Era of the moon, p.1
Era of the Moon, page 1
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Copyright 2023
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without written permission of the copyright owner except for the use of quotations in a book review.
First published April 2023
Book cover design by Violet Nights Design
ISBN: 9798387157110 (paperback)
Self-published via Kindle Direct Publishing
Trigger Warnings: listed on the very last page
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Epilogue
Acknowledgements
Follow Me
Trigger Warnings
For every being that has opened a book to disappear for a little while.
The moon was moments from disappearing entirely, and with it would take the ethereal glow on Cerilla’s skin as well as the love and lust that was pumping through her body. As strange as it may be, she was dreading the loss of those feelings more than she feared death.
“Cerilla!” A voice she knew so well yelled as he ran in a full sprint toward her, trying get to her in time.
“He looks determined.” Her enemy chuckled. “Better finish you off before he gets here.” Cerilla rolled her head to the side, resting it against his chest as he raised his dagger-filled hand to end her. His hand went up but didn’t come down, frozen mid-plunge, stilled by the goddess herself. “What in the seven hells?”
Then their eyes met, and time stood still.
The flutters returned to Cerilla’s chest, her blood warming as the glow of her skin brightened more and more until it consumed both she and him entirely. “What is happening?” Cerilla asked, unable to pull her eyes away from him.
His chest heaved with labored breaths, his cheeks warming from desire. “Oh feck.” My mate, my mate, my fated one. These were the only thoughts reverberating throughout his mind. “You’re my mate?” His voice was a reverent whisper. He morphed before her eyes, a gentleness softening his hard edges as he gazed at her. She could see him oscillating between two forms. A ruthless Prince was one form, while the other was someone she didn’t yet know but had the tenderness of a lover in his eyes. But this tender moment was interrupted by an arrow whizzing by his head, nearly hitting her. “You’re my mate.” His voice had turned protective, and all he could think about was how he must protect her.
Prologue
162nd Triad Trial
Cerilla couldn’t remember her first time on Triad Isle, for she had been far too young to be able to recall it, but she could distinctly remember the second time. The priestesses had called her to the Isle, along with her brother and several other children from their court, to witness the beginning of the 162nd Triad Trial. She had been an adolescent being then, eager to find her place in the Realm and understand the Trial that was essential to their survival.
“Quiet down, children. Quiet down.” A priestess ordered the gaggle of children before her. The crystal terrarium they stood in went silent as the children pressed their faces against the glass and stared down at the battlefield that sat many stories below. From there they could see the Triad Isle shining in all its glory, containing lush forests filled with secrets and an unforgiving ground thirsty for the blood of the clans.
“Gather around.” The head priestess ordered, pulling Cerilla’s attention from the window. She had spent most of her day with her face pressed to the glass, silver orbs eyeing the mysterious Fog that hovered over the waters in the far distance. Being from the blessed Moon Monarchy, Cerilla had never seen the ominous supernatural Fog in real life before – but the stories and threat of its potential had not escaped her interest. In fact, she said prayers to the goddess every night for the brave priests who were out fighting against the evil within the Fog.
Though shrouded in malice, the ominous dense clouds, kept the Realm protected from anything that may lie beyond it – at least that’s what the Priestesses told Cerilla as she gazed at it with interest.
The head priestess corralled the children into a circle on the floor and then folded herself gracefully to the ground, her long legs twisted beneath her. “It’s time for the Tale of Triad Isle.”
“We know this story.” Prince Sebastian’s golden eyes rolled back in his head with annoyance. “The Trial is important, our sacrifice fights the evil within the Fog, honor the deities, blah blah blah.” He puppeted his hand like a talking mouth, earning a giggle from his Sun Dominion lordlings and glares from nearly everyone else.
The children of high-ranking members of the Sun, Moon, and Earth nations were gathered in the observation terrarium. Every decade, when the clans gathered on the Isle to battle, the next generation of rulers were brought together by the priestesses to learn about the importance of the Triad Trial.
“Yes, we already know this story! Tell us of the Pool of Pairings instead.” A young ladyling swooned while batting eyes at the Sun Prince. The Pool of Pairings was another supernatural entity located in the Moon goddess’ territory on the Isle. It was where beings went to ask for the blessing of a mate. A fated one, soulbond, soulmate. Whatever one wanted to call it, the Pool of Pairings was where they went to get it. One could wed without being soulmated, but there was something other worldly about the bond that could be gifted by the Moon goddess. Beings could go to the Pool and ask to be shown their mate. Once bestowed, a mate bond was ‘til death – but that was only the first step of the process. After one’s mate was revealed both beings had to accept it and perform a ceremony to become soulbound. Only then was the bond complete.
