text: The Alignment happened once every three thousand years, the exact length of time civilization had been blooming on Hinadora. One sun and two moons. Never had the world seen all align as one. The planet Hinadora often praised their sky. Moon Sy gave them moments of green when eclipsing Sun. Her blue and crystalline existence casting ripples and beams that sprung new life from the dirt. Blood moon Tertia looked to bite into Sun when she crossed, leaving Hinadora in dark quiet. There was the rare moment Sy and Tertia overlapped opposite Sun, the planet Hinadora hiding the reunion that sent ghostly rays of lilac to reflect off the land. What would happen, the people wondered, when Sun, Tertia, Sy, and Hinadora, all aligned as one? Rashel scurried between water and city, a drapery of leaves swishing over her shoulder and down her back. Her wooden slip on shoes clattered over the stone slabs that were pressed deep within teal spikes of grass. “And where are you rushing off to?” Gladstone called from the neighboring canal as he pushed his boat through. His ore he shoved into the muddy benches, altering his progress to follow her upstream. “The meeting house,” she said, breathless. “Meeting about what?” “Stop making me talk.” “Well it would be easier if you got in.” The tapping of her shoes slowed and sounds of birds and whirring of the city were able to regain dominance. Rashel glared and caught her breath. “If this gets wet, I will drown you,” she jostled the woven leaves like a threat. “I promise you will arrive dry as bone.” “So morbid,” she muttered, teetering and testing her footing. The soft earth gave in and the rusty mud began to seep upward. “I can’t. I’ll just have to run,” she shook her head and resumed her staccato jog. “Whoa, wait a second,” he shoved hard, causing muddy clouds to swirl in the clear aqua water where grass continued like a blanket. His long boat settled next to a spear of wood still embellished with knotted ropes and frayed edges. Gladstone threw his rope over, pulled tight, and tied himself off before striding out of the rocking vessel. “I’ll carry you.” Rashel sighed, and it felt good to expel the pent up energy. She eyed the taller man moving for her, his dark brows tilted in humor, matching the full mouth. Settling into her stance, she jut a hip and shook her head. “And how would I get out? Oh!” Her gasp bounced off the water as he leaned down, and wrapped his arm around her legs. “Oh my goodness...” she pressed her palms to his back as he stood upright and turned with her over his shoulder. “Leave everything to me,” he pressed, taking greater care with his footing on return to the boat. She closed her eyes and prayed to Tertia that the leaves pressed between them would survive the trip. When her sense of gravity shifted to something familiar and her balance rocked to the demands of water, she opened one eye. Gladstone was wrestling with his rope, tossing it back to the boat before pulling up his ore and resuming his push upstream. Rashel opened both eyes and relaxed, pruning and plucking the leaf blanket to bring it back to life. “Your gift to the celestials?” Gladstone asked, nodding his broad chin to her leaves. “A paltry gift,” she huffed, shifting in her seat, “It’s decoration. Somehow this got left behind.” “One curtain of leaves? Can’t imagine it makes that much of a difference.” “It does,” she brushed her cherry red hair over her shoulder and straightened. “Green leaves to represent Sy and Sun?” He asked, turning forward. “Of course. We have water for Sy and flowers for Sun and...” “Blood? For Tertia?” “Tertia demands blood,” she arched a brow and shrugged. “But no. Wine.” “You’re dressed for Tertia today,” he noted the red silks that rippled across her bronze skin, settling on the new color of her hair. His voice became pensive, “Almost didn’t recognize you.” “I’ve always followed Tertia.” “I know. But now you look it.” “And who are you following these days?” “Same as always. Flowing and steady,” he glanced skyward. Rashel followed, cupping a hand to her brow. Sun was stationary and strong, but a dark red Tertia was beginning to carve into the light. Sy approached slower from the opposite side, beams already refracting through its ocean-like existence. “Thank you,” she dropped her sights to the meeting house of marble engulfed by canal, “I’m cutting it close. Were you heading home just now?” Her head tilted suddenly. “Yes,” his smile flickered out and he refused to turn to meet her. “You were going to miss the eclipse? It’s never been celebrated once! The chances we are the ones fortunate enough...” she paused at his shrug, “Oh, don’t tell me you are one of those...” “Isn’t it interesting? The timing? The world as we know it, born almost precisely...” “Gladstone,” her tone made him hunch. “What disaster would strike us? Tertia blocks Sun. Sy will have no light to cast. What do you think will happen?” “I don’t know.” “Surely you have a thought...” “No. No thoughts,” his head lifted and he flashed a brilliant smile to her, “Now that I know you’re putting this on, I suppose