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October 24, 3:15PM

Despite being fall, the day was unusually warm. You wiped the sweat off your brow and swatted a fly away from your face. Near you, your friends laughed and chatted with one another. You stood from the pumpkin you were looking at and returned to them with a grin. This year, a group of your friends had invited you to come with them to a pumpkin patch. They seemed avid this Halloween about carving pumpkins. From what you understood, someone had saw something on a movie and told someone else. That person had told another person and soon after the entire group was all fired up on the topic. So, here you were, wandering down the dirt path and searching for the perfect pumpkin.


Your group slowed to a stop as you came across another cluster of pumpkins. With each cluster along the path, the owners and volunteers had set up scarecrow decorations. Each one had a small theme. Already you had seen scarecrows dressed up like Darth Vader, Harry Potter, and in a rather meta fashion, the Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz.

You eyed this next scarecrow with mild interest; it was rather peculiar compared to the others. You got a little closer to get a better look. It was a traditional scarecrow with blue jeans, a black long sleeve shirt, brown gloves, and a brown sun hat. The brown bag that made up its face had two grey buttons for eyes and red stitching for a mouth and nose. Like the rest of the scarecrows, straw burst out in random directions between the different clothes. Unlike the others, however, was the size. It was extremely large compared to the others. The jeans alone looked like they belonged to a very tall man and the scarecrow's pole was just barely large enough to hold the entire thing up.

"Hurry up!" One of your friends called to you.

A glance over your shoulder revealed that your friends were already moving on to the next patch. You had to get moving.

In a perfect world, you would have walked out of the pumpkin cluster and caught up to your friends. This was not a perfect world and what actually happened was caused by a series of unfortunate events. Firstly, you spun around too quickly and lost your balance. Next, your foot got blocked by a pumpkin, which further upset your balance. Finally, the pole to the scarecrow must not have been set in deep because when you clung to it for support it began to tilt. The end result was you and the scarecrow falling gracelessly into the cornfield and onto the ground.

"G-Great." You winced as you pushed yourself up, "Just great."

Soft dirt had cushioned your fall, but you were covered in it now. Next to you, the scarecrow glared at you as it lay on the ground. Around the both of you were stalks of corn. None of them had been kind enough to ease your earlier decent. You stood up all the way and brushed yourself off. Ugh. You couldn't believe this had just happened to you. You peeked out of the cornfield to try and find your friends. Luckily, none had seen your fall. They were far up the path now. You took a second step out to go join them, but paused. The scarecrow. It was still lying on the ground and hidden in the cornfield. You put it back up or at least move it back into sight.

"C'mon! We're waiting on you!" A voice shouted your way.

Your friends had just realized you were still behind them and were impatiently waiting up ahead. Indecision pulled at you as you glanced at the scarecrow in the cornfield and then your friends. The scarecrow was huge and you weren't even sure if you could put it back up. Your friends called you over once more. You bit your lip as you quickly thought it through. It was just a scarecrow: no big deal. Frowning, you began to walk towards your friends. You would just have to let the owners know about the fallen scarecrow later.

You caught up with your friends and laughed over what had happened. Soon after, you finally found a pumpkin to take home and the incident in the cornfield faded from your mind. It wasn't until days later that you thought about the scarecrow again.

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

October 27th, 8:25PM

You rubbed your arms as you walked out into the cold cloud ridden night. The day had been a busy one filled with errands and chores. On top of that, you had forgotten to get the mail earlier. Without a moon, it was quite dark, but the streetlights led you safely to the mailbox. Opening the box, you gathered the mail into your arms and then stilled. The hair on your arms had risen and unease settled into your chest. You had the unsettling feeling that you were being watched. Warily, you looked around you. The street was quiet except for a few leaves scraping down the road in the breeze. The night's shadows darkened everything, but you could see no one else nearby.

But wait. There.

Across the road and a few houses down was something on the front yard. It took you a moment to recognize the darkened shape as a scarecrow's. The pole and the scarecrow swayed in the wind. Guilt filled you when you realized that you had forgotten to tell the owners about the fallen scarecrow in the cornfield at the pumpkin patch a few days ago. You mentally kicked yourself for forgetting and then let out a sigh. There was nothing you could do about it now.

You hurried down the path and back to your house. The feeling of being watched did not fade until you closed the front door behind you.

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

October 28th, ???

Turning onto your side, you groggily reached for your phone. In the dark of your room, you groped around until you finally found it. 2AM. Why were you awake? You turned your head back into your pillow to fall back to sleep.

...

Ugh. You needed water. Grudgingly, you got out of bed and out of your room. The house was silent and completely dark. Between memory and your night vision, you managed to get to the kitchen without tripping into any furniture or clipping any walls. Grabbing a glass, you poured yourself some water and took a refreshing drink. The sound of the wind filled the silent house; it was really howling out there. You glanced out the backyard window and towards the sky. You could only see darkness above; more clouds must have come in. The weatherman might be right about the rain coming in for the weekend.

