[SYSTEM RESET...]
[LOADING FANFIC...]
Welcome to Lunar: Return to the Blue Star!
[START] <CONTINUE>
[PROLOGUE]
[PART 1]
[PART 2]
[PART 3]
<EPILOGUE>
[LOADING 'EPILOGUE'...]
The Dragonship Destiny pulled up outside of the White Dragon Cave. Dragonmaster Lou and Teal disembarked from the ship and went inside, hoping that Nall was home. They were very fortunate to find both Nall and Ruby deep within the cave. Hopefully, one of these two Dragons would know about the fate of Diana.
"Hi Nall, Ruby, how ya doing?"
"Oh, hi Dragonmaster... What brings you and Teal here?"
"Well, we've come to talk about Diana..."
"Diana?"
"Yeah, you know whitey, Lucia and Hiro's kid..." said Teal.
"Oh... That Diana... And don't call me whitey Teal..."
"Sorry Nall..."
"Well then," asked Lou, "Do you know anything about her?"
Ruby turns to Nall, "Should we tell him? I mean... We never even told Lucia..."
"I don't know Ruby. The reason why we never told Lucia was because she put up the seal before we could... If she were to tear down the seal..."
"I know, I know... But Ebony somehow knew how to get through the seal..."
"But wasn't his trick to do that one way? Either way, Lucia would have had to destroy the seal, which could have had dire consequences for both worlds..."
"What are you two talking about!?" asked Lou, "Are you going to tell me or not?"
"Very well then," answered Nall, "But promise never to tell anyone this story, not even Lucia!"
"If you say so..."
"Good. Anyway, it was maybe about twenty or so years after Lucia and Hiro were united together here on the Blue Star. Lucia had already brought a small patch of it to life just so that she and Hiro could live happily together, but her premature awakening and Hiro's arrival here somehow affected the timeline of the Blue Star's restoration. Mysteriously, the magic she used to make one small patch of the world green for the two of them, and their daughter, spread across the planet, restoring it to its former beauty. I don't know how this happened, but it did. With this, Lucia decided it was time to bring humans back to the Blue Star. She and Hiro returned to Lunar and asked for humans willing to move to this new world. Surprisingly, a fairly large amount of them did, and the two of them oversaw the relocation. Ruby, Azura, and myself also came over with that initial wave of humans, but Ebony stayed behind for some strange reason. Anyway, Diana, who was twelve at the time, wandered off from her parents. She was kidnapped by one of the few remaining members of the Cult of Zophar as revenge for killing their god. Ruby and I saw someone taking a twelve year old child back to Lunar with them, and we saw that this child was not going willingly, but we assumed it was a family dispute and thought nothing of it was we were too far away to recognize her as Diana. However, when Lucia realized her daughter was missing, she immediately stopped the immigration and put the seal up between the two worlds. This seal which makes each world appear lifeless when viewed from the other was put up with the intention that it would trap the culprit on this side. She was too late however, and by the time us Dragons put two and two together, there was nothing we could do. We did not tell Lucia as we knew that breaking the seal could potentially be very destructive to both worlds and that was the only way she could try to find her daughter. The seal did have one weakness however. Ebony still had not come over, so Lucia arranged the seal so that only the Black Dragon's power could breach it. Ebony eventually did come over, and we asked him to go find Diana, but he said there was nothing that could be done as the breaching of the seal was a one-way thing..."
"Oh great, so now we know Diana is on Lunar, but we have no where to get there and figure out what happened to her..."
"Not so fast Lou," answered Ruby, "As Dragonmaster, you too possess the power of the Black Dragon. I suggest you visit Ebony and ask him how he was able to break the seal. You may be able to do it the same way. However, there is a very good chance that you may not be able to return..."
"It doesn't matter. If there is a chance I can return, then it's a chance I'll take. I have my word to Lucia to keep after all!"
"That's not the only thing, hehehe..." stated Teal.
"What are you babbling about Teal?" asked Nall.
"Oh, don't mind her. She insists that she's going to fix me up with Diana... It's a long story..."
"I see. Well, good luck Dragonmaster! Farewell!"
"Farewell Nall and Ruby... Hopefully I'll be back here before you even get the chance to miss me!"
Lou and Teal leave the cave and drive off towards Ebony's temple in the Destiny. At the entrance of the cave, Nall and Ruby are conversing about the visit they had from that Dragonmaster"
"Ruby, about what Teal said, do you think it's possible? I mean, if Diana is still alive, she will be about the right age for him..."
