Prologue: A new moonborn
The moonlight filters through the opening of the cave, casting a soft glow on my face. Several lanterns have been placed strategically across the rock formation for my 18th birthday, or more accurately, for the emergence of my celestial powers.
My grandmother extends her wrinkled, dark hand, and I latch onto it.
Her warm touch anchors me to the ground, to the reality of what this occasion means. For me and my people—the Moonwhispers of the land of Moonha. She looks at me reassuringly before joining the rest of the Elders surrounding me.
It is time.
Without warning, a searing pain shoots through my veins. It is not the gentle hum of magic I’ve been told about or read in stories. It burns deep, eating at my very soul—a raging beast of raw energy and power.
A blinding light shoots from the lunar mark on my chest, right below my left collarbone. It continues to ignite across my veins, engulfing me. It is so bright that I am forced to close my eyes, and my body trembles with torrents of energy. Soon, the ground rumbles and groans beneath my feet, shaking like a mild earthquake.
The light streaks through the cave opening to the sky like a beacon. A signal that a new Moonborn has emerged. While this is a symbol of hope for my people, it is also a direct threat to my life.
It's evident that the spies from the Sunstone Kingdom have seen the beacon and sent word to their king of the new threat to their monarchy.
It’ll only be a matter of days before I’m captured or killed, just like the other Moonborns before me.