You were about to bring the glass to the sink when something outside caught your eye. It was a shape of some sort in the very back of the yard. Your frowned as you squinted in the darkness. It was a bit humanoid. Your heart skipped a beat when you realized what it was. A scarecrow. You could just barely make out the pole that was holding it up. The strong wind was shifting it back and forth as if it were alive. This had to be a joke. Your family did not own a scarecrow decoration for Halloween. Someone must have heard about what had happened at the pumpkin patch and decided to pull a prank on you. You left the window and began to turn on a few lights. They had to be waiting around a corner for a good moment to jump out and scare you.

"Haha. Very funny." You said into the room. You waited patiently for them to appear, but only silence met your words. Whoever it was, was not coming out. You checked around the corners of the room and behind a few closed doors. No one. You frowned and checked the window again. The scarecrow was still in the corner in the far back of the yard. The prankster definitely was not out there. Maybe you had foiled their plot and so they had fled back to their room? You grinned and headed back towards the bedrooms. One by one, you silently checked the rooms. Everyone was in their beds sleeping, or at least pretending to be asleep. You chuckled and went back to the kitchen. It was a nice scare attempt. You clicked off all the lights. You were planning on going back to your bed straight away, but curiosity crept up and drew you to the window again. You glanced out to look at the scarecrow and for the second time that night your heart sped up.

The scarecrow was gone. You looked around the backyard, but could not find it. How was this possible? You peered closer to see if it had fallen in the wind. No, it wasn't on the ground. Unease swept through you and the hair on the back of your neck rose. Everyone was in bed. You had checked just a minute ago. No one could have gone outside and moved the scarecrow. It was physically impossible. You stared into the shadows of the backyard and searched for it again. Nothing. There was nothing out there. Surely, you couldn't have imagined the whole thing?

You went to a window on the side of the house to see if it had blown off to the side. Despite, the chill of October, you were sweating and your heart was pounding as if you had just gone for a run. You scanned the side yard for anything. Still nothing. The scarecrow had to be somewhere? Right?

Doubts nagged at you. Maybe you did imagine it. It was late at night and it was very dark out after all. Your unease did not fade away, no matter these justifications. Fear slowed your movements as you went to the backyard door and locked it. You checked the side gate through a window. It was firmly closed. Your heart was pounding even harder by the time you returned to the backyard window. It took you a few moments to find the courage to look out again. Still no scarecrow. The wind continued to howl outside. Doubts continued to plague your mind. Maybe this was your subconscious messing with you because you felt guilty about the pumpkin patch. Maybe you really had just imagined it.

You closed the window blinds and moved away. Your heart continued to beat like a drum as you stood in the darkness of the room. You wanted to wake someone else up, but at the same time you did not want to. It would be entirely embarrassing if you did. Besides, they would be hard pressed to believe you since the scarecrow was nowhere to be found. Indecision kept you frozen. Thirty minutes passed. You couldn't help but listen for anything outside. The wind kept tricking you into hearing something, but a second later you would recognize it as a tree moving in the wind or a leaf scraping against the ground. You shook your head. You could not just stand here all night. You slowly walked back to your room. The entire house was locked up. You were fine. The entire thing was just your imagination.

You sat down on your bed. Ten minutes passed before you actually got underneath the covers. Your mind was hyper alert and sleep was impossible as you laid there in the darkness. You kept thinking back to what you had thought you had seen. To make matters worse, the wind kept brushing something against your window. The scratching noise kept you from going into even a light doze. It was only when the sun had partially risen and the morning birds were singing did you finally feel safe enough to sleep.

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

October 28th

In the morning, you asked the rest of the house about a scarecrow, but none admitted to having purchased one. You even went into the backyard to check, but found nothing. There was nothing apparent near your window that could cause a scratching noise either. Under the light of day, your fear and uneasiness from the night before faded. It was absurd what had happened. You clearly must have imagined it. The mere idea that a scarecrow was stalking you from a pumpkin patch was ridiculous. Tension in your shoulders eventually fell away and you enjoyed the rest of your day.

When the night began to fall, the wind began to pick up again. You tossed and turned in your bed as the house fell into silence and darkness. Around eleven, the scratching noise began at the window again. It was soft, yet persistent. The noise was just loud enough to keep you from falling asleep. Around midnight the noise shifted to more of a tap than a scratch. That was it. You were tired and annoyed by the noise. You went to the window and looked out. The ground was a mass of shadows and moonlight. It was a partially cloudy night. You frowned as you searched for the source of the noise. You didn't see anything, but something must be causing it. Quietly, you grabbed your phone to use as a flashlight and left your room.

