Seungwan is a child of Apollo, with a golden heart and a burning soul. Day after day, since the dawn began, she leashes his flaming steeds and sears the sun across the sky. Smiling Seungwan of the sunlit eyes, worshipped and adored, too gentle, too kind. 

Diligent Seungwan, devoted Seungwan. Never to love, never to be loved, meant to be alone. She’ll stand by her duty until the sun burns out. Shining Seungwan, Apollo’s favourite child. Smiling Seungwan, of the empty heart and the honey eyes.

The other children of the sun can envy but they cannot touch. They seek to claim their father’s chariot for their own. But gods cannot harm gods, as heaven decreed.

The hearts of men are fickle and full of greed. This, the other children know.  

They come in great numbers, fair and false, to hunt Seungwan and claim her life. They come from all the corners of the earth, armed with sword and shield. Led by champions with golden armour and molten eyes.  

These are mortals touched by the fire of careless gods.

Shining Seungwan, with her bleeding heart and gentle soul cannot bear to smite these golden fools with fire-touched souls; to spill their life’s blood, to take their life’s breath from their mortal shell.

Smiling Seungwan is laid low by a torrent of fire, let loose from Orion’s blazing bow. Seungwan is a child of the sun, kind and gentle she may be, but still she bleeds ichor and the heaves shake with fury. 

She falls from her chariot, falls from the skies, falls onto gleaming sand and closes her eyes. 

Joohyun of the bone-white sands, ocean born and ocean blessed. Night after night, she goes to where the sand and the ocean meet. Ocean-drunk and imbued with moonlight, she dances with a spear of silver and dreams of blood on bone, foam-topped waves lapping at her feet.

Ever-waiting Joohyun watches and waits. Waits for her fate as it is destined to be. Lovely Joohyun, lonely Joohyun, waits in her little kingdom by the sea.

She finds sleeping Seungwan on the edges of the shore. She cradles a golden head and takes Seungwan home. 

Sleeping Seungwan wakes to eyes of night. 

Dark of hair and fair of skin, child of the calm sea and a silent night. Radiant in her beauty and fierce in her rage, Joohyun is devoted to the endless repetition of her waiting days and dancing nights.

Seungwan is an eternity and more, heavier than the heavens and more distant that the furthest sea. She smiles with sunset eyes and seething tides and Joohyun’s heart aches in a way it hasn’t ever before. It is a call that calls her. A pull that pulls her. And Joohyun does not deny it. Knows that she never will. 

‘Won’t you stay with me? Won’t you be adored?’ 

Seungwan wants to stay. Seungwan wants to be adored. Shining Seungwan is selfish for the first time since the dawn began. 

Now there is no more Shining Seungwan, no more days for Joohyun to wait. But their meeting was never meant to be. The fates be cruel, and the fates be kind, allowing them this one meeting before the end of their time.  

Radiant Apollo, comes to take his child home, to tear apart this union of  golden sun and patient sea. 

‘Child, sweet child, you and Joohyun are not fated to be. You are too glowing, too bright, to join with a child of the night.’

Love-touched Seungwan understands her father’s words. That it was never fated, never meant to be. 

Fate is but a tangle of strings. It brings gods and mortals together and then wrenches them apart. 

But Seungwan has been loyal, Seungwan has served. Drawn the sun across the sky since the world began to turn. There has been none more devoted, none more persevering. And fate can be fickle, fate can be bought. 

The Moirai spin, measure, and cut. Honoured  crones since time began. ‘The world must be balanced. The sun must descend and the moon must rise. Sun-blessed Seungwan must cease to exist if you wish to embrace the child of the ocean and the night.’

Smiling Seungwan begs her father for a boon. ‘I am too glowing, too golden to join with a child of the night. Strip me of your blessings, father, please. ’

Godly Apollo does not wish his child to fade as mortals do. But a child of day will not accept the night. His silver sister offers to assist her favourite niece. ‘We are one flesh, one soul, one and the same. I will swap her gold for silver and give her the blessing of my name.’

Shining Seungwan falls from the heavens and shines no more. She falls beneath the waves and their foam-topped crests. The oceans scream and the waters froth and she is born anew.

And so moon-gilt Seungwan rises to walk the whirling tides, to swing the waves on their silver leash. Still glowing, still ethereal, still a blessed child of the gods. Moon-blight Seungwan is not who she used to be. Not as gentle, not as loving, not as kind to mortalkind. Still, she loves Joohyun, and now it’s fated to be.

Softly shining Seungwan says ‘There’s no need to wait any longer, for I am here. What the fates have bind together, none can tear apart.’ 

The sun still envies but it cannot touch. The soldiers of the sun come once again. 

The ocean is willing and the flesh is weak, vigilant Joohyun scours the sand and cleanses them of their golden taint. Lays them low in Seungwan's name, steals their life's breath so that a smile might be bestowed on her in turn.  

Moon-struck Joohyun feels her lust for battle grow. Seungwan smiles at her with every death. Kisses her with every mortal’s stolen life breath.