Prologue
*Moonshine, Colorado*
That night, four incredibly special children were born under a cloudless sky, reigned by a majestic blue moon.
Running on a skeleton staff, the tiny hospital of Moonshine was in complete uproar. Four deliveries were happening on the same night and at the exact same time. A situation like this had never been heard of in such a small town.
But these incredible children were part of a groundbreaking fertility program created by a famous clinic called Mundi. The local staff had been properly prepared. But even though they were provided with the specific training to handle such a unique group birth, it was all still quite overwhelming.
Little did the staff know that this out-of-this-world experience had been foretold hundreds of years ago by another species from another planet in a faraway galaxy called Sunthea.
A planet remarkably like earth, with blue oceans and mountains covered in lush green vegetation.
A planet called Mundi.
The action started soon. And the first child to be born was...
Blue.
"A strong Water son will be born under the Blue moon. He will be gifted with wisdom beyond his age and will be the natural-born leader that will bring the four clans together with one mindset: A future based on common sense and the well-being of all." As predicted by a Water Clan Oracle hundreds of years ago.
Blue popped out quickly and easily, without even one little cry. With almost twelve pounds, he was born to the powerful lineage of the invincible warrior Lyr -- master of the oceans, rivers, and lakes of Mundi.
His human parents were ecstatic to welcome a strong and healthy baby boy with intelligent blue eyes. It was all that was promised to them by the Mundi Clinic and more.
Forest's birth came close second.
"Under the Blue Moon, he will be born. With his deep connection to our planet, he will have the exceptional capability to commune with nature and understand the changes that must happen for the betterment of our planet. Like no one else had been able to, he will teach the four clans how to live in harmony with our environment once more." It was foreseen by a Forest Clan Oracle.
This boy's gentle but curious soul was clearly expressed in his unusually luminous green eyes. The little smile on his face delighted just as much as it surprised all around him, especially because newborns didn't smile. Bran, the master of the mountains and forests of Mundi, was very well represented in this old soul.
His human parents couldn't stop smiling, overcome with joy.
And then...
Came Red.
An oracle did not predict this little boy's birth. In fact, there hadn't been a Fire Oracle in existence for over two hundred Mundi years. The Fire clan faced total extinction in the near future since they weren't allowed to produce offspring anymore.
With a pair of strange fiery-red eyes, little baby Red made a dramatic entrance right after Forest. He burst out screaming like a banshee and stressing out the already exhausted doctor and nurses. The birth of the son of Kal, ruler of the unpredictable elemental power of fire, started in pure havoc, and promised even more trouble to come.
In the end, his mother was exhausted but just as happy as the other parents. As a single parent for the first time, her head was filled with worries about raising a child all on her own. But when she saw and heard her little Red screaming his head off, she couldn't help but smile, reminded of his father's strong character.
Yes, they were going to be alright; she thought.
Her Red was a fighter.
And finally...
The fourth and last child that came that night was the most extraordinary of the deliveries in Mundi history ... While also the most tragic.
The miracle the Mundi people had hoped for and prayed for the last five generations had finally happened... But unfortunately, not without a devastating cost.
She, the first female Mundi to be born in the last three hundred years, was named Luna with the last breath of her human mother. And when her incredibly bright silver eyes popped open, every person in the room gasped in amazement over the beautiful baby girl.
"Under the Blue Moon, born from love eternal, she will enter this world to save our kind. The Air Clan daughter will partner with the strongest of all the Mundi, uniting all clans and leading us into prosperity." As foretold by an Air Clan Oracle.
None of the clueless humans present were aware that they had just witnessed a moment in Mundi history that would come to change the future of the suffering distant planet.
These four special babies were destined to change the history of Mundi with their unique traits and abilities.
Well, except for Red, the Fire Clan offspring. It was clear that the little misfit was special all on his own. But time would tell if he was born to work with the other three or against them.
While Mundi's harsh environment had only stopped allowing for the natural procreation of children in the last one hundred years, the birth of females stopped happening centuries ago.
It took the Mundi explorers and scientists many years to find another biologically similar species from a planet with a compatible atmosphere that could be used to help save them from extinction.
Fortunately, it was discovered that Mundi and human DNA were similar enough that when carefully combined it could produce healthy and strong Mundi babies. But sadly, only males could be produced. Manipulating the gender had caused the loss of many female babies and even a few of the human mothers.
After careful research and extensive preparations, discreet fertility agencies were set up in every major city in the different countries on earth.
Public interest was immediate after the first amazingly successful stories. The technology was unmatched, obviously. And with the outstanding rates achieved, the Mundi Fertility Clinics were bursting with new clients, desperate to have their own healthy and strong offspring.
Little did the humans know that the predominant Mundi's DNA was carefully combined with the human couple, guaranteeing the birth of warriors for the four different elemental clans from Mundi.
The combination of the earth's environment, the slightly modified human DNA matched with the Mundi, and an extremely advanced technology permitted these clusters of Mundi births to happen everywhere around the world.
The peculiar requirement that these births needed to happen in fours, for the perfect balance of Mundi nature, was implemented under the excuse for the parents to have a support system. The future parents were made to sign detailed contracts with various requirements, such as having to remain wherever it was planned for the children to be born, allowing them to grow up together until their eighteenth birthday.
For decades, now, it all has worked like a clock. No problems. Until...
Red.
Although it was necessary for the Fire Clan to be included in the birthing schedules for the balance of nature, they weren't allowed to pass their abilities to the children because of a history of erratic behavior from the descendants. The material used for insemination from the Fire Clan had to be over-manipulated to produce more human-like children. Not even letting them be born with the typical fire-red eyes.
And that is why Red's birth was instantly noted as an aberration. A dangerous mistake. And his development would have to be supervised very closely.
On the other hand, there was Luna ...
She was the miracle offspring of a love match between a Mundi Air warrior and a human female, as it had been predicted.
But tragically, the mother passed immediately after naming her daughter, and no one in the city had ever even seen the biological father.
Luna had a grandfather, though.
After being notified of the death of his sweet daughter-in-law, James Norton took the little baby in his arms, hurting for their loss. Life couldn't be more unfair, ripping a healthy and young woman from her family, and leaving an innocent child behind.
Losing himself in the big silver eyes that stared back at him with curiosity, the fleeting feeling of resentment vanished without a trace. James knew he was a goner, already completely and utterly full of love for this little person who he didn't even know yet.
She was Luna.
That was all he knew ...
That and the fact that she was a Mundi princess, destined to save the future of their entire planet.
