From The Moon Fell A Maiden

The river ran backwards on the day the Queen vanished.

The icy water emptied, albeit in the wrong direction. Ancient mechanisms that sucked the water up like a straw, retreated the river into the exact centre of the discus that was the moon. The obnoxious noise of gears grinding deep from the moon’s bowels meant one thing; no water will fall. Clouds in the atmosphere will no longer collect the river like waiting servants with jars held high above their heads.

Yet these channels were dried for a reason.

All for the Queen. A safety precaution – that is – no one wanted her to slip into the river, and flow strait off of the moon! And right into the dark and dismal world below...

There was nothing logical about the mechanical moon that worked like an intricate watch. With each spinning cogwheel and gear, all of which served one purpose, to power a curious object.

This device was constructed like shimmering shards of materialized ice. Crystals and glass swirling in a non-concrete construction, always moving.

And from this device ran the purest water – like a heart continuously pumping blood – flowing upwards by aqueducts, then flowing in channels that directed the flow into massive basins, were it collected; and when there was enough water, the basins released it! With a thunderous cacophony, the river cascaded off, hydrating the thirsty land.

The moon hummed as if alive, but it wasn’t... was it? The exact day when it was constructed was lost to history, not even it’s inhabitants knew of it’s origins.

The moon’s surface spun in a near sporadic order. Different continental plates continuously churned the ground, creating the illusion of wind – some craters rotated clockwise, contradicting neighbouring craters that rotated counter clockwise. The whole entity was moving and stirring like a primordial beast. Making the environment truly alien. A plethora of unrecognizable plants and animals inhabited this place. Silver mountains shone like diamonds, piercing the flat plateaus like shiny scimitars.

The prairies blew with a lustrous wind, shaking the splintered shards of crystal grass that split light into every which direction. Despite appearances, the grass was soft and cool. The mirror-finish ground only added to illuminate the moon. Reflecting light across two darkened silhouettes.

“Well of course they would!” grinned the Queen happily. Turning, her simple handmaid dress twirled like a mini-tornado. The dark and stormy colour matched her delicate eyes. “I told you those bearded snots at council would panic! Ha!”

She spun around again, admiring the swirling vortex that was her.

“And this dress! SO simple! And yet so elegant... No one will recognize me in such simple drab.”

“Your majesty. Stay on topic.” Said her knight, Caius. His hands kept instinctively running across the handle of his dagger. A nervous tick he had.

“Ack! Too formal.” Said the Queen with a pout. “Call me Amaris. Just Amaris. No more of this ‘your majesty’ business.” Her hands swept across the smooth fabric of her dress. “Besides, we can’t have you calling me by my title or anything. I must lay low, for now at least. Otherwise my plan won’t work.”

Caius heaved a heavy sigh. Why did I have to get caught up in this?

He rolled his eyes at the scheming queen, watching her spinning like a ditsy sheep that was hit on the head one-to-many times. “Amaris.” He said flatly.

She stopped spinning, her pitch black hair flying into the corners of her cheeks. “Yes?” She said with a convincing smile.

“You’ve accidentally caused the rivers to run backwards! Not a thing as happened in my generation. Don’t you know how dangerous that is? You could unintentionally dry the-world-from-low.”

“You talk like them...” She said frankly.

“Like who?”

“Like those stuffy crones in their flowing silk gowns! Ooh... I can only imagine how their wagging tongues are sparking all kinds of wild conspiracies! Well, all except for poor Linyeus. He’s the only one I can tolerate – what a sweet old man – he would know what to do! Not those other geniuses, who, if they had an ounce of thought, would be one step ahead of me...” Her voice swirled with tones of adolescence and mischief. Caius narrowed his eyebrows, his fingers nervously swept over the soft leathery handle that protruded from his belt. She agitated him, and she seemed to enjoy that. “Now begins the exciting part!” She exclaimed as she walked past Sir Caius, and continued walking.

“Begins what!” He called out to her.

“The hunt! For me! Hahahaha!” Her laugh echoed hysterically, creepily melodic.

“What do you mean ‘hunt’?”

“What do you think the word means? Hmm? I mean the hunt! I’ve guessed that the council would do as much – as in – reversing the flow of water. They’re that predictable. And that’s what I want!”

Caius stopped in his tracks, “why?”

“To stop the sapping of my heart…” She said with a dark smirk.

“What does that mean?!”

“Figure it out.” She said walking in silence. Leaving Caius clueless.

He let out a flustered sigh. Safeguarding the new queen... Easy! Right?

No.

Not this queen.

She was different.

Different from any before her, and probably different from any that will come.

That’s probably why she successfully took the throne. Heavy gold sat firmly on top of her head, a worthy adornment – trophy even – for her unmatched mind. Legions of knights, noblemen, peasants. Everyone. Bowed low to her. The entirety of the moon was under her shadow, eclipsed by her reign.

Caius quickened his pace, thinking hard. But Amaris always remained one step ahead of him. He breathed in the oily air, the constant shifting of the land left him with a feeling of calmness despite the Queen’s words. The overcast glow – emanating from the metallic orbs suspended hauntingly overhead – etched darkness across their shadowed faces.

Under the melancholy glow, Caius noticed how beautiful the Queen looked. The shadows angled across her smooth cheekbones, her pewter eyes glowed like embers under her slanted eyebrows. Deep black hair ran down her shoulders, clinging to the corners of her soft cheeks. It was her most alluring trap. Paired with her perfect smile, she quickly won over the hearts of her subjects. Even her adversaries couldn’t help but switch to her side. Any potential rival and enemy fell before her.

After all, she was very clever...

