Point-of-View: Luna Castillo/Astra
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"Hey, where the fuck are the snacks I asked for, huh!?" I snapped irritably.
"I-I'm sorry, Miss Luna, b-but the concession stands were all sold out, we've got a bigger crowd in than expected," Apologized my assistant timidly.
"You're so useless...I swear, you screw up again and I'll fire you," I threatened her, before adding icily, "Now, get out, I need some time alone."
"Y-yes, ma'am!" She stuttered, her eyes glistening as she rushed out of the room and shut the door.
Ugh, what a pain this whole thing has turned out to be. I'm Luna Castillo, stage name Astra, and not to brag, but I'm kind of a big deal in the music industry right now...my recent debut album hit the top of the charts, and I'm currently on a worldwide tour, performing live in various countries.
And it fucking sucks! What's more, the headlines for the last couple of days haven't had anything to do with performances, but instead, was covering a certain mysterious incident that occurred near the concert venue in my last performance about two days ago, which was in Ireland.
Specifically, the woods near the venue burned to the ground literally minutes before my performance began. The performance wasn't canceled though, as the firetrucks arrived in time to extinguish the flames. They couldn't find the cause...but I knew what it was.
Yeah, it was me.
So, basically, here's what happened. I'd been on tour for nearly a month at that point, and I was fucking sick of it. I needed to blow off some steam, so I decided to sneak out of the concert venue for a bit, to get some fresh air or whatever.
But it was a cloudy evening and pretty dark, so I couldn't see where I was going and ended up slipping and falling into a pond. And that's when it happened, my hand touched what felt like smooth, round glass, and I couldn't pull free from it. It got hotter and hotter, before suddenly vanishing.
For a moment, I thought I imagined the whole thing in my stressed out state, but nope...as I began to, admittedly, throw a tantrum, over being soaked in muddy water, flames suddenly sprouted from me.
And I could feel them, as if they were an extension of myself...it was a strange feeling, but I liked it. Naturally, out of curiosity and intrigue, I started messing around with it...aaand maybe, kinda ended up setting the nearby trees ablaze.
I hurried back to the venue, managed to get to my dressing room without being seen, and then quickly changed out of my muddy clothes and hit them behind a ceiling panel.
I'm still not sure if that was a dream or not, but it certainly doesn't seem to be...the news articles are proof of that, plus there's this...I can still form flames at will. Definitely not normal, and I also seem to be getting tired a bit faster than I usually do. But, you know what? This is kinda awesome.
Heh, maybe I'll set my audience on fire today, that'd be a hell of a show...just kidding. I have to say, though, why are so many of my fans so...gross? Like, seriously, before the tour began, my manager suggested including meet and greet sessions after each performance. I seriously regret agreeing to that.
And honestly, the vast majority of my fans are sweaty fat guys that stink and get my hands all slimy when they come up to talk to me and shake my hand. I've been grinning and bearing it because otherwise I'd be risking my career, but come on...give me a fucking break.
I was currently in Australia, just a couple more stops after this and I'll finally be done with this shit. My next performance is in about an hour, and to say that I wasn't looking forward to it would be an understatement.
Especially since I have to act all sweet and cute the whole time, like a freaking retard. It's such BS. Though, well, it is kinda my fault since I came up with that persona when I was starting out, in order to get attention. And, well, it worked.
It's become a pain to keep acting like that though, I hate it. Well, if nothing else, I've made an absolutely stupid amount of money on this tour, so after I'm done, I think I'll take a few months to just fuck off and relax, maybe I'll buy an island for myself or something...mm, yeah, that sounds good...
...
"Wake up, it's almost showtime, Astra!"
Hm...? Oh, guess I dozed off at some point. Doesn't feel like I was out for too long though.
"Are you awake? Come on, pretty much the entire audience has already arrived, we can't afford a late start!" Remarked my manager urgently.
"Ugh...yeah, yeah, fine, just shut up already," I grumbled, as I stood up and checked myself out in the mirror...sure, I look good enough, no need to adjust anything, "Alright, then, let's go."
My manager led the way towards the stage as I followed after her, stifling a yawn. Let's see, I'm supposed to give a half hour performance right? That's six songs-...hm, but then again, if I waste some time spouting cheesy crap like stuff about how much I appreciate my fans or whatever, maybe I can cut that down to five songs instead.
Yeah, sounds like a plan, let's go with that. Oh, or maybe I could set the stage on fire when no one's looking-...nah, who am I kidding, there's no way that there'll even be an instant where not a single person is looking at me, and even if there was, there are a ton of cameras all around the venue, since this performance is being livestreamed too.
