"You're here." The voice said, that was everywhere and nowhere. Slowly I opened my eyes, my body still tingling with flames. "It is only you, we both know that. Prove it to yourself now." The voice was in my head, all around me, but somehow disconnected–and I was lying all alone in pitch darkness.

"Hello?" I called out to the voice, but they didn't respond. It was feminine and masucline, loud and quiet. Slowly I pushed myself to my feet, searching for anyone. Where was I? Where was everyone? "Beckett?" No answer.

Then, so far in the distance...laughter. Dry, cold, laughter that sent me back a year. I'd know that laugh anywhere. "Parallax." I ground out, with clenched teeth.

"Show me how capable you are." The voice that came from everywhere ordered, and I left no room for fear, for questions, as I took off at a sprint into the darkness.

I've killed him before, and I'd do it again. Anything to get home, get to Beckett–to my family. As I ran my boots hit nothing, the ground was both soft and hard, the air was hot and cold.

Before my eyes the place of nothing became a place of fear, Parallax's red room. I looked around at the red walls, the red rug, and at my blood splattered on the floor. Parallax stood before me, in the flesh, smelling of rot and decay just as I remembered. He smiled at me, and before I could question it his tendrils of black poisonous smoke lashed out at me.

I leapt out of the way, rolling onto my knees, and sent my own beacon shooting at him. It connected with his chest, and as he stumbled his mist lashed out and wrapped around me–pulling me into its suffocation. Never again, never again would I be his victim. As the smoke scoured my skin I did not scream, I grit my teeth and forced myself to explode energy from my chest. It chased the smoke away, and I pushed myself up once again into a sprint–charging for the man who tried to ruin my life once again.

By my side appeared weapons I'd never used before, twin kindjals. I grabbed the two blades and gripped them tightly, twisting and kicking the ruler in the jaw–preventing him from shooting me with any of his mist. With his body turned I kicked him square in the back, sending him to his knees. I infused my power into the knife, letting it glow like a million stars, then I used the pommel of my weapon to knock him into his temple. I put all my weight into it, tied in with all my power, and I watched him knock sideways and roll.

I gave him no time to even defend himself, he attempted to raise a hand to me but I sent my own tendrils out and let them pin his limbs down. Parallax smiled at me, his rotten teeth despicable to look at.

"You've gotten stronger," he gasped as I held the knife above his chest.

"And you're still pathetic." Then I drove the knife down into his heart. Just as it did so, everything became nothing once more. I stood straight, whirling, looking for any sign that I had passed the test.

"Ruthless," the voice purred in my ear. I turned to find the voice and was instead met with the sound of screaming. Female, a voice I didn't recognize. My breath was still dodgy from fighting Parallax, but I ran nonetheless towards it.

Nothing became a room I didn't recognize, a kitchen, my heart stopped thudding for a moment. Vamps piled into the kitchen, disrupting a family breakfast, a man with brown hair stood in front of his wife without hesitation. I watched my mother scream in horror, tears streaming down her cheeks, as my dad's dead body crumpled to the ground. A baby was crying, my mother picked her up and tried to run, but the baby wailed once more–this time golden power shattered the windows in the kitchen and caused the vamps piling in to disintegrate.

Parallax stepped over his dead vamps, sent his tendrils to my mother, and I watched as she fell to her knees. Tears ran down my face, I struggled to breath, to think, as Parallax slit my mothers throat.

"Watch it. Don't look away." The voice told me, I released a shuddering breath. "Show me you can handle it." I only nodded, watching helplessly as Parallax stepped over my parents and to my baby self–his clawed hand reaching for me. My baby self was wailing, power seeped out from me, and then it became nothing once more.

"You're sick for showing me that!" I wailed to the nothing.

"You're weak." Was all it said back, and I was thrown backwards roughly into my next challenge.

I watched for the second time, hopefully for the last time, as Parallax shot at me with his encasing mist. My body was crumpled, bleeding, broken, and I was screaming. Old me was wailing, screaming, dying. At the sight of it again my blood went cold, my skin buzzing with pain.

Ember was screaming, reaching for me, crawling to me even with her broken leg. And Beckett–Beckett's face was etched in horror as he launched himself towards me, his hand outstretched. As our hands met there was that explosion of power, a magnificent bold green that shot from us both and into Parallax. I watched as I looked at Beckett, realized in real time that he loved me, and then I watched as his dead body crumbled beside me.

