TWs: Arguing, amnesia, feelings of apathy/anger/jealousy, mention of non-con, injuries. Stay safe :)

« 46 HOURS, 30 MINUTES »

"Oh, Sun!~"

The Guardian groaned, opening his eyes and seeing the Celestial Giants, "Can't you planets see that I'm trying to meditate here!? I can't connect to my Etheralink when there's noise!"

"Sorry, but Nine said it's urgent," Saturn spoke, fidgeting with his fingers.

Nine stepped forward, "It's about Earth and this AetherStar."

Sun stopped his glaring, raising an eyebrow at the statement, "Go on..."

"They're connected somehow... you said AetherStars show what they want you to see, right?"

"Yes...?" Sun raised an eyebrow.

"Well, what if that's only half of it?"

Sun squinted his eyes, "What are you saying?"

"Whenever Earth has a breakdown, the illusion starts to fall apart, right?"

"Right..."

"Well, what if what we're seeing- all of this- is what Earth is thinking? The AetherStar is only using him as a 'screen' of sorts."

"That... actually makes sense." Uranus spoke, "Earth has been able to use his healing powers, and he can switch between scenery. It also provides an explanation for why we see... Theia. They're just projections from Earth's memory."

Sun perked up at the name, his eyes darting around the area before spotting the nearest LED display, "Huh... that really is her..."

"Even with this information, it still leads us nowhere." Jupiter crossed his arms, "Plus, we haven't taken into account that Earth might not know or be aware of what he's doing."

"That's true... he didn't even have a reaction when the scenery changed earlier," Uranus added.

Sun hummed, taking in the words, "Well... Nine, what do you suppose we should- huh?"

Sun blinked upon not seeing the navy individual. Uranus and Jupiter seemed just as confused, their eyes wandering the area.

"Where... did he go?" Sun asked.

"He disappeared," Neptune replied nonchalantly.

"What? What do you mean he 'disappeared'?" Uranus questioned.

"He was there, but then- poof! Gone." Neptune made a gesture with his hands.

The others blinked, staring at him.

Neptune looked between them before raising a brow, "Who are you guys again?"

"Uhm- you okay, bud?" Jupiter placed a hand on Neptune's shoulder, "Hit your head again?"

"Not that I know of!" Neptune grinned, blinking lizardly.

"Ah... I overheard Nine saying something about dark matter having certain effects on us, especially those who are... not the brightest." Uranus spoke.

"Agh, of course!" Sun yelled, gripping and tugging at his hair, "How could I forget that!?"

Jupiter glanced around, eyebrows knitted in concern, "Speaking of... where did Saturn go?"

A soft giggle was heard nearby, "This cherry blossom looks like a face..."

Saturn was kneeled, inspecting the ground with his fingers, poking and prodding at it.

"Saturn...?" Jupiter hovered over him, eyeing the other with concern.

Saturn ignored him, picking up a blossom, "I wonder why they're called cherry blossoms... do they taste like cherries?"

"Please don't-"

Before Jupiter could finish his sentence, Saturn put the cherry blossom in his mouth.

"Eat it..." Jupiter deadpanned.

"Huh... it actually tastes quite sweet- honey, maybe?"

"He's definitely been affected," Jupiter affirmed.

Uranus coughed up a laugh, nudging Jupiter's arm, "Good luck with that one, mate. Knowing Saturn, he'll have no filter."

Jupiter sighed, "One of the many reasons I love him... come on, Saturn, up you go."

Saturn whined, yet did as he was told, "Awe, but I wasn't done watching the tiny species build their hill..."

"Are you talking about ants...?"

"He's definitely lost the plot," Uranus said.

"This is just great... with Nine gone, I don't know if I can get us out of here." Sun huffed, standing up from where he had previously sat.

"Why do you put so much trust in Nine?" Jupiter asked, "He's just one Celestial."

"True, but... something tells me he knows more about AetherStars than he's letting on," Sun explained.

Uranus's brows twitched as he realized something, "Wait- you don't think he had an encounter with one, do you?"

Sun was quiet for a moment, his eyes closing for a few seconds, "Well, it's not impos-"

RUMBLE!

The ground started to shake violently, making everyone fall off balance.

"Woah-!" Uranus fell to the ground as Neptune nearly fell on top of him.

"Hahah! This is making me feel dizzy!" Neptune grinned.

Saturn held onto Jupiter as Jupiter gripped onto a lamppost.

Sun focused on his footing, his eyes darting around to ensure everyone else was safe. The smaller Celestites held onto their bigger counterparts while the latter Celestites linked arms with each other. The dwarf Celestials were lowered to the ground in a huddled circle while Venus was shielding Mercury and Luna. The atmosphere shifted, the illusion falling and revealing the black abyss of nothingness. The violent shakes lasted for minutes. It felt like hours before it finally stopped. Everyone kept their guards up, slowly unraveling from their positions.

"Is it over...?" Uranus uttered, looking around warily.

Sun waited a minute before answering, "I think s-"

"Sun!" A voice yelled.

Sun turned his head, brows raising, "Mars? Where have you been?"

