{Emerald's POV}

I remember my childhood as always questioning if I was happy... I had a basic family... A mother... a father... and an older sister... I can't remember her name... it's all a blur... Our parents were abusive at most... in public, they were viewed as the utmost proud award-winning actors... Well to gain the 'parent of the year' award but at home, they are very abusive. Never letting us eat unless we were eating out which was very rare. My older sister, I miss her, working on chores and trying to raise me. My parents basically ignored us at home but paid the utmost attention to us in public... It felt strange to call my sister, sister... she felt more like a mother than a sister... though she was merely a teenager when I was just a toddler... she sacrificed herself many beatings just to make sure I was fed...

All at the hands of my parents... Punishments even went as far as being tied to the giant oak tree in the backyard... After they had beaten my sister with several kitchen utensils including the butchering knives... My sister would grab my little toys or turn on the radio locking the room before each beating... I didn't mind as I was young and naive... I was a toddler then but when I reached early childhood I began to notice the difference... It was little things until the day my sister was beaten and tied outside... I watched it all happen and I just... stood there frozen...watching it all happen... Right after I did run out and stayed with my sister for that night...

But it all came to a sudden drop when I confronted my parents that I don't feel comfortable as a boy... I wanted to be a girl... the rage and red that I saw that day... I first handled the pain of a beating... There the pain doubled each time I even tried to speak to my so-called parents... My sister, trying her best, took many beatings that belonged to me... "You don't deserve the pain," I remember her saying, "you deserve the utmost love and care." I didn't know how to feel like the only one who truly cared for me was my sister...

When I began experimenting with makeup and dresses... My sister always helped and did them for me and told me that I am such a lovely lady... She supported me all the way... Soon she joined the workforce and worked from midnight to seven in the morning and bought me things to help me transition into what she called "a beautiful sister"... She respected me and we came up with Emerald to be my new name... She became a young adult soon after the third lunar eclipse... I remember her coming into my room late at night... Long past our parents had fallen asleep... She roused me from the bed and had me gather a few things... And just like that we left during the night and went on the train... She worked night and day at a press company to make ends meet and had me start attending the public's learning facility... It was a dreamy life until... The first appearance of the Nightmare mist... My sister was running errands for the press company as I had found out while looking for my sister that day...

I sat at the train station where I knew my sister's train would be coming as I had gotten the information from the nice gentleman who had been the one to give my sister the ticket earlier that morning... There was gossip as I picked up worry in a sobbing mother's voice... Telling of a dark mist sweeping the train over... Covering it like a fog... The nice gentleman that told me about which train came up to me and patted my shoulder... "We lost the location of the train... A fog is preventing the communication between the command center and the train but we are working hard to get those passengers home alright young miss?" They asked gently as if I was a clay doll... I remember nodding my head as the gentleman smiled and walked away... Time had passed so slowly... I thought I would fall asleep... But it came crashing down when the squealing of brakes alerted me...

Shouting and mayhem were all around me... I struggled to see what was happening but then everything slowed down... My sister's train was on and made here but showed no signs of stopping or slowing down... This train's endpoint is the train station or else it would be off the tracks... The mist slowly dragged in but came no further as several lumerians gathered at the entrance making a shield blocking it to enter... Some even shout that it should've been only a fairytale and ask why it was real... Is the mist a bad omen?... I could not think anymore as I felt overbearing and overwhelmed...

The train did not stop until it hit the concrete wall... Pure chaos is the best I could describe it as many ran to help with the wreckage... I was held back by an elderly demon saying that it was too dangerous for youth to be close to the wreckage... I screamed and cried to reach for the train that my sister was on... The train that wrecked was the train my sister was on... The gentlemen from before took off their cap and kneeled in front of me... sorrow in their eyes showed everything... My sister did not make it... She died on the impact the gentlemen explained... I was alone... for the first time I experienced what it was truly like when I returned home alone... I couldn't begin to think of how I was going to survive without my sister... Everything I closed my eyes on, all I could see was me standing on the platform watching in horror as the train crashed directly into the concrete wall...

It kept repeating like a never-ending nightmare... I started to even see my sister's shadow in the corners of the room whenever it was getting dark or I had no lights on... A haunting voice taunting me about my sister's death... Please stop... no more... Please just stop... No more...

"EMERALD WAKE UP" I felt arms grip onto my shoulder and slightly shake me awake. Wait. I fell asleep. But I don't know when I fell asleep. Opening my eyes I saw that Chuma was the one shaking me as Kur stood behind him holding a ball of light. Looking around the mist was receded several feet behind Kur. Was it they who was making the Nightmare mist recede? "Emerald, what happened?" Chuma asked with a concerned voice.

"I-I'm not sure," I slowly answered as Chuma helped me to sit up and waved Kur somewhat closer... I watched the Nightmare mist recede further away from us as the ball of light in Kur's hands grew brighter. "All I remember seeing was a shadow as I took a step closer to warn them and then nothing..." Chuma hummed as he tore a piece of cloth off the curtain of the window on the train and poured something that was in a glass becker before wringing it out and handing it to me.

"Tie it around like a bandana cause when we found you the mask was torn to pieces," Chuma spoke through the plague doctor mask as I did as instructed, "so something is hiding in the mist and is immune to the mist... Do you think it could be a corrupted Celestial Kur?" Corrupted Celestial? I thought those were only fairy tales to scare little children. But if they are speaking about corrupted celestials then what does that mean? I have to find out... I need to know more...

"It is a possibility though I sense nothing as of right now," Kur spoke with a hint of anger in their voice, something must've happened between them and the corrupted celestials, "it might be even creatures known as mare's though they are only known as a sphinx moth and they're very small not known to cause very much harm... could it be another mare of different culture," Kur hummed thinking as they made the light grow brighter as I noticed the Nightmare mist recede further back that was trying to come closer to us, "no those one's only attack the masculine spectrum and not feminine spectrum... this doesn't make sense unless those ones were corrupted after I fell from my star... There are several different ones but none of them really showed so much aggression before until now... If I could catch one in the act then I could determine what type of mare they are... but seeing how it's attacking others then it needs to be stopped before anything else."

"Wait," I said uncertainty, I need answers, "are you the one keeping the nightmare mist at bay?" Chuma turned to Kur before I saw him nod as Kur nod back.

"As I stated before I was once the Neverland Star," Kur coughed, "an unfortunate event happened and my star fell apart and yet I survived due to an unknown cause I have been staying in a faraway land being cared for by the residents there and just a day ago I wanted to truly take action and bring the one that caused so much harm down and make them repent to all the harm that they have done to myself and others... Chuma is traveling with me because my caregiver couldn't come due to their weaknesses and I didn't wish any harm on them." Kur seemed distant and avoided certain details. It must've really traumatized them for them to be avoiding certain details. "Seeing how I am still able to use my powers, the nightmare mist is simply a water vapor that is purified through the light that I produce."

"We should stay close to Kur as the mist does not wish to be near them," Chuma stood and looked around, "but where is that burning smell is coming from..." Burning smell? Chuma didn't make any sense until I smelt it as well. The smell of seering flesh... Someone fell into a nightmare coma on something hot or flaming...