A sense of deja vu washed over you as you moved down the hallway. There was no cause, but you began to feel uneasy about your plan. Instead of moving straight to the back door, you paused and went to the window instead. When you peered through it, you immediately recoiled away.

The scarecrow. No way. No way were you imagining it this time! It was right there. Just a yard away from the window. There was barely any moonlight, but you knew it was the one from the pumpkin patch. It was so tall... Over six feet at least. The blue jeans were covered in dirt and its button eyes were black pits on its face. Its clothes shifted in the wind giving the eerie appearance that it was breathing. It stared into the house at you. This wasn't you imagining something. The scarecrow from the pumpkin patch was here. Your lungs burned and you realized you had been holding your breath. You were going to go wake some else up. Someone was playing a very demented joke on you. How they snuck the scarecrow into your backyard was beyond you, but you were through with it. Enough was enough.

You took a step back, but stilled before you could take another. The clouds had cleared from the moon and you finally had a good look at the scarecrow. There was something different about it.


A second passed and fear shot through you when you realized what it was. Your heart was hammering against your chest as you stared at the scarecrow. It didn't have a pole. There was no pole holding the scarecrow up. It should have been impossible for it to stand, but there it was in two boots standing tall. Your stare traveled the body as you searched for its straw. There had to be some. There should have been straw bursting out between the clothes, but there was none. Its chest steadily rose and fell as it stared at you and you it. You had been wrong. The form in front of you wasn't a scarecrow at all. It was a person.

The man in the scarecrow costume walked up to the window. His breath fogged the glass as he looked in at you. Lifting a gloved hand, he tapped against the window. It was the same noise that had kept you from sleeping tonight and the night before.

---- Phantom Anon

Message: The Attic

Barney was just fourteen when his family had moved into their new house. It was three stories, and had a basement and an attic. His new room was near the stairs to the attic.

At first, all was well. He explored his new town, and he made friends. But his friends often whispered of things he didn't understand, and then finally, they started asking, "what is it like living in that house?"

That house? Barney didn't understand. His friends soon told him.

Over the years, four kids had vanished. All had lived in that house. Rumor was they had all gone into the attic, never to be seen again.

The same night Barney was told of the strange attic, he could not sleep. Surely his friends were just toying with him since he was the new kid in town. It's nothing. Kids just don't go into attics and vanish.

Barney got out of bed and went up to the attic. His curiosity had bested him.

The attic was dark and hadn't been cleared out. The previous owners' boxes lined the walls. His own family hadn't yet had the time to throw out anything that had been stored up there. The air felt heavy with dust and with age.

Barney used his flashlight, and he looked around. Nope. Nothing. Just as he thought.

But then he heard it.

"Barney." a whisper of his name as faint as a breeze. "Barrrrneeeyyyyyy"

He saw it. A doll! It was there. Talking. Moving towards him.

"Barney!"

He tried to run away, but he tripped. His flashlight rolled away from him.

"Now I lay you down to sleep......" The doll started to sing to him.

-

The next weeks, they all searched high and low for Barney. All they could find was his flashlight in the attic, next to a doll with a strange smile on its face.

Message: The Beginning...

Halloween was right around the corner and everywhere the eye could see, the spooky festivities were in full swing. Jack o Lanterns glowed on porches and in store windows while spider webs stretched from roof to sidewalk. Occasionally a scarecrow on a rocking chair would creek out of the shadows before groaning back within. Yet despite the air of mystery and fright, many were excited and dressed ready to impress in their favorite costumes and with bags waiting to be filled with Halloween treats.

That was Gaia. However, beyond the cloudy fall skies and past the moon, the star kingdom had decided to opt out of the festivities this event. With the crashed ball still fresh in their minds, the Starlight Prince and Princess chose instead to focus on their charges this Halloween night, ensuring that their beloved stars stayed in line, and out of harm's way.

Things had been going smoothly. The palace of the stars, their Observatory shined as brightly as ever with small stars darting to and fro. The golden stardust falls shined with the same brightness of the large stars seen between the pillars that made up the outer most wall of the palace, illuminating the palace to the point that no extra light was needed. Kitten stars had taken up a game of hide and seek in one of the halls while a lone puppy star yipped and yapped after them, revealing the hiding places to the current "it".

"Sirius, let the little ones have their fun," the warm voice of the Starlight Prince, Astraeus, playfully chided, his gentle grey eyes mirroring the amusement in his tone.

"Last time you said that your favorite cloak was found in shreds."

He glanced back. There, a fiery redhead in a gown of cream lace stood with an innocent smile on her lips and a mischievous glint in her eyes. He returned the feigned innocence of the Princess Lucky with an expression of mock confusion, "And I wonder, dear sister, who ever put the idea in their minds?"

"A mystery, I suppose."

"Indeed."

The siblings could have gone on like that for a while. However, a loud thud from down the hall caught their attention. Remembering the last time such a thing had happened, the two hurried over, half expecting to find another magical girl making her entrance.

