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Four friends stood watching the night sky. Five blasts of golden light shook the heavens. Shockwaves of heat rained upon the galaxy, melting bone and metal alike. But the friends survived.
A boy fell from the stars and landed among the four. He introduced himself as Desmos. He was hurt; one of the friends, Stella, cared for him. As time passed, they fell in love. War, however, was destined to be closer to their hearts.
There was a terrorist from the same planet as Desmos. He controlled the government and aimed to shape the universe into his image. He had destroyed Desmos's planet, leaving few survivors. Desmos was part of an order that swore to protect their home from the corrupt ruler. They had voted to replace the king with Desmos once their task was through. But it was not meant to be; the king had killed all but Desmos.
After a week of healing and rest, Desmos sensed that the king had arrived. He prepared himself for battle, and the four friends joined. They were certain of their preparations, confident in their strength, but they were overpowered by the colossal might of the tyrant king. Stella's sister, Zelda, was pierced through by his spear, perishing in the midst of friends. She was only the first to fall.
One after the other, Stella's three friends fell. Civilians, too, in their vain attempts to help, were crushed and impaled in the struggle. Desmos protected Stella with all his might, swearing to keep at least her alive.
The tyrant king cornered the two. He injected a poison into Desmos's head. It caused him to lose all memory of Stella. But that wasn't enough to deter him. With the loss of recent memories, earlier happenings were clearer to him. He rediscovered a stash of sholag berries, magical fruits from his home planet that allow one to levitate. Thanks to the power gained from the berries, he was able to knock the king down and claim his weapons.
But the king had other plans. He took Stella and used her as a shield. Though Desmos did not remember her, he hesitated to throw the king's spear. He stood poised, waiting for a moment of weakness or vulnerability. When the king bent to harm Stella, attempting to catch Desmos off guard, the resistance soldier struck. The spear drilled into the tyrant's forehead. He dropped to the charred earth and twitched one final time before the breath left his lungs for good. Desmos claimed the crown, but with no people to rule, he did not claim the title.
Leadership belonged instead to Stella. The aftermath of the destruction was awful. Many people scattered to other lands. For those who stayed, however, hard work awaited. Rubble and charred remains were slowly cleared away, and neighbouring cities sent assistance as the months rolled by. Desmos was joined by other refugees from his planet, and as their numbers increased, the progress became more visible. The city began to look alive again.
Stella was at the forefront of it all. She took on a new personality to go with her role; at first she was shy and quiet, but she flourished in her new position, even singing campfire songs in the beginning to calm and reassure the people. The campfire jam sessions turned into concerts. The concerts turned into a tradition.
A year after the supernova, Desmos and Stella married. The city cleanup kept them busy, but at night, they shared their dreams with each other. Four years after their first meeting, they had children—twin boys called Damien and Zorion. Six years after the tragic destruction of Stella's home city, she stood behind a podium and addressed an audience of thousands. She told her story and stated her goals. The people elected her as mayor.
Ten years after she became mayor, Stella was visited by an ambassador. The woman was from Desmos's planet. She wore a dress that sparkled like silver. Her eyes shone like amber. She announced the reconstruction of their home on a planet neighbouring Earth and the ease of travel between the two. Her clothing was a symbol of their accumulated wealth. She brought good tidings of peace. Stella knew what to do.
She spoke to the leader of her country and arranged a meeting with the world's leaders. By the end of the year, every country in the world had signed a treaty with the other planet's government. Some treaties told of peace, some spoke only of trade agreements, and others showed mutual support in case of war. Stella watched proudly as each signature was scratched into each document. There was no question. She and her husband had changed the world.
Something unexpected happened. Desmos was offered the throne. He had been promised it in the past, but things had changed. There was no tyrant on the throne. Desmos saw the good acts of the new, younger king and rejected the offer. He gave the ambassador the crown to return to its rightful head. He needed no throne or crown, no riches or castle; he had his wife and children. To him, they were worth billions of kingdoms combined.
As the world kept turning and life went on, the people adjusted to their new neighbours and new lives. Unions between people from Earth and people from Desmos's planet—a name unfortunately unable to be translated to English—formed left and right. Children who were legal citizens of both planets were born and grew up. Centuries passed, but Desmos and Stella were never forgotten. Their story was told by their children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and every generation after them—even their friends' descendants. Just as Stella's concerts had become a tradition, her story was told at every holiday celebration. Her and Desmos's love was carried in their family for millenia, even when the worst happened. Tragedy only made them stronger. They carried the tradition Stella and Desmos started.
Zelda was honoured as a hero, along with Stella's other friends. Statues were carved in their memory and placed in the square of Stella's city. The people remembered them fondly through their stories. There was even a festival in the city, a day reserved specifically for the heroic girls who had just wanted to stargaze and have fun. They were mourned and celebrated year after year.
This is a story about family.
This is a story about love.
This is a story about decision.
This is a story about loss.
This is a story about reconstruction.
This is a story about hope.
This could be your story.
Minus the aliens.