“At the dawn of the seven royal stars, a distant prophecy breathed its first breath of life. A vast galaxy spread out before the seven royal nations, each choosing the place where they wished to see their people thrive. And from there, the Desdemona Galaxy sprang to life, beautiful and vibrant in every way. The seven kingdoms remained in harmony for thousands of years under the rule and guidance of the seven stars. Darkness, however, devoured galaxies in the far-reaches of the universe, growing in fury and jealousy of the seven stars as they reigned and protected their people from it. But, before the seven kingdoms realized it, their royals began disappearing one by one, rendering their nation in utter darkness and chaos.”

“A blackened moon on the eve of the galaxy known as the Rattler was flung out of orbit as the last royal star disappeared, falling in a blaze, powerful and bright, down to the Albiorix Planet, cracking seven hundred sixty square miles of its surface. The Rattler, hidden by mounds of rock and debris it created, continued to ooze and bleed, shaking the foundations of the Albiorix kingdom every twelve years with the volcanic eruptions from the mountain named Grim hidden deep beneath the surface.

“As the years passed, people and creatures who came close to the edge of the deep wound in Albiorix’s surface would disappear in its churning mists, fog, and ash. And as years turned to decades and then to centuries, smoke and ash constantly concealed the great wound, keeping living things from entering its dark oasis, and, thus, becoming known as the Grim Rattler.

“Not long after the Grim Rattler became a dark, endearing legend, the seven stars’ children were found. However, the children of the stars had aged and many women of their families had become barren. The stories they brought back with them told tales of terrible creatures that carried a monstrous disease... a disease that took their children from them.”

“Two of the young grandchildren of the seven stars were the only survivors, but the sister soon fell ill with the incurable Hersolysis. The young princess’ elder brother, Prince Thelxinoe, turned about, searching for a cure for the disease, only to come back empty-handed. That is, until one night during his journey, he found a plant that appeared to have a similar disease like Hersolysis. Packing rations into a sack, he set out once more searching for other signs of the disease and discovered that it had a poisonous form that withered plants and deteriorated metals, sucking the life and nutrients from the cells of the plant and dissolving the elements of the metals.”

“He took back what he had discovered to the doctors of his land and presented this information to them. In a heartbeat, the doctors and scientists put their heads together to create multiple variations of a possible antidote, and injected the first solution into the princess’s arm with her consent. However, dispute their attempts, the antidote didn’t cure her, it only slowed the process down.”

“As the days turned into months, the princess reached the fourth stage of Hersolysis. If the disease made it to stage five, she would only live for a few more weeks until she reached stage six, the stage that not one body in the whole extent of the universe could come back from. The stage turned you into a corpse and deteriorated your skeletal and muscle structures to the point where you couldn’t move and you lost the sense of touch and smell. All you could ever feel was the clock ticking, slowing down, until the minute hand never moved again.”

“Prince Thelxinoe lost hope as the days continued and eventually never stepped foot out of the palace in search of the cure. The most important thing now as his sister entered the final stage was to remain by her side until the last breath of life left her body. Princess Cassiopeia died and was buried at the age of twenty-five after fighting Hersolysis for sixteen years, the longest recorded survivor of the rare disease. Prince Thelxinoe stood by her tomb, laying a single Naiad flower on top of her memorial, its rich purple petals stained with fiery dew drips as a symbol of his love, despair, and sorrow.”

“‘Goodbye, my beautiful sister,’ he murmured, pressing the tips of his fingers over her heart before stepping back, allowing the two generals beside him lift and seal the top of the tomb, casting her in darkness.”

“Sitting on the throne years after his sister’s death, King Thelxinoe searched through his sister’s journal, the last thing he had of her, and on the page where she had stopped writing, he picked up his pen, and wrote a simple song - a song filled with love, adventure, loss, and a song of hope. At the end of the poem, he signed it with her favorite saying: ‘The life of the warrior is hard and long, but a true warrior stands up after getting knocked down and loves with their life, enduring until the end of their time.’ - to my sister, whose hope never dwindled and whose love won the hearts of her people...”

“When King Thelxinoe set the pen down, another thought occurred to him and he then set out to do what his sister had told him to do many years ago. He continued his journey to search until the end of his days for a cure, becoming a noble warrior of legend that led his men to victory when war came and peace when war left. He was the king that his sister had saw in him, the one she admired and truly loved her whole life since the day of her noble birth.”

“Not long after the song was written, King Thelxinoe passed down the throne to his eldest son and set sail on the voyage he never returned from, which is now known as the Voyage of the Hopeful Return. After the coronation of the new king of the Albiorix people, the song that the former king had composed was found by his son and celebrated each year on the Day of the Return, the day dedicated to King Thelxinoe and his voyage. The people turned his ong into their national anthem, and kings and queens, princes and princesses, nobles and ladies, leaders from all over the Desdemona Galaxy came to Albiorix to celebrate the colorful and renowned festival on the Day of the Return, bringing exotic fruits and clothing to make the celebration as wonderful as they could in honor of the king’s memory.”

Princess Jarnasaxa gazed deeply into her father’s eyes as he recounted the story of the lost king. “Is that why we dress up and dance in the streets of the Albiorix kingdom each year, Father King?”

“Yes, my lovely daughter. We travel to Albiorix to honor King Thelxinoe’s life and story.”

“Why?”

“Why do you think?” He smiled softly at her, brushing a stray hair from her face.

“Maybe to give the people who have the Incurable a symbol of hope? Right?”

“The true meaning behind the celebration has been lost to the generations, but that my dear is a good interpretation of the festival,” he said as he rose to his feet, turning around to pick her up in his arms.

“Papa,” Jarnasaxa said quietly as he held her. “Is there a cure for it now?”

“I’m afraid not, little one,” he sighed. “Doctors have said that someone must be born with an immunity to Hersolysis in order for there to be another breakthrough in the research for a cure.”

“Will the queen of the Albiorix be alright, then?”

“The doctors have found a way to slow the stages of Hersolysis by decades. We still have time to help her and discover a cure.”