Shadow of the Moon

Chapter 2

Estella

I had always admired Astra's unwavering spirit. I remembered a time when we were young, and a group of older fae had cornered us in the gardens, taunting us about our unusual purple eyes and snow white fair – a trait that we received from our father.

While I had shrunk back, tears welling in my eyes, Astra had stood tall, her chin lifted, her gaze unwavering. "You wouldn't dare say those things if Cyrus were here," she'd retorted, her voice laced with steel. "Maybe I should call him." The bullies had slunk away, their bravado deflated, the mere mention of our brother was enough to silence almost all of the bullies.

Despite sharing the same face, we very different people. Astra was bold and fearless, a force of nature who charged headfirst into any challenge. Whereas I, was quiet and weak, preferring to watch and listen before acting. I was known for running and hiding from all my problems, while Astra was known for facing them head on.

We were two halves of a whole, our strengths complementing each other perfectly. We were connected, not just by blood, but by an invisible thread that wove through our very souls. I remembered when I scraped my knee as a child, Astra had cried out in pain, miles away in her own room. And when Astra was heartbroken over a lost pet, I had felt the sharp pang of grief in my own chest.

As we approached the shimmer, the magic thrummed in my veins. The cool night air heated and grew heavy, smelling strangely of burnt things. The vibrant greens of the forest faded, the soft vegetation seeming to sharpen and harden to brown and greys, as if life was being sucked out of it. There was thrumming in the air, a loud thumping that seemed to emanate from the ground itself. Just before the shimmer, the plants twisted and gnarled into strange thorn bushes that rose to my knees.

I felt their sting through my pants as we knelt in the ground, Astra and I peered through the shimmer into the blinding expanse of Eloria. I squinted, trying to make sense of the chaotic jumble of shapes and colors, but all I saw was a swirling haze of light and shadow.

Astra, her vision seemingly unaffected, pointed towards a distant cluster of rocks. "There," she whispered, her voice barely audible above the pounding in my ears. "That's where they said the creatures would be."

After a few moments, I heard the rustling of leaves behind me. I turned to see Azha and Norma crouching beside us, their faces grim in the strange half-light. A knot of unease tightened in my stomach. Why did Norma look like she was going to be ill?

"Where are they?" Astra whispered, her voice sharp with impatience.

"They live here," Azha replied, her voice low and steady. But there was something in her tone, a hint of something cold and calculating, that sent a shiver down my spine. Azha shifted her position, moving to stand directly behind us. "They just need a little… encouragement."

Before I could process her meaning, Azha's hands slammed into my back, propelling me forward with unexpected force. I whirled just in time to see Astra lung at a still beaming Azha before I pitched headfirst into the thorny bushes, the branches tearing at my skin as I tumbled down the steep embankment. The world spun in a dizzying blur of green and brown, the ground rushing up to meet my face with alarming speed.

I landed with a bone-jarring thud, my shoulder slamming against the hard-packed earth. A sharp pain shot through my arm, and I cried out, the sound swallowed by the vastness of the unfamiliar landscape.

I lay there for a moment, stunned, my breath knocked from my lungs. A warm, sticky trickle ran down my forehead, and I tasted blood. Blinking against the harsh glare, I slowly sat up. The sun was impossibly hot on my skin and my eyes stung as I fought against the assault of light.

Movement caught my eye as small creatures, their skin glittering like emeralds, scurried away from me and towards a massive rock. Their soft chirping cries filled the air as I fought to get to my feet.

The world swam before my eyes, a dizzying kaleidoscope of colors and distorted shapes. My eyes fought to adjust in the sudden intake of the sunlight. My ears rang with a high-pitched whine, and the air was thick with the scent of dust and scorched earth.

Panic clawed at my throat as I tried to call out to Astra, but my words failed me. They always failed me. My legs were shaky and unsteady as I fumbled forward, my vision blurred with each throb of my head. The ground was uneven, littered with sharp rocks and thorns that tore at my exposed skin. I felt exposed, vulnerable, utterly alone in this alien landscape. Every shadow seemed to hold a hidden threat, every rustle of leaves a whispered warning.

The ringing in my ears subsided, replaced by a sound that sent a shiver down my spine. A low, guttural growl, filled with menace and warning, echoed through the strange landscape. Astra’s growl, and she was pissed.

I shuffled towards the rock I had seen the tiny creatures scurry toward. I reached out and brushed against the surface. It felt like no rock I had ever felt before. It was cool to the touch despite the hot sun and extremely smooth, almost like it was polished. The strangest thing was that it had some give to it, like it wasn’t made of solid stone. I ran my fingers across it, tracing the contours of what felt like scales, each one perfectly formed, cool and strangely comforting.