That was not the case.

The pair stopped short as they reached the grand hall where only a month before a ball and battle took place in the same night. Now, it was empty save for a long figure doubled over on the ground. The princess stifled a gasp as her brother rushed to the fallen figure's side. It was a star, or at least it appeared to be one, in a human-like form which they had grown accustomed to taking over the years. But something was different. The ethereal light that normally emitted from such a being was gone. Their skin has been dyed a coal black, darker than even the darkest shade of the dark stars. No features could be made out on the star's face. The only thing that stood out was a glowing white orb in the place of an eye. The figure's arms clutched something close to their chest, out of sight of the princess and prince.

"F-Forgive my sudden entrance," the being's voice stammered. It crackled and broke as if they were speaking through a static filled radio.

"You need not apologize," Astraeus spoke calmly, reaching out to the star. "What has happened to you?"

The star pushed his hand away. "Do not worry about me," they gasped out harshly.

The prince frowned, but pulled his hand back regardless. "Please let us help you. You look as if you are burning out."

In that moment, the princess caught a glimpse of what the star was holding. "Brother, is that a kitten star?" Sure enough, within the arms of the star, battered and bruised and coated in something nearly as dark as the coal upon the human like star was a kitten. The patches of gold could still be seen on its fur, revealing that this darken shade was not what it was meant to have.

The star shuddered. "A group of them. Gaia-they..." He trailed off.

"What does Gaia have to do with this?" the princess asked, startled.

The star did not answer right away, and for a fleeting moment, the princess wondered if the rumored battle between the gods and other events that she had recently been informed of had anything to do with the state of the pair. But then the being spoke again. "This one...th-this one and a team of others. They tricked Gaia. Attacked the Zurg. R-re..taliated." With that, the star seemed to lose what was left of its strength, pitching forward and would have hit the ground had the prince not been there to catch them.

The princess frowned as she processed the information. "Would the kitten stars be so reckless? I knew they harassed Pisces, but to start an interplanetary war because of it?"

"There is one way to be sure," the prince replied. With an expression mixed with concern and anger, Astraeus turned to Lucky. "Investigate this. If our charges are responsible, see to it that this situation is brought to a conclusion." The princess curtsied, then turned to hurry down the hall. She hadn't expected to return to Gaia so soon.

But if it was the stars that started this mess, the Starlight Princess would do her part to finish it.

Message: Retaliation

While stardust and laser lights filled the air on one part of town, on the other the streets were quiet and the lights dimmed with hardly a person on the roads. By some stroke of luck, the battling had yet to reach this small portion of Barton, and the Starlight Princess gladly took the moment to catch her breath and gather her thoughts. The whole incident left a bitter taste in her mouth, though she did take some satisfaction in knowing the Zurg legion member and his gang were likely still processing the confusing turn of the events. Little did they know, their would-be victim could literally vanish before their eyes! She hoped they would give up the search for her before they made it this far. Even if they didn't, she would be long gone before they made the trek. The princess let out a sigh of relief, thankful that she had thought to bring extra stardust in case a sticky situation arose. She tucked the pouched filled with the star power away and leaned back against the wall of what she figured was Barton Boutique.

Instantly she jerked away from the wall as a stinging shock jolted her fingertip. Muttering something less than princess-like, she shook her hand and tried to assess the damage, but found the area to be too dark to see much of anything, let alone her own hand. She glanced around to make sure that there were no legion members this time before stepping away from the wall and into the light of a lamp post to assess the damage. The tips of her fingers were coated in something slick and black. Her stomach churned as she saw it sizzle for a brief moment. Yet despite it being what might be considered uncomfortably warm, it did no damage to her aside from the initial shock.

"What on Gaia is this?" she wondered aloud, flicking the substance off her fingers and turning her attention back to the wall.

At first the Starlight Princess saw nothing. Then as her eyes began to adjust, she noticed a shadow on the wall appeared to be darker than the rest. It was right where her hand had landed. Not willing to touch the substance twice, she gripped the edge of her travel cloak and rubbed it along the shadow. Even though the fabric was dark itself, the stain that came from that shadow stood out, black with a sheen that made it look like oil. She threw the cloak down as the spot began to simmer. Watching in a mixture of shock and awe, she saw the substance sizzle and smoke. Soon, the scent of something burning filled her nose. Yet like with her hand, the cloak itself remained untouched.

The stardust that had remained on her cloak was another story. The once glittering specks of star power faded to a dull grey as it came into contact with the spot, caught in the very fabric which allowed the dark substance to spread. The spot, in turn, grew lighter and lighter until parts of it were not longer black, but a pristine white. Then even that vanished, leaving a perfectly unharmed, perfectly clean cloak underneath.

