TWs: Drama, brief confrontation, cliffhanger, manipulation/torment. Stay safe :)

"Everything about this is risky..." Regulus muttered beside Spica as they made their way across the abyss of the void.

"I know, but we're running out of options." Spica spoke, "Luckily, Arcturus is one of those Stars who listens before acting."

"Luckily..." Regulus huffed.

"We're getting close..." Spica squinted, spotting a red twine in the distance, "There."

Regulus pushed forward, reaching for the string, "Allons-y!"

Spica glanced around before taking the glowing red string in her grasp, "Here goes nothing..."

The atmosphere shifted drastically as she felt a heavy pull overwhelming her.

"Ah... if it isn't the Little King and the ear of grain." Arcturus grinned, flashing his fangs, "What brings you two here?"

"Lovely to see you too, Arcturus." Regulus crossed his arms.

"Arcturus." Spica stepped forward despite the tight feeling around her throat, "I have a favor to ask of you."

"A favor...? This is new." Arcturus smirked, "Last time we talked, you preferred doing things independently."

"Times change, Arcturus." Spica frowned, "As time goes on, we grow weaker... while Black Holes grow stronger."

Arcturus raised their eyebrows, "Black Holes, you say...? I'm listening..."

Spica nodded at Regulus before looking at the bigger Star, "Sagittarius A* has been... unstable recently. It threatens to upset the balance of the Milky Way."

Arcturus' eyebrows twitched as they angled their head, "Is that so...?"

"Yes, and we figured we could use your help."

"Why my help?"

"Talk to BH Messier 87 for us." Regulus spoke.

Arcturus eyed the smaller Star, "M87? Real shame... I've heard that Black Hole's grown soft."

"Well, Sol has something it might fight for." Spica told him, "A NovaStar."

Arcturus raised their eyebrows, "My, my... It's a one-in-a-hundred-thousandth chance for a Star to drop a Novae- how in the one hundred ten astronomical objects of Messier did he get it?"

Spica and Regulus looked at each other, their eyes holding a conversation.

'Should we tell them Helios has two more?'

'Are you crazy? Of course not!'

"Sol is just lucky, I guess." Spica shrugged, acting casual about it.

Arcturus squinted, "That so...? Well, I will admit, I am intrigued. It's not every day that a Black Hole wants to rip apart its own galaxy."

Spica pursed her lips, "Right, so... you'll help us?"

"You've got yourself a deal." Arcturus' eyes radiated with red flames as he peered at the smaller Stars, "But if I do this for you, you have to do something in return."

"And here we go..." Regulus scoffed as they turned away.

Spica glared at the smaller before turning her attention to the Red Giant, "What is it?"

"You," Arcturus leaned down to Spica's height, "Have to find a NovaStar for me."

Spica didn't seem bothered by the proximity as she bowed her head, "Okay."

"Mmh... I can always trust you, darling." Arcturus smirked as he straightened up.

'Darling?' Regulus whipped their head to look at Spica, yet faltered upon seeing the tension of her body and the growing glare on her face, 'Guess they have history...'

"Anyway, it'll take a few days to reach Messier 87. I hope you're not in immediate danger or anything." Arcturus spoke.

"We can hold our own, Arcturus," Spica told him.

"Oh, I know you can..." The Red Giant crossed his arms, "I was referring to Sol, given that he has a history of causing trouble wherever he goes, not to mention he's also a Dwarf Star."

"What's wrong with Dwarves, eh?" Regulus felt offended on behalf of his siblings.

"Hah, I always forget that two Dwarf Stars orbit around you." Arcturus chuckled.

"It's three." Regulus clenched his fists.

"Ah, right... the one that's always forgotten."

Regulus furrowed his eyebrows, his body tense, "You bloody pr-"

"Regulus." Spica grabbed her friend's arm, restraining him from moving forward, "We should go now- the others are waiting."

"Mmh..." Arcturus smiled, keeping his eyes on the smaller of the Blue Stars, "Send my regards to Sirius, Toliman, Sol, and Proxima."

"Will do," Spica responded, dragging Regulus away as they ground their teeth. She whispered to him, "Not a word, Regulus."

« × »

"You know what's going on, Jupiter?" Mars asked.

Everyone turned their attention to Jupiter, who held his chest as he steadied his breathing, "Right, well- I think I know the jist of what's happening, not really everything, per s-"

"Just get on with it!" Venus yelled.

"Okay, ahem, so we know that Sagittarius A* attacked Saturn and potentially Nine...?" Jupiter glanced at the Sun, who nodded in confirmation, "And it left marks behind. I read somewhere that Black Holes can bend celestial objects to their will, and this is through marking."

"What, like a marionette?" Earth asked.

"Precisely."

"Creepy... treating me like a puppet on a string," Saturn muttered, rubbing his aching chest.

Sun hummed. It did make sense. The smaller the Black Hole, the more experimental it was. Of course, it would torture its victims before tearing them apart.

Wait.

Sun snapped his head up, eyes flickering around.

Victims.

"Where's Nine?" Sun furrowed his eyebrows upon not seeing the navy Celestial.

"He ran off to the Kuiper belt," Uranus responded.

Sun scowled, "Find him. He's in more danger than all of us can imagine."

« × »

"Woah-! You look amazing!" Pinwheel gushed, watching from Nine's peripherals as the Celestial's colors faded, "I can see the frozen wasteland from here!"

Nine huffed, wondering why the NovaStar was entranced by his true color. Nothing was lying on his surface, let alone under it. He didn't have life or water. He was just ice. Cold, frozen, and dead.

"You won't get anywhere if you keep thinking like that," Pinwheel spoke.

Oh. He had forgotten the Novae could hear his thoughts.

"I think you're cool because you're unlike anything I've seen before; I mean, a completely white planet... if only you were closer to the Sun, then you could shine brighter than any other Star."

"I used to be closer to the Sun, then we were pushed back to make room for the Rocky Planets." Nine sighed, looking down into the abyss, "I used to be closer to Neptune as well... until I realized my orbit was shifting away from him and then I ended up close to the Kuiper belt before I was ejected and found myself on the other side of it."

"You've been through a lot..."

"Yep, but I deserved it."

In the Ethereal, one would watch from their Novae, not knowing what to say or do to comfort their holder. Instead, they looked on, observing the Celestial who occupied himself by smashing asteroids together.

In the Ethereal, one would notice a slight change in the atmosphere.

Pinwheel snapped his head away from the Novae, whipping it around. He peered over his shoulder, wide-eyed as he felt a pit forming in his stomach.

He was supposed to be alone. No one could follow him when he was attached to a Celestial.

'Unless,' Pinwheel looked up, the wind getting knocked out of him as something struck him down, "Agh!" He was forcefully pulled away from his Novae, faintly hearing Nine letting out a pained yell. He reached out, his vision blurry and stippled with black spots as he tried grasping his Novae, "Nine...!"

« NOTE »

Someone drew fanart for me without realizing it was fanart lol

Artist: Christina_3004 on Discord

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