Then, the rock shifted. A tremor ran through it, and a hiss, like escaping steam, erupted from somewhere beneath my hand. I recoiled, my heart leaping into my throat. I rubbed my eyes frantically, trying to clear my vision.

And then I saw it.

It was no rock. A monstrous creature, twice my height, loomed over me. Its skin was a deep shade of green, covered in thick scales that shimmered in the harsh sunlight. Its eyes, narrow slits of reptilian yellow, burned with an alien intensity. A long, forked tongue flicked in and out of its mouth, tasting the air.

This was no playful creature, no harmless sunbather. This was a predator, and I was its prey. Before I could even blink, the creature lunged. It moved with surprising speed for something so massive, its body twisting with a sinuous grace that belied its size. The thick tail whipped out like a club, striking me squarely in the stomach.

The air exploded from my lungs, and a searing pain ripped through my abdomen. I was thrown backwards, my body weightless, my vision a blur of colors and distorted shapes. I landed hard, skidding across the rough terrain. Gritty sand tore at my skin, and a sharp stinging sensation ripped through my knees and arms as they scraped against the unforgiving ground. The blue sky twisted above me, the jagged peaks of the mountains blurring into a dizzying kaleidoscope.

My stomach lurched, threatening to heave. A sob tore from my throat, the air thick with the metallic tang of blood. I tasted dirt, felt it caking on my lips. Panic clawed at me. I had to get up, had to move, but my body screamed in protest. Each breath sent a searing pain through my lungs. My hand fluttered to my side, finding the sharp point of a bramble protruding from my flesh.

The creature – it had thrown me through that cursed bramble bush! With a cry, I yanked the thorn free, blood welling from the wound. I dropped the bloody stick, the world tilting precariously.

Through the haze of pain and disorientation, I heard the creature's footsteps, each one cracking the dry earth like a whip. The ground vibrated with its approach, and a guttural hiss, like escaping steam, filled the air. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

The creature was closing in, and I was trapped. Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to push back onto my feet. I wobbled, my vision swimming, my body screaming in protest. But a defiant spark ignited within me.

I would not be its prey.

The beast towered over me, its reptilian eyes gleaming with predatory hunger. Its massive body twisted and turned as it advanced, its movements clumsy yet menacing. My heart hammered against my aching ribs, my breath catching in my throat. I was trapped, alone, and facing a creature that seemed determined to tear me limb from limb.

Panic threatened to consume me, but I fought it back. I was a warrior, trained from childhood in the art of combat. But nothing in my training had prepared me for this. My mind raced, trying to recall any techniques that might be effective against such a creature, but all I could think of were the sparring matches in the courtyard, the techniques used against males much larger than me.

Why couldn’t I think of anything useful for this mountain of a creature?

My gaze darted around, desperately searching for an escape route, a weapon, anything that might give me an advantage. The shimmer, a stark black wall rising from the sand, was about two hundred paces away. Too far. I was trapped in this alien landscape, a world of harsh angles and unforgiving surfaces. Jagged rocks jutted from the ground like teeth, and thorny plants with wickedly sharp spines stretched towards the sky. Even the air seemed to crackle with hostility.

In the distance, a massive stone castle loomed against the horizon, its towers piercing the cloudless sky. It was an imposing structure, its dark gray walls radiating an aura of power and menace. My heart pounded against my aching ribs, a frantic drumbeat against the silence of the desert. I had to get out of here. I clutched the wound at my side, blood leaking through my fingers.

Maybe I could find someone to help me, surely there were some servants on the grounds of the castle that would be able to offer me safety from this beast. I had no other options but to risk the wrath of the paranoid Elorian King.

The ground trembled beneath my feet, and a guttural hiss, closer now, sent a jolt of fear through my veins. My instincts screamed at me to flee. The beast stood between me and the border, a hulking barrier of scales and teeth. There was no time to think, no time to strategize. I bared my teeth at the creature and let out a low warning growl of my own. The creature, unfazed, began to approach.

With one last snarl, I spun on my heels and sprinted into the heart of Eloria. My lungs burned, my legs ached. The sand shifted beneath my feet, hot and yielding, offering no solid footing. I risked a glance over my shoulder. The creature was in pursuit, its massive body churning up the sand in its wake.

A roar, like thunder splitting the sky, erupted from its throat, the sound echoing across the barren landscape. Tears stung my eyes as I ran, my breath coming in ragged gasps. The sun beat down mercilessly, and the air was thick with the scent of dust and despair. I was lost, alone, and utterly terrified.

Please, Nyx, I prayed, my voice a silent plea to the moon goddess, send someone. Anyone. Save me.