Estel's ship pierced the atmosphere. As it touched down, the sight stole his breath.
Twin moons hung low, bathing the world in molten silver. Below, an expanse of indigo flowers flowed like a galactic river—petals trembling in the lunar breeze, exhaling faint luminescence.
Nearby, crowds thronged around branch-woven platforms. Bonfires crackled as figures danced in the firelight. Upon a rune-carved dais, an elder presided over the rite.
People cast dew-laden petals into flames. Ash ascended, weaving luminous veils in the air.
Twelve biers emerged at twilight.
The departed lay resplendent, pearls gleaming at their throats. Kin bore silver trays heaped with white blossoms, scattering petals to form moonlit paths.
As biers settled on pine pyres, the High Priest's chant ceased. Twelve torches flared.
Blue fire licked the wood. Stellara Lilies bloomed into cobalt haloes within the flames. In tear-bright eyes, all grief became farewell moonlight.
Beneath ash-veils, a silver-haired woman danced with her husband's urn, lips curved like a crescent moon—no sorrow, only serene release.
An elder plucked a harp's haunting melody, its notes spinning a spell of collective joy.
By a wine stall, bearded men roared with laughter, sloshing ale as they traded tales. Children chased each other with flower rings, tossing petals that became ember-sprites.
Estel had never witnessed such a funeral. Where he knew mourning, they offered celebration.
"Death is Idrila's kiss."
A voice like wind chimes. Estel turned.
A girl smiled, lifting a trampled petal. Dew beaded on her fingertip, coalescing into a tiny light-mirror.
"Stellara Lilies never resent being touched," she said, cerulean earrings catching moonlight on her lashes. "Just as spirits never begrudge our smiles. True loss is when we hoard our memories."
"Only through joyful farewells do souls ride the starroads home."
"I'm Luna." The earrings shimmered as she tilted her head. "Are you a star-traveler too?"
"Others have come?" Estel's brow furrowed.
Luna nodded. "At the last Tears' Vigil, ten years past. They left these." She touched an earring. Its mirror-surface rippled with unnatural light.
*Pure Beauty resonance*, Estel noted silently. But now wasn't the time.
His gaze swept the horizon. Beneath the flowers' gentle aura, he sensed it—a subterranean pulse. Starved. Restless. A slumbering beast.
Emanator of Destruction. Ice threaded his veins. What brings annihilation's hounds here?*
"Come," Luna took his hand, pulling him toward the central dais. Villagers' curious stares followed.
The High Priest stood atop pine timbers. Frost-bearded, robed in constellation-stitched velvet, he turned a bronze staff capped with a mirror-crystal monolith that refracted twin moons.
Luna whispered to him. Wrinkled eyelids lifted, milky eyes scrutinizing Estel's armor—lingering on his Pure Beauty Insignia.
"Star-farers are rare in Tearfall Village." His voice rasped like sandstone, yet his torch-gesture illuminated Estel's insignia. "The stone house east stands empty. Rest there tonight."
As he motioned, a broken crystalline shard glinted on a silver chain beneath his sleeve.
The crowd began a dirge. Luna pressed a lamp floating with petals into Estel's hands.
When twelve such lamps were pushed into the pyre, Estel caught the Priest still studying his insignia.
At lunar zenith, the monolith blazed. Luna gasped, clutching her chest.
Her earrings flared white. Petals quivered, etching a luminous runway in the air—pointing skyward.
Villagers murmured at the miracle. Only Estel saw Luna's irises shift.
Inky blackness bled silver veins, swirling into twin lunar discs. At their core, energy-networks spiderwebbed.
The dirge faltered. Every Stellara Lily raised its stem, dripping sapphire luminescence.
Luna lifted a hand. The monolith hummed.
Deep within the planet, light-rivers awoke. Beams erupted from the dais, braiding in the sky. At their nexus, Luna floated—wreathed in moonglow.
Estel's lamp clattered to the ground. Unnoticed.
The energy signature screamed inside his bones: Idrila!
Moonsilver poured like liquid metal over Luna's rounded abdomen.
A bioluminescent sigil—hidden till now—glowed cerulean beneath her skin. Floral patterns radiated from her navel. Silver filaments pulsed under her flesh, coalescing into a crescent moon at her womb.
As the miracle faded, moonlight lowered Luna onto the dais like a sleeping child.
Villagers surged forward.
"Kavar! Check Luna!" a girl cried.
The crowd buzzed as the healer examined her. "Is she hurt?" a man demanded. Voices swelled.
"Quiet!" The Priest's command stilled them. "Give Kavar space."
They stepped back, anxiety thick as fog.
Estel stretched his senses. Idrila's energy coiled tight around Luna's womb.
After minutes, Kavar announced, "No injuries. She's unconscious, nothing more."
Relief sighed through the crowd as they gathered around Luna.
Kavar approached the Priest. "The divine touch lingers, Elder. She must be watched."
The old man nodded, then turned to Estel. His milky eyes sharpened.
"Shall we talk?"