The dull red moon hung large in the starry sky, a dim glow around its edges. Only the vaguest outline of the dark landscape could be seen. The eye of a nightbird could have seen the movement of people going about their business in the darkness, but the human eye would have had difficulty discerning any shape.
Suddenly the stars nearest the moon began to fade out as the moon's left edge glowed ever more brightly. The moon's redness turned to white as if an infection were abandoning it. The sun’s light soon returned to the earth, illuminating a fortress of black stone defending a city of black men.
Observing the eclipse by its reflection off a hallway wall was the castle's ruler, a young woman of 17 years wearing a gown befitting nobility and an expression of some sorrow. A courtier came to her with a message. "Lady Midnight, your decision is needed on the dispute with the barons regarding the taxation of manufactured goods from across the northern sea." After one last forlorn look outside, she exhaled sadly and drew herself away. Her people did need her again, but this was boring.
It was now midday. The sun shone brightly over Castle Midnight and the city's inhabitants. The moon still hung in the sky, its great size dwarfing that of the shining sun.
Inside the castle, Lady Midnight shared drinks with a few trusted confidantes. She set down her drink. "I feel in a quandary."
"What about, Rona?" asked the oldest aide, a gray-haired woman holding her mug of warm cider with both hands.
"Shall we need to call a council?" asked the youngest aide, a man in his late 20s who sliced pieces off an apple with a knife while he casually leaned back in his chair.
"No..." Rona, the Lady Midnight, hesitated. It was not something she wished to admit, but she felt that she could trust these two. "I do not feel happy ruling, and I am not altogether certain that I am doing it correctly."
The younger adviser offered a simple answer. "Get good advice from good people. Make sure they're not in it for themselves. Make sure the army is behind you. Beyond that, a kingdom runs itself."
The older aide touched Lady Midnight's wrist and offered more specific advice. "Have you considered taking a husband?"
That suggestion missed the mark widely. "Eh, no. There is no one that I fancy who I would also trust with the kingdom."
The younger adviser cut another chunk off his apple and cut to the heart of the matter by asking the unasked question. "So what would you rather be doing?"
Lady Midnight looked down before answering. "Honestly... I miss taking vengeance on my enemies."
Her advisers chuckled. The elder confidante spoke with a smile. "We are at peace with our neighbors now and it would be best to keep it that way."
The younger aide offered an alternative. "You know, your grandfathers used to have hunting parties." Lady Midnight closed her eyes and looked downward, saddened by another reminder of her murdered family. But the past was past. She had to get over it. The younger aide continued. "The deer would come out during the small night. Sometimes they wouldn't."
Lady Midnight continued the discussion with her two confidantes as they walked into the main court. "I feel like there is no excitement in my life anymore. Nothing interests me."
A courtier yelled out as he and a guard ran up to them. "Lady Midnight!" She turned, accepting the interruption. The courtier soon arrived and could speak in a normal voice. "There is a strange man at the gates who wishes to speak with you. He calls himself Lexington."
Lady Midnight spoke while the courtier paused to take a breath. "I know no one by that name."
The guard floridly described the stranger. "His skin shines as brightly as the sun!"
The courtier continued. "No one has heard of him, but he speaks like a nobleman."
Lady Midnight thought this was interesting.
Lady Midnight sat in her grandfather's throne to receive the strange visitor. His skin was almost as bright as they said, an oddity that drew nearly every resident of the castle to have a look. Wispy curls of white hair covered his head. His wrinkled face suggested he might be in his mid-60s, but still healthy.
As he introduced himself, the strange man spoke in an unusual accent that a visitor from Earth might have identified as British. "Good day, Lady Midnight. My name is Rickard Lexington, and I am a recruiter for a fighting tournament that is called the Crash Championship. We seek out the most talented fighters from wherever we can find them. We have heard great stories about your accomplishments, and I was wondering if you might be willing to consider an offer to observe our tournament, and, perhaps participate if it would interest you."
This offer did interest Lady Midnight.
The strange visitor Rickard Lexington left the castle accompanied by two royal guards and a fourth figure whose body was concealed by a well-worn hooded dark blue cloak, whose face was hidden by a kerchief, and who wore a set of metal claws bound to the right arm, two daggers at the side, a shortbow and quiver of arrows on the back, and small pouches on the belt. Soft shoes minimized the noise of her footsteps.
The townspeople gathered to see her leave, and the rumors began. Lady Midnight's services were needed again somewhere very far away.
Back at the castle, Lady Midnight's closest confidantes considered the consequences of her absence. The younger of them was already considering countermeasures. "We'll need to tighten security, maybe hire an actress to play her part for special appearances."
The elder had not thought that far ahead. "Do you think people would take advantage of us?"
"I guarantee it." The younger aide kicked the black stone floor.
A few days later, the two royal guards returned. The elder of the two aides was there to receive them.
The first guard explained why they had returned without Lady Midnight. "She said that she felt safe, and that our services were no longer needed." He handed over a bound scroll. "And we were starting to miss our families."
The aide slipped the ribbon off the scroll and opened it. "This is Rona's handwriting."
The second guard exclaimed in an awestruck voice. "There were so many amazing things! We will be telling stories for months, and no one will believe any of them!"
On another day, soon after, the guards escorted a woman into the castle. Her outfit was similar to Lady Midnight's combat outfit but more garish and stylish. Her shoes were not made of padded leather but had the appearance of velvet. Her bow was a composite type and was not fashioned from wood but from a lighter and easier-bending material that had a glossy black appearance. Her shining gem-studded cape was certainly not something that a sneak in the night would have worn on the job. None of her belongings had much sign of wear on them.
Lady Midnight's two closest confidantes happily received the woman. The youngest was first to speak. "I see that rumors have gotten out that we were considering hiring an actress. You came prepared."
The visitor stood confused. "I am Rona."
Lady Midnight's aides looked at each other and laughed. The younger one smiled. "She's good. Sounds like her too."
The visitor looked toward the elder aide. She stepped forward with a gentle smile, seeing through the act. "Madam, Lady Midnight is about five or ten years younger than you are."
The visitor stood still. "Seven years." A tear rolled down her cheek. "It has been seven wondrous years."
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