It took the princess a moment to realize what she was witnessing. Whatever just happened to the stardust was what happened to the pair of stars from the Observatory.

The question was, what exactly had happened? It almost looked like the star power was...absorbed? But how? And where had it gone afterwards? More worrying than that was why it had not affected her or damaged the cloak, yet did a number on her subjects? With that thought, she scanned the area for any more of the substance, or a sign of how it had got there in the first place.

It only took a moment for her eyes to land on it. The shadow did not seem to match the others, and appeared to have the shape of a person. She could make out no features, however a small red badge pinned on what she guessed was the chest looked all too familiar. The princess frowned. The Zurg Legion? Did she really want to deal with them again so soon? But then, that substance seemed pretty fresh. Maybe they had witnessed something?

Before she could even begin to debate her options, her answer was chosen for her. The figure, realizing they had been spotted, turned and raced down the street, fleeing the princess. "Wait!" she called after the figure, but they ignored her. "Goodness," she shook her head. "Well at least he wasn't as trigger happy as...the...others?" Up until that moment, she had not bothered to look at the ground. But now as she watched him retreat, she noticed something remained on the ground in the shape of their footprints. It was dark with a sheen. Oily, and they were being dripped by that retreating figure. This time, the substance did not sizzle. It was as if the one who fled was immune to it. Or knew how to control it. The princess turned quickly and hiked up her skirt, darting after the figure.

"Stop you!" she shouted, following them down the empty street until they hooked a corner. She turned in time to spot a blur of gold, causing her to stop just short of stepping on the small creature.

"Watch where you're going!" the high pitched voice squeaked. She looked down. Ruby red eyes met vibrant blue of a golden furred kitten star. The Starlight Princess's eyes widened in surprise. The kitten's did also, but for a different reason.

"P-Princess Lucky? What're you doing here? I mean-...meow?"

"Oh, just taking a stroll through war ravaged towns, caused by none other than the charges I am both responsible for protecting and disciplining. Nice try, Sparkles." She snagged the kitten star by the scruff before it could rush away, no longer caring to be proper. "I'll get to the bit about you being able to talk later. For now, you have some explaining to do. What is this I hear about you lot trying to feast on Pisces?" As an afterthought, she let her gaze turn towards the road. The one she had been pursuing was nowhere in sight. Even the trail of black had vanished. "And where did that shadow person go...?" she mused aloud.

The star mewed loudly, "You mean they're around here?!"

She looked back at him. "'They'? You mean the Legion?"

"Not the Zurg!" the kitten huffed and crossed its paws. "Well, maybe them, they were around that system at least. I don't know! I never got a good look at them."

"That makes two of us," she frowned. "Tell me what happened."

The kitten star paused for a moment, ears twitching as it thought. "Hard to say," he finally replied. "We were running away from the Zurg. The good old captain and the rocket were captured so the rest of us were fleeing on paw. We thought we lost them, but then this shadow showed up. We thought it was a black hole at first, but it wasn't pulling us in, just shooting this gunk at us."

"Did the..."gunk" do anything?" she asked.

"Aside from making a mess on a couple asteroids, not really. Can't say what it would have done if it actually hit us."

The princess blinked, "You mean none of you were struck by it?"

The kitten star shook his head, "Not that I know of, but a few strayed from the pack."

The princess slowly took this in. The image of the charred star holding the just as hurt kitten star came back to her. Then she took in her own experience with the stuff just moments before. She and the cloak were unscathed. The stardust was not. Now her experience with the Legion team and the shadowy figure with the Legion badge that was trailing the dark substance...Dread began to pool in her stomach. "Do you know where the other kitten stars are?"

"Sure, they're in the park. Why?"

The lane which the pair was on was a straight shot to the park. She had a bad feeling about this. "Take me to them." The Starlight Princess's voice came out rushed and urgent, despite her attempts to keep it even. The kitten star, surprised at the sudden change of tone, said nothing before wriggling out of her grasp and leading the way. The area was familiar to the princess. She and her brother had haunted this place many times before when they had originally come to visit Gaia. It had become a bit of a playground for their charges, palm-sized glowing stars with trailing tails and kitten stars alike often meeting up to play in the hidden groves within the trees and along the shores of a small secluded lake. She prayed that was the scene they would come upon.

But when the pair arrived, her worst fears were confirmed. A few stars and kittens were untouched, and at her arrival they flickered and mewed in a state of confused panic. They were the lucky few. Their friends, however...

Rather than shining brilliantly and sporting dazzling shining fur, their friends littered the grove in small blackened heaps, no longer sizzling, but charred beyond recognition.

"My friends!" the kitten mewed in alarm, voicing the din which was ringing in her ears and pounding in her skull. He tried to dart over, but a few of the kittens who had witnessed the attack held him back from the black oil which harmlessly coated the grass patches of grass. It didn't burn the grass, nor the flowers, nor the fallen autumn leaves.

