Chapter 64: Chapter 64: The Girl Who Should Not Exist
Darkness.
Endless darkness.
No sky.
No ground.
No stars.
Nothing.
Eternia slowly opened her eyes.
For several moments she simply stared into the void around her.
Everything felt strange.
Wrong.
Silent.
The kind of silence that existed before a scream.
The kind of silence that felt unnatural.
Her head throbbed.
Fragments of memory drifted through her mind.
A ruined battlefield.
A four-armed monster wearing Eternia’s body.
Lucien’s death.
Etherius.
The Axis.
The First Dream.
Then—
Her eyes widened.
Etherius.
"Etherius!"
She immediately stood up.
Or at least tried to.
There was no ground beneath her feet.
Yet she remained standing.
As if reality itself had decided normal rules no longer mattered.
A chill crawled up her spine.
This place felt familiar.
Not because she had seen it before.
But because it reminded her of death.
Of that endless nothingness she had experienced after dying as Shatter.
The memory made her stomach twist.
Then she noticed something.
Someone.
Standing several meters away.
A figure.
A woman.
No.
A girl.
Shatter froze.
Her entire body locked up.
The figure looked exactly like her.
Same silver hair.
Same face.
Same eyes.
Same height.
Same appearance.
It was like looking into a mirror.
Except...
Not quite.
The girl’s eyes were different.
Older.
Far older.
There was exhaustion inside them.
A sadness so deep it felt ancient.
As if she had watched entire worlds die.
As if she had experienced centuries of loneliness.
The girl simply stood there.
Watching her.
Waiting.
Shatter felt every instinct screaming at her.
Run.
Hide.
Do something.
Anything.
Instead she pointed a trembling finger.
"W-Who are you?"
The girl remained silent.
Shatter took a step back.
"What is going on?"
No answer.
"What is this place?"
Still silence.
The girl’s expression softened slightly.
Then finally she spoke.
"You really don’t remember anything."
The voice sounded familiar.
Too familiar.
Shatter’s eyes widened.
The girl slowly sighed.
Then she answered.
"I am Eternia."
Silence.
Shatter blinked.
"...What?"
The girl looked directly into her eyes.
"I am the real Eternia."
The words struck harder than any weapon.
Shatter’s mind went blank.
The real...
Eternia?
Impossible.
That didn’t make sense.
The original owner of this body was dead.
Wasn’t she?
Hadn’t she died?
Hadn’t Shatter taken over afterward?
Isn’t that how possession works?
Then who—
The girl interrupted her thoughts.
"The real Eternia."
"The original."
"The owner of the body you are currently using."
Shatter felt her stomach drop.
"No."
The response escaped automatically.
"No, that’s impossible."
The girl simply watched her.
Shatter shook her head.
"You’re lying."
The girl laughed softly.
Not mockingly.
Sadly.
"I wish I was."
The silence that followed felt suffocating.
Then Shatter finally asked the question burning inside her head.
"If you’re Eternia..."
Her voice trembled.
"...then who am I?"
The girl stared at her for several moments.
Then spoke a single word.
"Shatter."
Everything stopped.
The name.
That name.
The name she had not spoken aloud in years.
The name she had buried.
The name from her previous life.
The name nobody in this world knew.
Yet this girl had spoken it effortlessly.
Like it was obvious.
Like she had always known.
Shatter’s breathing became uneven.
"H-How do you know that?"
The real Eternia sighed.
"Because I remember."
She looked away.
"And because the First Dream told me."
A cold sensation spread through Shatter’s chest.
The First Dream.
Even hearing the name made her uneasy.
The real Eternia’s expression darkened.
"It seems he still had a backup."
Shatter frowned.
"A backup?"
"What does that mean?"
The real Eternia closed her eyes.
For several moments she remained silent.
As if deciding how much to explain.
Then she finally spoke.
"It means my sacrifice failed."
The words echoed through the void.
Shatter stared.
"What sacrifice?"
The real Eternia laughed bitterly.
A sound completely lacking joy.
"Of course."
"You wouldn’t know."
The girl’s gaze drifted upward.
Toward a sky that didn’t exist.
Toward memories only she could see.
"In the future..."
Her voice became quieter.
"There was a war."
"A terrible war."
"A war against something that should never have existed."
Shatter already knew the answer.
"The First Dream."
The real Eternia nodded.
"Yes."
Fear flickered across her face.
Not hatred.
Not anger.
Fear.
Pure fear.
A reaction that made Shatter nervous.
Because she had witnessed what the First Dream could do.
And yet this girl looked even more terrified than she was.
The real Eternia continued.
"He descended."
"Again."
"And again."
"And again."
"Each time stronger."
"Each time closer to completing his plan."
Shatter swallowed.
"What plan?"
The answer came immediately.
"Collecting the Axis."
The void seemed colder.
The real Eternia’s expression darkened.
"He wants all of them."
"Every single Axis."
Shatter frowned.
"Why?"
The answer arrived slowly.
Almost reluctantly.
"To fuse everything."
Silence.
"What?"
The real Eternia looked directly at her.
"Dimensions."
"Universes."
"Worlds."
"Timelines."
"Reality itself."
"He wants to merge all existence into a single perfect realm."
A chill ran down Shatter’s spine.
The real Eternia continued.
"Once everything becomes one..."
Her voice became quieter.
"He will create a perfect vessel."
Shatter stared.
"A vessel?"
The girl nodded.
"A body."
"A body capable of holding his true self."
The realization slowly began forming.
The First Dream wasn’t trying to destroy existence.
He was trying to reshape it.
Transform it.
Use it.
Like clay.
