Laying in bed, I was unable to do anything to help me sleep. Lily and Xeron were fast asleep, and I assumed Luna was too. I rolled onto my back and sighed sadly.

“So you can’t sleep either then Tesla?” Came Luna’s voice. I looked over and she was poking her head down from the top bunk. I shook my head. “If you want… I could come and cuddle with you…” She added, smiling. I smiled back. “Come on then…” I shifted over a bit so there was room for her. She crawled in next to me, and giggled as she put her head on the pillow beside mine. “It’s comfy here with you…” She said, wrapping her arms around me. I blushed and did the same, hugging her tightly. “You’re such a cutie when you’re like this Tesla…” Luna giggled and blushed.

I figured now was as good a time as any to tell her how I felt about her. I gulped and tried to control my nerves. “You know Luna… There is something I’ve wanted to tell you for a while now…” I said, and she tilted her head. “And what might that be?” She replied. I was so nervous, I could feel my heart beating out of my chest. I loved Luna more than anything, but I was so scared she didn’t feel the same way. “Luna I… I love you…” I said, tearing up a little. “R-really?!” She replied, smiling and blushing. I nodded and she kissed me. “I love you too… You’re so kind, and  funny, and loving, and I have to admit, very handsome…” She giggled.

“What is it about me you love then Tesla?” She said, smiling. “E-everything… Your smile, your laugh, your eyes… I love everything about you…” I said, smiling. “Aww….” Luna giggled and kissed my cheek. “Remember the picture I drew of you? I titled it ‘The Beautiful Meloetta’.” I said. She nodded and blushed. I put my paw against her cheek, and said, “Beautiful doesn’t even come close to describing you…” I smiled, and she hugged me tightly, pressing her lips against mine.

It felt like an eternity that we spent kissing, our tongues exploring each others mouths. I ran my paw through Luna’s soft, silky hair, and she stroked my fur gently. After a while, we broke the kiss and smiled, blushing madly. “We better get some sleep now cutie…” Luna said, her cheeks a deep crimson. I nodded and we fell asleep in each others arms.

I woke up early the next morning with Luna sill in my arms. “Aww…” I thought. She was still asleep, and she looked like an angel. I just wanted to lay there and watch her, but the others would be getting up soon. “Luna?” I said quietly, and gently nudged her awake. “It’s time to get up baby…” I smiled as she yawned. “Morning cutie…” She said sleepily. “Are you okay with the others knowing about us?” I asked. She nodded. “As long as we love each other, I don’t care who knows.” I blushed. “I couldn’t have put it better myself.” I grinned. “But we have training today. We better get up and ready, and we can tell the others while we are walking there.” She added, and I nodded.

We both got up and got washed, then we put all our equipment on and woke up Xeron and Lily. Once we were all ready, we walked o the Training Room, and we told Lily and Xeron about how me and Luna were going out now. They seemed pretty happy, they just congratulated us. “I hoped you two would get together!” Lily grinned. I blushed as we went into the Training Room.

Team Slasher were already there waiting for us. “This will be your most difficult challenge yet. You must catch a cannonball… After it has been fired from a cannon like this.” Tyson smiled. We all looked at him in disbelief. “How the heck are we supposed to do that?” Luna exclaimed. “Don’t worry, we have halved the amount of gunpowder we used so it is nowhere near as powerful.” Tyson laughed.

“Lets change the order up a bit. Luna, you’re up first.” Axel said. Luna stepped up and Talon set up the cannon. As soon as he lit the fuse, I felt a sense of dread. “What was that?” I said to myself. I quickly used my Aura Sense to try and find any intruders. I found nothing, until I looked at the cannon. “Oh shit… They used the wrong Gunpowder pack! It’s got double the normal amount!” I screamed internally.

Without thinking, I sprinted at Luna, just as the cannon went off. I managed to knock her out of the way, and she grunted as she fell over. “Ouch!” She said. Sadly, I couldn’t get out of the way, and the cannonball, travelling at nearly Mach 4, crashed into my chest. The force it hit me with sent me hurtling into the wall, embedding me in it slightly. “Agghh…” I yelped weakly as I felt all the air leave my body from the impact. I fell to my feet, and stood there wobbling for a few seconds. I could feel blood pooling inside my body, and as I tried walking forward, I just collapsed, hitting the ground with a thud.

Everyone was silent. They couldn’t believe what had just happened. “Tesla!!!” Luna screamed, before running over to me. Everyone ran over to try and help. Talon picked me up and Luna was almost sick from crying. “We need to get him to Zerka now!” He bellowed. “I’ll go tell him what happened.” Xeron  said, before disappearing.

Talon and the others took me to Zerka the Alakazam, a legendary medic who had worked for Talon for many years, and was the head surgeon in the base. “Xeron told me everything. He needs to have surgery now.” He said, taking me from Talon and putting me on a stretcher. The others all waited outside in the waiting room, hoping and praying for me to pull though.