A/N - This story was inspired by one of my favorite operas, Turandot. Enjoy!
He ran faster, flames licking his heels. His world was crumbling around him, his beautiful star being consumed in pulsing hellish fire. His only thoughts were of escape, but where could he hide from the monsters that were destroying his world? He ducked into an abandoned shrine, hoping the ornate stone walls would hold against the wall of roaring flames. He shut his eyes tight against the brutal heat, clutching his robes around him for futile protection. Through the thunder of the inferno, he could hear the walls of the shrine cracking. As he became engulfed in the unbearable torture of the flames, he thought of his father, the king of this doomed kingdom. He prayed that at least his father had escaped.
Icy crystals pierced his thoughts, and the unbelievable presence of cold surrounded him. "Come quickly!" a familiar voice admonished. He turned to see his tutor, Shomei, still in her ceremonial robes, her hands raised and feeding energy to the ice shield that protected them. She grabbed his arm, pulling him into a run alongside her. The sheltering force of her magic followed them, but it began to weaken.
"But, the warriors… How can we escape? Where would we go?" he said despairingly.
"The warriors won't come," Shomei replied, "We're too close to the blast site."
They jumped into a deep trench, and Shomei crouched in meditation. "Shomei," he said gasping for breath, "You don't have enough energy to transport us off this star."
"You're right," he was surprised by the confidence in her voice, "But, I can transport you."
He gasped, "No! We could find another way out of here."
"There is no other way, my prince. Give me your hands."
He didn't resist as she took his hands in hers. She had made up her mind and nothing would stop her. He respected her for that. He sighed, closing his eyes, and focused on giving her all his remaining power.
He noticed that Shomei had dropped the shield that was protecting her as the transport began. He could feel her energy course through him, lifting him off the ground, preparing to throw him from his dying world, his home. As he opened his eyes again, he saw Shomei watching him, calm and serene. Then, in an instant, she vanished in a blaze of flame and light.
The roar of the fire was replaced by a tranquil silence followed by the soft murmur of voices. His next vision was blurred by the blinding reflection of golden light off of pure white walls. He squinted and covered his face with his forearm. Gradually the scene came into focus as his eyes adjusted to the bright light. He was in some kind of marketplace, built of solid white stone and shimmering silver fabrics. The crowd around him was as alien to him as the architecture. They had pale almost transparent skin that seemed to glow in the evening light. He realized how alien he must look to the people. He wore his dark golden ceremonial robes with all their ornate trimmings, and he seemed to be the only one in the crowd with dark tan skin and black hair.
Then he noticed a distinct shadow among these brilliant surroundings. He immediately recognized the all too familiar form of the Shadow warriors that had consumed his kingdom. The solitary warrior came closer to him, its pure black silhouette unnoticed by anyone but himself. He panicked as he sensed more warriors gathering near him. The little magic that he had learned from Shomei had been useless against the warriors in previous encounters. All he could do was run, so he fled up the narrow street, dodging the oblivious crowd. As he turned a sharp corner, all traces of his gut-wrenching sense of the Shadows disappeared. Stunned, he spun around to see that, truly, all the warriors were gone.
He was startled by a hand tugging at his robe and turned to see a small girl smiling at him. She wore a simple white robe and her golden blond hair was neatly tied back in a bun. He had an overwhelming urge to smile back at the strange girl. He knew a person of purity and innocence could have special powers against the Shadows and realized that this girl's presence must be purging the Shadow warriors around them from existence.
"Hi, my name is Hikari," the girl said cheerfully, "I saw you appear over there. You must have powerful magic."
He didn't want to talk to the girl, but he felt compelled to ask her some questions. "Where am I?" he asked.
"The Moon," Hikari giggled, "You must be a foreigner."
The Moon? He had heard stories of a civilization on the Moon, but always thought it was a myth. Looking around him now, he could see it was true. In the sky, he saw a huge planet swirling in blue, green, and white, it was unmistakably Earth, and, beyond that, a great star, the Sun.
"Where are you from?" Hikari asked.
He continued to stare at the sky as he answered, "There. The Sun." The girl looked into the sky in awe.
A loud chime resounded through the marketplace, distracting Hikari. In response to the chime, Hikari grabbed the young man's hand to pull him with her through the crowds. This action felt all too similar to his flight with Shomei, and he instinctively pulled his hand away from Hikari. He stood still as a rush of memories of his crumbling world took him over. Hikari stopped also and looked back at him. "Mister?" she questioned, "What's wrong?"
He gladly forgot his visions to focus on Hikari. When the girl realized her companion was alright, she motioned for him to follow her. Knowing that her power could keep him safe from the Shadow warriors, he felt he had no choice but to follow her. There was a growing crowd of silent people around the chime, and he could see a group of ornately clad officials. When the chime stopped, one of the officials stepped forward and bellowed, "The Prince of Deimos has failed the trial. He is to be executed at nightfall…"
If there was any more to the message it was lost in the clamor of the crowd. Hikari swung around to face her companion, "C'mon! I gotta tell momma!" With that, Hikari sprung into action, pushing the crowd out of her way. The young man hesitated a moment before running to catch up with the little girl.
"Mister," Hikari cried cheerfully as she ran, "My mother is a prophet! She said the prince wouldn't pass the trial, even when everyone else had such high hopes for him. She'll be pleased to know she was right!"
