Contract with a Star (On Hold, Possibly Forever)

The Questions and the Star

It was late in the evening when they finally made it home. They wanted answers, but they could wait until after a nice long nap. Tanya barely remembered to wrap up her arm and clean up the small cuts on the others, before they collapsed on Rena’s bed like they had so very long ago, wearing the uniforms they had left behind at the start of their trip.

Unsurprisingly, Aiden was the first to wake up. He could never sleep for very long after a stressful day. He made himself some coffee and washed up. Then, he waited. Rena woke next, unable to sleep if the stars weren’t out. Out of all the questions Aiden needed to ask Rena as they waited for Tanya, he chose none of them and asked her about that.

“I can’t sleep unless the stars are watching over me.” Rena sat on the love seat in the living room next to Lune, simply holding the warm coffee Aiden had made her.

“Ah, deeply religious, are you?” Aiden sat leaning against the wall of the living room and the front hall, waiting for Tanya.

“Sort of. I’ll explain when Tanya comes down.” Rena looked to Lune nervously. Lune rubbed her head against Rena’s elbow in reassurance.

“Then you should get started, it seems like a long story.” Tanya was walking down the stairs. When she passed Aiden, he followed her to the couch. Rena did not protest when Tanya took the coffee from her hand to drink, careful not to get the shirt of Tanya’s old uniform that Rena was wearing, wet.

“I’ll answer any questions you have.” Rena said before promptly passing out again. She used Lune as a pillow, who reassured the other two and took over for Rena.

“Why did they go after Rena?”  Aiden leaned in.

“Because she has immense power that their Star wants.”

“What Star?” Tanya said as Aiden asked,

“What power?”

“The Sea Star is after the power her sisters hold. Rena is her elder sister, the Forest Star.” Lune was not freely offering information. Tanya and Aiden were not focused on their emotions at that point, only on the answers.

“How did they get in? Shouldn’t the border have kept them out?” Tanya didn’t want another attack.

“Rena’s border was made with the contract to keep out enemies. Only another Star’s power could have negated that. It must have taken the Sea Star a lot of power to get those men in, which is amusing since Rena doesn’t classify her sisters as enemies and they can enter at any point in time. Rena couldn’t enter theirs because most of them have that only traders can enter, or people that are weaker than the reigning star.”

“How strong is Rena?” Aiden was starting to get distracted by ideas of Rena beating people up.

“Rena has the most power amongst the Contracted Stars, as the eldest. Her power grows the older she becomes.”

“Why?”

“Stars that aren’t just rock are made of soul energy, which is in abundance here. As humans die, their spirit is naturally attracted to the closest star. Rena and her sisters were supposed to stay on Earth and convert that tainted spirit energy into the pure energy Earth originally had.”

Tanya raised an eyebrow at that. “Tainted?”

“Human emotions taint spirit energy. Positive or negative, it’s not good for this world. It either has to be purified or canceled out.”

“Why is Rena unconscious? Is she going to do that weird flashing thing again?” Aiden didn’t really care about science and all its mumbo jumbo charges.

“Most likely. She’s watching one of her sister’s die right now.” Lune looked at Rena, who had tears running down her cheeks.

“What?!” Both Tanya and Aiden exclaimed.

“Apparently, after a star dies, a little bit of her soul energy goes out to her closest connections. In the energy she gives her sisters, is her final moments. When the energy is depleted, it leaves in a flash of light.”

“How do you know all this, Lune?”

“Because I do.” With that, Lune slinked away. Tanya and Aiden waited almost thirty seconds before there was a flash and Rena woke up. Lune came back with a tissue box in her mouth, which Rena accepted with gratitude. After a little time, Rena composed herself.

“Did the Sea Star attack again?” Tanya reached across the table and rubbed Rena’s knee.

“No. The Fire Star killed herself. They were outside her door, and she couldn’t bear the thought of going through that death again.” Rena’s voice was cold and disconnected to her feelings. “Last night, the Sea Star killed the Snow Star and the Tiger Star. She drank their blood and nullified their contracts. What will happen to the Fire Star’s country? Will the energy sink into the land?”

“Yes, it will.” Lune was calm. “It will kill everything it touches.”

“Can we stop it?” It was almost like Rena hadn’t really connected how bad that statement was to reality. She was lost.

“Of course. Just do as your sister did and take the energy into yourself. You’ll have to find something that passes between the two countries though; it would overwhelm you if you were to enter its domain.”

“This thing that kills all it touches will pass the border?” Aiden interjected.

“I already told you, Rena’s mind, body, and soul believes that her sisters are not enemies. It does not matter what they do or what they become. The border will not stop them.”

Tanya was already thinking about the best place to stop it. “Would it be fairly easy to stop this thing at a river?” Lune nodded, and everyone looked to Tanya. “Come on, Aiden, it’s about time we showed Rena our home.”