Chapter 13: Luna

　　Luna should have been dead by now. She knew that much. It was a miracle that she managed to stay alive this long. Because, on top of her sickness, her legs were completely numb. She`s bedridden; she`s useless.

　　She rolled over, pulling the blankets closer to herself and trying to get back to sleep. It was no use; she was awake now. She needed water. She should call for nurse Jen.

　　Her room was clean, and everything was in its place. Her door was open in case she needed help in the middle of the night. Across the room was a bucket of water, Luna`s new prize.

　　She took a deep breath and cast the covers away. She sat up and used her hands to move both her legs to dangle off the edge of the bed. With a daring smile, she leaned forward and fell. The crawl across the room felt like hell.

　　I don`t need any help! Luna thought. Her breathing became sporadic and heavy, as if every time she sucked in a breath, it was too much for her. She`d barely made it halfway to the water bucket before collapsing onto her stomach. Maybe she should call for her nurse. If Elena were here, she`d be bending reality itself to help Luna in whatever way she could. She needed to go on adventures with her sister when she was older; to do that, she must be stronger. She couldn`t lie on the floor helplessly forever. She needed this.

　　Every push would send these intense waves of pain through her arms. She would pause, take a small break, control her breathing, and then continue. After what felt like an eternity, she reached the water bucket. Pulling herself to an upright position was incredibly difficult, and the fact she had to use her arms to move her legs was exhausting.

　　After her breathing equalized, tranquility washed over her. She scooped the ladle from the bucket and drank. The water was metallic and spilled all over her nightgown. Her cheeks hurt from smiling; she`d done something on her own.

　　An odd sensation washed over her a moment later, an appearance of this slight pressure in the center of her chest, as if someone was pushing on her. She glanced down. Nothing was there; nothing was touching her.

　　The blinding white light followed. It came out of nowhere. The doors to her balcony flew open, and she shielded her eyes from the brilliant light. She fell onto her back as the wind burst into her room and swirled furiously. Her eyes reflexively shut, but she saw only white even when she opened them. Was she screaming? All she could hear was the roar of the tempest.

　　"Luna Rosenthal," a familiar voice boomed all around her.

　　Luna had fallen on her side, covered her ears, and shut her eyes so tight it hurt.

　　"You have been chosen to receive a blessing." The voice was so loud, all-encompassing, as if God was speaking to her.

　　The sound stopped; the world stood still. Luna was still frozen in fear, an aching crippling fear exponentially growing in tangent with the pressure in her chest.

　　She finally gained enough courage to open her eyes. Flowers. She was lying on her back in a field of lovely, colorful flowers. All around her, she could smell them. She instinctively stood up to look around. Shock struck her like a hammer to the back. She just stood up.

　　In this horrifying experience, one truly amazing thing happened. She stood up on her own two legs after being unable to for months.

　　"Luna."

　　She snapped her head toward the voice that called for her. It was a bright and familiar sight. Behind her stood a woman of luscious grace. She had tan skin and long white hair. She had a black cloak wrapped around her shoulders. Her forehead was wide, just a little too big, and her nose was shifted to the right as if it`d been broken and re-healed. She had a deep scar that ripped down the left side of her face. This girl was Isabel Arkell, Elena`s best friend.

　　"Izzy?" Luna squeaked. She`d always been so mysterious, "Why are you here? Wait, where am I? Why can I walk? Also, what happened to my room? Am I dreaming or something?"

　　"I know you have many questions. I cannot answer them for you now. Just know that you are healed and gifted with the power of the Tigress. She grants you the strength to view our lineage of predecessors."

　　"The Tigress? Predecessors? What are you talking about?"

　　Luna was more lost than she`d been reading the enormous books Elena brought home.

　　Isabel turned away, walking through the field of flowers.

　　"Wait!" Luna scurried to keep up with her.

　　"I know you`re confused," Isabel said, "But I can tell you this. I am. . . I was the Lady of the Moon."If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

　　"The hero? Really? That`s amazing!"

　　"I just wanted to spread kindness, but I know that at the end of my days, I was unable to."

　　"Huh? Hey, answer me!" Luna called. But Isabel did not speak to her. It was as if she was giving her a message instead.

　　"If you are hearing this, then I am dead. They have killed me. I am sorry."

　　"Dead?" Luna asked. She stopped moving out of shock, "Why? What happened? What are you talking about?"

　　"I can not show you the details of my death, for the mission must be successful. I`m sorry that I can`t assist you further. . . not until what was done to me. . . is undone. I now relinquish my power to you. It was the only choice I had. I hope one day you can forgive me for this burden. Please, be my successor, eradicate the Shard of Sin, and bring back the sun."

　　"I wish that I could tell you more," she continued, "and I wish that I did not die. The Tigress will be good to you, I promise. Listen to Elena, and don`t let her destroy you." She gave Luna a bright smile, one that perhaps her mother would have had. A moment later, she turned to dust.

