The Second Moon
A parable
The planet of Nibiru only had one moon but on a clear night sky it had two - or so the legends said.1
Isaac, a mathematician and our hero in this story, was hellbent on proving the non-existence of this second moon. You see, Isaac was the type of Nibirunean to see a bright star and mutter that it was likely extinguished long ago. To someone like Isaac, the alleged beauty of the second moon was beside the point - the point being that the legend of the second moon was the second biggest lie in the history of Nibiru, a lie that Isaac vowed to dispel from the face of his planet.2
And so, Isaac sought a mathematical proof that would disprove the existence of Nibiru’s second moon. For nearly twenty years Isaac lived his life in isolation, methodically churning out papers that would lay the foundation for his hopefully fatal blow on Nibiru’s most fabled myth.
Isaac’s labors did not go unrewarded.
After decades of work, he finalized his proof, definitively showing that there was in fact only one moon that orbited around Nibiru, even during the mythical cloudless night sky. Given the magnitude of his achievement, even the normally reserved Isaac knew a celebration was in order.
On Nibiru, celebrations are mostly about gloating3, so it was quite fitting that Isaac decided to take a celebratory vacation in Lake Trast, the most common viewing point for sightings of the second moon.
By the time Isaac reached his desired vista point high above Lake Trast, it was nightfall. As Isaac stepped out of his vehicle, he looked over the vista point to see the majestic lake, the surrounding frost-tipped mountains, and the clarity in which he saw the stars -
Isaac’s mouth nearly dropped to the floor. For the first time in his life, Isaac was viewing a clear night sky.
There is a saying on Nibiru that the awe-struck man marvels at a glorious sunset while the man of reason shrugs thinking that the sun has set for a billion years so what’s so special about this time.
For once, Isaac was the awe-struck man. It seemed then to Isaac that the most beautiful things in life should be tucked away from reason, so as to not be diminished by it.
For what felt like an eternity, Isaac sat down at the vista point soaking in the scenery: the star-speckled sky and its two - yes, two - moons.
The first moon of Nibiru rested high above the distant mountain ranges, luminous as it would ever be in Isaac’s lifetime. And below the mountain range, on the reflective surface of Lake Trast, lay the second moon which shimmered brightly in the moonlight.
The legends were popular enough such that Nibiru’s intergalactic flag consisted of two moons superimposed over an ocean-blue background. If you look closely enough at the flag, you’ll notice that one of the moons had an asterisk.
The biggest lie told on Nibiru was that things would be better in the afterlife. For most, it was just warmer there.
After the annual Sportsball Championship on Nibiru, it was customary for the losing team to cook the celebratory dinner for the victors.