The first star vanished at 2:13 a.m.
By 2:17, twelve more were gone.
Not hidden by clouds.
Not obscured by weather.
Gone.
Erased from the sky as if they had never existed.
Black Hollow noticed immediately.
Panic spread through the town.
People stepped outside their homes, staring upward at the growing emptiness above the mountains.
Children pointed.
Parents frowned.
Elders grew quiet.
Because deep down, everyone understood something terrifying.
Stars weren't supposed to disappear.
The council hall emptied within minutes.
Midnight stood outside with Kael, Lucien, Malakar, and the Hollow King as the night sky slowly unraveled overhead.
The throne beneath Draven Ridge roared.
Not with power.
With urgency.
The abyss had stopped pretending.
The Hollow Silence was moving fast