As much as I wanted to, I didn't turn away as Ember wailed, holding her deceased brother. I watched as rage overtook my features, and as I killed Parallax.

"Why're you showing me this?" I asked aloud, and the voice spoke right behind my left ear.

"I'm curious about you, the pain in you. Are you strong enough to rise?" Am I? Had I not? I swallowed, watching still as I cried, and begged Beckett to not leave me. Don't leave, please don't leave. It was something I'd asked of him multiple times. Was that it? Was I so afraid of being left again? Of people being taken from me, as they had that fateful breakfast? When infant me watched my parents die?

"I have risen." I told the voice boldly, pushing down that pain I didn't need to feel any more, watching as the memories shifted at my own will. I showed the nothing my strength. I showed them how bravely I charged into battle, how I learned to wield my power despite my fear, how I danced with Beckett despite the prophecy. My chest glowed with my power as we flashed through memory and memory, how I protected my family time and time again, from ceilings falling, from vamps, from Walkers. How I attacked Ember's captor, how I saved Ember, Phoebe, and I from falling to our death.

I showed the nothing everything I had achieved, everything I had done despite my fear and my pain. The last memory was of the empty shell of a person me, charging into a Realm full of creatures that wanted to kill me–in order to find my aunt.

"I am the embodiment of perseverance." I said loudly, and my memories melted away–not into nothing–-but to a wide open field, a cliff, that overlooked a fierce ocean.

"I know that," said a soft female voice, "I just wanted to see if you knew that." This time when I turned there was a person, not a nothing, and she smiled at me.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice hoarse. She smiled at me, a sun kissed woman. Her skin was a deep brown, her eyes were a deep gold, and her hair the color of fire. Even her gown, a brilliant red, draped behind her and ended in sizzling fire.

"You've met the Stars have you not? Brooding buggers...I'm Solis." The sun. She smiled again, dimples appearing on her rich cheeks.

"Do...do I curtsey? I'm sorry I don't know protocol–" Solis laughed at me, waving a hand covered in gold rings.

"Don't bother with formalities darling," she quipped. "I've been here a long time Astra, but you're the first human to really catch my eyes." My cheeks grew hot, I hadn't realized I was that impactful.

"Probably because the Stars chose me, right?" I asked, looking out to the ocean. The air was cool and smelled like salt, it chilled my hands that still gripped my new weapons, kindjals.

"The Stars chose you because they were asked to find someone, and they found the first pregnant Defender with a pure soul. They didn't know who you would be, what you would use your power for. I know about you because of how remarkable you are, and I am here as a gift."

I blinked, turning away from the sea foam filled waves. "A gift?"

Solis nodded, "For your perseverance." In her outstretched hand was a small replica of a bird made from flames, it flew in circles around in her palm. Sheathing her weapon I held out my own palm, a bit hesitant about accepting her offer.

"If I take this...will I be like Parallax? Like King Erran?" My voice shook despite my attempt to keep it level. Solis shook her head, smiling at me still.

"I give this to you, not to conquer, but because you have grit–because there are big plans for you Astra." Big plans? I was a bit tired of these big plans.

"Like what?"

"Your father told you already, I believe." Solis responded, before pressing the bird of fire into my palm. I accepted the gift, not because I was power hungry, not because I wanted to conquer. But because I was worthy.

The rush of fire overcame me, heat filled my blood and veins. I gasped as I erupted, flames shooting from my body and building–forming a bird of flame above my body. Not just a bird–

"A Phoenix rises from the ashes." Solis told me, as the bird of flame, that was an extension of myself, grew in size. I let it soar, my power, rising and taking flight. Strength, an amount I wasn't used to. It grew and burned with ease, the parts of me that were always afraid, flew away with it.

"Rise, Astra. Rise from the ashes and be who you were meant to be." Who I was meant to be, who was that? I'd become Star-girl...but now?

"I guess I'm not just Star-girl anymore," I mused as we watched my power soar through the sky. "I wonder what they will call me now?" Solis smiled one last time, resting a hand on my shoulder.

"If you do as you were born to do?" She speculated, "then they will call you Queen of Everything." My mouth dropped, but I was pushed and I fell through nothing once more.