After years of dating... going past the time I was able to live up to... Yza and Chiharu announced to their family they were getting married.

"M-married?! You two?!" Mom exclaimed.

"Yeah... You don't have to worry. I'll take the Nomura name." Yza said.

"Please give us your blessing... mom, dad." Chiharu bowed.

"How could I say no? You'll be the perfect man for her, Yza." Dad smiled.

"Chiharu... I'm so happy for you!" Mom cried.

"Thank you... thank you so much!" Yza bowed deeply.

When I watched them break the news to their parents, my heart was crushed.

Even if me and Yza were one and the same, I wasn't like him at all.

This moment solidified it for me.

Yza was strong and cool. He's faced things worse than I have and still came out on top, even stronger than before.

In comparison... I've never had to climb walls like he did. I've never had to overcome challenge after challenge like him.

If I did grow... it wasn't much. I've always stayed the same. Weak and useless.

I clung onto others and prayed that my measly existence wouldn't be swept away.

If I've disappeared, then I should at least be thankful that I get to see the conclusion of what would've been my story.

On their wedding day, I couldn't bring myself to attend.

The moment I was in front of the venue, I started uncontrollably crying.

I ran away.

I missed Chiharu's wedding...

...I'll never forgive myself.

I bet she was beautiful in that dress...

I bet... she was really happy...

Probably even happier than when she was with me...

Even though I'm nothing more then a wondering spirit... I could still feel a deep pain in my chest from this.

I'm so lost and confused...

I hated myself for running away from an important day for Chiharu.

I was upset because it wasn't me who was marrying her.

I regret not seeing the wedding.

I was jealous because Yza was marrying her.

I wanted to be happy for her.

But all I could feel was anger.

Not for her.

Not for me.

But for Yza.

I was... angry at Yza?

I was angry at Yza.

We were the same... right?

We were the same.

Then why... why did it end up like this?

Because I wasn't strong enough.

For a decade, I wandered Tokyo watching everyone else's stories and life play out before my eyes.

I didn't return to watch Yza and Chiharu though.

I was too scared to do that.

It was on Christmas Day that I forced myself back to their home.

One last time.

So I can put this nightmare to rest.

I watched from outside the window like some stalker.

This is pathetic...

Their children, one boy, one girl, ran down the stairs excitedly, with a smiling Chiharu and groggy Yza following them.

So this was what Chiharu looks like as an adult...

I lost my breath gazing at her.

If I still had a heart, I know it would've been beating fast right now.

Everything about her...

From her gentle face to her curvaceous body...

Her elegant posture and sweet personality...

I wanted to be there in that moment.

I wanted to be the one by her side.

I wanted to hold her hand tightly.

I wanted...

...to have a future with Chiharu.

"Ken, Shiori, slow down... you'll trip if you walk that fast."

Ken and Shiori, huh...? They're wonderful children...

Shiori was the spitting image of Chiharu...

Ken... for some reason, he reminded me of myself. Though, it was probably my unhinged imagination...

Yza tried warning them, but they didn't listen. They were too excited to grab their presents from under the Christmas tree.

"You should be the careful one dear, you're still half-asleep."

Chiharu teased Yza, before kissing his cheek.

"I'm not a morning person..."

"I know, I know. I mean, we've been married for eleven years now."

"Then you should know I'd like some tea."

"Say "please" and I might consider it."

"I'd like some tea... please?"

"Green or British?"

"British, duh."

"Too bad, I'm making green."

"This better be that reverse psychology trick you use!"

My chest twanged as I watched Yza and Chiharu laugh over their banter.

As Chiharu entered the kitchen to start making some drinks for her family, Yza sat down on the couch, yawning.

"Daddy, daddy!"

Shiori, with her presents in hand, leapt onto Yza's lap and put the gifts in his face.

"Look at what Santa got me!"

"All I see is wrapping paper..."

"No! It's a present! Pre-se-nt!"

Yza chuckled as Shiori pouted.

"Then, do you want to see what's inside the present?"

"Yes! Together, with daddy!"

"Alright. I'll open it from this end, and you can open it from that."

"Okay~"

Together, Yza and Shiori unwrapped the present. Inside was a box of headphones.

"Woah! Look, Ken, I got the same thing daddy uses!"

Shiori, eager to show off to her brother what she got, pushed the box in front of his face.

