FIRST STEP TO UNKNOWN PART 1

For a moment, she felt a sense of peace, a fleeting calm. It was as if the events had been nothing more than a dream.

For a heartbeat, she felt peace — a fragile, fleeting calm.
As if everything that happened had been nothing more than a nightmare.

That was, until the memories of the previous night rushed back in, overwhelming her.

The Phantom.
The magic.
The screaming.
The dark.

It all came flooding back in vivid flashes, as Hana’s eyes jumped open.

She bolted upright in her bed, looking around in frantic sweeps. She was in an unfamiliar room.

She looked at her right and found Luna, who was sitting calmly in a chair near the window, wrapped in a blanket. She was in her civilian clothes.

Hana trying to recall the magic outburst, the battle with the phantom, seemed almost like a distant memory.

“You’re awake,” Luna said, relieved.

Hana blinked, still trying to shake off the lingering fog of sleep.

Hana blinked, still fighting off the fog of sleep.
“Where… where are we? And Sora-nii? Is he—?”

Before Luna could answer, the door opened.

“Hana?” a girl peeked in.

“Ibuki,” Hana exhaled. Sora’s friend. Familiar. Safe.

“Thank goodness,” Ibuki said, stepping in. “You scared us.”

“Where’s Sora-nii?” Hana asked again.

Ibuki led Hana and Luna to the living room. Sora lay on the couch, fast asleep, wrapped in blankets. Bruises darkened his skin; bandages peeked out beneath his shirt.

“He’s been up all night waiting for you,” Ibuki whispered. “Come. Let me get you something to drink.”

But Hana couldn’t move. The sight of her brother—hurt, exhausted—made her chest ache.
“Ibuki… what happened?” she asked as they walked to the kitchen, her voice trembling.

Ibuki hesitated before answering.

“Your brother came here in all bather and bruises while carrying you. He said you all were attacked.”

Ibuki take a deep breath “After, the police came to your home….I am sorry about your parents”

The words broke something inside her.

Hana crumpled, tears spilling down her face. Ibuki embraced her gently. Luna hovered nearby, wanting to help but unable to bring herself to move. She knew the truth — the Phantom had come because of her. And the guilt pressed on her like a weight.

After what felt like an hour. They saw Sora enter the kitchen.

“Sora, you should be resting,” Ibuki scolded as he approached.

“It’s fine,” he said with a tired smile. “And… I’m sorry for crashing here like this.”

“No apology needed. I’m just glad you’re alive,” Ibuki replied.

“Thank you,” Sora said, smiling in a way that softened the room. Then he turned to Hana. “Can we talk? Just us.”

Hana, Sora, and Luna headed back to the guest room.

Luna sighed “Thanks for… for everything, and I apologise for what I have caused” she said,

Sora gave her a sympathetic look “No, it's not your fault. You can’t-”

“But I am the one who leads the Phantom to you!” Luna outburst

“Maybe but I still don’t blame you. Sometimes things happen whether we know it or not.” Sora said as he put his hand on her shoulder.

“It’s ok,” Sora said.

Afterwards, Sora started to hug Hana. Although Hana wants to be strong for her big brother, unfortunately she can’t bear it.

The pain

The anger

The sadness

But in his arms, Hana felt safe but her mind felt overwhelmed. Her whole life had changed in the span of a day, and she wasn’t sure how to handle it.

“Sora-nii, I don’t know,” Hana said “Being Celestial. I mean, how could I be something like that? I didn’t even know magic existed until… yesterday.”

Sora smiled gently, her eyes warm. “It's still up to you Hana.”

“What do you mean?” She asked

Luna chime in “You have to choose if being a Celestial is what you want to be. There are a lot of things you can be. But you don’t have to figure it all out right now. You have time to come to terms with it.”

“Yeah, I mean you took pretty well when I say you were a Starlight” Sora said

“Yeah but that like saying ‘Sorry, your not Japanese, you are actually from different race’ that sort of thing” Hana said

“.....Touche” Sora said

Hana sits down trying to sort out everything in her mind and emotions.

Luna stand up “I will head back and reporting this incident”

“Oh, you're going home.” Hana said with a bit sadness in her words

Luna nodded.

There was a moment of silence as the weight of those words settled in the air.

As Luna was about to leave, the idea of her leaving, of going back to her home, felt strange. Like something was ending before it had begun.

“Uhmm…before I go, I wanted to ask you something.” Luna said while Hana looked intently at Luna, unsure of what to expect.

Hana and Sora looked confused.

“What do you mean?” Hana asked

Luna hesitated for a moment, as if choosing her words carefully.

Luna stood from the bed and walked over to the window. “Since this is the first Phantom ever discovered. When words get out there's gonna be a lot of power struggles among the chaos. Not just us but across all realms. I hate to ask it of you two.. but I need both of you to testify. I need you to come with me to Helionel, to tell the court what happened. To prove that what happened here was real.”

Hana stared at her blankly, her mind racing.

Go to Helionel. A magic realm that she had only just heard of. A world she couldn’t even imagine. And Luna was asking them to go there? To leave everything behind and testify in some magical court battle?

“Ok, I understand what your saying but that is a hard pass” Sora said

“I know it’s a lot to ask,” Luna continued.

“A lot! Oh no we cross that line already” Sora said

“Wait, Sora-nii. Haven’t you been to the magic realm before?” Hana asked

“Yeah, but this is different. It's Helionel” Sora said.

“So?” Hana questioned it.

Sora stuttered a bit before he sighs

“After what you've been through, it won’t be fair to you if I keep shielding you from this. And I would be a bad brother if I don’t give you the freedom to choose.” Sora said

Sora faces Luna with a serious look “If she wants to go to the Helionel then I will go too.”

Luna looked at Hana. “This is a huge decision, and I won’t pressure you. But, if you want to find out more about who you really are, about being a Starlight, then this is your chance. You can come with me to Helionel. I’ll take you to Eldoria, the best school Helionel can offer. You can learn about your powers, about your heritage, and in the process, you can help me prove what happened here and unmask whoever was behind it." Hana immediately felt the weight of Luna’s offer settling on her.

Helionel.

Eldoria.

It was like something out of a dream, a fairy tale come to life. But this wasn’t a fairy tale. It was real. And the decision Luna was asking her to make was real, too.

“I… I don’t know,” Hana admitted. “I need to think about it. It’s… a lot.”

Luna nodded, she understood. “Of course. Take your time. I’m not leaving right away. I wanted to give you the option now so you had the longest to think about it.”

"You're not?" Hana surprise

"No. I am staying here for a couple of weeks. Eldoria's term doesn't start for a month or so yet and I wanted to see more of this realm. Besides, you promise me to show more of what I've been missing, if that's okay?" Luna said

Hana felt a surge of happiness. Like she found a best friend that she had been missing. Maybe even the beginning of a friendship she didn’t know she needed.