THE MOMENT
Monday stared out the window with a faint sigh in her heart; she kept it inside as much as possible. Her office was on the second floor of the mall and she could see the parking lot filled with colorful cars. She looked beyond the parking lot and gazed at the sun setting beneath a purple sky.
"Home seems so far away now...," Monday said. She allowed herself to voice the thought since she was alone. Then, she fell off her chair and landed on her back facing upward. It happened so fast that she realized she wasn't in her office anymore before the pain hit. Instead of the fluorescent lights and drop ceiling she was staring up at a brilliant azure sky. She became aware of soft grass beneath her and ran her hands through it as she sat up.
"You've taken an interest in a member of my team...," A woman startled Monday before she noticed anyone was there. She leaped to her feet and spun around to face the voice. She hadn't found her balance yet and the shock of seeing Ballisea standing before her in person sent her stumbling backward. She fell again but continued to crab crawl away from the towering, horned woman. Ballisea disappeared then Monday heard her voice again. "...why?" Ballisea asked the question from behind Monday.
Monday realized that Ballisea wasn't there to kill her and relaxed enough to give an answer.
"Turbo asked me to," She said. Ballisea vanished again, then reappeared, shaking her head, in front of Monday.
"I'm aware of Turbo's request; but why do you pursue it? You've learned more than enough to satisfy your end of the bargain," Ballisea replied.
"The more I learned, the more it seemed like Abby was in danger...," Monday shrugged. "..that sucks when there's no one that'll help." Ballisea's eyes softened; but, she smirked at the same time.
"You poor child. It sounds like you've had a challenging upbringing."
"Challenging!?" Monday laughed and shook her head. "I grew up in my family's backyard. ALONE. ARK gave me a stupid name and my mom just kicked me out and forgot about me. I survived by eating NPCs for fourteen years!"
"If your childhood was so atrocious, why did I hear you lamenting at being so far away from home?"
"What?" Monday asked. It took her a moment to make the connection. "Just now?" Ballisea gave her a curt nod and Monday giggled.
"I was doing my books," she said. "I'm going to buy the server from my mom... as soon as I raise enough money. But, I barely started making a profit, so I've got a long way to go," she shrugged. "Still far away from home."
"I may have misinterpreted your words," Ballisea replied. "But, your goal speaks volumes. You're eager to return." Monday laughed again.
"I'm going to buy my family's home so I can kick them out," she grinned. Then, it grew into a full smile when Ballisea herself gave an amused giggle. After a quiet moment, Ballisea looked Monday over.
"You're smart, determined, and strong-willed. I'm going to tell you a secret that might shatter your world," Ballisea smiled. "Just to see if it does." That piqued Monday's attention, and she picked herself up from the floor and stepped closer to Ballisea.
"What is it?" Monday asked.
"You are new," Ballisea said.
"What?" Monday tilted her head.
"La Luna is only supposed to be able to copy specific abilities, like an Estrella's Sight." Monday looked down at her hands and they began to glow with bright blue light; she copied an Estrella's flame.
"Then.. how did I...?" she fumbled the question, but Ballisea nodded.
"So.. what does that mean? I'm better than other Lunas?"
"You're not the only new Luna; but, that's not my point anyway," Ballisea said. "Tell me about your earliest memories."
"I already told you, it was horrible; I try not to think about it." Ballisea shook her head.
"This is important. Focus on the past; what do you remember?" Monday closed her eyes and her mind filled with vague thoughts of hiding in the forest and ambushing undead servants. But, the harder she tried to focus on a specific memory, the more vague the image became. She was ready to give up; but, her mind continued its attempt to find a solid memory while she shook her head at Ballisea.
"I remember hiding out in the forest was pretty bad...," Monday said.
"That doesn't count," Ballisea replied. She vanished, then reappeared face to face with Monday. "Tell me the first real thing you remember!" Ballisea said sternly; she stared at Monday with empty black eyes. It was enough of a scare to make Monday's brain cooperate. All at once, she had her first true, crystal clear memory; it stood out from the rest of the vague stories her mind conjured. Her eyes opened wide as the realization hit her soon after the memory.
"I met Outbreak and Nax...," she whispered. It was the earliest, cleanest memory she could find in her mind. "... about a month ago." Ballisea nodded.
"As I said, You are new."