards as Mirage caught hold of her arm, and she was hurled away into the ground landing in-between Starr and May.

“Est-!”

“Do it!!”

Even with all these injuries, she called out to Starr who immediately launched what he had in his hands.

The sound of a powerful engine rang out as something went after Mirage. It had happened the moment Estelle stepped out and tapped Starr’s shoulder. She had left something lying down next to him. It was five Silver Memories connected together like puzzle pieces. After taking a better look at them, it wasn’t hard to figure out something like that could be done.

What he shot at Mirage this time looked like a miniature jet. It had two boxes full of explosives on its sides, one large missile on the bottom, and a cannonball attached on top.

The short haired brunette was only two meters away. With a resounding burst, this would end everything. After fighting so hard, after struggling so much, with this, they could finally–

“Where are you aiming?”

Huh?

Why was Mirage standing in a completely different spot to the right…? He was sure he had aimed properly, so then why–

After all, if Diffused Phantasmagoria stopped Mirage from using her base skill, all she had to do was to stop that bar from loading for just a moment. By activating Phantasmagoria for just an instant, Starr’s final attack was rendered completely useless.

The loud crash of the missiles and breaking glass reached them as it exploded in the distance.

And now, in the blink of an eye, Mirage descended from above with her clenched fist. This would be her final attack. It was time to end this once and for all.

In response, Starr clenched his fist as well. He couldn’t fall here.

If Mirage was coming at him, so be it. Even if he was in the range of her attack, the same worked the other way around. She had entered the range of his fist.

This would put an end to everything.

★Fragment of times past ~ Countdown: 1

The moment Wish’s hand had reached for Mirage, something had changed. With a tremendous tremor, the ground had begun to ascend.

The sound of machinery reached her ears, and what looked like metallic claws had taken hold of the short haired brunette and pulled her away from Wish’s grasp.

“Mii? Mii!!!”

She called out to her and immediately began running after her. Where were they taking her? What was happening?

It was hard to move around with the ground trembling like this. Why was everything ascending like this? Moreover, there was no stairway leading into the next floor. Instead, there was a ladder leading into a hole in the ceiling.

Trying her best not to hyperventilate, Wish rushed towards the ladder and climbed her way up. Once she reached the other side, this wasn’t the tower anymore.

She was surrounded by the clear blue skies. Was this also artificial? Even if she couldn’t tell, the truth is that it wasn’t. This was her first time seeing the true power of nature.

The ladder continued to extend into a cone-like structure above. It had an opened circle-shaped door on its base, and it seemed like that’s where Mirage was being dragged towards. As Wish continued to climb the ladder, she could see two massive cylinders to its sides. They were rocket boosters, and the cone was the peak of a shuttle.

The structure Wish climbed still looked to be part of the tower, but it also looked like a cylinder that connected to the peak of the shuttle. Moreover, there were two more rocket boosters attached to the upper floors of the tower, just a few meters below where Wish was. This is what had caused the ground to begin ascending. From a piece of the tower, to the tall cylinder the blonde was climbing, and to the peak of the shuttle Mirage was being dragged towards, it all formed a large spaceship.

Thankfully, the ladder Wish continued to climb did extend all the way to the entrance where the brunette was being taken. If she kept going, she could make it. 

“Mii! Mii!! Answer me!!”

But no matter how much Wish called out to her, Mirage could barely react anymore.

As she continued to climb with all of her might, the structure continued to ascend into the skies. And as it did, a robotic voice spoke through loud speakers.

3…

With a clicking sound, the cylinder-like part that Wish was climbing, slowly began to detach itself from the shuttle above. The boosters lifting that section of the spaceship had begun to lose power.

2…

Mirage was successfully taken inside the peak of the shuttle, and the door of steel at its base slowly began to close.

1…

The section of the spaceship that Wish was climbing became completely detached and began to fall.

⚠⚠ Ignition ~ Take off ⚠⚠

With a defining burst, powerful flares flowed endlessly out of the rocket boosters attached to the peak of the ship. A massive cloud of smoke engulfed everything in its path.

With a desperate jump, Wish had managed to escape the falling cylinder and hold unto the ladder that led into the depths of the shuttle. This would finally lead her to Mirage. She just had to climb a little more. Just a little more before that door closed.

Her entire body was being consumed by the raging fire of the engine. She could barely see anything, she could barely breathe. She couldn't feel her body anymore. But she couldn’t let go. She wouldn’t abandon that girl here.

Slowly but surely, Wish continued to move forward.

