"Non posso crederci, Gaia!"

I desperately gasped for air upon waking up. The face of Hera Venice greeted me in a state of panic. Her breathing was ragged and she was extremely hysterical.

"This can't be happening, Figlia. We must fix this mess!" she told me, distraught while pacing back and forth. "You must convince him to withdraw his words. Do it now! Throw away your dignity as a woman, kneel down on your knees and beg that man to marry you!" she besieged then shook me violently.

Hindi ko muna pinansin ang pagwawala niya at balisa akong tumingin sa paligid. Anong nangyari sa akin?

Napahawak ako sa aking mukha. Paulit-ulit kong ibinulong ang pangalan ko. I reminded myself that I was Stellar Lumina, the adopted child of the Venice family, the closest friend of Conan, the girl that Atticus loved once in his life... and the foster sister that Gaia murdered.

But when I grabbed the mirror to look at my reflection, I saw none other than Gaia's face. My hands trembled in so much anger for the woman whom I despised so much.

"See you in hell, you ungrateful bitch."

Malinaw na sa akin ang lahat. Ngayon alam ko ang dahilan kung bakit ako inilagay sa katawang ito, kung bakit sa dinami-rami ng tao sa mundo, katawan ni Gaia Venice ang binagsakan ko. It's because she was the one who killed me. Siya ang pumatay sa akin at hindi si Auxen. Siya lang at wala nang iba. She eliminated me after my discovery of her depraved secret.

"Aggiustalo, Gaia! Qualunque cosa accada, your marriage must take place!" she exclaimed then stormed out of the room.

Tsaka ko lamang napagtanto na nandito parin pala ako sa mansyon ng mga Venice, sa silid ng pinakamamahal kong kapatid.

Wala na akong nagawa nang sapilitan akong pinag-ayos ni Hera. Pinabayaan ko na lang siyang ayusan ako dahil ngayon daw ang kaarawan ni Auxen Sylvensen. Ayon sa kanya, kailangan kong pumunta roon at magmakaawa kay Atticus na pakasalan ako.

Pakiramdam ko nga'y halos mabaliw na siya para lang matuloy ang kasal ni Atticus at ng magaling niyang anak.

"Figlia, we must have power. Their family wields the power that we want." mariin niyang sambit habang sinusuklay ang buhok ko. "You have to marry him. If not him, then marry Auxen! You must bear the name Sylvensen!"

I gave her a blank stare. "Do you love me?"

"What? Of course I do!" Hera answered like it wasn't much of an important question. "Stop asking nonsense. Now, go! Do everything you can to revive your engagement!" utos niya at pinagtulakan ako palabas.

Sa mga oras na iyon, sa halip na magalit ay nakaramdam ako ng matinding awa para kay Gaia Venice. Ngayong naaalala ko na ang lahat, alam ko ang mga pinagdaanan niya bilang isang anak.

I saw it all. I witnessed the burden and pressure that her parents gave her. Nakita ko kung paano niya ginawa ang lahat para lang mapasaya ang kanyang ina. She loved her family so much... to the point that she lost her sanity.

You don't love your daughter at all, Hera.

I bravely made my way to the venue. The 27th birthday celebration of Auxen Sylvensen was extravagant. All the attendees seemed rich and powerful just by looking at their appearance.

Halatang halata rin ang karangyaan ng pamilya Sylvensen dahil sa lugar pa lang kung saan gaganapin ang pagdiriwang, halatang malaki ang ginastos nila.

Hindi katulad ng iba na may mga kasamang pumasok, nag-iisa lamang ako. Hindi rin nakalagpas sa akin ang mapanghusgang tingin ng mga tao, kaya hindi ko napigilang mainis dahil nangangapa ako.

I don't know what exactly happened after I passed out. The last thing I remember, I was with Sandro to retrieve an evidence from the mansion. Pero dahil sa mga katagang nakasulat sa pinto, nalaman niyang si Stellar ang ampon na kapatid ni Gaia kaya nagalit siya sa akin.

Atticus came and the two of us had a confrontation... but what happened next? Para lang akong natulog at nanaginip at nang magising ako, naaalala ko na lahat.

Just when I was about to make a turn, I bumped into Sandro. Napahinto ako sa paglalakad. His cold eyes pierced into my soul as he came to a halt in front of me.

"You look stunning, Gaia." he commented, his eyes ablaze.

It was such a backhanded compliment.

"Why are you here? You were not invited. Auxen will be testifying against you, so why would he invite you to carouse in his birthday party?"

My lips parted to what he said. Tama ba ang narinig ko? Auxen will testify against Gaia? Paano humantong sa gano'n?

Nagsukatan pa kaming dalawa ng tingin. Ako na lang ang unang umiwas at nagpalinga-linga ako sa paligid.

"Are you looking for Atticus?" tanong ni Sandro at hindi naman ako nakasagot. "The birthday celebrant, who happens to be his brother, stole his supposed-to-be-wife. Do you think he'd even want to be here?"

Magsasalita pa sana ako pero inunahan na niya ako.

"It hurts me to say this," Nilagpasan na niya ako at hindi na niya ako nilingon. "But see you in the courtroom, Gaia Venice."

