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Lucci, The Moon Spirit


by _the_spardel_queen_

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      The night was cold, down here on Neopia it was one of the coldest nights we had experienced in fall yet; it was on the edge of snowfall. The sweet smell of autumn was gone, the pumpkins on people’s porches were disintegrating away as they were no longer needed, their carved faces now looking rather sunken in and sad. The autumn leaves, another reminder that summer was indeed over, had fallen gracefully on the ground as they got too weak to hold on to their branches anymore. They were covered in a layer of ice, you could hear and feel them cracking as you went about your day walking down the street.

     Soon, it would be winter. The people of the kingdom were not anywhere near ready for this, it had not been a good year for the growing crops they needed for survival. The early onset of fall led to many crops dying, and the people unable to can and preserve them. The future looked uncertain, but somehow they always persevered. The kingdom believed in the power of the spirits that surrounded them. They praised the spirits and hoped in return they would help them through the good times- and bad. And they had a Kind and Queen who stood proud and tall, unafraid of any of the dangers that lie ahead.

     _____

     Our story actually begins with a star. The star who loved the sun. She was an ordinary star, no different from the billions of others. She was inside the suns orbit, and she would circle around the galaxy to admire him every day for millions of years. The suns light was so bright, but she didn’t care, even if it meant blinding her.

     One day, during her normal orbit, she began to feel some pressure. Suddenly, she realized she was in danger. She had seen it happen, but not for hundreds of years. This star was about to explode. She felt her core swell and reach over a billion degrees in Celsius, the nuclear reaction had started. All of the sudden, the star exploded into a super nova. The explosion sent her shooting faster than the speed of sound, the people on Neopia who happened to be looking up at the night sky, saw her and wished upon the shooting star.

     _____

     He saw the whole event unfold in front of him, for he sees everything being on the sun. He saw her explode, a beautiful array of colors from purple, to red and orange, as she went soaring through the sky. He saw her crash a million miles a second into the moon of Neopia. But nothing would prepare him for what would come next.

     He waited patiently as she awoke in the meteor crater she created, digging hundreds of feet into the moon's surface. The Royal Girl Kyrii’s eyes opened slowly, they were blue and gleamed like stars. Her long eyelashes were perfectly curled to frame them and shimmers of sparkles covered her lids. The moonlight reflected off her soft, blue, silky-smooth skin, giving her a white aura around her. She stood up with her back towards the sun, and her long, blue-green hair flowed gracefully around her hips, catching a breeze that made her look even more picturesque. His heart sank; he wasn’t even sure if this was real. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever laid eyes on. She turned around to see him standing there, holding on to the edge of the sun, taken back by what had happened. Her dress was made of beautiful, white, flower-patterned lace, with a long train coming from behind her legs. The dress had beautiful white crystals sewn into it that reflected off of the moonlight brilliantly. It fit her perfectly; from the white shoulder straps to the fitted bodice…she looked stunning.

     She lifted her hand to wave to him. Squinting hard through the immensely bright sunlight that surrounded him, she finally caught a glimpse of the sun spirit she had loved for years. He was a tall Royal Boy Kyrii, with purple skin and a long dark-purple mane. He had a regal cape covering his armor, and dark boots hiking up to his knees. He stood, mouth open, questioning his sanity. And she did the same.

     "My name is Lucci." she finally said with courage.

     He cleared his throat, and said back, "My name is Helios."

     _____

     The days turned into years, the years turned into centuries. The moon and the sun had the most beautiful kind of love imaginable. They orbited around each other in harmony, and gazed at each other every day with admiration. They watched the galaxies pass and the stars explode around them. They were mostly fascinated with the world down below. They would watch Neopia together, watching people fall in love. They watched people dance at balls, in big gowns and charming suits, dancing to the beautiful music inside their castles.

     The moon loved to write poetry. Every day she would read him a new poem, and he would be captivated as the words flowed gracefully from her lips. One day, he sat on the edge of the sun and listened to her beautiful and eloquent words, when all of the sudden…

     "LUCCI LOOK OUT!" he screamed in horror. An asteroid, how did he not see it? It was coming straight for the moon, traveling faster than anything he had seen before. It was the biggest asteroid he had ever seen, nearly half the size of the moon. What if it hits? What if it knocks her out of orbit? What if it destroys the moon?

     She turned and saw it, she cried out to him, "What do I do Helios?"

     In a panic, he told her to jump. "JUMP! NOW, YOU MUST HURRY!" he said, reaching his hands out. He latched his foot around a rock on the sun's surface and motioned for her. "LUCCI!" he screamed, his eyes intense with fear.

     She too panicked, and jumped from the moon's surface. The asteroid hit, and she was narrowly missed by the impact. If she stayed, she surely would not have survived. He grabbed her hands and held on for dear life, "Lucci hold on!"

