“Where do I even begin to explain?” Luna said, mostly to herself but loud enough for me to hear. The sound of steady water falling from the sky which I knew as Sol’s tears, a time a celebration and sadness, as Sol would cry and bless us with waterfall when one of our Conclave died and passed into Sol’s embrace. I wonder if this set of tears is for me? Have I died?
At that thought, Luna looked over at me and started speaking more directly to me again. “You’re not dead, but you aren’t the you that you once were prior to… well… my mistake. Not for lack of trying on my end mind you, still getting used to,” she said as she motioned to herself with both hands, “this. While I am still old as a Manifestation, this version of me is still a relatively young Aspect, and the aspect that came with me was minimal at best, I knew who, what, and why I was; but how I had to do anything was mostly left to my own discretion. And in terms of the rain?” saying as she gestures from herself to the opening of the cave, “I’m not certain if this rain is for you, or if it’s a part of the reason why I was looking for a representative.”
The look on my face must have shown her my confusion at her statements, because before I really even had a chance to think about what she had just said, she continued talking. “Ah, confusion, I don’t even have to read your thoughts to see that. As I mentioned to you before during our first encounter…”
“The one where you messed up?” I interjected, having no idea where this sudden bravado came from, as this being in front of me could easily remove from this life, and possibly the next one if she felt so inclined.
Luna looked at me with a scowl starting to form in her eyes, but keeping a knowing smile up as she felt the brief thought that shot through my head as made that statement. “… Yes, that one. Anyway, within that conversation I called myself a manifestation, which while true in a broad sense, is not exactly true. To give you an example that you would better understand, you and yours worship my brother Sol. Though what you worship might be him, you worship his fatherly and nurturing nature. One of love and care and harsh lessons. In doing so, you don’t see him as others do, given how you worship him, you see him as he is seen in the sky, a star. Now, I know for a fact that there are others throughout the world…” she paused as confusion briefly crossed my mind once again.
“Oh my me… you truly have lived a sheltered life, haven’t you? What of the Faithless? Have you not seen the travelers of the lands or heard stories of what you walk upon?” Realizing that she was not going to get anywhere quickly, she leaned back, letting her head tilt with the motion, and brought her palm to her forehead. “You can ask for further explanations from your Bright… though at this point I’m beginning to wonder how bright they actually are…” The ending of her sentence said under her breath and barley audible to me over the sound of Sol’s tears. “If anything that I say from this point onward confuses you, try your best to remember it and those of your faith later when you return, for if I were to inform you of everything you were lacking at this point in time through this conversations alone, I am certain that we would be for far longer than either of wish to be.”
“Understood,” I said while shaking my head in acknowledgment. I knew I was lacking in the interactions department, but now I was truly regretting having not taken the Bright’s lessons seriously instead of wishing I could have been outside.
“Ok,” Luna continued, “there are others who worship my brother like your group does. However, what they worship about him is not necessarily the same as what you worship about him. Some see him, Sol, as a being to be appeased, and thus find ways to make him happy, be it with festivals or rituals. From games to sacrifices, willing or otherwise; and to these Sol would appear an emperor who is greedy for more yet willing to share with those who give. And yet still, there are those who see Sol as a conqueror, for he touches everything, and anything he touches can at any moment be destroyed, while at the same time he chooses to let many things live under him; to those Sol would appear a mighty warrior who leads others into battle in the name of glorious conquest, but is fully willing to kill his subordinates if any should disobey his orders. And others still worship the different portions of what make Sol who he is.”
“All of these examples: a Fatherly Star, a Greedy Emperor, and a Mighty Conqueror; these are all of the same Manifestation. Of Sol. However, they each hold different aspects of what makes Sol who he is, to collectively all of the pantheons… wait, you actually know that word? Of all the words I have used so far, and that is the one you understand. I… just… don’t get you. Anyway, the pantheons call these variations of the same god Aspects, for that is what they are. Simply manifestations of aspects of the worshipped being, given shape and purpose in the physical world. And that is what I am; I am Luna, Goddess of the moon and my aspect is to be a beacon to those who are lost and a caretaker of those who wander, for that is what was believed of me from the Church of the Bright Night. To be a light of hope to those who venture into the unknown.”