She could meticulously navigate the throws of politics and courtly affairs just so she can claw into the minds of potential opponents and take them down before they ever have a chance of scheming; all without breaking a sweat, and just in time for afternoon tea.

And yet, the more Caius knew her; the more eccentric and crazy she seemed.

Caius tried to think. I should try to understand it from her point-of-view. After all, he grew up in the same quartz palaces that served as the personal home for the then-princess Amaris. Growing up in a Mi Casa Es Su Casa scenario.

He knew no one better than her. Sapping of the heart? Obviously an idiom, she likes idioms. Caius rubbed his temples. Trying to figure her out was futile at best, her mind was seemingly chaotic and unpredictable, yet, everything was child’s play to her. Maybe the heart is her… But what does that have to do with the river?

Caius’ memories trailed back to when he was a child. Amaris and him loved playing near the river. It flowed. That was it. In one continuous direction, each drop destined to fall as rain on the-world-from-low. However it had a definite nostalgic feel to it, memories of their faces dancing in the clear waves as they played in courtyards made Caius smile; a smile he quickly snuffed. He was grateful for knowing her growing up. But there was something gnawing at his mind, a feeling that made his jaw tense. Like he was trapped, with only one way out.

No matter what happens… He needed to follow through…

“I get it!” He said suddenly. Amaris spun on her heels, with a thrilled grin on her face. “Do you now?”

“Yes. The heart must be the device… The one in the land. Where the river flows. You disappeared last night (or day, it’s hard to tell on the moon) with the purpose of forcing the councillors to panic and reverse the river. You wanted that, didn’t you?”

“Yes! You’ve figured that much out. I knew you know me well. You’re the only one I can trust; that’s why you’re here for the next step of my plan.”

Caius swallowed hard. It was true. Caius was the only one she trusted.

She trusts no one else… so sad. To live with your back against the wall. No wonder she’s so happy to be out here. Free as a bird. Caius felt a twinge of empathy for her. And regret. But he needed more information, he needed to know the next step in her deluded plan.

She looked around, noticing the dim lights floating around. “They’re wonderful.” She whispered, she placed a hand on one, letting it sit softly on her palm. “We’re here…”

Caius gasped as he saw where they were. They were at the edge! Caius ran over to the dark horizon, the separation of darkness and light was hypnotizing. He was so used to the shattering light the moon reflected, and to the stars swinging overhead. But now, he stared into deep darkness, he closed his eyes, and opened them, there was no difference!

He then looked down. Down on the world. He was like a child staring at the bottom of a well. It was deep and scary, yet a source of intrigue and imagination. The world looked like a mixing pot of shadowy mist, the overhead view of the clouds made him dizzy. This was the source of his nostalgia, the river itself led to this place, every time he dipped his hands into it, he touched his home…

Amaris' back was to Caius as she looked wistfully beyond the horizon, where the stars shone brighter then in any other place on the moon. She stood like a winded ghost, her dress blowing in the gentle breeze. Her steady breathing sounded from her, and into the empty abyss that was space.

“Why are we here?” Said Caius, breaking the silent moment.

“Waiting. I want to stay here awhile, it’s nice here.” She then pointed inland, towards pale light in the distance. “Besides, so long as we make it to town by the next few hours we should have plenty of time.”

Caius stood tall over the reflective ground, his face twisted into a frown. “Why are we here?” He repeated.

“You know why–”

“Then I guess the question is why are you doing this?”

Amaris’ eyes narrowed. “I’m doing this for me.”

“How so? Why do you need to vanish? Why do you need to run the rivers backwards?”

“That!” She said innocently. “Is a secret…”

“And you’re not going to tell me, are you?”

“It’s not a secret if two people know! But don’t worry, it won’t harm me. In fact, in one year’s time… I should… be able to do it…” Her voice trailed of into unintelligible mumbles. “All I need, is for me to vanish. And for the river to remain dried.”

“B-but what about the inhabitants of the-world-from-low?”

“What about them?”

Caius’ breath hitched in his throat. No one knew of his heritage… Not even Queen Amaris. “Without water… Won’t they die down there?”

“So” she said dismissively.

Caius paled, she was insane… He pulled his dagger out.

“I guess we both have secrets… I thought that… No. You’ve become a danger to us all…”

“What do you mean by that?!”

Amaris turned, but her frown quickly turned into a grimace of shock.

She looked down.

Down at the cold steel knife that protruded from her stomach. And holding the handle was her loyal knight.

Her dress stained with scarlet blood. She stood. Unable to process what’s happening.

“Why?” Amaris hissed through clenched teeth.

Caius trembled, his hand releasing the blade in her gut. “Because… If you live, I’ll never have freedom…”

Amaris’ eyes brimmed with tears. Tears of betrayal and pain.

“Y-you fool…” Amaris choked out. Her feet shifted beneath the hem of the dress, dangerously close to the edge. “Without my corpse you can’t prove I’m dead… They will never let the river flow now. You have parched both worlds, both the land and the moon will crack…” With a maddening smile, she dipped into the darkness behind her.

Without a scream, without a word, she fell.

Falling from the silvery ground, the Queen vanished beneath the space between the world and the moon.

Caius looked down, like an eagle perched upon it’s rock. Emotions swirling in his brain, his gut clenching as he fought the urge to throw-up. But one thought prevailed through the hurricane in his mind – Surly she won’t survive the fall. How fitting actually, her tomb was the-world-from-low.

But she was right. Without her corpse to prove she’s dead, the council might refrain from releasing the river. He could have unintentionally parched his world.

I-I… I’m…

“Sorry…” He whispered under his breath. His face solemn in the pitch darkness. “Goodbye my Queen.”