The Eternal Blood Moon – Chapter 2: A forest without a call

This is not the start of the story, you may want to read at the beginning through these links:

• Link for Chapter 1: A child who would not grown

In the dark forest, Rin sat under a tree and thought about the danger he would face in the Red Forest. He had a strange feeling; he was deeply sad and wanted to express that sadness, but he could not. At last, he fell asleep.

He found himself standing on a hill. The sky was bright blue—so bright that Rin couldn’t look straight at it. And instead of the Blood Moon, there was something yellow: the brightest thing Rin had ever seen.

“Hey, little boy,” a voice called, and Rin woke up. In front of him stood the strangest creature—a half-smoke, half-human being.

“Who are you?” Rin asked.

“I’m Ezo, the left soul of the Moon,” the creature answered.

“The Moon?”

“Yeah, but not the Blood Moon, as you’d think. This is a secret I must tell you: the Blood Moon is not really a moon. It is a creature—a living creature. Thousands of years ago, it took the real Moon’s place after winning a battle between them. It feeds on people’s souls—the emotionless ones. You haven’t grown any older because you developed your own feelings the moment you first felt bored.”

“So?”

“I need your help. You must go through the Light Crack to enter the Blood Moon’s body and cut its tendons. Then I can return to the real Moon and bring it back. With the new Moon, people will live under the bright light of a star called the Sun during the day, and under the Moon’s yellow glow by night. People will have all sorts of feelings and be free to choose what they want to do. But remember—whoever completes the mission will turn to smoke right after they succeed.”

“Oh… I’ve had a dream about the thing you call the Sun,” Rin said, remembering.

Ezo remained silent and gave him a meaningful look.

“Well… I’ll think about it,” Rin said, lowering his head.

“That’s a risky mission, I have to say,” Ezo added, also looking down.

• But should Rin believe the half-smoke, half-human creature? Maybe it wasn’t a messenger at all—maybe it was the temptation, sent by the Blood Moon itself to lure Rin into a trap. Or perhaps… it was just a strange joke from a dream that had gone too far. Either way, Rin would have to decide soon.
• Read more in Chapter 3 – coming soon!