"Where's Earth?" Uranus frowned upon not seeing the lively Celestial around. He knew the two Rocky Celestials were together moments earlier. He would've joined them, but he was occupied with Neptune.

Mars's face was scrawled with a measure of anxiety. The inner corners of his eyebrows angled up, and his mouth was drawn downwards. "Uhm, well..."

Sun clasped his hands together, clenching his jaw, "Mars, I swear to everything ethereal if Earth ran off again..."

Mars was silent.

Sun's eyes twitched. He took a breath in, burying his anger as he glared at the other, "Of course... it's never easy with you, Rocky Celestials. What caused it this time?"

Mars glanced at Uranus, a weird sensation piling up inside him. His lips quirked upwards and his brows twitched, "I kissed him."

"What!?" Jupiter and Uranus exclaimed, the latter noticeably louder.

Mars mentally slapped himself. Why did he sound so full of himself?

"It was an accident...?" He said. Why did he say it like that?

Looking at the others' livid facial expressions, he found himself loving it, especially the jealousy ablaze in Uranus' eyes. A part of him didn't even care about hurting the other's feelings.

What was wrong with him!? He wasn't acting like himself.

Sun's posture was tense, his teeth grinding together, "We'll talk about this later, Ares, but for now, where did he go?"

"I don't know, he ran off in that direction." Mars shrugged, sounding nonchalant about everything as he pointed behind him.

Mars' eyes flashed violet. Sun squinted, taking notice straight away. He turned to the others, "We need to find him before anything else happens. Venus, you keep an eye on the others."

Ganymede scoffed, crossing his arms, "What do we look like? A bunch of protos? We don't need a babysitter."

"I know, which is why he's also looking after Mars," Sun spoke.

"What!? Why can't I go with you guys to find Earth?" Mars complained.

"Because you're not thinking clearly. The dark matter is already affecting your mind, making you do irrational things." Sun stated, "If it's any consolation, Neptune and Saturn are also staying, but since they're not liabilities, unlike you, they don't need to be looked after."

"That's bullsh-!"

"That is final, Ares!" Sun roared, his eyes turning a violent shade of red.

Mars backed away, eyes wide. He felt his heart thumping wildly in his chest, arms subconsciously rising in a defensive pose.

"Any more out of you and there will be consequences..." Sun scowled before turning his head, "We're wasting time, let's go already."

"W-Wait for me! I'm coming with!" Luna scrambled off the ground, running to join them.

"Luna!" Mercury followed after the other.

"Are you sure, Luna?" Sun knitted his eyebrows, "If I remember correctly... smaller objects are more susceptible to dark matter."

"It won't matter either way, considering we're surrounded by nothing but dark matter." Luna spoke, "Besides, Earth is my planet- I have to make sure he's okay!"

Sun glanced around at the other moons, thinking about it before nodding, "Very well. Let's go."

« × »

"Wait, wait, wait, hold up-!" Pinwheel gestured wildly, "You're telling me that the AetherStar who did that to Kepler... is your ex-girlfriend!?"

"...Yep."

Pinwheel made incoherent sounds, arms rising and falling like a flailing fish out of water.

Messier just nodded, "Believe me, I know..."

"A-And I'm guessing this was when you were also an AetherStar?"

"Yep."

"Wow... I've heard my fair share of messed-up stories, but this takes the comet..." Pinwheel shuddered.

Messier half-heartedly laughed, "That isn't even the worst of it."

"Do I even want to know...?"

"Most certainly not."

"Urgh..." A groaning noise came from the limp body on the floor.

"Kepler!" Pinwheel kneeled beside them, watching their eyes move from behind the eyelids, "Kepler...? Can you hear me?"

"Mmgh..." Kepler's eyes opened halfway. Their mouth could barely open, strangled noises eliciting from within, "C... Can..."

Pinwheel shook his head, pressing a finger against their lips, "Shh, sh, sh, don't speak. Can you move anything?"

Kepler closed their eyes, trying to find feeling in their fingers. A pained grunt escaped them as they felt a pinching sensation. They opened their eyes, looking at Pinwheel.

"I'll take that as a no. How about... one blink for yes and two blinks for no?"

Kepler blinked.

"Good, now... did Mage do this to you?"

One blink.

"She found out about you coming here, didn't she?" Messier asked.

One blink.

"Were you two working for Sagittarius A*?"

Two blinks.

"With...?"

Two blinks.

Messier furrowed his eyebrows, "Against."

One blink.

Pinwheel raised an eyebrow, "But... why? Black Holes are literally dark matter incarnate. They are the only beings capable of destroying AetherStars."

"It won't stop Mage from getting her way..." Messier uttered.

Kepler coughed, their voice scratchy, "Sh...She's pla-planning on... reviving..."

"Reviving...?"

Pinwheel placed a hand on their shoulder, lightly encouraging them, "Take your time, Kepler."

"Re...viving... herself..."

« NOTE »

Wattpad is being a bitch right now.

I guess Wattpad readers won't be able to read this chapter until this stupid glitch is fixed.

Comments are appreciated 3