How the Moon Learned to Dance

In the Ur-times, before Fox found his red and before Wisdom grew his words, Moon was sad. She was sad because for a long time she would rise in the evening and all the Things would greet her. And she would greet them each in turn. They would thank her for giving her silvery glow to the sunless time, so that they could work and play all through the night.

But the more nights that came and went, the less Things would greet her as she rose. All the Things were very busy, for Time had accidentally been made and it would not be long before it arrived.


And so, after many nights, Moon felt very alone. But still she would rise in the evening and set in the morning, because she was the Moon. One night, as she crossed the sky, she looked down and saw Ferret. Ferret was doing something very strange.

Ferret was bouncing! And Ferret was wiggling! Ferret was twisting, and turning, and it was all very, very peculiar. And so as she made her trip across the sky Moon looked down upon Ferret and asked "What are you doing?"

Now this startled Ferret, for no-one had heard Moon speak in a long time, so he stopped. And he looked up into the sky, and apologized to Moon.

"I'm sorry Moon, I forgot to greet you tonight!  My sincere apologies. I was just dancing." He said, and bowed.

"What is dancing?" Asked Moon,

This perplexed Ferret, for he had always danced, and assumed so did everyone else. But he tried his best to explain it.

"Dancing is where you jump, and you bounce, and you wiggle, and you twist and you turn and let your body do all the moving things it likes to do."

But the Moon had only wanted to stroll across the night sky, and shine. So she was very confused. "Like this?" She said, flapping her arms.

"Well... not quite..." Ferret replied.

"Like this?" She asked, hopping from one leg to another.

"Sort of..." Ferret was getting a little embarrased.

The Moon started to spin, and she liked it. She spun faster, and faster, and it felt wonderful! She spun so fast  that she forgot to ask Ferret if she was dancing.  Her beautiful dress spread out farther and farther, making a gorgeous, shining disk of silver in the night sky as she spun.

All the Things looked up as the silvery disk grew in the sky, and they were ashamed that they had forgotten about Moon. But they were also in awe of her beautiful dance, so they clapped their hands and Applause was born. As was Cheers, but it quickly left to find a drink. So all the things congratulated Moon on her new dance.

But Moon didn't hear them, because she was so happy. Dancing filled her with joy unlike she had ever known, and she wanted to feel this way forever.

So to this day, Moon dances across the sky, night after night, spinning and twirling, and showering Earth with her silver light.

And sometimes, Ferret will sit at night and watch her Dance.

Tiikeri Station

"Have you ever been to Tiikeri station?" the pilot asked his passenger.

"No, it's my first time." He replied quietly. The entire trip through hyperspace the man had said hardly anything. Didn't even read a book. Just stared out the window at the shifting blue-black fields.

"Ahh, lucky. It's gorgeous there. The nebula spreads out around it, enveloping the station in shimmering arms of glittering black and orange." The pilot's eyes traveled wistfully back in time to his memory of the station. "And in the centre, Tiikeri station. A silver spire, floating in the middle of the most beautiful cloud of space dust you've ever seen. It's a treat."

"Hm." The passenger commented.

"Inside is pretty garbage, sure. But it's a hell of a sight, your first time."

"Hm."

Silence reigned for a time. The instrument panel lit up, alerting the pilot of the little interstellar shuttle that it was almost time to drop back into normal space. He shifted his weight, and sat up straight.

"Hope you're ready fella. Because here... we..." He reached up and began to pull back on the hyperspace throttle, sliding them back into realspace. "Go!"

The shifting patterns of blue slid back away from their view, and were replaced by a glittering round nebula of orange and black, in the centre of which lay a long, thin silver testament to mankind's domination of space.

"May I present Tiikeri Station..." The pilot spoke regally, gesturing ornately with a wave of his hand, "The Eye of the Tiger." He smiled, and let his eyes drink in the beauty of the scene once more, as though it was the first time he was seeing it.

There was silence from his passenger for some time. At last, he shifted in his chair slightly, and nodded his head.

"Hm."

Belethemnon, Prince of Knives

The sigils were traced with care, the invocations spoken with reverence, and the last pinch of the arcane powders was in her hand. She thought a quick prayer, and cast it into the circle.

With a flash and a pounding roar, it appeared.

"I AM BELETHEMNON, PRINCE OF KNIVES AND HAND OF THE GREAT DARKNESS." It bellowed, and crashed against the wards she had prepared. The air crackled and burst with infernal rage as the beast tested its cage. She waited patiently.

"I AM PAIN, I AM DEATH, I AM THE NIGHTMARE THAT CONSUMES ALL LIFE. RELEASE ME, OR FACE MY FURY, MORTAL!" the devil raged, snorting with anger at being flung across The Planes and trapped in a small spell circle.

"No." She said, folding her arms.

"I WILL... what?" The devil exploded with fire and anger, before sputtering out into a soft smoke as confusion took hold. It cocked its head.

"No."

"I... what do you mean, 'no'." The thing scrunched up its horrible red face, shaking its head.

"It means no."

"I know what it means, mortal." The devil sneered.

"Then why did you ask?" She raised an eyebrow.

The devil was silent for a moment. Anger churned in its horned brow.

"You've never summoned a devil before, have you?" He asked, still nonplussed.

"You're the first."