I’ll stay.” “Easily persuaded,” she pursed her lips and pressed her hands to her hips. “What are you doing after?” “Cleaning up.” “I’ll help.” “You don’t have to.” “I want to.” “Do you really want to?” She propped her chin on her palm and watched him dock the boat. His muscles flexed beneath the rolled cuffs at his forearms. Before he could catch her stare, she returned to his face. “Anything for you,” his words were as soft as his smile. He extended a hand to hold hers as she balanced her way to the edge of the circular meeting house. “It starts in two twists,” she brushed the wrinkles out of her dress as he twisted the watch on his wrist twice. “I’ll be there.” The pillars of the meeting house dwarfed her as she ran through them, weaving into the deeper circles that began to morph with spades of emerald, petals of golden yellows, and sheets of flowing water and wine that always connected to the streams within. She passed the blanket of leaves off to waiting hands, already stationed at the ladder to unfold the long form from roof to floor. Another satisfied exhale. Rashel was standing in the center of the meeting house, head tilted back to the central opening that peered up to Sun. She smelled the ocean and salt and fresh air before she felt Gladstone’s hand warm her side. Her heart thudded and she leaned against him feeling the rush of blood hitting her cheeks. They watched as Tertia ate up half of Sun and Sy was just beginning to meet from across the way. The water moon began to ripple as it kissed the blood moon. It shuddered in current, the circular shape warping and bulging. Rashel held her breath, Gladstone went stiff, gasps echoed through the crowd around them. Slowly Sy wrapped around Tertia, engulfing the solid red moon into warping water. Never before had the moons touched, but on this journey, their paths converged. The world became dark save for the bright ring of filtered light still rippling. Hinadora watched in collective awe. The moons hung, and instead of moving beyond, Sy clung to Tertia, traveling with her as she passed by Sun. Tertia boiled. Or was it a trick of light and liquid? The moon seemed to shift and bulge and the layer of water moved with it. Inside, Tertia was more vibrant than her usual existence, but Sun at her back made her dark, like a face in silhouette with an unreadable expression. Brilliant streams of color erupted as Sy steamed. A low rumbling hissed long enough, loud enough, that Hinadora began to feel it through the air. The water moon thinned like Tertia was drinking it dry, and soon, one moon was left. Bloody and dark and still boiling with shards of rainbow glinting off its outer shell. That’s what it must have been. A shell. A shell that cracked and boomed and made the sky shudder. Eruptions of orange fell away and the silhouette of something large unwrapped itself from the spears of Tertia that were burning down to Hinadora. Crystal wings opened and thin legs reached around the falling edge of shell. It expanded. Stretched. Huge black eyes of infinite fractures focused on the planet. Its heavily shelled body pulsed, the rainbow of wings beat and the creature leapt down to kiss the sky of Hinadora. It was screaming that came next. Screaming from fear of the unknown creature, screams for the debris beginning to plummet, screams when the tube-like tongue unrolled and began to drink from the ocean. Rashel gripped Gladstone’s hand, and the two could only stare in silence as screens around them flashed images of the thing beginning to overtake the world. “Blood and water,” the sage voice croaked, patting the hand of the younger girl peering out of the tunnel. “I saw it then, you know.” “Saw Terrya being born?” The girl turned back and propped her chin on the worn shoulder that felt like sticks inside a sack. Her large eyes blinked up to her. “Yes. Such a big thing. We’re just small little pebbles to her. When she wants blood, she takes blood. When she wants water, she takes water.” “But she can take too much. I heard Stony say so.” “She has. But have you noticed? She’s been leaving to the stars. Building something with mud.” “A moon.” “Yes. And what do you think she will do with the moon?” “Put something in it. But what about the water moon? You said there were two.” “We will have to see how it happens, but I bet there will be one. A carefully crafted route for both, and in three thousand years, we will begin again.” “But this time we know and we will tell everyone and be ready!” “Do you think in three thousand years we will care? No,” Rashel shook her weary head, “We will have forgotten. We will be absorbed in our lives. Distracted. That’s why she waits for so long. Waits until we are complacent and she can leap down and snatch up what she wants. Like so many things,” her voice trailed off. “What things?” “Keep your eyes open, my little star. Always question why things are in the sky, and when they try to appease you with their beauty, to give you small moments of shimmering gifts, know that behind everything, there is a monster waiting for the right time to take.”