Phases of the Moon

Earthshine

A combination of two what ifs: we will begin with "What if Vader never found Luna?"

The second what if, was suggested by a reader, 1066dalton, a year or so ago. Hope the wait was worth it. 

This is all I have at the moment, there may be a part two in the future, maybe not. I don't really like the section of the timeline it's bleeding into. Whenever I write, if both movies and books are available, I usually use both resources and combine them into one, which is why I can write two different versions of the same scene for different stories, some rely more heavily on the book scenes, others on the movies. This is also part of the reason things take so long. And why I am actively trying to not try as hard for these not main universes by relying on a single take to varying degrees of success. Where this story is going, it is about to enter a movie I have seen only once and a book I have owned for years and have never opened, so no promises....though knowing me I'll eventually have the write the few half thought out scenes in my mind at some point. Just don't expect a full reimagining if I do.

Anyway, without further adue, a new addition to the Lunaverse.

Her first memories are of pain. Pain that makes her aware when she is supposedly physically incapable. Pain that makes her realize her lungs aren't working. That her heart isn't beating. That her body might as well be a slab of metal.

She is fully aware and knows without a doubt she is not supposed to be.

I'm in hell, she decides after the pain becomes constant despite not fully knowing what hell is supposed to be. Pain knocks her out only for it to awaken her again.

She is grateful when she finally goes to sleep for what she expects is for good.

The second lesson she learns of is warmth. A thawing.

The third concept is cold. The lack of warmth.

Then, for the first time in her life of nothingness, her senses begin to operate.

"Don't worry, I've got you," are the first words she hears. "You're safe now, Luna."

She wants to ask who Luna is, but her mouth doesn't want to work, seemingly stuck closed with a bitter—metallic, that's what it is—taste invading. The word also answers the awful smell in her nose. She can feel everything and it all hurts. Not pain, not what was contained in her first memories of awareness, but it all hurts.

It takes time for her to recognize that she is lying on a cold surface. That a hand is stroking her head.

She assumes darkness is all there is. That taste, smell, touch, and hearing are all the senses she has to know the world. Her companion is quiet, quiet enough that if she couldn't feel the hand, she would have thought they no longer existed. That they had disappeared into that darkness and abandoned her.

"Feeling a bit better?" the voice asks again. Male, she decides instinctively, though she doesn't know why. What male actually means. "I know it's supposed to be a harsh surge of memories if you've been under for awhile."

"Memories?" she repeats, trying the word on her tongue. Her voice is hoarse, but she accepts it as natural, just as she accepts the weakened state of her body as its proper form. She feels somehow warm and cold now, a bit sleepy too. Safe.

"What's the last thing you remember?" the voice asks. Kind and considerate.

"Pain," she croaks.

"....Before that?" the voice asks, sounding sad. She blinks at the darkness in confusion.