"Who needs headphones? Look, Santa got me Vanguard cards! That's way cooler!"

"Ew, it's Shadow Paladin..."

"Hey! Shadow Paladin are cool! Especially Mordred Phantom!"

"They're not cool, they're ugly!"

"You're ugly!"

"I'm more pretty then you are!"

"Y-you two, stop fighting..."

Yza tried to calm both of them down, but failed as Ken and Shiori butted heads.

"I won't stop unless Ken apologises to me."

Turning around and crossing her arms, Shiori stubbornly refused to back down.

"You started it!"

Ken balled his fists and shouted at her.

"Ken, Shiori..."

The two children gulped as Chiharu walked into the living room carrying a tray of mugs.

"M-mom?"

"You're both cute, so don't argue over something like that. If you keep fighting, no hot chocolate for you."

"Grr..." Ken crossed his arms and grumbled.

"That's right, Ken. If you don't stop, you won't get any hot chocolate." Shiori proudly boasted with a smug smile.

"You too, Shiori."

"E-Eh? M-me?"

Shiori's haughty expression turned to frantic worry. Ken laughed in her face while pointing at her.

"Ha ha! See! If you don't stop, you won't get any hot chocolate either!"

"Ahhh! Daddy, will you make me hot chocolate then?!"

Yza blinked as Shiori turned to him. She looked at him with puppy dog eyes.

"U-uh... I..."

"Dear."

Yza shivered as he could feel Chiharu's electrifying gaze pierce him from behind.

"No. I stand with your mother. If you make up with Ken, then I'll tell her to give you the hot chocolate."

"Mmm... fine. But only if Ken doesn't get any!"

"That's not fair! I like hot chocolate more than you do!"

I felt bad for Chiharu and Yza... their kids were monsters.

Yza looked at Chiharu with knitted eyebrows. Chiharu sighed and put the tray on the table.

"Hot chocolate!"

Distracted by the opportunity to get their beverages, Ken and Shiori leapt at the tray. However, before they could grab them, Yza confiscated the drinks before their eyes.

"Dad! No fair!"

"Daddy, give it back!"

"Apologise to each other."

With seriousness, Yza ordered the two to make up.

"B-But..."

"Daddy! Grrr!"

"No ifs, no buts. Learn how to make-up with one another. You're siblings, aren't you?"

"Well... I don't need Shiori."

"T-then, I don't like Ken!"

Stubbornly, both kids refused to put aside their differences and compromise.

"Don't say such hurtful things to each other... even if you have differences, you're still family. Ken, you might not realise it, but you're really lucky to have a sister like Shiori. You need her as much as she needs you."

Ken flinched, looking away.

"Shiori, don't say mean things like that about your brother. You only have one. Saying those words would make him really sad. You don't want to see Ken cry, do you?"

Shiori mumbled, puffing her cheeks.

"Besides, if you two act naughty now, Santa might take away all those gifts he gave you today. Don't ruin all the hard work you've done this past year over something silly like this."

Calmly, Yza managed to diffuse the situation.

"J-just so you know, I wouldn't cry if you said you'd hate me." Ken mumbled, shuffling over to Shiori.

"You cry over everything... but I guess that's what I'm here for." Shiori giggled, shuffling over to Ken.

"You're not ugly, by the way."

"And Shadow Paladin is cool."

With a small smile on each of their faces, Ken and Shiori hugged.

Yza handed them their hot chocolate and the two kids continued to open their presents. Shiori sat in Yza's lap while Ken sat in Chiharu's lap.

"Mom, look! I got a special Mordred Phantom!"

Ken showed Chiharu the cards he got. On closer inspection, it was completely different to the Mordred Phantom I was familiar with.

Instead of having a break ride skill like the regular card, it had a skill to stand Blaster Dark?

I didn't understand why this Mordred Phantom was different... in fact, even its symbols were irregular to the ones on my cards.

"Yep, it's really menacing looking, isn't it? This one is a really rare one."

"Rare?! Really?!"

"Yeah! See how it's slightly different to the regular one you have?"

"The background's different!"

"It's also a thousand times more shinier."

"True! It's more sparklier than the Christmas tree star!"

Chiharu laughed, picking up Ken.

"Let's put it on the tree then, shall we?"

"Yeah! I wanna put Mordred on the tree!"

As Chiharu carried Ken, he balanced the card into one of the tree's crevasses.