"Ok, well, look... since you're new, I'll break it down for you." He sighed, and sat in the circle. It was a little too small, so his back rested against the infinite circular magical wall that made up his prison, showering magical sparks everywhere. If it bothered him, he didn't show it. "You summon me, I explode with infernal rage, you placate me with an offering, we talk," He began gesticulating with his hands, back and forth. "You ask for something, I barter, you agree, you release me and I grant your weird wish. Usually money, or something. Sometimes power, those are more fun. But I digress. You get your wish, I get released from this freezing plane. Go back about my business, and depending on how much of a pain your task is plot my inevitable vengeance. Sound good?"  He folded his hands into each other, and smiled a horrible, crooked, wicked smile filled with too many pointy teeth and more than a touch of malice.

"No." She replied, matter-of-factly.

The devil sighed.

Silence reigned as they stared at each other for a while. The devil in the circle shifted uncomfortably.

"Well then what do you want?" He asked at last.

"Oh I'm here to help you." She replied swiftly.

"You... what?" He stammered, bewildered.

"Look, since you're new here, I'll break it down for you..." She started, and smiled a horrible, crooked, wicked smile filled with too many teeth and more than a touch of malice.

The Bakery of Jian Wei

A man walked into the bakery of Jian Wei and asked to purchase the most expensive pastry.  Jian Wei refused to sell him anything, and the man became flustered.

Jian collected one of each pastry and gave them to the man as a gift, much to his confusion. Jian Wei said “No one of my crafts is most expensive, for each is priceless while being eaten and worthless once et.”

And the man left and was enlightened.

Art and Eagle

In the Ur-Times, before Stone found its strength and before Joy learned to laugh, Art was seeking prey.

It stalked across the land that Behemoth had made, and it swam in the depths that Leviathan had gouged. Art flitted across all that was, and struck with the speed of Regret. When Art pounced, it's target was instantly unmade, and Art fed upon the image of what was once. Not always the same it was, and although many persist to this day as their representation, there were so many victims that many were lost forever.

Until one day Eagle saw with his amazing eyes that Art was readying to lunge. Eagle had no interest in becoming a unmade, so he took to the sky. But Art was not constrained to the earth or the ocean and followed Eagle. Eagle swooped low and flew between Trees, and into canyons, but Art was never far behind. Soon Eagle would become tired, and not able to continue the chase. But he had a thought.

"Do not eat me, Art!" Eagle shouted at his pursuer.

"I must eat, as must you Eagle. It is the way." Art replied soullessly.

"But you needn't eat me!" Eagle implored.

"If not you, then another. It is the same."

"Perhaps not! What if I prepare you a meal unlike you have ever had?" Eagle asked.

Art paused in its pursuit, and pondered. What could Eagle make?

"If I do not like it, I will gobble you up just the same." Art stated.

"But if you do like it, you will not?"

"I will not."

And Eagle was greatly relieved. He soared into the air, and crashed back into the earth. He landed in a great puddle of muck, and rolled himself around like a younglet. Art became very confused as it watched.

Then, Eagle stood again, covered in the much, and flew to a rock. He spread his wings, and fell back on the rock, leaving an image of his splendor in the brown mud.  He stood, and shook his feathers clean.  He indicated the muck-picture to Art.

"Here is me, and there I am!" He proclaimed proudly. "Feast on that, and be sustained, and let me be!"

Art moved to the stone, and gobbled up the image of Eagle. It was delicious, and unlike anything he had ever experienced. And Art wanted more.

But he had made a promise to Eagle so he did not gobble him up. But instead instructed Eagle to tell all the Things that Art would feed on the representation of them instead of themselves. And so we have paintings, and stories, and dances.

And so we still have Eagle.

An Evening Of Theory

Wisps of warm steam curled up from the hot coffee before them, unnoticed. Their attention was unfixed, but aimed out the window at the lazily falling snow. Smiles rested placidly on their faces as they spoke.

"Bridget." He said.

"Bridget." She replied, not an agreement, just an affirmation.

Silence hung between the couple for a time. The coffee shop bustled around them, but at their table by the window, in their world, there was only the softly falling snow and each other. There was nothing more needed.

"No." She decided. "It doesn't fit on my tongue right." She turned her gaze to her partner, her smile languidly following. "Emily?"

"Emily." He spoke, rolling it over in his mouth. His head bobbed back and forth, considering. "I think I know too many Emilys." He shrugged.

Silence fell over them again. Without thinking, their hands found each other across the table. If either noticed, they made no mention of it.

"Carrie." He offered, unenthusiastically.

"Carrie." She considered.

Her free hand found her coffee, and took a sip. She sighed contentedly.

"No."

And so their conversation went, unresolved. Until the coffee had dissappeared and the snow had stopped and they went home to put into practice their evening of theory.

Hello Darkness

The circle on the floor roars to light, the arcane sigils burning a bright green before simmering into a glowing purple. But not extinguishing. Not yet.

I touch the holy symbol I'm wearing more out of fear and respect than true belief, and hope that I made no errors on the inscription. The barrier seems to be holding. Good, good. Now the true test.

The purple fire continues to crackle, and a thick black smoke appears, trapped by the circle. It swirls, and coalesces into a shadowy form, underlit by the purple light of the magic words at its feet. It's skull-like face reflecting the light brightly, as thought it was pulling the light from the rest of its body even. To look at the thing's chest was painful to the eyes, almost like it was taking away light from the viewer.

"Many moons have waxed and waned since last I saw you, magician." The darkness spoke, a surprisingly human tone to its voice. It tapped at the invisible prison it was trapped in, walls of mystical force projected by the burning runes on the ground. "And you have learned much since then, I see. Perhaps you are more useful than I gave you credit for."

I did it. I got it right.

Hello old friend. Let us see if you can suffer, as I did at your hand. Let us see how human you still are.