Okay, time to get into character...I took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled, before planting a wide, cheerful smile on my face, as we got to the backstage. I stepped forward and peered through the closed curtain as my manager checked around to make sure there were no issues with the lighting and the audio settings for the speakers.
Wow, quite a turnout here, I think this might be the biggest crowd I've attracted so far. Well, my previous live performances on this tour have been pretty well-received so far, so maybe that's a part of why. Yeah, I know, I'm pretty fucking awesome, aren't I?
"Time to start, everything appears to be in order," Said my manager, having finished checking around the equipment and stuff.
"Okay, sounds good!" I exclaimed cheerfully, staying in character as I turned around and walked onto the stage.
The curtains began to part as the spotlight above me lit up, illuminating the stage with me in the center, as raucous cheers burst out across the audience as they saw me. Tch, they're so loud and obnoxious, can't they be quieter? Whatever, let's get this over with.
"Heyyyy, everyone, Astra is so happy to see that so many of you showed up!" I greeted them in an upbeat tone as I waved to the crowd, prompting even louder cheers.
If I could go back in time, I'd probably tell my past self to not include 'referring to myself in the third person' as a part of my Astra character, it's so humiliating and cringy, I wanna die every time I do it. People seem to love it for some reason though, and I genuinely can't understand why.
Anyway, I then began my performance, and not to brag or anything, but I'd say that I nailed it. But, then, that goes without saying. The loudness of the crowd emphasized that fact, and despite myself, I was feeling pretty good right now.
I know that once the exhilaration wears off, I won't be feeling so positive anymore, but hey, this feels like a rare moment of respite, so I might as well make the most of it. Alright, I've sung five songs, and there's less than a couple of minutes left...so I think it's time to wrap this up...
"Thank you so much, everyone! You're all the best, Astra couldn't be happier if she tried! This has all been a dream come true, and...!" I exclaimed, before continuing to give them the cheesy-ass speech that I'd memorized for this last night.
Great, this is going perfectly. From the faces that I could see, the majority of the audience looked pretty happy and satisfied, and that's good enough, I'd rather not put in further effort if I don't have to.
Now, then, I'm almost done with this stupid speech, gotta stay in character for a little bit longer and I'm done. Okay, time to wrap it up-...huh? What the-...someone just climbed up onto the stage, a guy who looked like he was in his mid-twenties.
I trailed off in the midst of my speech and took a cautious step back, as he began approaching me. He was a bit overweight, with matted blonde hair, a scruffy, sweaty face and very hairy arms and chest. His face was flushed, probably a bit drunk, and he was breathing kinda heavy. Very, very much NOT my type. What does he want?
"O-ohhh, wow, I can't believe that I-I'm just a few feet away from my love...it's so nice to finally see you up close, Astra, you're so beautiful!" He remarked with a gleam in his eyes, before licking his lips as beads of sweat ran down his face.
Ew...ew, ew, ew, ew, ewwww!!! Nope, hell no! I did not sign up for this!
"U-um, please return to your seat, sir, the meet and greet is after-...," I began, trying to keep a calm, even tone, before freezing as he suddenly pulled out a gun.
But he wasn't pointing it at me, he was waving it at the security guards that had begun to rush onto the stage...
"Stay back, try to get in between true love and I'll kill you!" He snapped threateningly, as I heard several screams ringing out throughout the audience.
Say what, now? Oh, boy...I'm starting to get really pissed off right now. Looks like he's talking to me again...
"I know you've been waiting for me, and I didn't want to keep you waiting any longer, my love! You remember me, right!? You've liked three of my comments on your posts, on August 3rd, 2023, January 9th, 2024 and...!"
He was still going on and on about whatever the hell he's talking about, but I wasn't paying attention anymore...this is a fucking joke, right? That's it, I can't take it anymore...
"Damn it, shut up!" He suddenly screamed at the audience, as he fired his gun up at the ceiling, "Can't you people see that we're having a moment up here!? Shut the fuck up and be quiet or I'll let loose into the crowd, you shits!"
Enough is enough. I don't care what happens as a result of this, because right now, all that I could bring myself to care about, was my desire to roast this filthy pig to ash...
"-just jealous because Astra only loves me and not any of you, don't be rude just because you're jealous-!" He continued to rant at the crowd.
How utterly disgusting. Die.
"Tch, you repulsive worm...," I growled venomously, without bothering to put on my cutesy voice, as I blasted my flames out towards him...
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