Loonatics: United

The Wrath of Tenebrous

Episode 127: Moon and sun

They had gone to sleep, The Maniacs shared room, while the Loonatics split in two groups to distribute, Ace, Tech and Slam settled in the living room, while Lexi, Duck and Rev stayed in the room that was left. The rooms shared aesthetic with the rest of the house, reddish brown walls, ornaments and rustic designs. Each of the two rooms had a bed, Akinyi and Randy slept on theirs, while Edison and Vale laid over soft quilts on the floor, resting their heads on the pillows that Ely had provided. As for Rev, Duck and Lexi, the latter and Duck slept on the bed while Rev laid on the floor with the same conditions as Edison and Vale.

In the living room, Ace slept on the couch, while Slam and Tech did so over the floor, on quilts just as some of the others. They all were in a deep, tranquil sleep, even Ace.

Kufai was in his house, modest, with only the basics, a bedroom, a kitchen and a bathroom, as well as a small living room, where an altar was located before a large window, with a beautiful view, the blue night sky and the tall and green mountains could be seen through it, the light of the moon entered unhesitatingly. The altar consisted of a wooden table with a white cloth covering it. A candle and a book were over the table, the candle ignited a blue flame. Kufai was kneeling down before the altar, with his eyes closed, resting his knees on a soft, blue pillow. He wore his night clothes, a white shirt and pants of the same color. "Thanks for bringing them here." Kufai mumbled. "I'll do what's in my hands to serve them as long as necessary." He thought for a moment then glared up, opening his eyes. "Specially…the bunny. He feels…defeated." Kufai glared at the dark, wooden floor. "Abandoned." Kufai let out a sigh then looked at the beautiful blue flame of the candle. "Invade his heart, and I'll do the rest." He lowered down his head, closing his eyes again. "Goodnight." Kufai made a signal, touching his forehead and chest, then got onto his feet and blew out the candle. He glared through the window with faith and conviction. Kufai turned and walked into his room, in order to get some rest.

The sun exited from behind the mountains, the wind blew gently and fresh, the birds sung, the dew adorned the grass and the leaves. The rivers ran peacefully, the cascades welcomed a new day with their never ending flow. Ace opened his eyes slowly, feeling the heat of the rays of light that entered through the window. He groaned while rubbing his eyes. Ace moved away the blanket that was covering him, getting his feet on the floor while yawning, glaring at his still sleeping comrades. He stretched and groaned by the pain, rubbing his belly. Ace then got onto his feet, walking cautiously to avoid waking up Tech and Slam.

Ace looked around curiously then he entered the kitchen, finding Ely eating some bread and drinking a glass of milk, sitting at the small, rusty table. She looked at him with a smirk. "Oh, good morning, hun."

"Morning." Ace faked a brief smile.

"Come here. Have some bread." Ely stood up from her chair and went to the cupboard to get a dish and a glass. Ace headed to the table hesitantly, then sat down. Ely put a dish and a glass with milk before him, then she sat down again, taking a sip from her milk while glaring into Ace's lost glare. "There's the bread." Ely pointed at the ceramic bowl between them.

"Okay." Ace took a random piece of bread from the bowl, it was light brown and oval. He took a bite from it, the taste was sweet, and the texture was very soft. He swallowed that first bit of bread. "Thanks." He took a sip from his milk.

"You're welcome." Ely said amicably.

A yawn was heard from behind, it was Lexi, who had just entered the kitchen. "Good morning."

"Morning, darling." Ely greeted.

"Hey, baby." Lexi crouched a bit and gave Ace a kiss on the cheek, caressing his face softly. "How are you?"

Ace sighed and took her hand. "I don't know."

"Bad times, we all have them, hun." Ely said. "You will get through this."

Ace shrugged. "Maybe." He took another bite of his bread, then got lost in his thoughts for a moment. "Then…" He sighed. "Nothing."

"Hm?" Ely raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing, it wasn't important." Ace replied.

"Say what you want to say, hun." Ely insisted.

Ace shook his head then let out a sigh and rested his forehead on his fist. "Then…it will happen again. We'll defeat the bad guy, go home, and then what?" He lowered down his gaze. "Another one will show up, and so on until…" Ace fought the lump in his throat, leaving his sentence unfinished.

Lexi sat down next to him, stroking his back. "You are tired, Ace." She kissed his cheek. "That's all."

"You think so?" Ace inquired with disinterest, distracted with his thoughts.

Someone knocked the door. "It must be the king." Ely stood up and exited the kitchen.

"Baby." Lexi looked at him with worry. "We're safe." She caressed his ear. "Aren't you grateful that we ended up here? We could've landed in a desert planet, with no food or water." She got closer to him. "But…we landed here."

"Yeah." Ace's gaze was lost on the rusty patterns of the table.

"Bunny." Kufai had entered the kitchen.

They both gasped a bit. "Uhm, yes?" Lexi inquired.

Kufai pointed at Ace. "You´re coming with me."

Ace looked at him with intrigue. "For what?"

"You'll see. Come on." Kufai exited the kitchen. "Eat your breakfast quickly, you're gonna need it!" Ace sighed then took a big bite from his bread, shaking his head.

After a couple of minutes, Ace finished his breakfast and exited the house, approaching Kufai. "Aren't we waiting for the others?"

"No." Kufai replied then turned and began to walk. "Follow me."

Ace raised an eyebrow, then began to follow Kufai with hesitation. They passed by the cliff and began to walk down a sloping, narrow path, with a great rocky wall at their left and the abyss at their right. "Where are we going?"

"Some of our people have nurkey problems." Kufai replied.

Ace avoided a big rock that had gotten in his way. ""Nurk...what?"

"They're like…big birds, with scales. Inoffensive…but very, uhm, messy." Kufai explained.

On the meantime, the Maniacs were waking up, except for Edison who was deeply asleep. Akinyi stretched over the bed, exhaling with relief. "Damn…what a nice sleep."

"And you say it." Vale yawned while rubbing his face, straightening and glaring at Edison, who was snoring softly. Vale chuckled briefly. "Look at the sleeping beauty."

"Let me." Akinyi got off the bed and walked towards Edison with cautious steps. She knelt down next to him and got her snout next to his ear. "Eddie." She mumbled. Randy held his laugh, looking at them. "Wake up little cat."

"Mm." Edison expressed, making Akinyi to almost let out a laugh, but she held it while covering her mouth. Edison started to purr. "Oh my…" She chuckled. "He's purring!" She started to laugh, along with Vale and Randy.

Edison woke up by their laughs. He blinked a couple of times and then straightened, rubbing his eyes. "What's going on?" He inquired with annoyance.

"You…" Akinyi couldn't control her laughter. "You purr when you sleep!"

Edison blushed. "Th…that's not true."

"Come on, man, we heard you!" Vale laughed.

"Well and what? Big deal, damn it." Edison got onto his feet and headed to the door, opening it quickly and exiting the room, closing the door with strength.

"Aw, he's such a grumpy cat." Akinyi said while chuckling.