In a very far-off galaxy, on the planet Axeon, the sun hung high above the small town of Edenville. A young woman, dressed in an all-black jumpsuit, leaned against the cool metal rails of the balcony of her modest, white hotel room. Her naturally curly, dark blue ponytail swayed in the breeze, covering her delicate features momentarily. Against the sunlight, her warm brown eyes took on an amber quality. Her pale skin glowed against her fitted black jumpsuit as her eyes followed a holographic advertisement blimp drifting lazily between scattered clouds under the clear, blue sky.
Every now and then, robots and humans strolled along the flower-lined streets, exchanging warm greetings as they crossed paths; a kind gesture her city-trained eyes were not used to. Even here, in this quiet town, technology couldn't resist creeping in, but the pace was slower, gentler.
Still, Edenville was different from Nyeon City, her home. As her gaze darted back to the blimp, her thoughts drifted to her hometown, a sleepless metropolis. The streets of Nyeon City were not just crowded with people and robots, but visible in every direction were towering skyscrapers, flying cars, and advanced holographic billboards. Suddenly, a breeze blew past her, bringing with it the sweet scent released into the air by the beautiful little white blooms of the gardenia shrubs lining the streets below, drawing her out of her daze.
Just when she was about to turn away, a scene unfolded across the street that caught her attention. A maintenance robot, painted sunshine yellow instead of Nyeon's standard chrome, played tag with a little girl. The child's holographic T-Rex hat projected tiny footprints that disappeared into sparkles behind her as she ran, her purple dress fluttering. The robot pretended to stumble, earning delightful laughter from its small companion. The young woman couldn't help but smile.
"Careful there, My Moon," a familiar voice drifted from behind. "Smile any wider and your face might stick that way," he said.
The young woman's lips curved higher at the presence behind her. The voice carried that playful tone she'd known for nearly half her life.
"And before you say anything," he added, stepping through the door into the balcony, "yes, I can see you smiling even from behind because I have 'eyes in front of you,'" he teased.
"Thanks for the clarification, Mister Eyes In Front Of Me," she turned to face him, grinning. Her eyes danced with amusement as she watched him marching toward her.
His dark purple hair and matching eyes caught the sunlight as he approached.
"I thought we agreed you'd stop with the 'My Moon' business. I have a name, Max, it's Luna," she chuckled, feigning annoyance despite the smile tugging at her lips.
Max crossed the balcony in two long strides and ruffled her hair. "When you're old enough for a boyfriend, I'll retire the nickname. Promise."
"In case you've forgotten," Luna murmured, delivering a gentle elbow to his ribs, "I'm a few months older than you. Is that old enough?"
"Time check, you two!" A new voice interrupted. His face gleamed with excitement as he burst through the doorway. He tapped his wrist display, projecting a holographic weather map. "The canyon winds are perfect right now," he said. "We've got a two-hour window before the afternoon thermals kick in."
Luna raised an eyebrow at him. "Since when are you the responsible one, Fin?" she teased.
"Hey," Fin protested, switching his projection to show their flight path. "Being a weather systems engineer means I actually have to pay attention to this stuff now. Besides, someone has to keep you two from getting lost in another one of your 'best friend moments.'"
Luna glared at Max. "Besties," she said, and tiptoed, reaching over to ruffle Max's hair in return for messing with hers earlier.
From inside the hotel room, a laugh rang out. "Let them be, Fin!" a woman's voice called out.
"Riay's lying Fin! She meant, tell them to hurry up or we're leaving them behind," a man's voice called out following after Riay's.
"Hear that? You besties? Bin's order," Fin said grinning.
Before any of them could move from where they were standing, Riay and Bin emerged onto the balcony, fingers intertwined, laughing. The couple had been inseparable since that fateful day they'd collided in the academy's quantum mechanics lab during their first year of apprenticeship.
"But honestly, some of us actually enjoy our dramatic friendship... unlike some love birds," Luna said, teasing as her eyes darted playfully between Riay and Bin then toward Fin and Max and back at the happy couple.