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“As that explains who I am, how I came to be, as well as a general idea as to what as an aspect I am supposed to do; allow me to explain the why in terms of your case. You see, for manifestations and Aspects alike, a constant figure is required to be a path for the powers of faith and belief to be centralized and then flow from the mortal realm to the one wherein we reside in. In your faith, they are called “Luminous”, Sol’s voice for you. For the Church of the Bright Night, my representative is known as the Full, and the problem I currently face is that I recently brought my last Full into my embrace. After serving me for may years, they died an unnatural death, murdered in their sleep; and because of that I needed to choose another to be my voice with haste. And that’s the good news, I needed a new saint, a new voice for mine own congregation.”
“Now,” Luna said, the smile slowly disappearing from her face. “The not so good news, as mentioned earlier; I needed a new saint, and ended up summoning you. I am not certain as to why you were summoned instead of one from my own congregation, aside from feeling a shift within divinity itself, but you were; and because you were, you are my new voice now. The new Full for mine own people.” At this statement, Luna began to float towards me, my Solar slice with her hands. “I am returning this to you, but know that you have two God’s that are listening to your thought, prayers, and worries now. As evidenced by the “Moon’s eye” upon your forehead now, we are intertwined now. Being a saint in general terms means that a portion of all faith and belief laying within my people is partially conferred to you before being mostly transferred to me. The greater the amount of Faith and Belief, as well as their quality, directly lead to a proportional increase in your capabilities. You might not feel anything right now, but you will in the future, once my people know that there is another Full.”
As her hand left mine, leaving my Solar Slice within my palm, she turned to look towards the opening of the cave once again. “I will shortly be sending you back to those of your own faith. My brother, Sol, already knows of these events, and has been informed to not treat you any differently compared to how you were in the past.” As she continued to look out of the mouth of the cave I decided to follow her gaze, and as I did, I felt our surroundings start to shift and contort, yet every time I tried to look at the changes I saw nothing but a cave slowly growing darker. “I will go in person,” Luna said without turning to look at me, “and choose one of mine own to hold the mantle of Full, but you will be my Saint. And Saint’s cannot exist within another deity’s realm without consequence. Over these next few days, take time to organize your thoughts, and by the time of your next cycle celebration, say that you want to be given permission to go forth and see the world as your right of passage from Ray to Beam. While unusual, it shan’t be denied as it is a proper option for you and yours come this time in their lives.”
Finally turning to look at me, I started to recognize the familiar shape of the Center out of the corner of my eyes. “I shall leave you in slumber, as that is what night brings, within the place near the memory I traversed with you. While you are my Saint, I do not expect you to live within my borders; I expect you to wander and find those who are in need of a guiding light. Those whom you in the light feel free to direct them towards Sol, but as for those you find in the shade and shadow, away from the sun or within the night, direct them towards me. In this way you remain faithful to your birthplace as well as myself.” Luna proceeded to take a gliding step towards me, crossing a distance greater than a step could ever achieve with the slightest of movements. “This eye, my mark, on you shall give you capabilities greater than you could imagine, but you shall have to find what those capabilities our on your own.”
With a graceful motion of her arm, she brought her hand inches away from my forehead between my eyes. Spotting a glow begin, she spoke once more. “With these charges I send you out. Firstly find those who are lost and help. Secondly, find those who harm, and deliver justice. And finally, try to ascertain the reason why your case happened; search high and low for any hints, for the natural cause or the perpetrator of. Find those of similar cases to your, for if it happened to a manifestation as old as the moon, it has most certainly happened to others of newer standings. Your three charges given, I send you along with my blessing. May the moon guide your path on the darkest of nights young one.” With her statement done, her palm closed the distance to my forehead before I could speak, and all the strength in my body left. Darkness encroached quickly, and all I wanted to do was sleep and embrace the calming void.
