The Face of the Moon

Beyond the Wall

WOOSH! The blade of a sword flew by Rapunzel's ear, barely missing her. "You're gonna have to do better than that if you're gonna defeat me, Cass!" Raps said, with a gleam in her eye. She and Cassandra would meet at the edge of the barrier every morning to practice their fighting skills.

"Raps," Cassandra replied, eyeing the nearby wall, "you should probably be a bit more serious about this. Those Moon Creatures are not something to take kindly."

Rapunzel's smile withered, "You're right, Cass. but I just miss the days before my hair grew back and the Moon Creatures came. When we would have fun together."

"Yeah," Cass sighed, then narrowed her eyes a bit, "But our fun was what started this in the first place. Now all of Corona has to live in fear. We probably shouldn't even meet anymore. I was sent to work somewhere else for a reason, Raps."

"Yeah I know but-" Rapunzel started.

"Wait!" Cass interrupted. "Do you hear that?"

They both listened. A rustling noise came from one of the large bushes near the wall.

"get your weapon out." Cassandra whispered.

The rustling continued, and Rapunzel's heart beat faster and faster. Suddenly, a boy, about fourteen, stepped out into the clearing. His clothes were ragged, and his hair was disheveled. The strange thing about him was he had a blue streak in is hair, and his eyes were a peculiar shade of blue that constantly changed from light blue to dark. He looked thin and dazed, and when he staggered out of the bush, he collapsed into a heap. Rapunzel started to rush over but Cassandra grabbed her arm.

"Wait." Cass said, warily, "Be careful. You know as well as I do how Moon Creatures can shape shift."

Memories flooded over Rapunzel. Just a few months before, a lost girl stumbled into town asking for help. Eugene had found her and gave her some food, but the lost girl was not what she said she was. She was a Moon Creature and she took Eugene. The King forbade Rapunzel to go, but sent out a search party of soldiers. They returned back saying they had found no sign of him.

Rapunzel shook the thought away and knelt by the boys side. she took the canteen that she had connected to her belt and poured some water in his mouth. He grunted and opened his eyes.

"H- Hello?" he said, his voice was gravelly like he hadn't had water for a month.

"Hi." Rapunzel replied softly.

"Who are you, and where did you come from?" Cassandra demanded.

"My name is Varian," the boy responded, "And I'm from beyond the wall."