Chapter 11

Three new moons have passed and soon it was the time for a faded ceremony to be painted in new contrasting colors. There were red, white and golden candles of different shapes decorating the empress residence of the Ambrose empire situated in the Dandelion Gardens inside the eastern courtyards of Palace.

It was a century old ritual which required all the females to gather in the holy shrine of the goddess of fertility and strength Riera on the day of Second moon once a decade. The prayer to the goddess was not restricted to the wish of having a child only but also closely entwined with various heartfelt beliefs that the sacred mother provided courage, beauty and valor, thus both married and unmarried women were to be present.

The holy shrine had three levels of purity, Sun was the very first level that comprised of all the Royal and aristocratic women selected to pay their tributes by standing nearer to the great sculpture of the Riera, crouched down on their knees to pa