"I know Nall... Plus we both know how those goddess types always fall for those Dragonmaster or big hero types as well..."
"You can say that again... Well, let's not worry about it. I'm sure whatever happens it will turn out just fine... Last one back to the altar is a rotten egg!"
"Hey! Wait up cheater!"
The Destiny arrived outside the Black Dragon's pyramid. Dragonmaster Lou and Teal entered the temple and descended down the stairs to Ebony's inner sanctum. Teal was the first to greet her uncle.
"Hi there Uncle Ebony! How are you?"
"Oh, hi Teal and Lou. I'm OK I guess..."
"You haven't seemed like yourself recently Uncle..."
"Well, you'd understand, with all the stuff that happened with... You know..."
"Oh... Yeah..."
"So, what brings you here?"
"We're trying to find Diana, you know, Lucia's daughter? We heard that you were the last person to leave Lunar after the seal was put up, and that you know how to get through it," answered Lou.
"Ahh, so you want to go back to Lunar. Well, there is a way, but I'm not sure you'll be able to get back..."
"I know, I know... So, what is this way?"
"Well, in order to come here after the seal was up, I needed some sort of magical link between this world and Lunar. You see, before leaving my homeworld I wanted to visit the grave of an old friend... But anyway, I asked Azura to bring an altar made out of the same onyx that is found in my old cave back on Lunar here as a souvenir, so to speak. Well, this altar provided the magical link I needed to get through the seal when combined with my power. However, Lucia rigged the seal so that this trick would only work once for any individual, and that's why I couldn't go back to Lunar to find Diana. However, you also have the power of the Black Dragon, and you should be able to use this altar to teleport you and Teal to my cave back on Lunar."
"Great! So, where is this altar?"
"On the roof of the pyramid, Dragon-ditz!"
"Oh, yeah... Well, can you give us any ideas on how we may be able to get home?"
"Well, it's a long shot, but since Diana is Lucia's daughter, she's also part of the Goddess Tribe. She may be able to tap into the power of the Blue Spire and teleport the three of you back home. Then again, she may not. It's a big crapshoot..."
"Well, I never had anything against gambling... Come on Teal, let's go! Later Ebony, hopefully I'll see you soon with Diana!"
"Good luck Dragon-dit... er master..."
Teal and Lou exited the temple and stood over the onyx altar Ebony had just mentioned. "OK, Lou, what do we do now?" asked Teal?
"Hmm... I'm not sure... Lemme just try concentrating on this sucker and see what happens..."
Teal and Lou were surrounded by an eerie purplish-black light and fell unconscious. When they woke up, they found themselves within a dark cave with walls seeming made out of solid onyx.
"Where... Where are we Lou?"
"I'm not sure... I think this might be Ebony's old cave... Let's try to find our way out..."
The duo tried to find their way through the mysterious cave and eventually managed to get to an empty mine. In the distance they saw light coming from outside the mine. They headed for this source of light and exited to find...
"Hey, who are you and what the hell are you doing in the mine?! Don't you know it's closed today for the holiday?! And what's with the fancy armor?!" yelled an angry miner.
"Oh, uhh, sorry... It's a long story... Anyway, my name is Lou and she is Teal. We're 'travelers' and we're trying to find someone..."
"Well then, welcome to Zaback, the second largest town on Lunar as you must know already! Thanks to the profitability of the mining of our Black Dragon diamonds, we've grown so that we're even larger than Vane and nearly as large as Meribia! The name's Karl... Nice to meet you. You said you were trying to find someone?"
"Yep... Any idea on where's a good place to start?"
"Hmm, I'd suggest Meribia. It's the capital of commerce and trade here on this world, and lots of stories get exchanged between the various merchants there. It's where I would start."
"Thanks, any idea on how we'd get there from here?"
"You're not from around here, are you?"
"I guess you could say that..."
"Well, today's your lucky day. I have a huge shipment of diamonds to deliver to the jeweler in Meribia today, and I could use a decent guard. You look like you'd fit the part... How about it, you help me look over the jewels and I'll give you a free ride on my sailboat?"
"It's a deal!"
"Good, follow me!"
Karl leads Lou and Teal to a small sailboat just outside town that has been loaded completely full with crates of diamonds. The trio boards the ship and sets sale for Meribia. Karl notices Teal sitting on Lou's shoulder. "Interesting pet you have there!"
