Hi @vasigo. This is an intriguing story. While you weren’t able to join our contest, I appreciate that you posted this imaginative tale in our community!
It is definitely in “first draft” state. I encourage you to improve the story for future readers. There are some words missing and misspelled. But it’s a good story in the making! If you do decide to revise it, think about how much information you reveal to the reader and when.
It feels as though we are left in the dark. We are never told who Aurora is, what the shadow play is, or really why the protagonist is on this mission. Those would be important details to include.
Thanks for encouragement suggestions, @jayna. You're right, I left you in the dark. Know why? Because I cut the story due to words count. But I dint't want to reveal the words count because it would disturb the idea of gradual development of the characters and conflicts. I continue the story and provide more information about the protagonist's mission and Aurora.
And, yes. I have to take care of misspelling and vocabulary.
If you want to know what the shadow play is, here the answer. Check the image source link to read the explanation of the image.
image source
Ah, interesting. Thanks for that link to the NASA site, @vasigo. I went to the link and read about it. That's really cool! But there's nothing there that says "shadow play."
I really like that haunting term in your story. I just think it needs to be explained within the story's context. Even one sentence would do!
I didn't see your second draft come through. It's too late to post the final draft now, as the deadline has passed, but you're welcome to edit the original draft if you choose.