3Below: The World to Come

It Doesn't End Here

Author's Note ~

Short ending, but Wizards is going to begin shortly and we are ready to put all our effort in.

OFFICIAL RELEASE DATE FOR WIZARDS:

September 30, 2024!

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Aja felt as if her entire world crumbled.

When she arrived in such a strange scenery, beginning to understand its rules and what was being broadcasted to her and the entire school body, she began to accept the terms, finding the situation more fascinating than she could admit. Everyone was here, everyone had a side to a story and they could see each view, being able to understand each other, it was as if their lives were playing out for reasons, their group of friends met because it was fate.

In fact, seeing Zadra more comfortable talking to Varvatos made her smile, especially since after they found out about Varvatos, the situation was rocky, which she couldn't argue about. Despite how good it seemed to go, as they grew closer to the end, Aja realized how hard the battles were becoming and that Morando was succeeding.

Then it all fell.

Aja was in shock and while her future self had come to terms with her parents' demise, sacrificing themselves after she and Krel worked hard to achieve the parts to regain them. Then, as if it had grown more heartbreaking, she had to watch herself separate from her brother, the same one who disliked Earth and wanted to stay, making Aja royalty, which she was bothered by when she first heard of it.

She and Krel both were afraid of things before the attack and during, yet, as time continued, it seemed that they grew and accepted it, but why couldn't Aja accept it now? She didn't think she would ever move on from such a profound loss and everything seemed to twist the knife in deeper. How could she rule without her parents, without her brother? They had always been two halves of a whole, never doing anything without the other. It seemed like she was missing a vital piece of herself. Most surprising and heartbreaking was that Steve, the one who accepted her as herself, loved her, and taught her things that she yearned to learn, would no longer be beside her.

Granted, Eli willingly followed her, making her feel less lonely, yet, Steve was the one she would promise herself to and she just left him. Everything she knew was gone. The shockwaves of losing so much - her parents, her brother, her love - in one fell swoop left Aja reeling. She felt like she was freefalling into an abyss of grief and loneliness. Everything familiar was gone, leaving her untethered and lost. All she could do was hope that her future self had found some semblance of peace and purpose in this strange new world, even without those she loved most by her side. However, Aja could not fathom how she would ever be okay again. The scope of the loss was just too much to bear.

A hand lowered on her shoulders, causing Aja to jump and she twisted to look at her brother who held a concerned look. "Are you okay? The strange old human has been calling your name." Krel stated, using his head to gesture to Merlin who glared at the comment.

"S-sorry," Aja stuttered. "I was just processing everything."

"Which is completely normal, a lot of things got thrown onto you and while your future self has time to process, you don't as of now," Douxie answered. "Don't worry, we are here to help."

Merlin sighed and stepped in front of his apprentice. "I know the changes are hard, however, I am using my abilities to show these very moments to you all for numerous reasons. In fact, it all starts with our Trollhunter." Jim perked up and Aja wished she could read his emotions but with the bulky armor, it was hard to tell what he was feeling.