"Look mister, I am not a pet!" answers Teal.
"Whoa, she talks! Hmm, a talking flying cat, I've only heard legends of those... Where on Lunar did you find her?"
"I'm also not a cat!"
"Umm," answered Lou, "Well, I didn't exactly find her on Lunar, uhh..."
"Damn, you are a strange person... No matter, you seem nice enough, and I'm grateful to have someone help me guard these diamonds with that gang of masked cat burglars that's been running amok in Meribia for the past few thousand years or so?"
"Cat burglars?"
"Yeah. They've been the one damper in Meribia for the past thousand years. Fortunately they never seem to strike very often, but when they do they always make off with thousands of silver's worth of goods!"
"Hasn't anyone tried to bring them to justice?"
"Many have, but they all have failed. All of these criminals are exceptional swordsmen, so even if someone manages to catch them in the act of theft, they never were able to defeat them in a fight. Strangely enough though they never have killed anyone to our knowledge..."
"Well, Lou here is a great swordsman, I'm sure he can stop this gang!" added Teal.
"That may be true, but they also have very, very strange magic powers, making some of us think they aren't even human! Many of us think that it will take a Dragonmaster like there used to be eons ago to stop them!"
"Well, Lou here also happens to be a Dragonmaster! Looks like these cat burglars are going down!"
"A Dragonmaster? Hahahahaha, don't make me laugh! You look tough and all, but it would take much more than that to get me to believe you're a Dragonmaster! Anyway, if you want to take on this gang, you're welcome to when we get to Meribia."
"Are you sure it's a gang? I mean, from the sounds of it, it seems like only one members of this so-called gang has ever been seen at any given time," asks Lou.
"True, but we're pretty sure it's a gang as they have been up to no-good for many thousands of years. No one human could have done that..."
"True, unless..."
"Ahh, there is Meribia up ahead! We're pulling into the port now. Looks like we made it too late to get to the jewel merchants, I'll have to spend the night. I hope you don't mind watching over the jewels tonight?"
"No, not at all. Thanks for the ride!"
"Don't mention it."
The sailboat pulls into the dock and Lou and Karl unload the cargo onto a nearby cart. They wheel the cart to a local inn and stash it in the storeroom before sunset. Karl tells Lou and Teal to get some rest for now as they will have to stay up during the night to guard the diamonds. The duo heads up to their room and rests. Several hours later, Karl comes in and tells them it's their turn to stand watch.
The first few hours of the night go by quietly. Lou and Teal guard their post silently, waiting to see if the infamous Meribian cat burglars strike during their watch.
From a high above, a dark figure watches through a window. "Hmm," the figure thinks, "Just two watching over all those diamonds, and one of them is a cat! I should be able to live happily for several years off of this load. That's very good... A long vacation from this awful life of crime is something I've wanted forever..." The figure dives down with her sword ready to strike at Lou. The Dragonmaster quickly turns around and blocks the attack with his own blade.
"But, but, this is impossible... No one has ever blocked that attack before!" the figure exclaims in a female voice.
"You've never gone toe-to-toe with a Dragonmaster before, lady. Now it's time someone stopped your life of crime..."
"Dragonmaster or not, I need those diamonds!"
The two engage in a sword fight, sparks flying off the blades in every direction. The fight soon spreads outside the storeroom and into the earth-lit streets of Meribia. Both warriors were exceptionally skilled with a blade, but it seemed as if Lou was gaining the upper hand...
"Finally, someone who can give me a challenge in a sword fight, I'm impressed so-called Dragonmaster. However, I think it's time I ended this... Perhaps a little Napalm Shot will finally get you out of my way..."
The dark woman raises her arms into the air and a rain of fireballs descends on the Dragonmaster. However, unlike what she had hoped, Lou seems to have been barely scratched by the attack...
"How can this be! No one could have survived that! You... You have a power that shields you from my spells!"
"Tough luck lady... However, since you wanted to escalate this to a battle of magic, here's a Holy Light for you..."
Lou raises his arms to the air and a ball of intensely bright light descends from the sky. However, much like the cat burglar's efforts, this spell too seems highly ineffective...
"Hahaha, Dragonfool! Looks like your magic doesn't affect me either!"
"Well then, I guess we'll have to settle this the old-fashioned way!"
The two start to duel with their swords again. The dark woman this time seems to have gotten the upper hand, and manages to trip Lou during the fight. Lou, however, managed to get the tip of his blade up near her face. The blade scratches into her left cheek and manages to pull her hood off, revealing her face.