It only affected stars.

The princess's mind went blank. All she could see was black, charred black which was once an oily sheen. One that she knew had burned and sizzled and turned white, before vanishing and leaving her precious little ones injured, their friends terrified, and -had two of them not manage to make it to the Observatory for help-with no one remotely close by to turn to. No one would just so happen to have a weapon like this on hand if a handful of kitten got hungry. This was deliberate. Someone had created this, and created this specifically for her stars. And that someone was wearing a Legion badge.

She saw red.

"You." Her tone was cold, her eyes hardened as she directed her message at the closest star. "Get back to the Observatory and let my brother know about this mess. Tell him help is needed but no one with star power is to touch any star with that mess on them." The stars flickered in response before they vanished, leaving traces of the stardust from their tails lingering in the air and falling innocently on the blacked substance before being violently devoured. "The rest of you return home. You are not to return until I personally say it is fine to do so."

Those that were unharmed reluctantly agreed, and the one which had led the princess here spoke up for them. "What will you do, princess?"

Instead of replying, the princess turned on her heels and began her trek back into town. They didn't need to know how much her blood was boiling and adrenaline rushing. The Star Kingdom may have been a peaceful nation, but it was her responsibility to see that the stars were not harmed.

There would be hell to pay.
Message: The End?

Halloween had finally arrived, and with it the clash of the Zurg Legion and the New Resistance which seemed to have become the norm for Gaia overnight. The flash of attacks and heals filled the night sky in an array of reds and blues as either side tried to bring the other to its knees. In the midst of this fighting, most had forgotten what had brought the attention of the Zurg to Gaia in the first place.

But she hadn't.

Darting out from her cover, the figure aimed her duel weapons at a masked member of the Legion before firing multiple times, bringing them to their knees as she sprinted past. It wasn't the one she was looking for, but she could not have a trail of Legion members chasing her throughout Gaia.

The Starlight Princess no longer looked the part of royalty. She had replaced the cream gown and lavish dark cloak with a dark hood and something more suitable for movement. The princess attire was a hindrance and, to be frank, she felt nothing like a princess at the moment. It left her feeling strangely nostalgic, from years ago. Back when shadows were her friends and stars were only seen from solid ground of whatever land she happened to be trekking through. Back before she became the Starlight Princess.

Strictly speaking, she was supposed to leave this lifestyle behind when she accepted the crown. But the memory of the injured and burned stars and kitten stars, all sapped of their power by that mysterious black fluid, had been burned into her mind. She came to Gaia searching a peaceful solution to the problem her kitten stars caused. Now she was on a hunt for vengeance. That legion member in the shadows, the one who had been unharmed by that same star damaging substance, he was connected to this mess somehow and she wanted answers.

Lucky had been on the hunt for that stranger since yesterday. With virtually no clues as to who they were save for a Legion pin and some oil on their feet, the trail ran cold for a long time, and more often than not she found herself in the presence of someone unfortunate enough to cross her path rather than her prey. But things had taken a turn just a few hours before, and a tip from some other Gaians had her on the trail of what she hoped was her man.

The tip was taking her out of the city. Legion members were growing sparse the farther she went. Actually, there were few Resistance members as well. The sounds of battle grew fainter and fainter as she found herself deep in the old towns. Abandoned homes stood as shells, still waiting to be demolished yet appearing at a glance to still be livable with a little tender love and care. She observed these buildings carefully. As far as she could tell, none of the doors or windows looked deliberately tampered with, so she made her way towards the only other man made structure in the area.

The fountain in the center of the neighborhood had long since dried out, and now was littered with dead and decaying leaves. The sides were dulled and chipped with fragments laying almost hiding among the patches of long dying grass. A tall tree stood behind with bare and wiry branches stretching out in distorted angles, its leaves long since fallen and creating a dark covering on the neighborhood center's floor. All of this would have made the setting eerie enough. However, the final touch that told the princess she had found where she needed to be was the oily substance gleaming in the remaining moonlight and leading up like a pathway to a shadow near the fountain's edge.

There the shadow stood.

The princess removed the safety from her weapons as she approached, ready to stop the being in its tracks. But unlike last time, the shadow did not move. They appeared to be waiting, and though they were looking away from the princess, she had a sneaking suspicion that she was the one they were waiting for. She stopped within four feet of the shadow. At this distance she could still make nothing out of the figure's features. However, she did notice two closed fists, both appearing to be holding something at the figure's sides. The fist closest to her slowly opened, and two trinkets fell from the figure's hand before splashing in the oily substance pooling at their feet.

Metal red and blue surfaces caught the few moonbeams with ease, revealing that the figure had both a New Resistance and Zurge Legion badge in their possession. It took a second for it to click. The shadow had two badges. If that's the case, were they ever...?

