The Night the Stars Rained Fire

The Perseid meteor shower streaked across the sky, white-hot scars against the velvet darkness. Eleanor sat on the rooftop, her fingers tracing constellations in the air.

Beside her, Cassie exhaled a slow breath. “You know you sound crazy, right?”

Eleanor nodded. “Exactly seventeen years ago, we entered the world under this comet. It’s only right we leave it the same way.”

Cassie frowned. “Don’t joke.”

Eleanor wasn’t joking.

They were twins, reflections of each other in every way except for their choices. Eleanor had invested years unraveling patterns and tracing cosmic threads that pointed to one undeniable truth—tonight was the night. Cassie had lost herself in theater, the arts, and the life of a social butterfly.

Cassie nudged her. “What if it’s all just... coincidence?”

Eleanor turned to her, moonlight catching in her sharp cheekbones. “You always said you felt out of place; like we weren’t supposed to be here. Well, what if we weren’t?”

Cassie swallowed. Their mother used to joke that they were otherworldly, born the night the stars rained fire. Eleanor had taken it seriously. Too seriously.

A streak of light sliced through the sky, outshining all the others. It didn’t diminish—it grew, swelling like an oncoming wave. The air thrummed.

Eleanor sat up straight. “This is it.”

Cassie’s skin prickled. “What is it?!”

The meteor altered its course. Not falling, but steering. It plummeted toward them—impossibly fast.

Cassie grabbed Eleanor’s arm and closed her eyes. “Ellie, I’m scared.” Eleanor patted her hand, her gaze never wavering from the sky.

The air crackled as a beam of light swallowed them whole.

Cassie opened her eyes. A cavernous space stretched before her, its walls glowing and shifting, pulsing like a heartbeat.

Eleanor stood beside her, eyes shimmering.

A figure approached, draped in silver fabric, its face eerily symmetrical.

“You have called us,” it said.

Cassie tried to scream. No sound came out.

“Only one of you was meant to awaken.”

Cassie’s pulse pounded. “Wh0—what are you?”

Eleanor turned to her. “They’re our family, Cassie. Here to take us home.”

The being reached out, pressing a thumb to Cassie’s forehead. A ripple of light coursed through her. Cassie’s mind was flooded with memories that were not hers.

A ship. A mission. A disaster. A choice.

Her stomach lurched. Eleanor wasn’t her twin. She was her. Or rather—the version of her chosen to be awakened.

“You are one of the same,” The being said. “An original and a duplicate. In case one of you failed.”

Cassie gasped. “No. I—I’m real.”

“You both were. But only one of you can go back.”

The words hit Cassie like ice water in her veins.

Eleanor took her hand. “I’m so sorry.”

In a flash of light, Eleanor and the figure disappeared.

Cassie woke on the rooftop.

Alone.

Something felt missing.

But what?

She stared at the deep, unbroken sky, then at the bustling city below.

Her brows furrowed.

Why was she on the roof?