     But he looked down and saw that her hands were engulfed in flames. The suns heat was too intense for the moon, she couldn’t handle it. She screamed in horror at the sight of her once soft, delicate, glowing hands…now covered in red heat. She let go, and afraid of causing her more pain, so did he.

     He watched her as she fell towards Neopia, she screamed and cried out for him. He stood there with his heart broken, his lovely moon slipped through his fingers. He became afraid, as he could no longer see her once she fell through the trees of a forest, where his light could not touch. He wondered if she would be okay, if she could even survive that…and if he could even survive without her. Many astronomers would observe this and note this day as the day when the sun mysteriously seemed dimmer.

     _____

     She woke up, her head and her arms throbbing in pain. She sighed as she looked up, wondering how many more times in her life she would crash into something. She began to weep as she rapidly searched for the sun, it seemed to peak through the tall branches of the forest, but the trees of the forest she landed in were so tall. Her tears streamed quickly down her face as she realized the severity of what had happened, she fell from the moon. She fell from her home, and now Helios was gone.

     She looked around, the forest was eerie. The sun was just starting to set, despite Helios’ attempts to stay put so he could find her, and it was getting darker. Her white dress was ripped and covered in mud and dirt. Her hands were covered in black ash.

     "Helios! Helios!" she screamed, looking up towards the sky. "Help me!"

     But no response. There was no way he could hear her. She began running; she followed the sun, trying to find a way out of the forest. The fallen trees, rocks and gravel aided in making it a challenging obstacle course for her. Despite her best efforts, the forest seemed never ending, and the sun was moving much faster than her. Out of breath, she fell to her knees. Her hands covered her eyes as she wept, she felt so lost, confused and tired. She opened her fingers to see the last bit of sunlight disappear, and the sky was now replaced with a sheet of dark blue dusted in stars.

     Suddenly, her hands glowed in front of her. They glowed white, it was moonlight. She stood up and looked to the sky, the moon! Of course! The Neopia illuminated around her with the help of the moonlight. She smiled for the first time and thanked the moon. A breeze came through the forest, and it seemed to be pushing her in another way. She smiled and followed it, knowing she wasn’t ever alone as long as the moon was nearby. She walked eight miles through the forest, encountering creatures, bugs, spider webs, fallen branches, and eventually slow. Once she saw the edge of the forest, she began running. She ran faster and faster, as if she was gaining energy in some mysterious way.

     Suddenly, the trees stopped and she ran onto a field. The field was covered in grass, hiding under a thick layer of snow. The cows were startled; they turned to look at her and thought they had seen a ghost. The moonlight illuminated around her, a forceful glow that it could only come from someone who had fallen from the moon itself. They ran, a full stampede, towards their covered barns. She looked down and remembered that it wasn’t normal for those on Neopia to glow like this. But she wasn’t sure she could turn it off and on, it was a full moon and the moonlight was the strongest and most visible.

     Shrugging her shoulders, she continued onwards, until she saw an entire town of small cottages and shops. She walked through but didn’t see anyone, while walking by one house she saw a mother and a father, tucking in their children and reading them a bedtime story. She smiled and recounted her fond memories of watching Neopia from up above. Maybe this wasn’t such a bad thing, maybe she could get used to living here.

     But in her heart, she knew that wouldn’t be the case. Her heart ached as she thought of Helios’ face, the look of horror on his face when she fell. She could never forgive herself for losing him; she had to find a way back to the moon.

     She wandered the town for a bit longer, all of the signs on the local businesses, the flower shop, the petpet shop, the bakery, the bookstore, etc. all read "closed". All of the townspeople were asleep for the night. She wandered through and began to hum a melody out loud.

     Once she decided she had done her fair share of exploring the town, she headed North of the town where houses were scarce, and it was an open field of snow. She sat on top of a hilltop and found something she could gaze at all night, the moon. It’s white glow reflected in her eyes and made her smile. She sang her melody even louder. Her heart felt full, to see the moon from eyes on Neopia. This is why people were so entranced by it, it’s beautiful yet mysterious. And only she knew why it was the way it was.

     She stayed up all night, gazing at the moon. She knew this was when most would be asleep, but she knew as well as anyone, this was the time when she shined the brightest. Her eyes got heavy as she watched the moon fade over the horizon, quickly following by the bright beams of the sun, lighting up the sky. She heard the nearby coos of the roosters, and could hear the stomping around of local dairy Kaus, wondering when the farmer would come deliver their breakfast. There was something about the sun that seemed so draining, it was bright, it was hot…it was the opposite of everything she was and represented.

     And so on the hill, she fell asleep.

      To be continued…

 
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