Chapter 2 A Miracle is Born

The ashy ruins left in the wake of the comets was glorious. The twinkling of the comet chunks was as bright as the stars. The rainbow colors smeared across the sky reminded Rosalina of a nebula she once visited. The scent of smoke lingered on the edge of her nose.

She looked back from where she had come. She saw a line of about twenty lumas following in her wake, like sheep dawdling after their shepherd. She exchanged a look with Polari, who shook his head.

"Tsk tsk tsk, I have no idea how these guys will be able to live as planets."

The gloom in Rosalina's chest returned, seeping its way into her heart. She wouldn't be surprised if the blood in her veins had turned as black as dark matter.

The party continued to float through the mess. Rosalina kept her eye out for the drifting bodies of lumas. Although, just because she was looking for that didn't mean she wanted to see it. When she imagined it, with a luma as white as snow and their eyes blank, she felt a sudden nausea. She gripped her stomach with one hand and kept the other extremely close to her mouth.

"Hey, look! A star bit!" one luma exclaimed.

The other lumas squealed in delight and zipped over to the star bit. It was golden in color, like sparkling honey. The lumas' eyes twinkled as they stared at the shiny source of food.

"I want it!" an orange luma said.

"Why should you get it?" asked a blue luma. "I want it too!"

"I'm so hungry I could eat a thousand star bits!" exclaimed a purple luma. "Gimme this one!"

All of the lumas reached for the star bit at once. They batted at each other, creating a cacophony. Rosalina floated up to them.

"Children, children, there's no need to fight!" She waved her wand, and multiple star bits appeared. "You can all get a snack!"

The lumas squealed again and darted toward the star bits. Each devoured their snacks like a black hole would devour a planet. Once they were done, they crowded around Rosalina and gave her a hug.

"Thank you Mama!"

"You're the best!"

"I love you more than any star bits!"

Rosalina's cheeks grew warm. These lumas were like a family to her. They were her babies, always there to listen to what their mother had to say. But, of course, every baby has to grow up eventually.

With this thought in mind, Rosalina cleared her throat. "Come on, guys. We need to keep looking for any more lumas."

"Okay, Mama!" The lumas darted away, zipping and cartwheeling through the dusty expanse. Rosalina chuckled as she saw the gaze of Polari.

"What?" she asked her confidant.

"Nothing," Polari said. He looked out at the lumas, still cartwheeling around. "It seems that they are eager to help."

"Mmm. Yes, it would appear that way."

Polari turned back toward Rosalina. "You know, there is no guarantee that we will find anyone here."

"I know. I just want to be safe rather than sorry."

With that, she made her way forward. Polari floated right alongside her. The scent of smoke grew stronger the deeper Rosalina went into the ruins. This caused her throat to clog up. She coughed.

"You alright?" Polari asked. When Rosalina shook her head, Polari's brow furrowed. "If that's the case, then we need to speed up the search." He zipped forward. "I'll tell you if I find anything!"

Polari disappeared, his path obscured by the dust. Rosalina continued to push forward. She checked every possible area. When she saw something that could possibly be a luma, she darted forward with extra intensity. Thankfully, she didn't find any lumas; just more comet debris.

The Lady of the Shooting Stars was beginning to relax. Despite the smoky quality of the surroundings, she realized that there was nothing to worry about. No lumas had been found in the crash site, and considering that she had already covered a wide area, it was unlikely that they would.

Perhaps, then, she should appreciate this collision. It created a gorgeous sight, a picture perfect part of space. Her mind went to a bonfire that she had with her family when she was younger. The fire had destroyed, but as it did, it created something extraordinary. It had created a sight to see, colors that would forever stick in a young girl's mind. Rosalina smiled to herself. She imagined bringing her lumas to other parts of space in order to observe this fiery masterpiece.

Finally, Rosalina got to the edge of the ruins. She breathed a sigh of relief, for no lumas had been found. She turned around, ready to go back to her home planet and perhaps munch on some star bits of her own.

But then, a sound fell on her ears. It was faint, so much so that Rosalina thought she imagined it. She levitated forward a few inches, and the sound became clearer. Her heart leapt into her throat as she realized what it was.

Crying.

She followed the sound. Perhaps it was one of the lumas! Perhaps one of them had gotten hurt! She zipped around the Comet chunks, barreled through clouds of rainbow dust. She coughed up a storm, but that didn't matter to her. She had to find the luma who was crying.

The sound continued to grow louder. It was clear now, clearer than Rosalina was comfortable with. To her, it sounded so pitiful, so lost, so young. She hadn't heard cries like this in forever. They sounded as though the owner was nothing more than an infant. Rosalina coughed and sputtered. She continued to zip around the debris when…

She stopped.

Before her, right in the middle of a rainbow colored dust cloud, was what looked like a shiny blue blanket. The blanket wasn't sprawled out, oh no. It was wrapped around something. Someone.

Rosalina carefully made her way over to the blanket. She gently took it in her arms. When she pulled back the folds, she couldn't help but gasp at the sight. It wasn't a luma that was wrapped up.

It was a baby.