Like raw material.
The thought was horrifying.
Shatter shook her head.
"I don’t understand."
The real Eternia sighed.
"I know."
"I didn’t either."
"Not at first."
Her eyes became distant.
Lost in memories.
"In my timeline we learned the truth too late."
"We fought."
"We resisted."
"We sacrificed everything."
Her voice cracked slightly.
"And we still lost."
Shatter felt her chest tighten.
"What happened?"
The real Eternia lowered her head.
"I sacrificed myself."
The words fell heavily.
Silence followed.
Then Shatter whispered.
"What?"
The girl smiled weakly.
"I gave up my life."
"I gave up my future."
"I gave up everything."
"To stop his complete descent."
Shatter stared.
The real Eternia continued.
"It worked."
"For a moment."
A bitter laugh escaped her.
"But only for a moment."
Her eyes darkened.
"Then he turned back time."
The words struck like lightning.
Shatter froze.
"He what?"
The real Eternia nodded.
"He turned back time."
"He rewound history."
"He reset everything."
The impossible statement hung in the air.
Shatter couldn’t process it.
Time travel?
Resetting history?
That sounded absurd.
Yet...
This was the First Dream.
The creature that fought gods.
The creature that viewed universes as insects.
Perhaps such things weren’t impossible for him.
The real Eternia continued.
"He sealed my soul."
"He erased memories."
"He rebuilt events."
"And then..."
Her eyes landed on Shatter.
"He began searching."
"For a replacement."
The implication hit instantly.
Shatter felt her blood run cold.
"A replacement?"
The real Eternia nodded.
"A weak soul."
"A damaged soul."
"A soul that couldn’t resist him."
Silence.
Then realization dawned.
Shatter slowly pointed at herself.
"...Me?"
The real Eternia looked away.
"Yes."
The answer hurt more than expected.
Shatter felt strangely insulted.
"A weak soul?"
The real Eternia sighed.
"Compared to me."
"Yes."
Shatter crossed her arms.
"That’s rude."
The real Eternia blinked.
Then unexpectedly laughed.
Actually laughed.
The sound startled both of them.
For a moment the tension disappeared.
Then reality returned.
The real Eternia’s expression became serious again.
"In my timeline."
"The First Dream only managed to fully possess me four times."
Shatter’s eyes widened.
"Only four?"
The girl nodded.
"Because I could resist."
"I fought him."
"I suppressed him."
"I forced him back."
Her eyes narrowed.
"But you can’t."
The statement struck hard.
Shatter looked away.
The real Eternia continued.
"Your soul is weaker."
"More fragile."
"More vulnerable."
"He can take control whenever he wants."
"He can take control indefinitely."
Fear immediately appeared on Shatter’s face.
The real Eternia noticed.
And didn’t deny it.
Because there was no point lying.
Both of them knew it was true.
Shatter looked down.
"So..."
Her voice was quiet.
"What do we do?"
For the first time...
The real Eternia hesitated.
That alone terrified Shatter.
Because until now she had seemed certain.
Prepared.
Confident.
Now she looked unsure.
The real Eternia slowly closed her eyes.
"There is only one way."
Shatter waited.
The answer came.
"We fuse."
Silence.
"What?"
"We merge our souls."
Shatter stared.
The real Eternia nodded.
"My memories."
"My strength."
"My resistance."
"Everything."
"We become one."
The void fell silent again.
Shatter’s expression slowly changed.
Suspicion.
Concern.
Fear.
"...That sounds dangerous."
The real Eternia laughed.
"It is."
Shatter immediately pointed.
"See?"
"It sounds like I die."
"You skipped that part."
The real Eternia rubbed her forehead.
"You won’t die."
"Probably."
Shatter’s eyes widened.
"PROBABLY?"
The real Eternia immediately corrected herself.
"I mean most likely not."
"Maybe."
Shatter looked horrified.
"Those are not reassuring words."
The real Eternia sighed.
"There isn’t another option."
Shatter remained unconvinced.
The real Eternia stepped forward.
Her expression serious.
"Listen carefully."
"The First Dream is moving."
"He already has
"He is accelerating his plans."
"And Etherius..."
Her eyes darkened.
"...is in danger."
Shatter froze.
Etherius.
The name immediately changed everything.
The real Eternia continued.
"The moment his Axis fully settles..."
"The First Dream will decide what to do with him."
Neither of them liked the implications.
Shatter clenched her fists.
"No."
The real Eternia nodded.
"Exactly."
"No."
Silence.
The real Eternia extended her hand.
"We don’t have much time."
Shatter stared at it.
The hand looked ordinary.
Small.
Human.
Yet accepting it would change everything.
Memories.
Identities.
Souls.
Lives.
All merged together.
She hesitated.
Then looked up.
"You’re sure this will work?"
The real Eternia answered honestly.
"No."
Shatter groaned.
"Wonderful."
The real Eternia smiled faintly.
"It has a chance."
"A terrible chance."
"But a chance."
Shatter looked at the offered hand.
Then at Eternia.
Then back at the hand.
The void around them slowly trembled.
Somewhere far away...
Something monstrous was moving.
Something ancient.
Something called the First Dream.
And Etherius was standing directly in its path.
The real Eternia’s voice became urgent.
"Make a choice."
The void cracked.
A distant pressure echoed across the soul space.
The First Dream was getting closer.
Much closer.
The real Eternia stepped forward.
For the first time genuine fear appeared in her eyes.
"Choose now, Shatter."
"Because if we wait any longer..."
Her gaze turned toward the distant darkness.
And for the first time...
Even she looked afraid.
"The First Dream will kill Etherius."
