A Star Collision (satosugu)

Chapter 1 - stellar collision

A stellar collision is the encounter of two stars at such a close distance that they undergo irreversible structural changes. These collisions happen quite frequently in the universe...

It was dark and completely silent on the Gojo clan's huge estate. Satoru crouched in front of his open window, his pajamas with the little dragonflies clinging to his thin and small body as he stared up at the clear night sky.

For the past few nights, the young heir of the Gojo clan had been sleeping less and less, his thoughts constantly buzzing around the universe and making him jump from star to star in his mind. Star collisions and the globular cluster robbed him of his rest.

Satoru was already eight years old when his grandfather taught him about the universe. It was important to the clan to teach the future heir and bearer of their abilities as much about physics as possible.

One day he would be able to shape space and time, he would be the control point for physics and infinity. His duty was to surpass them all, to become something superhuman that knew and could control everything and nothing at the same time.

That night, however, the eight-year-old was far from a god.

His head was leaning against the edge of the window, the tiredness in his bones and muscles had not yet reached his brain. The glittering dots in the sky reflected in his eyes. They still existed seen from here, their glow a long echo of their tragic death.

Satoru thought about the stars and how even these huge rocks were not protected from death and extinction. He thought of how two stars that were too close often collided, changing forever, even destroying each other.

The extent of the destruction often traveled light years through space, perhaps some of it would even settle on Earth and become part of the biomass. Through a childish glimmer of hope, Satoru considered that he might have been made from one of these stars.

To have a part of a galaxy in his eyes and a part of a star collision shimmering within.

As if the stars had given him these eyes, or perhaps his soul had stolen them. He had summoned them to him like a god, imprisoned the last moment of the dying star in a human and fleshy shell. The star was imprisoned there along with many other stars of the galaxy, crying and fighting for their right to be seen and cherished.

And somewhere in this world was a human who contained the dust of the other star. Who held the same overwhelming strength and would one day share the loneliness with Satoru. Who carried what the stars cried for, a missing half that Satoru had not managed to capture.

Some of the servants at the Gojo estate often told him that he and his eyes were beautiful. But he believed that only his eyes gave him his beauty.

Sometimes, he released some of the weeping stars. In the middle of a night like this, in his room, when only the moon and the free stars were present in the sky. He cried, golden or colorful stars that fell to the ground and slowly faded and disappeared.

Satoru then hoped that the moon would hear their desperate tinkling, carry them back into the universe. He wanted the moon to put them back where they belonged and no longer imprison them in his eyes.

His eyes were a gift, but crying hurt. He had learned not to cry, had never shown his parents the stars that ran down his cheeks, that made his eyes red and painful.

Thousands of little pinpricks filled his eyes whenever he shed even a few tears. Maybe that's why his parents never wanted him to cry. It would only become painful and the powers in his eyes would slowly leave his body.

Did Satoru really want to sit here every night and cry thousands of tears, losing more of his divinity with every aching star?

No, the little boy wanted to please his parents, didn't want to have to constantly chase after their love and affection. He would have to find out how he could experience love, which was much harder for him than physics or math homework.