Kylie sighed and tossed her phone on the other side of Luna's sofa. It went straight to voicemail. Again. She decided to leave Luna's house for now and head to town to file a missing person report.
She had not seen Luna or Christian in a couple of days, and when she asked around, it was confirmed that Christian had been a no-show at his workplace. She expressed this to police while showing them pictures of her house which had been almost torn apart inside either from robbery or the two gathering things to run away. She knew Luna would not run away unless there was some grave danger, so she knew this must have been serious.
Police noticed that there were CCTV cameras around Luna's house because of how paranoid Christian was for her safety, so when they checked the footage what they saw was horrifying; almost like something from a sci-fi horror show. They almost did not believe that the footage was real, but when they found proof that the tape had not been tampered with, they decided to get to work right away. The case ended up being switched over to the FBI, who concluded that Luna Wendale and Christian Miles had been abducted by aliens, and Luna was probably one herself in disguise because of how she defended herself.
Kylie was worried and decided to rent a camper so she could stay by her best friend's house until she returned home— if she returned home.
Meanwhile, on Lunestica, Luna decided to finally climb out of bed. Every part of her body ached, and she hardly had the energy to get dressed. Alejandra felt the same way, but he encouraged Luna to tough it out and get ready for the day.
Luna put on some fresh clothes gifted to her by the empress and followed Alejandra to the banquet hall where the others were eating lunch. They were all talking amongst themselves, but there was so much conversation going on that Luna and Alejandra couldn’t quite tell what was going on at first.. Luna furrowed her brow at the overall energy of the room.
"What's got you all excited?" She asked, seating herself next to Christian. Marilynn looked over at her and she had a determined look in her silver eyes.
"My dear, Albrecht made his announcement to the entire empire this morning," she said. "In three days, he is going to invade Gaia," Luna and Alejandra looked at each other in shock.
"Three days?" Alejandra cried. "What're we supposed to do in three days?"
"Nothing," Christian mumbled, poking at his eggs. "There's nothing we can do to stop it so soon. It would take us weeks to prepare for retaliation, and even then, we'd be outnumbered," Christian seemed to be the only one who was actually upset at this aside from Aevaan. There was a moment of silence between them all before Luna stood.
"No. I refuse to let him win! And so what if we're outnumbered? We were outnumbered last time we revolted!"
"Yes, but last time we failed," Aevaan explained. "Our entire plan was foiled after you and father were killed. You were our only hope,"
"Then we can be your only hope now," Luna replied, walking over to Alejandra. "I say let's do it. Let's try. We can't give up now," They continued their silence. Luna sighed and turned to Alejandra. "Fine. Al, you said you had friends, right?" He nodded.
"Yes, but they were dead like I was," he told her. She smiled wide at him, and at first, he didn't get it. Then he realized that they could be resurrected too. He smiled back at her. "That's a brilliant idea. We've just got to find them first. But I'm not a medium,"
"But me, Aevaan, and Marilynn are," she said slyly. "I've got a plan," She turned back to the table. "I need help from you and Aevaan, your highness," She nodded.
"Alright. I'll see what I can do. Whatever you lot have planned, however, I cannot guarantee it'll work," Luna grinned.
"Oh, it will," She rolled up her sleeves. "Come on, your majesties. Time to go ghost hunting!"
The two completely abandoned their meals to join Luna on a quest to find Alejandra's ghost friends. Alejandra told them their names so they could call for them, but after an hour of searching, there was no luck. They almost gave up until Aevaan sensed two spirits around the gardens. They headed that way and saw two spirits-- one with an orange aura, and one with a green aura. Luna called for them, and they turned around in surprise.
"Al was looking for you guys," Luna said. "We need your help. Albrecht is going to invade my planet in three days," Alias raised an eyebrow.
"What can we do, we're dead! And so is Alejandra," The three looked at each other and then back at the two spirits.
"I'm sure you'll be surprised when we tell you that there is a way to resurrect you. We did the same to Alejandra, my father. Come with us, and we'll show you," Aevaan held out his hand to the spirits and motioned them to follow. They shrugged and followed them back to the labs where Alejandra and Christian were having a small argument over weaponry. Luna cleared her throat.
"We brought them," She spoke. "Al, they thought you were still dead," Alejandra looked their way and waved. Abiatii dropped her mouth open.
"How'd y'all do that?" She asked in astonishment. Alejandra was clueless about her question and went back to his argument. Luna sighed.
"He's not a medium so he can't see you," Aevaan said. "But once we resurrect you, he'll be able to see everything," The two nodded, and Aevaan led them to the glass chamber. "We've had them bring out the second machine so we can get this done quicker,"
The two got into their own machine and their medical records were pulled up. Alias Rayne died around the same time Alejandra did; he was a rebel soldier who inhabited the sky islands. Abiatii, on the other hand, died about fifty years before Alias; date-raped and murdered while working as a prostitute for extra cash. These things were all shown in their records, and when Aevaan read them out loud, it shocked everyone in the room. Alejandra had no idea about these things about his friends— he claimed the three of them just ended up in limbo and decided to travel together.
