Isekais Don't Exist, You're Just Trapped in a Social Experiment

8. Last Daze

The darkness doesn't scare you. You always have the stars to guide you when things become difficult or frightening.

They flicker and twinkle brightly, like the giggling of a happy child. As they dance in the sky, they make their way down towards you, falling and leaving extravagant trails of colored light behind them. The beauty they display is effortless.

The pastel colors bounce off the clouds around them as they dive slowly, a controlled arc that eventually comes to a slow as they near you.

These stars are small and yet so bright that they leave you awestruck. They're small enough to dance along your skin, scattering stardust along your body. With their charity of light, you are now twinkling as brightly as they are.

It's a celebration of you, but you don't know why.

All you know is that these stars are your friends. They must care about you since they're choosing to be beside you.

The stars dim and trail down from your fingertips, floating onwards away. You follow. They must want you to follow them. It wouldn't make sense for them to leave when this is a celebration of you.

They take you far away.

Across dark plains with nebulas, through a forest of clouds, and onto a snow path up into the night sky. You don't know where you're going. The destination is a mystery, but they continue to return to you when they get too far, lighting up the dark space around you with warmth when it begins to get too cold.

You're happy. They keep you warm and loved.

As you walk through the comforting darkness, the path begins to narrow slowly as you go. The space on either side of you is decreasing. Just when you think it's about to become a path as thin as a tightrope, the stars double back once more.

They latch onto you, steadying your position and walking you along the narrow platform until you're back on a wide path. The stars let go and you praise them. You express your gratitude, your love, and your loyalty.

You don't want to let them down.

You give them everything you have.

Your stars lead the way again, floating along ahead and allowing you to trail behind them with a skip to your step. You can't wait to see what happens next on your adventure. These stars have made every second so wonderful. You're full of life now.

As unimaginable time passes, the lights leading you have started to dim. With quiet patience, you walk with the expectation they will continue to return to you and light your body with their warmth, but gradually they do so with less frequency.

Eventually they just lead and stop doubling back to you.

You don't mind. You realize it must be exhausting to use up their light just to make you happy. You brush it off with understanding and decide this isn't a problem. Your body is no longer lit with stardust, and you settle quietly in the dim glow from behind.

The lights continue to dim the further you walk. Their colors are still brilliant as is, but it's almost as if they want to save it, bouncing their refracting lights between each other. They dance and you watch in awe and you trail along after them.

If only you could shine and engulf them in your own star light.

The snow path has started to fade, becoming plain concrete. Your lights are getting further and further away, moving at a pace you can't keep up with at your normal walk. With that, you jog to catch up and stay at pace with them. It's not hard, you easily join them once more, and they sparkle in praise.