LAST ACT

PROLOGUE.

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I jolted up from what seemed like an eternal slumber, but I found that I wasn't back on that airship. Instead, there were holograms after holograms of different events that might've happened at a distant past all around me.

With labored breaths, I slowly released my shaky hand from where I clutched it at my chest. I looked at it, but was surprised to find no blood in it.

That was weird. I thought I met my end.

From a distance, I could see Eli running up to me. I mustered what little strength I had to get up, panting as if I had finished a marathon.

"SS, are you okay? What happened?" Eli clutched onto me and frantically checked every inch of me to make sure I was alright. She immediately noticed my dejected mood even if I tried to hide it. "It...didn't go well, did it?"

I looked down, unable to look her in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Eli. He threw me into prison and I was trying to escape, but they—they were just standing there as I got beaten up, and..."

I couldn't help but sob. Eli then asked again, "Why did he...?"

"I-I don't know, I thought—"

Eli cut me off by wrapping me into a hug and soothing my back. "It's okay. You don't have to say anything else."

I broke down from there. Nothing much could be heard in this void but my sobbing. I felt like I failed Eli, that the mission was unsuccessful. Every other mission was a failure, too. But then, I noticed she was unusually silent.

Usually, if Eli was silent, she was thinking. Eli was always thinking. She was a mastermind; I looked up to her a lot. I could only wish I was her, but my duty is to be like her; a sweet and honorable identity named SS. I forgot what these letters stood for, but they served some sort of emotional significance to Eli.

But as I played the role of SS, I couldn't help but feel as if my back hurted from carrying the burden of masquerading. At this point, I don't even know who I am anymore. I don't know how long I have to live in a mountain of white lies. I could only hope it would be for a short while.

As some time had passed, she broke the silence suddenly and decisively. "SS, I'll make another time loop. But this one will be different."

"Huh? What do you mean different? What are you gonna do?" I asked, wiping my tears off my cheeks. Sometimes, I don't really understand how Eli's mind works.

"What I should've done in the first place," Eli declared as she waved her hands around. She turned to me, and I felt shivers down my spine as she stared at my soul. "SS, this time loop is going to be different. They will be removed from existence. It will affect reality."

"W-what? Can you still handle that? Won't it take a lot of your power?" I asked, bewildered.

Eli's eyes shone mischievously. "Don't worry, I can manage," she brushed off. "My plan is for your friends to remember what happened on the previous time loop, too. However, as the days go by, their memories in all of the timelines they're in will be slowly erased. That also includes any memories of those two."

I stared, trying to process everything. "If my calculations are correct, the process will be fully completed after you graduate high school," Eli concluded, tapping her chin.

I know I'm smart, but honestly, I'm not as smart as Eli is. I still have a lot to learn. But for the time I have to act like her, I think I'm doing a pretty decent job, even if it was hard.

Eventually, I pieced together everything. "So that means," I trailed off.

"SS, I want you to know that not only is this the last time loop, but also your last mission," Eli explained. Her tone was grave.

My last mission? What does this mean for me?

As I opened my mouth to formulate words, she continued "With those two gone, I can guarantee smooth sailing in this mission. Just make one last act as SS until your graduation."

This was really my last mission as SS.

I don't know how to feel. My mind scrambled to find something about this, like what I'm going to do once all of this is over.

Being SS has become muscle memory for me; I have gotten used into masquerading someone I'm not. As much as it was thrilling, I couldn't help but feel like all the load had been lifted off.

Just a little more, and I'm free.

"You've suffered so long, SS. I can't bear seeing you like this," Eli whispered, tucking a tendril of my willowy hair. "Just a little more, and you're free."

I flinched when she echoed the words I said to myself. Then I stood straighter and more dignified, having made up my mind. "Alright, for everyone's sake. I'll do my best to put on one final act."

Eli smiled, with a pang of wistfulness. "Good luck, SS, and take care," she said as white engulfed every part of me.

My ears rang, then the shrill sound disappeared.

I opened my eyes again. I laid on a plush bed with soft, silky sheets engulfing my body, and gilded gold ceilings with a fresco painting of a blue sky, cotton-like clouds, and baby angels met my vision. It was so different from the void I had just been in.

The time loop really did work. Now I'm back in day one. And day one meant my high school days. I reached for a white envelope on my bedside, opening it and reading my acceptance letter to Le Viour Academy.

This was my final mission, and I only hoped I won't let Eli down this time.

I got out of bed to start my day. Le Viour's entrance test waits for no one, after all.

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