Chapter 42. The Black Moon Rises

She woke before the distant drumbeats could even find her ears. Before the hushed tolling that usually drifted up from the watchtowers, and certainly before the faint tang of ash that sometimes rode on the twilight wind. She woke before Kai’s familiar warmth beside her could register as absence—although she hadn’t heard him slip away, the empty space under the covers had already grown cold, carrying its own quiet announcement that something was wrong.

The moons—their twin silver orbs that normally glowed above Volamed like patient guardians—had simply vanished. They weren’t hiding behind a curtain of clouds, nor were they following the usual cycle of waxing or waning. This felt drastic, like someone had quietly erased them from the sky. Lora sat up on the edge of her bed, the silk sheets slipping around her legs in soft, whispering ripples that tumbled to the floor as though she had disturbed a hidden pool of water.

The stone chamber around her was enormous yet oddly int