They stopped suddenly at a low silver gate, which Hikari banged on viciously until finally pulling out a tiny key and opening it herself. The young girl bounced into the small room that seemed to be a kitchen and called for her mother. The young man entered cautiously as he saw a tall woman with long shimmering blond hair come through a door in the back of the room. Hikari ran to her shouting that she was a prophet. The woman kept her eyes on the stranger in her doorway as her daughter told her about the scheduled execution.
Hikari finally noticed the young man again and yelled, "Welcome him, mother! He is a foreigner!"
The woman sighed and closed her eyes briefly as if trying to vanquish an oncoming headache. She walked over to the stranger, "I'm sorry, but there are no rooms available here, regardless of what my daughter has told you. You'll have to leave."
Before the young man could so much as turn to leave, Hikari was between her mother and him. "Mother, be careful! He has powerful magic! I saw him appear right in the middle of the marketplace!"
The woman eyed him suspiciously.
"I am the Prince of the Sun Kingdom," the young man explained simply.
The woman stared at him as if he were insane. Then, slowly, as though remembering old legends, the look on her face changed to curiosity.
"But that means nothing now," he continued, "My kingdom has been destroyed."
He could tell the woman could see the sorrow in his face. She quickly dismissed Hikari from the room, and after being assured that the stranger would not be turned away, Hikari left.
Hikari's mother welcomed the stranger further into the small room, "My name is Yuri Haruno. Prince-"
"Please, don't call me that."
"What should I call you?" Yuri asked, smiling.
He sighed and lowered his head, he was losing all hope. "It doesn't matter anymore."
Yuri's mood changed instantly, "I'm sorry, um, stranger."
He didn't like the compassion in her voice, "Listen, I am still being hunted by the creatures that destroyed my kingdom, and I believe that your daughter's presence can block the creatures' ability to manifest themselves."
"I see, so you do want to stay here. The way you turned when I told you to leave made me think that you wanted to go."
"I wish I could."
"Well, you're welcome to stay," Yuri said, placing a hand on his shoulder.
He squirmed from under her hand, "Thank you," he said, trying to put true gratitude in his voice.
She smiled gently at him, "We were just about to have dinner."
Yuri offered a seat to her guest and called for Hikari. The little girl skipped into the room as her mother set out a large platter of assorted vegetables and fruits.
The young man took a small helping and tried his best to eat it. "What's he being executed for?"
Yuri was surprised by his sudden question, "Who?"
"The Prince of Deimos."
"Oh," Yuri replied, "Our princess has proclaimed that she will only marry when a suitor can answer her three riddles, and if they fail they are to be executed."
"Your princess must be very cruel."
"She was not always that way."
Hikari burst in, "Hey, mister! Come to the execution with us!"
Again the man felt compelled to smile at the cheerful little girl, "Alright."
Then Yuri smiled at the stranger's reaction to her daughter. Even the hardened must be vulnerable to innocence, she thought.
The rest of the meal passed in silence until Yuri announced that it was time to leave. Hikari then led the procession to the square. Crowds were gathering there as nightfall grew closer, and a morbid excitement filled the air. Even with Hikari there, the stranger could feel the presence of Shadow warriors bobbing through the crowd, though he could not see them.
A chime rung, and the people quieted. From where Yuri, Hikari, and the stranger were standing, they could only partially see the procession of the Prince of Deimos. The young prince was dressed in ghostly white robes and walked calmly and confidently. The crowd was shocked by the prince's youth and confidence, and they began to call for the princess to forgive him, to spare the prince's life.
The stranger was particularly shocked by the spectacle. He had seen executions in his kingdom, and they had not affected him. But this execution was meaningless. It seemed that the only crime that the prince was guilty of was love.
The Prince of Deimos walked slowly through the crowd, giving away his jeweled bracelets and necklaces. As the prince disappeared further into the crowd, the stranger joined the people in chanting for the princess to show mercy on the prince. He wanted to shout a curse upon the heartless princess who had condemned the prince to die.
Suddenly, he heard trumpets, and the crowd turned their heads towards a high tower overlooking the square. There, on an ornate balcony, two attendants parted the sheer curtains leading to the tower interior. From within the darkness of the tower appeared a radiant form. The stranger knew instantly it was the Princess of the Moon.
At once, every evil curse he had wanted to shout at her vanished from his mind. All he could think of was the beauty of the figure before him. Her shimmering lavender dress hung regally on her tall frame, and her silver hair was pulled back into an ornate tangle of braids and curls that tumbled over her shoulders and down her back. Across her forehead rested a simple silver band upon which a crescent moon was engraved flanked by two small diamond encrusted stars. Her heavy eyelashes hid icy blue eyes that sparkled despite themselves.
The stranger stood enraptured for many moments until the princess broke his reverie with a sharp gesture indicating that the execution would continue. At once, the sheer curtains again fell back into place, and the stranger was left with the aching desire to have gazed at her even a second longer. He slowly closed his eyes and tried to recall her image, perfect and dazzling, to his mind, but something was wrong. In place of the beautiful princess, the stranger saw instead shadowy figures menacing him from the back of his eyes.
He gasped, "It's happening again."
The stranger started as he felt Hikari tugging on his sleeve. He looked around as the crowd was emptying the square following the executioner's procession.
Yuri was looking at him with a concerned expression, "Are you all right, stranger?"
The young man did not answer immediately, he was still deep in thought. "How long has the princess been like this?"
Yuri was taken aback by the question, but stammered, "She sent out the decree as soon as she came of age. The executions have been going on for almost a year now."
"Not much time left then," the stranger mumbled to himself. His expression darkened, and he fell silent for a while before he spoke again, this time with deep determination in his voice. "How do I accept the princess's challenge?"