The first to gain sentience was Alias, who screamed when his nerves grew in; yelling many ancient profanities and swear words. Abiatii was next, and while she did not exactly scream, she did make sure to let everyone know that her tail was intact— a strange feature she had that she was oddly proud of. Soon, they were let out of the machines and dressed. When they gained their balance, they came out of their chambers and stared each other down.
"Aye, so you do have a tail—" Alias said nervously. "Does it... get in the way?" Abiatii turned her back to look at her long reptilian tail. She swished it around lightly.
"Nah," She confirmed. "The only thing I always hated was the color," she said with a sigh.
"The color?" Luna asked, walking up to her. "But it's green! It matches your aura!" Abiatii scoffed.
"Aura schmaura." She said, blowing one of her tight coils out of her red eyes. "I ain't a mage, I ain't nothin'," She walked around a little and looked down at her feet. "Ah, shit, I forgot about those," She also had reptilian-like legs, the scales blending in with her skin.
"You are literally the coolest person I have ever seen," Luna said in awe. Alejandra sighed quietly.
"She looks cool and all, but she has a brain the size of a pea," He remarked. Abiatii glanced over at him, her pupils shrinking.
"The only pea-brain here is you, you blue-blooded mother fucker!" She argued with a smirk on her face. Alejandra huffed and Alias sighed.
"You two always argue, can you please be civil for once?" Alias pleaded. Alejandra blew some hair from his face.
"I always try to be civil, but she gets on my last nerves," He explained.
"Brilliant..." Alias mumbled. "Anyway, your majesty, what kind of help did you need from us?" Marilynn cleared her throat.
"Albrecht is going to invade Gaia in three days, and we need to gather up as big an army as we can manage," She explained. "We may be outnumbered, but Luna and Alejandra will lead the way, as they did the first time around. Alias and Abiatii looked at each other nervously and unsure, but they nodded and agreed to help since they really did not have much of a choice.
That evening, the seven of them packed up some supplies and even some weapons. After packing, Alejandra trained Luna as much as he could before they hopped onto one of Aevaan's ships to leave the planet. Luna, exhausted as she may have been, was determined to help as much as she could, even with little knowledge of the full situation.
"Where to first?" Aevaan asked, steering his ship and pushing buttons as needed.
"I would say maybe go to Gaia," Enry determined. "Maybe we can gather more soldiers there, or possibly warn some people," Luna nodded.
"Maybe so," She replied. "As for people believing us... that's a whole different story. I think it's best to keep this between us for now,"
"What about your friend Kylie?" Christian asked her. "You always told her your dreams. She knows as much about all this as you do. I bet she could help,"
"What could another Gaiatian do for the team?" Abiatii asked, unsure. Luna chuckled.
"You'll see, " She looked up. "Aevaan, head to these coordinates," She walked over and typed them into his console.
"Where's that?" Christian asked.
"The woods behind our house. Hopefully, everything hasn't gone to shit because we've been gone for several days. I wonder if Kylie has suspected anything or freaked out,"
Ten minutes later, they landed in a small clearing in a large patch of woods. They exited and looked around.
"Wow, this really is our forest!" Christian shouted with glee, picking up a small clump of the fallen leaves and throwing them up above him. Luna chuckled.
"We won't be here for long, I hope," she said. "We still have three other planets to go to before Albrecht strikes," Christian sighed.
"Oh," he said in a sigh. Luna threw her bag over her shoulder.
"Come on, gang. To my house!" She started to walk, but Alejandra grabbed her shoulder.
"Wait, Lunita, be careful. I sense people up ahead. Lots of them," He warned. Aevaan placed a finger on his temple and nodded.
"He's right. I sense it too. About ten, give or take a few,"
"But who'd be at our house? We don't know that many people personally, and we aren't even there," Christian asked. Luna gasped.
"Oh my God, I knew she would!" She started running through the brush.
"Who, Kylie?" Christian called, chasing after her.
"Of course!" The others followed behind as Luna skidded to a halt behind some bushes. She shushed them. "Hush! There's police in the yard," Christian sighed quietly.
"Why are there police in our yard?"
"Because knowing Kylie, she probably called them to report us missing. She does come over every Saturday, you know. She must have seen that we weren't there and what state the house was in," Luna explained.
"What do we do then?" Aevaan asked. "We can't just walk up to them and start talking," Luna nodded.
"Chris and I can't, but one of you can," she said. The others looked at each other.
"But who? We don't look like Gaiatians at all," Alejandra noted. Luna hummed.
"But out of the rest of you, you look most like one. You're even dressed like one." Luna said as Alejandra looked down at his outfit. Christian sighed.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" He asked her. "What about his accent? His ears? Not to mention that he'd just be a random guy popping out of the bushes. The cops would get a little suspicious,"
"Don't worry, I have a plan," Alejandra covered his ears with his hair and plucked Enry's sunglasses out of his jacket pocket. "Luna, where's your motorcycle?"
"I parked it somewhere behind the place you were staying so no one would steal it while we were gone." She spoke. He nodded.