"Daddy, I wanna add something to the tree— daddy?"

When I looked back at Yza, he was crying.

"Daddy...?"

Shiori's face wobbled, before she started crying too.

Hearing Shiori's wails snapped Yza back to reality. He panicked and hugged her closely.

"Shiori, what's wrong?"

"Daddy's sad... it makes me sad too..."

Yza blinked a couple of times, and smiled. Patting Shiori's back, he shook his head.

"No. I'm not sad. I'm... glad."

"You're... glad? But you're crying..."

"I'm glad that I cried. When I watched your mom, I realised something... really important to daddy."

Shiori had a confused face, but I understood it immediately.

For the first time in his life, he was able to properly cry over his mother's death.

Seeing Chiharu take care of Ken must've reminded him of the days he spent with his mother as a child.

How his family was before it all fell apart.

What it could've been.

It struck a chord in me too.

I watched their family's Christmas with misty eyes and teardrops rolling down my cheeks.

It was suffocating.

Yet at the same time...

I was strangely happy.

Seeing this future was enough for me...

I'm okay with disappearing...

...because this continuous catharsis in my head will never disappear.

I got to see the ending of what could've been my story...

...I'm satisfied enough.

Even if it's a future I won't ever touch...

...at least I got to see Chiharu all grown up.

I even got to see what our kids could've been...

...I really like those names.

Ken.

Shiori.

They're strong and powerful...

...the complete opposite of me.

I want to die.

I don't want to live in this reality anymore.

This world I've been bound to only serves as misery for me.

I need to escape.

How?

Death.

So you've realised.

A voice rang in my head.

It sounded like the grim reaper of death.

He was knocking at my door.

Sweep me off my feet.

Get me out.

Take me to hell.

Where I belong.

I don't want to go to heaven.

I don't want to continue breathing.

Reduce my body to ash.

As if it were my wish being granted, my body slowly faded away into stardust.

My head remained.

From the neck down, I felt numb.

The scenery before me melted away.

My head dropped to the floor.

No, there was no floor.

It was just a void.

A black, endless void.

I ended up trapped in a world of nothingness.

Death and despair.

The scent of destruction plagued me.

Soon, my neck disappeared too.

My face was the only thing left I could feel.

A rumbling voice echoed through my brain.

I was sure that this time... it would be the final chapter.

Yozora Shinsei.

A being never meant to exist.

A hand covered my face.

A cold, vengeful one.

Ah.

I only just realised...

The hair that covered my failing eyes was bleach white.

It stopped being blue a long time ago.

I wasn't Yozora anymore.

My identity was being overwritten.

I was going for good.

Sayonara.

Sayonara...

Sayonara......

But the face of Chiharu's smile flashed in my mind.

I've heard that, before death, you can see the face of the person you care most about.

Then why did Kristy appear after her?

That smile...

On that day, where I was engulfed in flames...

I saw that same smile...

That fuzzy existence...

The one that gave me life...

No, I don't want to die...

I'm being swallowed up...

I've been tricked...

No...

Stop...

There's no going back.

STOP IT!

I DON'T WANT TO DIE!

You're too late.

GIVE ME BACK MY IDENTITY.

I AM YOZORA.

"Yozora" is nothing more than a vessel for me.

Who are you...?

I'm you.

GET OUT OF MY HEAD.

I've always been here, from the very beginning.

That ruckus in my head never died down.

It felt like flames were searing my head.

Burning away the flesh until my skin remained.

The booming voice remained in my head, situated in this endless world.

I couldn't do anything but scream.

But soon I lost control of my mouth too.

My head ceased to function.

My eyesight became fuzzier.

Then I saw nothing.

I wanted to stop this monster from using me like a puppet.

But like he said...

That's all my personality amounted to in the end.

A vessel.

My soul was forcibly taken from me.

It was stolen.

No...

...it was never mine to begin with.

Everyone was right...

They saw past my facade...

I really was a demon.

Just like... Myo-kurenai.

What remains is the mask I used.

But that too has been stolen...

I can't hide my true nature anymore...

I am the Void.

The shattered memory of Yza that accepted this fragment of despair.

The two halves became whole.

I am one person.

Half Yozora, half Void.

Ryuusei Kirukiru.

An evil meteor sent to destroy the shooting star of hope—

Yza Blade.

♢

(Opening here)