The library tower stood silent under the pale moonlight, its ancient spires clawing at the night sky. Inside, shadows stretched across the marble floor as Seraphina moved between towering shelves, her fingertips brushing spines worn with time. She wasn't sure what she was searching for—only that something was calling her.
Cassian waited near the entrance, keeping watch, though he said nothing. She knew he didn't like her wandering off, especially now. Especially after that masked figure had vanished into mist, leaving behind more questions than answers.
She found it tucked behind a crumbling volume of battle strategy—a slim book bound in dark velvet. No title. No markings. Just a faint silver symbol etched into the cover: a crescent moon pierced by a single flame.
Seraphina opened it carefully. The pages were handwritten, the ink faded but still legible.
> "When the Moonmarked rises, the flames of the Everflame must not flicker. Only the Lightbearer can quell the storm, but only if she dares look into the dark."
Her pulse quickened. These were not the ramblings of a scholar. This was a warning.
A prophecy.
Again.
Cassian's voice pulled her back to the present. "Someone's here."
He had drawn his sword, his stance alert. Seraphina closed the book and turned—
And there, at the far end of the hall, stood the masked figure.
No mist. No tricks. Just stillness.
"You followed me," Seraphina said, forcing calm into her voice.
The figure tilted its head. "You followed the flame. As expected."
Its voice was distorted—low, almost melodic. Neither male nor female. The kind that could haunt dreams.
"What do you want from me?" she asked.
"Not want," the figure said softly. "Warn. The darkness you fear… is already within your gates."
Cassian stepped forward. "Who are you?"
The figure took a single step back. "A shadow of what once was. A whisper of what is to come."
Seraphina clutched the book tighter. "Tell me about the Moonmarked."
The figure hesitated… then spoke:
> "Born beneath a cursed eclipse, they were once of the Flame but turned away. One still lives, hiding behind many faces. When the Everflame awakens, so will they. And the Lightbearer must choose… mercy, or fire."
Then, like mist touched by dawn, the figure vanished.
Cassian cursed under his breath. "They keep slipping away. Every time."
But Seraphina didn't move. Her thoughts churned like stormy seas.
Someone within the kingdom… was Moonmarked.
Someone she might already know.
And when the time came… she would have to choose between saving them—
—or stopping them.
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