I couldn't think straight. My mind was blown-off by the revelations. Auxen will be testifying against Gaia and Atticus will be handling the case against her. The way you put it... He's going to take down both his brother and lover inside the courtroom! Was he that determined to put the woman he loved behind the bars?

Hindi ko na namalayan ang pagdating ko sa rooftop. Iwanted to go somewhere peaceful where I could think things through. Dito ako dinala ng mga paa ko.

Pumunta ako sa railings at dinama ang malamig na simoy ng hangin. I lifted my gaze to the starry night skies, and the view was breathtaking.

But I was wrong when I said that I could be alone here, because I heard some footsteps emerging from behind.

"You do have the guts to show me your face, Gaia Venice." His voice sent a shiver down to my spine.

Nilingon ko siya at hindi naman ako nagkamali.

"Are you here to greet me a happy birthday? Or are you here to bribe me for the withdrawal of my testimony?"

I swallowed hard. "Happy birthday, Auxen."

I was taken aback when rage registered to his eyes. "Get out of my sight. I have no plans of changing my mind. I already dissociated myself from you. You've been playing with me and my brother's heart for so long, and I'm done with your games."

Tinitigan ko lamang si Auxen. Somehow, my fear towards him subsided. After all, he wasn't the one who killed me. In fact, he even tried to stop Gaia to do so.

"I will exonerate Conan Solaire. After all, he's innocent. Somebody else needs to be in his place." pagpaparinig niya. "I may be a cheater but I am not and will never be a murderer like you, Gaia. The moment you killed your sister before my eyes, you have lost me.

"In the depths of my soul, I knew that I couldn't love you anymore. Hindi isang mamamatay-tao ang babaeng minahal ko." Bumigat ang dibdib ko noong namasa ang mga mata ni Auxen habang nakatingin sa akin. "That's why I made a move to uncover your crime. It was the best thing to do."

I shook my head frantically. "Liar. You're deceiving me again. You killed Tyson, one of the five persons of interest! You tried to cut the loose ends and you even blackmailed Donita to stop her from testifying!"

"What are you saying? The audacity of this bitch." He said in utter disbelief. "How dare you denigrate me, Gaia Venice?

Auxen suddenly took grasp of my neck. I stared at him with bated breath when he pushed me nearer to the railings. Bakas ang galit sa kanyang mga mata at ramdam na ramdam ko ang panggigil niya sa leeg ko. Nangilid ang mga luha ko dahil hindi na ako makahinga.

"Let me tell you this, Gaia. I went to Donita's apartment to warn her about you. Alam kong liligpitin mo silang lahat para walang mahanap na butas sa ginawa mo."

Tinulak pa niya ako at mas lalong kumalabog ang dibdib ko noong maramdaman kong wala nang sinasandalan ang likod ko.

"It was too late to warn Tyson Guerrero. Your mother has already sent someone to kill him before I could even warn him to go out of town. I did everything in my power to protect Shana Moya because I didn't want another life to be sacrificed for you."

I was rendered speechless. Tears fell from my eyes.

"Huwag mo akong itulad sayo. Hindi ako mamamatay-tao. I allowed your freedom for a while and hoped that you'd surrender yourself. Pero mukhang wala ka talagang konsensya dahil wala ka namang balak na sumuko at linisin ang pangalan ni Conan Solaire."

He dug his nails into my skin, making me whimper.

"When I was informed that my brother was working on this case, I gave him a hint that you're the real culprit."

Unti-unting lumabo ang paningin ko. I was in danger. Or rather, this body was in serious danger. Galit ako kay Gaia, pero hindi siya pwedeng mamatay. She must be kept safe until we prove Conan's innocence.

I did my best to focus. There was only one way to save myself in this situation. I've only tried using it once, but I need them now. Perhaps this is the reason why I had them in the first place.

God bestowed me wings for this very moment.

"This is a hundred times better than testifying against you." Auxen tightened his grasp on my neck even more. "Every time I think of how you killed your helpless sister, my blood boils. You disgust me. You make me feel sick, Gaia Venice."

And then he did it.

He pushed me. Take note, it was ten floors down. I held my breath and focused on materializing my wings. It was only a matter of seconds when they finally emerged from my back.

It was such a beautiful sight.

I was falling on my back with my wings elegantly flapping on the air. The moon was directly above my sight, and its moonlight illuminated in my eyes. While my gaze was fixated on the mesmerizing view, he suddenly appeared out of thin air above me.

"You did well, Stellar."

My eyes watered with tears when Gabriel came into my view. My friend looked like he just jumped from the moon but unlike me, he had no wings. Despite that, he didn't seem worried about falling down in such speed.

I was amazed when he whispered an incantation which caused time to slow down. Gabriel winked pompously at me.

"Gabriel," My tears fell. "Where have you been?"

He didn't show up for so long. I was so worried.

"Do not shed tears for me, my friend." He smiled then stretched his hands while we were both falling slowly. "Come into my arms. I shall bless your success. Your mission is almost done."

As soon as his arms enclosed around me, time resumed to its normal speed. Gabriel whispered something to my ear before we completely reached the ground.

"You may finally rest in peace, Stellar Lumina."

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