Lunet

Prologue

Deep within the town of Veilo, whispers of the Night Woman can be heard in the wind. Tales of a creature so pale that the moonlight seeps through her skin and illuminates her bones. Those who have seen her swear her eyes are as piercing as Demeter's winters and as empty as a godless sky. Children know to steer clear of the woods skirting the small town, for there the Night Woman resides in the sole temple of Thanatos. If you have any respect for your own sanity, you, too, will stay clear of the eastern wood.

Years ago, in another town seemingly wiped from the records of existence, lived a young girl named Elizabeth. Surrounding her quaint estate she shared with her family, was a quaint farm. Day in and day out, the family cared for the animals and each other. Eli was a bit odd, though. She often showed fascination towards the dead animals, going as far as to dissect them to learn how they moved and what parts were connected to one another. Eli couldn't just read the happenings in a book, she had to see it for herself.

This obsession only grew when her mother fell ill from a plague that swept their home. Eli believed she could fix her mother like she had done with the farm animals time and time again. This time was different, though. No matter what Eli did, she could not wake her mother up. It wasn't until her father walked in on her still trying to revive the long cold corpse of her mother that she finally stopped. Eli changed that day, as any person would. Death became her world and she wouldn't stop until she finally understood what it meant.

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A couple years passed and the plague returned to the farm. A bad harvest and low birth rate that year meant everyone was going hungry. The plague had claimed her younger brother, and grief had made her father vulnerable to the illness himself. Eli knew it was only a matter of time before he was taken from her, too. This time, she was far from upset. Over the years she found herself not fearful of death and the loss of her loved ones, but excited for it. She knew her family would be reunited again, just in a different plane.

When Eli believed her father's temperature had risen to a point of no return, she smiled, kissed him goodbye, and made her way to the river near her house. She made sure to wear her best clothes; she wanted to look nice for her family reunion. Each step onto the ice was met with an anxiety inducing crack, but Eli was not scared. She made no attempt to step carefully as she made her way to the center of the silent river. Something was wrong, though. Another pair of cracks came after hers, but before she could turn to face her stalker, cold air met her back followed by an overwhelming warmth. At about the same time, the ice cracked beneath her and she was plunged into the dark.

The next part came in flashes to her. She remembers a man pulling her from the ice. She remembers grasping onto the man like he was a source of life and feeling warm again. She remembers him hugging. She remembered being dipped into the River of Styx and forgetting the faces of her family, again to forget her name, and again to forget the man who saved her. This is where the major gap in the girl's memory begins. A time that seemed only a week, but felt much longer.

Again, she was saved though, by a man with a familiar face that she just couldn't pinpoint. He looked at her with longing in his eyes and instantly, the girl remembered him: Thanatos. She ran for him, the only familiar thing she knew, but before she could quite reach him, she felt the plunge of ice cold water followed by the feeling of a cool breeze and grass between her fingers. The girl opened her eyes to a shrouded clearing amidst the forest. In front of her, a note precariously placed under a rock. It read: "Your name is Lunet Darte. You serve me, Thanatos God of the Dead. Build a temple in my honor, serve me well, and we will meet again."

Lunet rose from her place on the forest floor, dusted herself off, and got to work.

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After a couple of run-ins with the humans of the town, Lunet realized she could not live her life as the others did, because she was far from normal. In order to receive any help in building her temple, Lunet had to be sure to only meet with builders during the brightest days. She would cover herself in thick robes so no one could see how lifeless she looked. Lunet could not read nor write after all, so writing letters was impossible. Even so, Lunet would make beautiful paintings to portray her meanings and often traded them for supplies.

When time came to pay the builders for their services, they informed Lunet that payment had already been taken care of. They said they received letters addressed from Lunet with money located inside. Lunet was certain this was the work of Thanatos, and to thank him, she sculpted several life-size versions of him to place within the temple.

Most gods make their appearances known to the public, but Thanatos was only seen at death, making it impossible for any living being to portray an accurate image of his grace. Lunet was not a living being, though. This she had figured out from her lack of heartbeat or need to breathe. Once, out of curiosity, she cut herself to see if she would bleed. She expected red ooze to flow from her wound as she had seen in others, but instead, nothing erupted from the damaged skin.

Day in and day out, Lunet would care for the empty temple. She never felt truly alone, though, for even though his presence never blessed her, Lunet knew Thanatos was out there somewhere, thinking of her. He was the only thing she could remember clearly from before and she was not about to lose him. In a world of cold, he was the only thing to ever make her feel warm.

Lunet did still miss him, though. On days where the cold seemed nearly unbearable, she would think of him. She would pray for him to return to her once more. She knew he visited the nearby town often to carry the dead from their homes, but she was never able to find him. He always seemed just out of reach.

"Serve me well and we will meet again."

She had built Thanatos's temple in his honor and served him solely, but why was he so distant? Lunet was sure she just wasn't serving him well enough and picked up her game. She commissioned the builders to make his altar more extravagant. She only gave him the finest of offerings, much of which she had to resort to theft for, and she prayed for days at a time, yet still no sign of the one thing she felt she truly cared about. The one thing she loved. No tears ever escaped Lunet's eyes, though. She was a proud woman, but no matter how much she burned and hurt for this man to return, she would not grovel.

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Years passed, rumors spread, and Lunet noticed something quite strange about herself. Though she had been back on earth for quite some time, no signs of age appeared. She looked as young as the day she arrived, and still just as lifeless. What was she?

Lunet started experimenting on herself, for lack of a better term. She subjected herself to harsh conditions, tried drowning herself, and even inflicted wounds to see how they would heal. She documented these experiences in a notebook using just pictures and symbols. She noted that she could feel pain, but could not die from blood loss. She couldn't breathe underwater, but she could still submerge herself for hours at a time, only coming up when she started feeling bored.

Her cuts healed as if she had never received them in the first place, which she found even more unusual. Nothing she did to alter her appearance would stick. Her hair would grow back if cut, her skin would heal perfectly if mangled, and eating excessively would cause her to gain no weight, just horrible stomach pains. Again, she questioned, what was she?

She promised herself to someday find Thanatos and confront him herself. Lunet knew he brought her here somehow and spent time with her before, so he must have some kind of idea. Why was he holding out on her? She would definitely punch him for this. But she had to find him first. She had to find Thanatos.