"It is amazing how something bought for a few gold pieces at the market can so easily define friend as enemy, or vice versa." The voice was broken and distorted, as if coming through a static filled speaker. She had heard this voice recently. Her chest tightened.

"Well aren't you a clever one," she mused aloud, surprising herself at how clear and calm her own voice came out. "So I suppose if I met a troublesome Resistance Member first, you would have pretended to work for Daughter Nili?" The Princess's attention went from the two badges back to the figure. She steadily aimed one of her weapons at the figure. "Why don't we have a proper chat, face to face?"

"That weapon will do you no good."

"Is that so?" she spoke coolly, making a point to remind herself to keep from pulling the trigger right then and there. "Well, so long as you cooperate I will have no reason to use it."

"So you say, yet your little hunt seems to state otherwise."

"Can you blame me? Let us set aside how much you have been polluting Gaia, you are in possession of something that has been used against my stars." She watched the figure for any change in posture to give away what they were thinking. Nothing. "Mind telling me how you came about that? I might reconsider peppering you."

"'Your stars'?" the figure laughed, the sounds crackling and grating on the ears. "So you have come to Gaia, attacked the Zurg Legion, and now aim a weapon at me on behalf of the stars, have you?"

She did not miss the mocking tone in the distorted voice. The princess's brow furrowed. Her patience was beginning to slip. "My duty is to protect the stars. So you can either tell me you aren't involved and hope I believe you, or can cut the mysterious figure in the shadows nonsense and come out."

The figure tilted their head. "Protect the stars? Interesting." After a short pause, the figure pushed away from the base of the fountain and moved away from the shadows. As their body came into the minimal light, the princess's eyes widened.

The shadows were not the reason why she was unable to make out any features. Fact of the matter was they had none. It was as if she was looking at a perfect silhouette of a person, or perhaps a mannequin. The only tell tale part of the body was the color and texture of the..."skin" of the being. It was pitch black, and had some traces of charring. Very faintly, the charred markings appeared to make cracks where the eyes might have been. The princess felt goose bumps rise on her skin as she realized she was looking at a near identical being to the human shaped star which had appeared in the Observatory. The one that had pleaded for help. The one who looked like a burnt out star. This one didn't seem bothered by its condition at all.

"What...are you?" she finally asked.

"I am sure you already know that answer, at least to some degree, your majesty," the star replied. "Although I doubt I will need to refer to you as that for much longer."

"Why!?" she burst out, ignoring the second half of what the star said. "Why would you attack your own kin!? What was the point of drawing us to Gaia? Getting our kingdom mixed up in this Zurg civil war!?" Her mind was reeling with a million questions, and she had a feeling she would be lucky if she got just one answer. She tightened her grip on the weapon.

The star waggled the finger of their free hand at her. "Patience. I am sure you can come up with the answer to all of those questions were you to stop and think. Although, perhaps the first one might be a tad troublesome to solve? Shall I give you a hint?"

The figure raised their closed fist casually to eye level before unfurling their shadowy, charred fingers. A pit formed in the princess's stomach. A palm sized star was sitting in the larger being's hand, flickering in alarmed confusion.

"Let that little one go, or I'll put a bullet in your arm, star or not," she warned. Their point earlier was legitimate. A normal bullet would not kill a star. But it would sure sting, and she had two full clips.

"And here I thought you came for answers. Please make up your mind princess."

Her eyes widened. "W-wait-!"

Too late. Everything that happened next was a blur. Before she could react the black substance jumped from the ground and engulfed the small star. It flashed once in alarm. The substance began to sizzle. Was that her who screamed "Stop!"? The small star turned black. The substance turned white. It vanished. She froze. The light reappeared in cracks of the larger star's face. A pinpoint of white formed as an eye. She might have fired her weapon. The larger star vanished, leaving traces of black stardust in the air and a cold lump of what used to be a star in its wake.

The princess stood paralyzed for a few moments. Then, she dropped her weapons and dashed over to the small lump of a star, dropping to her knees and scooping it out of the pool of liquid where it had fallen. The substance no longer sizzled, no longer having anything to gather, to give to the larger star. The normal warmth of a star was gone, and her fingers felt like they might go numb from the cold if she held it for too long. Yet she did not let go. Blinking back tears, the princess wiped the traces of the black substance away from the star before cupping it and holding it close to her chest. Alone in the cold night, what just happened began to sink in. She had been played. She had attacked numerous Legion members thinking they had been connected to the attack on her stars. But they weren't connected. Someone put on a badge and let her own stupidity do the rest. And while she was focusing on that, a star-one from her own kingdom-was attacking their kin without any restraints.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, cradling the star which had lost its light right before her very eyes. How dare she fail so miserably at her responsibilities? How dare she allow herself to fall so easily into a trap to fight, soiling the star kingdom's reputation? How dare she-

Her blood suddenly ran colder than the star she was holding. How dare she, as a starlight princess by formalities not blood, leave the Observatory to fend off such a weapon as that star power absorbing sludge? And she left one of those stars IN the Observatory.

