Contract with a Star (On Hold, Possibly Forever)

The Purifying and the Star

            As it turned out, Green River was one of three possible places for Rena to absorb the energy. Because it eventually passed through the Valley, they decided that it really was the best place as the other two did not reach the general population anymore. Very few people lived near the borders of the Forest Star country, and the northern border between the Fire and Forest countries were no exception.

            Rena did not bother asking Good King Veret Asnin for permission, he would deny it immediately. Actually, Rena was pretty sure that if she went anywhere near the king, he would never let her go anywhere ever again. She had learned her lesson and had taken to staying away from the more paranoid monarchs. They ended up packing and leaving almost an hour after Rena saw the Fire Star die, missing the royal official with his summons by mere minutes.

            It would take them only four hours to reach a spot Tanya and Aiden knew on the river that was above Green River Valley. Somehow, Aiden got bored. He still had a few questions for Rena left, anyway. “Why are we called the Forest Star Country?”

“Because my eyes reminded people of the forest.”

“Why are we named after your eyes?”

“Because all the stars have different eye colors based on what their favorite color is when they fall.”

“Crazy. Why does our calendar start two years before the country was actually established?”

            “It starts on the day that I fell. The first day of the first month of the first year.” Rena answered, actually happy for the distraction Aiden promised.

            “Is that why you don’t have a birthday but you do have a birthday?”

            “Obviously. Stars don’t have births. We’re just chunks of rock or chunks of soul energy.”

            “No need to snap at me, I’m simply trying to answer the unanswerable questions that have plagued mankind for so many years.” Aiden was just being condescending now. “Oh! Here’s a great question; was Ky a man or a woman?” Tanya almost slapped Aiden for bringing up the touchy subject, but Rena was not focused on Ky, she was focused on Aiden.

            “Ky was my first friend on this planet, I would never betray his trust by revealing her gender.” Rena smirked, enjoying Aiden’s expressions. First he was proud that Ky was a boy, then he was confused that she had a gender, then he realized Rena was messing with him. Before he could get angry, Rena was already urging Cheval faster, laughing as she went ahead. Aiden chased after her as Tanya shook her head indulgingly at the two before speeding up and joining the fun.

            When Tanya and Aiden arrived at one of their childhood haunts, they realized they had no idea what they were looking for or what to do with it when they found it. Rena declared the place perfect, even though it was not green as its name had suggested, and waded through the shallow water to the very center of the river. She sat down in the least amount of water she could find and waited.

            The little clearing had not changed much since they had last been there, almost ten years ago. It was one large half circle, bordered by the river and the trees. The trees were all of the same breed, although the only thing they cared about was the great shade they provided. There were bushes between the trees that the deer loved. It was an ideal place, except for the giant glowing green wall that cut straight through the river and trees without actually harming them. The wall was not transparent, but that did not stop Tanya and Aiden from staring at it for hours until something came out.

            They did not expect that the water would simply turn red. It looked harmless, not even scary like blood. Then they looked at the banks of the river. The plants weren’t dying because they were losing energy; they were bursting with energy, literally. Some of the flora was melting, some growing rapidly in ways that had not been seen before, some of them even seemed to be writhing in pain. Everything was being tinged red. And then Rena hummed.

            The other two watched in awe as the red water began redirecting itself to the center of the water. It pooled in Rena’s lap and seemed to seep into her skin. The red in the plants turned into a form of gas and floated into Rena’s nose and mouth like an old Techie vacuum. It wasn’t a pretty sight.

            Rena spent almost seven hours in the water, and still the red kept coming. Rena had Aiden bring her the bag she had packed. They were still wearing the only clothes they had left, the uniforms, so Rena was the only one that had brought a bag. Inside the bag was the money, bread, and something wrapped in their cloaks. Very carefully, Rena pulled out the cloaks and made Aiden unwrap it.

            Aiden and Tanya figured out why Rena was so careful when they saw the shiny metal. It was a silver net. The very same net that had caught Rena all those years ago, or so she said. Rena had a lot of very important old things that were in very good condition. She said that the cloaks had been hers, Captain Ky’s, and the second in command’s. Rena did like to mess with them, though.

            Aiden and Tanya rolled the net from riverside to riverside. Rena said that while she rested, the net would collect the red soul energy and with its large holes it was unlikely a fish would be caught. Aiden asked Rena why she needed to sleep if she just ingested pure energy, and Rena flicked him in the forehead.

            “That energy would have deformed you like it deformed the plants if you were to take it in. For me, it is another source of food, the most disgusting, vilest form of food imaginable. While I rest, my body will purify it. But, do not touch that net! Unless you like exploding, then go ahead.” With that, Rena laid down and was asleep in seconds.

            It took Rena almost four months to clean the Fire Star Country using the river. During that time, Aiden and Tanya did not visit home once, even on their birthdays. They could not leave Rena alone and they were used to only seeing their family once a year when they visited the Academy. In those four months, the Onyx Star, Lightening Star, and Sakura Star were all killed by the Sea Star. The Sea Star used the black eyed girl’s death to send a message to Rena.

            “From the last three deaths, we can assume that if I kill you in the next ten minutes, everyone will see this.” It was a repeat of the first two deaths, down to the same room and chairs. The only difference was the new blood stains on the rich carpet. “I just want to let you know, if any of you try what that stupid little Fire Star did, I will kill every single person in your country. Anyone and everyone you care about will die. Their deaths will be painful and they will curse your name.”The Sea Star ignored the muffled cries of her older sister.

            “One more thing, just for Rena.” The Sea Star paused and looked deep into the black eyes, “Oh, and Rena’s the Forest Star for all of you not in the know. The first of us to be caught, the little bitch. I know what you’re trying to do. Taking all that power Fire left behind in an attempt to beat me.” The Sea Star laughed an empty laugh, “But I’ve got you beat. I’m going to save you for last. My master is going to take all the armies of this continent and crush your little country. How are you going to escape that?” Then she cut a small opening into the artery of her sister and drank deeply, having learned from the last time.

            Rena was deeply disturbed by that dream, her negative emotions heightened by the red energy. She was constantly angry or sad or confused and it was hard on Tanya and Aiden. Tanya had to bind Aiden’s mouth several times to keep him alive. When Rena started to refuse sleep, they took turns sitting in the water catching colds until her concern reconnected her to the real world. When the river was finally clean, Rena asked them to take her to the most cheerful place they had ever been to, so they went down the river. Before they left, Rena took some of the seeds that littered the bottom of her pack and buried them in the middle of the clearing. Unseen by the other two, Rena gave the plant a little boost and made it grow to twice her height in seconds.