Lunar Ruins

Nebula points her new scepter at me. It's blue with beige feathers. Pieces of the ground begin to float and fly toward me. I block it with my new shield, the same colors.

My body doesn't move, as the shield has the ability to neutralize knockback. Furthermore, I feel an energy pushing me forward. I dash with the shield, almost hitting Nebula, but I stop by releasing an explosion in front of me.

Miguel flies past us in his new armor and white wings. He bends his trajectory and brandishes his whip at me, which I block with my shield. It starts to vibrate again, but this time I don't dash. The storm spirit fires a bolt of lightning at me, which I also block. Miguel lands beside us.

Miguel: "Sorry, I didn't know that! Apparently, my summons attack whoever I hit with the whip."

Sun: "It's okay, you told her to go easy, right? This is nothing to me."

Nebula: "I like the new wings, Miguel."

Miguel: "Right? They look really cool."

Sun: "I still want to test this spear, but let's leave that to an enemy."

Miguel: "I have a target dummy for you."

The storm spirit floats a bit far.

Sun: "Since you can summon her again, don't mind if I do. Thanks, Miguel."

I throw the spear at the spirit. It flies, dispelling her clouds. Then it veers off course and strikes repeatedly, like the golden spear, but without needing to pause before changing direction.

The spear stops hitting the spirit and flies in a circle around it, creating a moderate tornado. It then begins to spit water toward the center, forming a circle of water that cuts through any metal. The spirit dies.

I call the spear back and grab it.

Sun: "I think this concludes the training. Shall we go to the real fight now?"

They nod. I jump and fly upward as they follow. After a while, I spot a floating archipelago. It's mostly black and green, with no life in sight. The curvature of the planet is visible from here. We land on one of the smaller islands.

Sun: "This is probably a Guardian's stronghold."

Miguel: "What's that?"

Sun: "The Moon Cult."

Nebula: "Wait, I thought that was a myth."

Sun: "I created it as a passage between this planet and the nearest moon. There, we will fight the Moon God."

Miguel: "Wait, a god? Are we nearly strong enough for that?"

Sun: "Probably not, but I need to get stronger soon. You don't need to follow me, Miguel, Nebula. It's too dangerous."

Miguel: "What, you think I'm going to chicken out? I love adventures. Between dying with you guys or dying alone on a boring mission, you know I'll choose the first option."

Nebula: "Me too. I will never abandon you, brother."

Sun: "You know I'm not your brother. You don't need to feel tied to me."

Nebula: "It is my choice, regardless of you being my brother or not."

I smile faintly.

Sun: "I hope you don't regret it."

On the main island, a castle and a tower jut out. A green barrier stands where the entrance would be.

Sun: "The Guardian is sleeping. When I damage the barrier, be prepared, he will come down and fight us."

They nod. I throw the spear at the barrier. Someone descends from the tower, landing brutally in front of the entrance.

He's a masked figure, wearing a black cloak with gold lines and a white mask covering his entire face.

The spear returns, aiming for him. He teleports upward before it hits. He shoots blue stars from his gloved hands, targeting me. I block them with my shield, but they explode, hitting Nebula and Miguel. I charge forward with my shield and pierce his body with my spear. He heals after a moment and teleports away.

He shoots fire from his hands, trying to hit Miguel and Nebula. The storm spirit, however, gets in the way and extinguishes the fire with clouds. She then fires a bolt of lightning at the Guardian, damaging him. He teleports again and creates two clones, each fighting one of us.

The one attacking me fights with his bare hands, trying to punch and slap me, which I easily dodge. But then he clasps his hands together, and two magical red fists crush me. I manage to survive and cut him down with my Excalibur. I throw the spear at the other two. One of them teleports away.

That's the real one!

Nebula points her scepter at the attacking clone, sending chunks of the ground floating into the air. She then throws them at him, making him disappear. Miguel flies into the air and strikes the real one with his whip. A storm cloud appears above him, raining hail and lightning.

A giant spectral worm flies behind me. I fly away and throw the spear into its mouth, exploding it from the inside. The Guardian points his hand at me and pulls me toward him. He punches me in the face, so I block the second punch with my hand, surprisingly easily. I raise my sword, and a beam of sunlight falls from the sky, striking us both.

I hit the ground hard, but the island remains intact. Instead of the ground breaking, my body takes much more damage. The Guardian summons an iridescent book, which floats in front of him. Beams of light begin to converge on my location. Nebula throws chunks of ground at him, causing him to teleport.

This material is nearly indestructible...

I throw my spear, hitting the Guardian several times. Then it begins to circle, creating a tornado and shooting jets of water toward the center. He teleports and launches pink orbs at me. They're slow, so I simply fly away. They explode in a huge radius and push me out of the archipelago. 

The Guardian begins firing the convergent beam again. The spectral worm reappears and follows Nebula, but it veers out of its path and comes flying toward me. Pink orbs float beside me, restricting my movement. The worm blocks the beam.

Miguel! He tamed it faster than I could have imagined.

The beam, however, is too strong and passes through the worm, striking me. I block it with my shield, so instead of dying instantly, I'm pushed toward the surface. As my body hits the ground, a massive shockwave devastates the landscape. I try to get up, but solar flares bombard the area, each as powerful as a nuclear weapon. Then, meteors strike me. Darkness sets in.

I wake up in the middle of the huge crater.

I died...? The damage is still here, so I must have passed out.

I fly back to the archipelago as fast as I can. Nebula and Miguel are still fighting him relentlessly. I punch him in the face, triggering a massive explosion. He teleports and creates two clones again. The one aimed at me fires a lightning bolt, which I dodge. I cast a beam of sunlight at him with my sword, killing him instantly.

One of the others fights Nebula with his fists and legs. Nebula blocks each attack with her arms, but they grow stronger and faster. He punches the ground, summoning a magical red fist that strikes her from above. She grips the fist with her hands, struggling to stay upright. The spectral worm devours him.

The real one launches blue stars at each of us, bombarding the islands with starbursts. Nebula hurls an entire island with her scepter. The Guardian is hit, then teleports to the front of the castle, hunched over and bleeding.

The storm spirit fires a bolt of lightning, which he blocks with another. I throw the spear, striking him several times. Nebula hurls more chunks of ground, which he blocks with his other hand and erects a magical shield. Miguel wraps his whip around the Guardian's arms, restraining them. Meteorites rain down on Miguel. His sand warrior blocks the debris with his shield, but they're too strong and knocks him down.

The Guardian breaks free from the whip and summons the magic book in front of him. The beam begins to converge again. It's much larger this time, each lesser ray enough to engulf my entire body. He also fires solar flares, which follow each of us. The lightning continues to follow me, so I fly away from Miguel and Nebula as quickly as possible.

Miguel's sand woman summon a sand tornado and hurl sand spikes at the Guardian. The spectral worm pushes him away, but the book remains floating. Nebula flies to catch it, but it's too late. Solar flares hit me, and then the beam erases my existence, even with the shield. Darkness ensues.

I wake up in the same place.

Nebula holds the book in front of the entrance, now without the green barrier. She's kneeling and crying.