Moonlight Bound: A Curse Written In Love

CHAPTER 001 Zara’s Point of View My twelfth birthday seemed very strange to me. Not bad-weird. Just… off. The air above Glenvar was not moving. The wind felt like it was holding in a tight, sharp breath. I was in the backyard, lit by paper lanterns, while my family sang to me, but my heart was making too much noise for me to smile. Aidan pulled a silly face as he stood behind the cake. There are twelve candles for you, Z. That’s it. Just the right amount is all that’s needed. Cormac scowled and attempted to apply some frosting to his tongue. “You’re the ancient one, not her,” he replied. I chuckled, but I felt a strange feeling inside. A cold feeling spread up my arms. I glanced through the hedge into the forest, and I thought I spotted something moving for a moment. “Zara?” I was pulled back to the cake. “Sorry. Yeah. I’m starting now! All my friends yelled for me to make a wish. I shut my eyes, took a deep breath, and everything erupted. Boom. Not as if fireworks. I’d never heard anything like it before. The sky sounded like a window shattering. All of a sudden, the wind that had been holding back burst into the backyard, trying to destroy everything. Lanterns flew. Tables flipped. People screamed. And then—figures. Black cloaks. Faces hidden. Moving by gliding, not by walking. They emerged from the woods in the same way smoke does. Quick, quiet and very fierce. “Mamá!” I shouted, but she had left. Gone in a moment of confusion. I tried to run away, but I collided with a tall, cold figure dressed in grey and possessing glowing green eyes. Mistress Camille. She smiled at me and seemed to know all the things I’d never said. “Zara Byrne. Finally.” He took hold of my hand. “Run!” We tried. I promise we did. But time—time stopped working. Everything slowed. People stood still, screaming, eyes staring, as if they were statues. The wind stopped abruptly in the middle of its rush. “W-What’s happening?” I couldn’t say anything. Kilian stood alongside Camille, and his hands were filled with red energy. “Bring her.” “No!” Cormac shouted and pushed his way through the crowd, as if it weren’t frozen. Leave her alone! He charged at them, but Camille waved her hand, and he fell just like a puppet with its strings removed. I screamed. Shortly after, the third one began. Ziva. Her hair drifted around her like smoke, and her voice pierced my bones. She is the one I need. Blood-borne. Marked.” Marked? What was the point of that? She took my wrist and used a silver knife to cut me. You’ll notice it. Just once.” “No! Don’t!” She refused to hear what I was saying. The blade cut into my palm, making me feel hot, sharp, and deep. I shouted and tried to get free. But suddenly, my blood started to shine. Not red. By a long shot, no. It glowed like a bright fire, twisting in the air as if it were moving. “That’s wonderful,” Camille whispered. They were fast at work, drawing symbols on the ground, in the air and around me. The magic formed a chain around the house. Aidan wouldn’t stop shouting my name. Cormac made his way toward me as best he could. I felt like screaming again, but the light kept getting tighter around me. I could feel my skin tingling. I felt a burning sensation in my bones. “Stop it! Please!” Ziva completed the casting of the spell. “Now.” There was nothing but white before me. I couldn’t stand any longer. I wasn’t even close to falling. I just wasn’t there anymore. --- Darkness. Cold. Silence. I found myself lying down on some stone. Not grass. Not carpet. Stone. I quickly sat straight up. I could feel my head throbbing. I still saw blood coming from my palm, though it wasn’t dripping—it floated. Tiny lights danced across the sky. I gasped. What was I doing? A cell? A cave? A green light emanated from the walls, looking much like veins in the rock. No doors. No windows. Just symbols. Marks cover every stone. And whispers. Soft. Low. They didn't sound like actual voices. I noticed, though, that they were calling out for me. Zara. Zara. Zara. I held my knees tightly to keep myself from crying. Why me? What goals did they have? I pressed my hand to my palm. The blood shimmered once more. I'm still glowing. Still wrong. I wondered why my blood was acting like that. A quick burst of light appeared in the sky. She came back, appearing suddenly out of thin air as if it were a stage curtain. “You’re safe,” she told me, and it made me even more furious. I wonder where I am. “A place you can’t be found by anyone. Yet.” “Why me?” I demanded. What happened to me? She moved nearer to me. You were meant to do this. It’s not something you can remember. Not yet.” I wish I could go back home. “That is what will happen,” she said. However, you’re not going to stay the same. She left. The light went away. I was by myself once more. Time was different in that place. I wasn’t sure how long I stayed in that position. However, the atmosphere shifted at some point. Warm. Then warmer. Thereafter, it was too hot. I felt weak as I got to my feet. The walls became brighter. Thereafter, something broke. There was a c***k in the wall, but it looked more like a shadow. And someone made their way through. It was a boy, not an evil one. Not evil. A boy. I would say she was a year older than me. Hair that is a little tangled and dark. A shadow around his eyes. He seemed to have waited a lifetime for me to appear. He told me, “You’re real.” I didn’t change my position. “What’s your name?” They told me you would come. They told us you were the one who would make a difference. “What are you saying?” He walked up to me. You’re known as the Blood-Bright. You will be the one to open the gate. I’m not sure why this is happening. He reached out his hand to me. Follow me. I’ll demonstrate it for you. I didn’t have faith in him. Even so, I would rather not be alone. I grabbed his hand. When we touched, I felt a rush of fire from my arm. He didn't burn, but remained alive. His eyes got bigger. “I guess that’s true,” he said. The next thing we noticed was that the floor split open. There was a significant amount of movement. There was a massive, wild c***k that ran straight down the middle. A loud noise erupted from below. Something was on the way. He pulled me in his direction. “Run!” We ran back to the same c***k where he’d come through. But the ground gave way behind us, and stones tumbled into the darkness below. Whatever was about to happen—it was very near. Fast. Hungry. “What is that?” I shouted. He was staring at me in fear. They have locked down one of them here with you. “Why?” “So you’d never have to leave me.” We managed to leap into the c***k right as the floor behind us broke apart. Yet, I heard it before any of that happened. A voice. Low. Cruel. Laughing. “She’s all mine!” I’m feeling shaky even now. I have sore legs. The information is all jumbled in my thoughts. He tells us we are in the Lower Keep, although he doesn’t explain what that is. He says I can get out, but only if I give my blood once more. I simply don’t know. I don’t feel like it. Even so, the voice continues to pursue us in the darkness. There are even more opportunities to discover. More traps. More secrets. What am I like? What happened to me? What made my blood shine so much? What is it that makes this thing want me? Why do I keep wondering if I’ve experienced this before? I’m not just a person they happened to find. However, this place exists for a reason. Could it be that the primary concern isn't that I've been taken? Could it be that my purpose here is the greatest challenge? What is my true identity? What if I’m not meant to return to my home?