Part I

(Solias)

A grotesque creature stands before me with its bulky teeth pointing out and the ghostly pale hide illuminating under Araius. It snarls at me with bloodlust in those sanguine eyes and takes another step towards me.

"Solias..." I hear Shuute, my yugri comrade, nervously say to me, "It's too close."

I roll my eyes and continue fixating on the fuune.

The beast flings its gigantic hand into the air and forces it down onto me, but I manage to swiftly jump into the sky and thrust my spear into its chest.

"See Shuute," I respond while pulling my weapon out of the body, "That was too easy to fail."

He just looks at me with his signature smile of annoyance as he stands next to the scene.

His translucent body is difficult to see in the dim light of Araius, but thankfully the open sky allows him to shine on him just enough for me to catch his pale being. Somehow I always find myself allured by his design: the pureness of his white clothing that's untouched by the stain of another color besides a hint of vibrant red, the paleness of his skin that marks him as a yugri while it makes the beams from Araius radiate as it passes through him, and those long pointy ears that stand out from his cleansed hair along with a bushy tail that all the children in our village adores. He is truly a gift from Solai, the godess who rules the day.

"Solias."

I jolt from his sudden calling. "Yes?"

"You're staring again."

"Oh, sorry."

Why do you keep looking at me?" He glares at me for an answer.

"Well, you're magnificent."

Shuute raises a brow. "Me?"

I nod.

He looks away to scoff and replies, "I'm not the one you should be standing in awe for. Your lord Solai sent me, give her your praise if anything."

“Lady Solias!" I hear one of the warriors cry out as the rest of the night guards follow him.

The men gather around me in amazement and praise like they always do.

The crowds never really have been within my interest, but as the next heir to the Haluen tribe I must be attentive to my people. That's what Father believes anyway.

Past them I see Shuute in the back starring off into the distance like he does when this happens. No one else other than I can see him at the moment since he's in ghost form, that's another aspect that deems him as a yugri.

-----------------

Once the nightguards go back to their posts, Shuute and I continue to patrol around the top of Haluen's icy walls.

"You know Shuute," I utter out as he hovers by my side, "You can be in your physical form every once in a while, just for the heck of it."

He sighs without looking at me and answers reluctantly, "You know I don't 'just for the heck of it,' only when I am needed do I use my physical form."

As a response, I pout and make a comment, "Stiff pole!"

A kind chuckle emanates from him. "You're still calling me that even after all these years? How old are you again Solias?"

I smile and giggle myself. "I'll be twenty-three cycles by tomorrow."

"Twenty-three cycles..."

The two of us walk on the wall in silence before Shuute speaks again.

"That will make it sixteen cycles then."

We both stop as I try to catch what he said. "What?"

"Sixteen cycles since that night."

"Oh yeah..."

We both look up at our two moons, Araius and Kranos.

"They're dancing tonight." Shuute blurts out.

"Who, Araius and Kranos?"

"Yes, they seem to be joyful about something."

"It probably has something to do with tomorrow." I reply.

"Perhaps, tomorrow is the birthday of our morning star, Solai."