For her, only the stardust she used would be affected. That was not the case for literally everything else in that palace. Panic filled her chest as the princess grabbed a handful of stardust from her pouch, sending herself back to the palace where her brother and the stars should have been.

Though she intended to reach the ballroom, the stardust, sizzling and draining as it came in contact with the remains of the substance on her hands, had her arriving shy of her destination. The princess stumbled before tumbling into a puddle of darkness. The rest of the stardust on her body sizzled and was eaten away instantly. But she didn't notice. Red eyes widened. Breathing became hitched. All strength in her body vanished. Where once the brilliant star palace, her home and the home of her brother and countless stars, once stood, there now stood a mountain of black. A pillar of white shined like a beacon where the Falls, the stores of powerful stardust, were kept. It continued to grow and vanish as it feasted on all the star power within.

And there was nothing, the Starlight Princess realized, she could do about it.

To Be Continued...

Message: I awoke with a strangled cry, startled to find him standing over me.

The Stalker, dressed all in black like always.

Sure, I&��ve seen him before, but never up close. Watching me from a darkened doorway, peering through the slats of the dingy blinds in an abandoned house, sitting in the next car over on the subway, standing on the opposite curb as I waited for the Walk signal.

For the most part, I&��ve gotten over being afraid. In the beginning, I was terrified. Double- and triple-bolting the doors, nailing the windows shut, willing to take my chances on burning up in a house fire as long as he couldn&��t get me. I'd worry that he&��d gotten in the house while I was out, check every nook and cranny, places he couldn&��t possibly fit, my frenzied imagination granting him superhuman powers. Maybe he could shrink himself to the size of a mouse, wait for me to let my guard down, reassume his normal size and come after me as I soaked in the tub or watched TV.

I bought the gun a long time ago. I used to carry it everywhere, even around the house, but it&��s lying in a drawer now, gathering dust. Who knows if it even works anymore? Do bullets have an expiration date like medicine and batteries? Guess it&��s a little late to go Google it now.

You know what they say: after awhile you can get used to anything, even a hulking stranger all in black stalking your every move. Okay, nobody says the last part, but I&��m saying it. I mean, I still have a life to live. Work, bills, parties, dates. Although my dating life&��s not so great&��it&��s hard to be intimate with someone when there&��s always someone else watching. I know people are into that, but for non-exhibitionist me, it puts a damper on things.

After awhile I started imagining that The Stalker was a guardian angel. On the whole, my life runs pretty smooth. Like even though I live in a not-so-great part of the city, I&��ve never been mugged, not even in the dark subway tunnels late at night. Maybe The Stalker&��s a good guy. Maybe everybody has one; they&��re just too wrapped up in themselves to notice.

He isn&��t looking so benevolent right about now, looming over me. How&��d he even get in? Have I gotten so complacent that I forgot to bolt the door? Now I feel invincible, telling myself he&��s protecting me? Does he stand watch every night, and I&��ve just never woken up before?

In all these years, I&��ve never seen his face. Even now, it&��s too dark. He&��s too dark. Maybe he doesn&��t have a face, just blackness, like the Grim Reaper. I&��ve never seen him with a sickle...surely that would&��ve caught my eye. Maybe the sickle&��s a myth, artistic license to make Death look more interesting. Maybe he hired some fancy advertising firm to spruce up his image.

I can just picture the brainstorming session for that gig.

It needs something. It&��s so blah&��I know! It needs some color.

But it&��s Death. Death doesn&��t do color.

I&��ve got it! A sickle. He needs to have a sickle.

Then everyone else would just stare at each other, not knowing what a sickle was. Once they figured it out, the guy who came up with it would get huge kudos, a raise...wish I had something like that on my resume. Designed the official image of Death&��that would have the job offers rolling in for sure.

Has he been watching me all this time, just waiting to punch my ticket? Surely Death has a pretty full schedule; he couldn&��t afford to spend all his time on me, unless he has a staff of underlings on the payroll, like all the Santa Clauses at Christmas.

Maybe he pals around with Santa, picked up the idea over a round of golf. There is all that business about Santa being an anagram for Satan...maybe he&��s part of the dark side, too.

I glanced over at the clock. 3:47. Time to get the show on the road or call it a night. Death or no Death, I&��ve got work in a few hours.

&��Get it over with, or let me go back to sleep already.&�� That didn&��t come out nearly as forceful as I intended, voice hoarse and scratchy. Still, The Stalker turned and walked out with a rustling sound, like leaves scraping in the wind.

He closed the door behind him; I heard the sound of the lock sliding home.

I rolled over to go back to sleep, smiling, finally figuring it out:

All this time, he&��s had the key.

-TerrorAnon-