Lou sits on the ground his eyes wide open after looking upon the face of his adversary. "Wow... She... She's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen!" he says.
Teal flies in with some advice. "Uhh, Lou, I know I said you'd fall in love with Diana as soon as you saw her, but it's kind of a bad time to do that when she's trying to cut your head off!"
The Lou lifts his shield up and blocks the strike at the last second. His battle stance changes from aggressive to defensive as he admires the beauty of his opponent. She stands before him, tall and athletic, with blue hair that reaches about half way down her neck, dark brown eyes, and two green marks on her right cheek. Lou finally yells out, "Diana! Stop this, OK?!"
The woman stops fighting. "How... How do you know my name?"
"Well, I know your mother... I saw your picture back on the Blue Star..."
"You're from the Blue Star!? But how can this be!? I thought the way there was sealed by my mother long ago!"
"Well, let's just say I found a loophole around that whole barrier bit... Anyway, your mother really misses you, and I promised her I'd find you and take you home. I hope you don't mind..."
"No, not at all! I've missed my mother soooo much!" Diana sheds a tear. "And to think I nearly killed the person who would take me home..."
"What do you mean nearly killed? I was winning throughout that whole battle, hehe..."
"Speak for yourself, Dragonboy! Heheheh..."
"So, how did you end up in the line of work of cat burglary?"
"It's a long story. Basically, some jerk from the Cult of Zophar managed to kidnap me and bring me here during the immigration to the Blue Star. After that, I saw my mom put up the barrier and figured that she thought I was still there and it was her way of preventing the kidnapper from escaping. I cried when I realized that I probably would never see my mother and father again, but then I decided I would escape from the Cult's clutches to keep them from having the last laugh. I did manage to escape, stealing a sword from one of the guards I toasted with my magic on the way out. Fortunately for me, I inherited my magic skills from my mom, and my dad taught me how to handle a sword while I was growing up. However, on my own at the age of twelve, I couldn't find much to do. I lived with the Dragon Kids at Taben's peak for a while, and I helped them out by using my magic and swordsmanship to get provisions for the group. I left when I grew up, but I still had to play bandit to survive, and I still give much what I steal to them. However, I never stole more than I needed, and I never killed!"
"Well, you're going to be going home now. You'll never need to steal again there..."
"Thank you, thank you so much! By the way, I never caught your name..."
"Oh, my name is Lou, and yes, I really am I Dragonmaster... My friend over here with all the fur is Teal."
"Nice to meet you, Lou and Teal."
"Nice to meet you too Diana," Teal answered.
Karl appears out of nowhere to check out what the ruckus was. "Hey, what the hell is going on here! Are my diamonds all right!?"
"They're just fine Karl... And guess what, I found who I was looking for? We kinda had an argument, hence all the noise..."
"An argument huh? It sounded like you had a damned war out here! Anyway, I'm up now and I don't think I'm going to get to sleep. You're free to go now, I'll finish up the watch. Hopefully the cat burglars won't strike tonight..."
"I'm sure you'll never have a problem with them again... Thanks a lot for everything Karl! Farewell!"
"Farewell Lou, and good journeys!"
Diana turns to Lou, "So, where are we going now?"
"The Blue Spire. The Black Dragon said that since you were part of the Goddess Tribe you might be able to figure out how to get us back to the Blue Star from there..."
"My mom used to tell me stories about that place, and I think I know where it is. I'm not sure I can get us home, but I'll try. First, however, can we stop by Taben's Peak? I want to say good bye to my friends there..."
"Sure thing Diana. You lead the way..."
After Diana said her farewells to the Dragon Kids of Taben's Peak, the trio began their long quest on foot to the Blue Spire. It was a long journey, but not a particularly dangerous one as the Dragonmaster and demi-goddess made quick work of any monsters unfortunate enough to get in their way. However, much as Teal had predicted, the two grew closer and closer during their quest to return home. An attachment between the two began to form that neither had ever felt before. Teal's prediction had come true, Lou and Diana were slowly falling in love...
Finally, after the longest on-foot journey of their lives, the trio came upon the Blue Spire. They approached the door to it, only to find it was sealed shut.
"Now what do we do?" asked Lou?
"Let me try... I am Lucia's daughter after all. Maybe I can influence the door somehow."
"Go ahead...
....
....."