“Shuu… please stop this… please…”

Mirage’s voice was faint. Her breathing was getting more and more erratic, her body was getting colder and colder.

“Mii!! I won’t… leave you! No matter what!!”

As she said this, Wish extended out her hand towards her. Even though her palm should have been completely burnt away. Even though nothing should remain of Wish’s body, she was still in one piece.

This is when Mirage finally understood what happened. As a result her arm became pierced by immense pain. She could hardly understand how it worked. But she had seen it far too many times to understand really well.

Every time Wish had been murdered, the damage had been transferred to the other kids who lived there, making them die instead. She had seen everyone die one by one like that. The girl who wanted to become a florist, or the boy who had bullied her before, and even the kid who always made jokes and got along with everyone. They were all gone.

Sincerely, it’s not like Mirage always had positive feelings towards Wish. She was scared. She was so scared of her. She was so scared to end up like all the other kids. But… she also knew, that Wish had suffered just as much. She didn’t want to see her suffer anymore. She wanted to be there for her. That’s why, when the experiments continued, and she was the only one left, she was glad that she had continued to survive. That way, they could always be together. That way, she wouldn't have to suffer anymore.

But now, she could finally see the truth. This arm of hers, it was absorbing all the damage. That’s why the adults all said she had grown too dangerous. That’s why they had wanted to put her down and get rid of her. Because even now, all this damage had continued to pile up. All the deaths Wish should be experiencing right now, they continued to pile up on her arm.

She had already ended lives like this. All those scientists, she had killed them. She had tainted her hands with blood. So then why, why was Wish still reaching out to her even now?

Mirage moved her hand forward. She wanted to take that palm. She wanted to go back to that moment of peace. She wanted to be together with her.

Extending her arm as much as she could, Wish desperately tried to reach for the girl. She could feel her fingertips touching Mirage’s cold hand but…

No. She shouldn’t. If she took that hand, then she would just end up hurting Wish again.

(Sorry, shuu. I can’t do it. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.)

With this, Mirage didn’t reach out for her. She pulled her hand back. And the door leading to the shuttle where the brunette had been taken, closed shut, cutting Wish's hand at the wrist without remorse.

Having reached her limit, and with her spirit broken, Wish’s couldn't hang on anymore.

Just how far up had she made it? Unknowingly, she had reached the realm of the stars.

As Mirage continued to ascend into the depths of space, Wish descended into the endless blue world.

As the Wheel of Fortune activated, Wish could only see an explosion reflected against the shadow of the moon, before her eyes closed.

A lonely girl fell from the heavens like a shooting star.

She carried a power known as World End with her. Whenever mortal damage was inflicted on her, it would be transferred somewhere else.

With all the continuous deaths she experienced while trying to reach for Mirage, this power was unleashed.

The girl who fell like a shooting star exploded into a burst of light. Seven colors shone across that world like a beautiful firework, and that tower, along with everything in that land, was completely and absolutely obliterated.

☆

Clenching his fist, and steeling himself, Starr launched a final attack. Mirage had entered his range. His monstrous strength would hit that hero with all of his might. This would end everything, no matter what.

His fist connected. The earth trembled as a massive punch had hit his opponent. But there was something he could have never accounted for.

Mirage had blocked that attack with her left arm. The ring in her finger let out a silver glow. The Wheel of Fortune had completely charged up.

(I have to stop this!!)

But her body wouldn’t listen.

(I have to stop this or else!!)

But it was too late.

The sound of space being distorted, along with the sound of something ascending and descending rang in Starr’s ears.

With her clenched fist, Mirage released all the accumulated damaged while amplified by three times.

“You did an excellent job! I couldn’t have asked for a better assistant!!”

A voice reached the boy in that moment. A voice that washed away any fear with relief.

At that moment, someone had stepped between him and Mirage.

However, the full impact of the Wheel of Fortune had hit that person, Wish, with no way for her to block the attack.

The force of Mirage’s punch blew Starr away thanks to the sheer wind pressure, and even the clouds in the skies were parted apart.

“W…Wha…”

He could hear Mirage’s trembling voice, followed by Wish letting out a loud gasp.

Starr looked up while lying on the floor. Just… what happened?

With visible panic in her face, Wish stabbed her blade into the ground and looked back at Starr, Ryuusei and Estelle who now stood behind her.

“Run away!! Get away from here as fast as you can!!”

But even if Wish’s voice reached them loud and clear, their bodies could hardly react in time.

There was no stopping the end of the world.