　　With her disintegration, the world around Luna began to fade away. The field of flowers vanished until all that remained was black. She blinked and awoke on the floor of her bedroom, next to the water bucket.

　　Confusion, anger, sadness, shock. Every emotion seemed to fill her mind before being ripped away by a mysterious force. The pressure in her chest skyrocketed, and it felt like someone had placed something heavy on her. She reached out with her mind, clawing at the emotions before her. But no, they were all gone; she could barely feel anything anymore.

　　Light poured into her room through her open balcony doors. She got to her feet and closed the door. Normally, she`d be so happy she could walk, but things were different. She was still happy, but it was suppressed; she could only feel a fragment of her happiness.

　　Her legs carried her to her bedroom door, and she crept through, passing her sister`s room in the hallway. She could walk down the central staircase into the tavern`s storage room. At the bottom, she saw Elena at her desk in the alcove. The first thing she noticed was her new haircut, shorter, with bangs covering her left side.

　　Her sister perked up when she saw Luna. "By the Crown. . . Luna, how have you- why- when did&" She stumbled over her words and threw her arms around the girl. "You just, I. . ." she sobbed, falling to the floor.

　　"You cut your hair," was the first thing Luna said.

　　"My hair? Yours is white!" Elena said, pulling away from her embrace and grabbing part of it.

　　"Oh. I suppose it is." Luna didn`t know what to say in this situation. She recalled being happy around her sister previously, so she attempted to smile.

　　"How did this happen?" Elena said. She pulled away from her sister and wiped her tears from her face.

　　"I had one dream," Luna said, "Isabel was there. She told me she died and that she has relinquished her power to me."

　　Normally, she would have picked up on Elena`s horrendous expression. The way her face contorted into jealousy, her eye twitching, and her lips falling into a frown. But at the time, she was utterly oblivious to these changes.

　　"She did die today&" Elena said, "She was the Lady of the Moon, and now, you`re the Lady of the Moon."

　　"I do not know what that means," Luna said, "I wish I knew more. But I don`t feel. . . right." She took a step back and placed a hand on her head. The pressure in her chest grew larger. Elena reached out to grab her, but at that moment, time slowed. Elena was slow, and Luna felt. . . in danger. Instinctively, she leaped backward and landed on the large windowsill.

　　"Are you okay?"

　　She paused, trying to figure out an answer. She looked deep into her memories to find one; she had no idea why she leaped nor any answer as to how.

　　"I am empty," Luna finally said, "something is missing."

　　Elena approached her and pensively reached out her hand. When she took it, she was not expecting a hug, but that is exactly what she got. Her sister smiled, laughed intensely, and then began to weep. She fell to the floor, and Luna followed her movements, unable to reconcile the fleeting emotions within her. She felt sad, but it was gone before she could act on it.

　　With no answers on how to react, she decided to mirror her sister`s actions. She patted her on the head and embraced her back. "It is okay."

　　"I know, I`m here, Luna, don`t worry. You`re safe, and I`m safe. We will get through this together, no matter what. I promise we can still make everything right. . . we can still save the world."

　　She didn`t really understand what Elena was saying. Still, she vividly recalled caring for her big sister, so she agreed.

　　"Yes," Luna said, "save the world."

　　* * *

　　Luna exited the memory. It was profound that she could simply re-watch any memory of her life in perfect, vivid detail. The only downside was that they never gave her any of the answers she sought.

　　After the meeting, Solaris and Elena entered a screaming match and then stormed out of the tavern. Five minutes later, Luna went into her room. It didn`t survive very long. She was furious at Elena for changing her plans to accommodate the Dimling, so she tore her room to shreds.

　　No, that was a lie. She told herself that`s why she destroyed her room. The real reason was that she had also kept replaying memories of Freya. Looking for answers turned into a longing for the past. All she truly desired was for her friend to hold her and tell her she was sane.

　　Her room was in a state of disarray. She sat on her bed, and in front of that was her dresser. It was tilted and sprawled open, with fabrics and garments erupting from the drawers. One of the compartments was completely pulled out and slanted against the floor.

　　To the left of that lay what was left of her nightstand. She had hurled the piece of furniture from her bedside into the wall adjacent. The thing was left with both drawers hanging out of it, although nothing was ever placed within. It left an indentation in the wall with cracks and crevices.

　　The lantern in the corner of her room had fallen to the floor and spilled its contents onto the floor. The smell of oil oozing into the carpet still lingered.

　　Despite the carnage, her desk of sewing supplies and different clothes was left entirely untouched; she dared not destroy the one thing that still brought her happiness.

　　When she calmed down, she looked for answers. She couldn`t help but wonder why Elena had drastically changed her plan to accommodate Caden. She could not have planned for him to interject like that.

　　She hunted for answers within her memories for the rest of the night yet found nothing. She would never understand why Elena does what she does or why her sweet sister from so long ago was left with a heart gone cold.