After exchanging a smile and a blush with Lou, Diana set to work on opening the pathway to the Blue Spire. She placed her arms on the dragon-shaped barricade that blocked their progress and without even a thought, the Spire opened, allowing the two of them inside.
"See, nothing to it!"
"You just gotta show me that trick sometime Diana!"
"I'll try Lou, but I think it's something I picked up from my mother, hehe..."
The three climbed up to the top floor of the mystical Blue Spire. When they got there, Diana was able to open the pathway to the secret chamber which contained the crystal of teleportation they would need to use to return home.
"Diana, do you know what you need to do now?"
"I'm not sure... Maybe if..."
Diana places her hands on the crystal... The crystal glows brightly and emits a loud humming sound. The energy put out by the crystal overwhelms her, and she falls backwards, being caught by Lou just before she hit the ground.
"Are you OK Diana?"
"I... I think so. The crystal told me what I had to do, however..."
"However what?"
"Breaking the seal is very dangerous. When we go home, the seal would be broken permanently unless we repair it with another source of power. If the seal is permanently broken there is no telling what might happen to both worlds..."
"Where can we find this source of power?"
"It's here..."
"Where? Where is it?"
"The crystal told me of only one source of power that would be able to repair the seal once we break it. It's my... immortality..."
"What!? What do you mean Diana?"
"I now understand why my mother couldn't come rescue me all those eons ago. Either she'd break the seal and risk destruction of both worlds, or she would have to give up her own immortality which my father had asked her to keep for the sake of Lunar and the Blue Star. She knew that neither of us would want either event to happen, so she just had to live with her choice all these years..."
"But, you'll lose your immortality too if we go home! Can't we just stay here? I'm sure we would be able to make some sort of life here..."
"Oh Lou... It's statements like that which made me feel the way I do for you... But the Blue Star is our home... We have to return there as we don't belong here... Don't worry about me becoming mortal. You're mortal and you seem to be doing well enough, so I'm sure I'll do just fine, especially with you around.
....
....."
Lou answers, "
....
....."
After the two exchange a final blush with each other, Diana sets about her work. She places her hand back on the crystal and issue the incantation it had told her to say. The crystal vibrates violently and absorbs Diana, Lou, and Teal, within an intensely bright green light. The group feel themselves floating and eventually see a new location forming around them...
Lucia sighs after looking at the pictures of Hiro and Diana again. Suddenly, she hears a noise behind her and turns around. Standing before her she sees Lou, Teal, and a strange woman that seems vaguely familiar. "Lou, what are you doing here, and who is this you brought with you?" she asks.
"Lucia, I'd like you to meet your daughter..."
Diana runs into the arms of her mother, tears streaming from her eyes... "Mother, I can't believe it's really you! After all these years, I'm seeing you again mother!"
Lucia instantly realizes that this was in fact her beloved daughter, and tears flow from her eyes as well as she embraces her. "Diana! I can't believe it's you! You... You've grown into quite the lovely young lady! Thank you Lou, oh thank you for keeping your promise and bringing her back to me!"
"It was an honor and a privilege, Lucia, and the pleasure was all mine..."
"Diana, what does he mean by that?"
"Well..." Diana blushes...
Teal flies up to Lou's ear. "OK, Dragon-ditz, now's your chance! Give her the ring..."
"What ring?"
"The ring I gave you! It's the only one you got..."
"But..."
"Don't worry about it... You really don't need it anymore, plus I'm sure it's OK to use it in this situation..."
Lou slips the Blue Dragon ring he had received from Teal during his quest off his finger and walks up to Diana. He gently takes her hand in his and slips the ring on...
"Diana, is there something you haven't told me? Why did Lou give you his ring?"
Diana and Lou look at each other, then look at Lucia, and turn bright red, unable to say a word.
"Oh, I see... Well, I guess I should have expected it Diana! At least you made a very, very good choice!"
Lucia then walks up and embraces both her daughter and her Dragonmaster in her arms as Teal snickers off in the background. "Hehehe, I told that Dragon-ditz so! Hehehe, I love my job!"
Well, once again I'd like to thank the same people I thanked at the end of the regular part of the story. Without your encouragement and ideas, I probably would have never finished this...
Anyway, I hope you liked the epilogue as it is a major departure from what the rest of the story was, and I hope you don't think it was too sappy... Besides, it plays a very important role setting up the sequel to this fanfic, Lunar: Unification, coming to a web page or mailing list near you! :)