"Keys?" She dug them out of her bag and handed them to him. "See you in a minute" Alejandra put on the sunglasses and sneaked around the police squad using the woods to hide. Christian looked over at Luna, unsure, but he trusted her regardless.
"What will he do?" Aevaan asked.
"I dunno," Alias said. "We'll see in a second though,"
Alejandra rolled the motorcycle down the road some, hopped on, started it, then drove down the road back toward the house. The police squad noticed and stopped him as he pulled into the driveway.
"Sir, only authorized people are allowed here," one told him.
"But sir, I know Luna," he said in the best American accent he could manage. "I've been looking everywhere for her, and I was told that you guys were down here at her house. Is everything okay?" They looked concerned.
"Sir, how do you know Luna?" The chief asked, walking up. Alejandra swept his hair out of his eyes and pushed his glasses up his nose.
"She's... my girlfriend. We went to school together before," he said, concealing his anxiety. Luna slapped her forehead from her hiding spot. "I've been out of town for a while for a family emergency, and I haven't really had a chance to check up on her. What happened?" The officers looked at each other doubtfully but responded.
"We're afraid that she's been... abducted. She and her roommate both," He was told. "It'll sound crazy, but... it was by an extraterrestrial force," The chief pulled out his pad. "What's your name?"
"I-Ivan." He stuttered. Luna, who was watching, recognized that as his middle name. They also asked for a phone number, to which he gave a fake one.
"Well, Ivan, don't be leaving town any time soon. We may have some more questions for you to answer," He nodded.
"Alright. Just one more question-- do you happen to know where a girl named Kylie is right now? She's a friend of Luna's and I need to ask her something,"
"Yeah, she's just right over there parked in that field. I'm not sure she wants to be bothered right now, though," Alejandra nodded.
"Thanks, officer," He started the bike back up and rolled in the direction they led him in. When he got out of sight again, he peeked into the brush and waved the group over. They followed, Luna tapping away on her phone which had a slight crack in it from the kidnapping. "What're you doing?"
"Texting Kylie--" Alejandra snatched her phone and stuffed it in his pocket.
"No, you mustn't," He hissed. "She will panic. I will go in, but you lot stay outside and stand guard," Luna sighed.
"Okay..." She grumbled, leaning against a tree. "But please hurry. I don't want them getting suspicious," Alejandra rubbed her shoulder and smiled sweetly.
"I promise. Now, you all hide somewhere," The others obeyed and stayed hidden among the trees. Meanwhile, Alejandra knocked on Kylie's RV door. After a few rustling noises and curse words, she cracked the door open.
"Who is it?" She called.
"I'm one of Luna's friends. I need your help with something," Kylie, confused, opened the door and stared at Alejandra.
"One of her friends? But I don't you," Alejandra rolled his eyes from behind the sunglasses.
"You wouldn't. Now, grab some necessities and put them in a bag. We need your help," Luna slapped her forehead from her spot; she felt as if he was being a bit too straightforward.
"Why, what's going on? Do you know where she is?" He didn't answer. He just backed away from the door a little. "Seriously, dude. What is going on?" Alejandra sighed and took his glasses off, the sun making him squint. Kylie covered her mouth-- she immediately recognized him as one of Luna's characters. But how?
"The planet is going to be invaded by Albrecht in a few days. I assume you know about Lunestic affairs at least somewhat?" She nodded quickly. "So... pack a bag, then," Kylie nodded quickly and slipped back inside to pack herself a bag. Alejandra peered over to the tree line where the others were hiding to make sure they were still concealed. After a couple of minutes, Kylie came back out with a backpack. "Got everything?" She nodded. "Good. Follow me. And be quiet so the police don't question us,"
"Okay," She followed Alejandra over to the tree line where the others were, and he handed Luna her phone back. She was examining the damage done to her phone screen, Christian was fishing through his bag for something to snack on, Alias and Abiatii were talking, and Enry was helping Aevaan search for herbs.
"I've got her," Alejandra said. Luna shot her head up and grinned at Kylie. She opened her mouth, but Alejandra covered it. "I said be quiet," He hissed through his teeth. "Come; let’s go back to the ship before we get discovered," The eight of them ran back into the woods. Kylie was honestly frightened and had no idea what was going on. But since Luna was there, she trusted it. However, the question still stood-- was she an alien in disguise like the police suspected?
They got on the ship, and Kylie had to be pushed aboard because she was scared. The doors closed and the others slumped down in their seats with a relieved sigh. Kylie, on the other hand, looked around in amazement. She turned back to Luna, who looked exhausted herself.
"Luna... it's all real?" Luna locked eyes with her and nodded. "So, everything in your dreams happened in real life?"
"Yes, Kylie," Luna said. "I'm sorry for disappearing like that... kinda got kidnapped by the Lunestic government,"
"The camera footage wasn't tampered with at all..." She murmured. Instead of an answer, the other stayed quiet, and Kylie was left to wonder about all the possibilities of what happened as Aevaan went over to the console and started the ship.
48Please respect copyright.PENANABzaF3d6zGw