"Says the girl who made us all attend her three-hour imaginary magical unicorn play in her garage," Bin teased, earning a playful swat from his girlfriend.
Their easy banter masked the significance of why they'd come to Edenville. After four years of mandatory apprenticeships, a free education required of every across the globe once they turned sixteen, Luna and her friends were about to embark on their separate paths. For Luna, that meant following in her father's footsteps as a firefighter. This skydiving trip over Windflower Canyon was their last adventure together. A perfect celebration of endings and beginnings among the endless fields of wild blooms.
The drive to the airfield passed in a blur of wild blooms and excited conversations.
Now, standing in the helicopter's cabin, Luna felt the weight of the moment pressing against her chest as Max checked their jump gear for the third time, his movements precise. Some things never changed. He'd been this way since they met. He would insist on checking her hover-bike's safety protocols before every ride.
"The suits are perfectly calibrated," Luna reassured Max. The AI's safety indicators glowed reassuringly green across her wrist display.
Max's purple eyes met hers, serious again. "AIs make mistakes," he said. "Remember the Transit Incident last year?"
How could Luna not? She remembered. Three hundred people were trapped between floors when Nu-Nyeon's transit AI had a millisecond glitch. Luna and her fellow firefighter apprentices had to spend hours helping with the evacuation. The memory of scared faces in dark spaces still haunted her.
"You have a point," Luna said softly. Though this was different, but Luna understood. This wasn't about the gear, this was Max's way of holding onto their last moments of normalcy, so she let him continue his inspection. After tomorrow, everything would be different. Luna would be stationed at Nyeon's Central Fire Response Unit, while Max would start his robotics engineering position in another city. Their daily meetups and weekend adventure planning sessions would become a luxury rather than routine. Since they became friends years ago, they'd been inseparable.
The helicopter thrummed beneath Luna's feet as they reached jump altitude. Through the open door, Windflower Canyon stretched like a painter's palette gone wild with patches of red and purple bleeding into the fields of yellow and white. At this height, no flower could be named.
As Luna waited anxiously, something flickered at the edge of Luna's vision - a dark spot in the perfect blue sky. But she blinked and it was gone. Probably just nerves playing tricks on her, she told herself.
"Woot! I'm first!" Fin shouted through the helicopter's noise, drawing Luna's attention back to the group. Then, Fin jumped, his whoop of joy swallowed by the wind. Next up, Riay and Bin. They held hands as they fell. Their matching red jumpsuits made them look like falling stars. With each departure, the helicopter felt larger, emptier.
One by one, Luna's friends disappeared into the clear blue sky below. Despite the suit's advanced technology designed to handle any diving condition, vulnerability crept through her excitement like a shadow.
Max stepped to the edge, then hesitated. For the first time since Luna had known him, he looked uncertain. "Luna, I–" he began, but before he could finish his thoughts, Luna interrupted.
"Race you to the bottom?" Luna cut in, recognizing Max's need for the challenge more than whatever he was about to say.
The familiar spark Luna always saw returned to his eyes. "You're on, My Moon," Max said excitedly. He fell backward, arms spreading wide, letting his body ride the wind.
Then it was just Luna, the wind, and the endless expanse before her. She took a deep breath, pushed off, and for a moment, everything was perfect. The rush of freefall, the thrill of flight, and the world spreading out beneath her like a canvas of colors brought thrill and freedom in a way she couldn't explain.
But perfection shattered as the dark spot returned. It expanded quickly like spilled ink across the sky. In a split second, the once clear blue sky now painted black. The wind shifted, wrapping around Luna like invisible hands, yanking her upward with impossible force. Her friends could only watch in horror as she was pulled higher and higher into the blackening sky.
Max's voice ripped through the air. "LUNA!" The raw desperation in his cry echoed as she disappeared into the void.
Then, as suddenly as it began, it ended. The sky cleared, the wind calmed, but Luna was gone. All that was left behind were nothing but questions and the lingering echo of her name in the empty air.