“Be quiet! I want to hear what the priestess has to say.” Cerilla countered, shooting a defiant look at Prince Sebastian, who was only a few years her senior but significantly less mannered and mature.
“Shut up! I’m a Prince and you can’t talk to me like that!” He stood and puffed his prepubescent chest out, being rallied to confidence by his lordling peers.
She was on her feet in an instant, squaring up to him with a finger in his chest. “Well, I am Princess Cerilla of the Moon Monarchy, and you will not speak to me like that either!” Her grey eyes stared at him in an act of defiance as strong as the moon they represented. With a rebellious hand she flipped her dark hair defiantly over her shoulder – eyes never leaving his.
The fire within him was strong though, and he wasn’t intimidated by her. “Cerilla is a deity-damned name.” The children around them gasped at his derogatory use of deity, normally a sacred word in the Realm.
“Don’t talk to her like that!” Prince Callahan joined them on his feet, stepping to the Princess’ defense. The handsome Prince of the Earth Province had known the Princess her whole life, as their fathers often engaged in trades between their nations. Callahan had always had something of a crush on Cerilla, and if she were honest she’d admit she felt the same. And this crush meant he was more than willing to run to her defense to get her to notice him – despite the fact that he knew his feelings would likely never amount to anything. Royalty never married outside of their own nation.
“One day that’ll be us down there, and I will happily run you through with a dagger to claim what belongs to the Sun Dominion,” Sebastian said haughtily.
“The Sun Dominion hasn’t won in decades.” Cerilla’s older brother, Alaric, yelled from his seat beside his betrothed. Now nearly an adult, he carried the duty of wedding for the betterment of the Moon Monarchy, as did their oldest sister, the Crown Princess Cassiopeia. “Besides, it will be me you have to defeat, not Ceri.” Alaric stood tall, towering over the other boys with ease.
“When it comes time for us to fight in the Trial, I will protect the Princess,” Callahan said as he glared into Sebastian’s eyes and stepped between him and Cerilla.
Cerilla rolled her eyes, “I could defend myself in the Trial, as I can right now.” Her hand darted out, smacking Sebastian in the shoulder, knocking him into a decorative vase. The shattering vase garnered the attention of the head priestess, who immediately got to her feet to fret over the broken relic.
Sebastian was filled with a quiet seething anger, which erupted into rage at her next action.
“But thank you for having honor, like a true Prince.” She leaned in, boldness filling her, and gifted Callahan with her first kiss. He smiled under her affection, his cheeks heating with a blush, but his joy was short-lived.
“You wench! I’ll kill you for disrespecting me!” Sebastian lunged at her, both of them tumbling to the ground in a tangle of gangly limbs and self-righteous puberty-fueled anger. Sebastian’s weight on top of h
“Ouch!” Cerilla cried out. Sebastian smiled with a sick sense of satisfaction at her pain. Despite her smarting injury, seeing his smirk made her want to teach him a lesson. Cerilla shimmied out from under him and stood, opening her hand wide before slapping him across the face with all the might within her. Straightaway, an angry hand-shaped welt raised up on his well-tanned skin.
In an instant, there was a metaphysical fire in his eyes that matched the physical fire in his hands. “I’m going to burn you!” He screamed, running after her and trying at every turn to touch her with his flame-engulfed hands. He had yet to master the art of extending fire past his own body, and luckily for Cerilla, she was faster than him.
“Enough!” The priestess yelled, causing all the children to freeze. Even as children they knew better than to incite the anger of a priest or priestess. As children of the deities, they garnered much respect, and held untold power. “Find your seats and we will begin!”
“Come on, Ceri.” Callahan took the Princess’ hand and led her to a seat beside him. “You’re bleeding.” His voice was full of worry, and despite the pain, it did not go unnoticed by Cerilla the tenderness with which he helped her. Nor did she miss the flash of muscle he showed when he ripped a piece of fabric from his own clothing to cover her wound. With gentle hands he cleaned and covered her injury, and once her wound was tended to, he placed his hand back in hers, shot a gloating stare to Sebastian, and then gave the priestess his full attention.
“Let us begin.” The priestess stood, calling on her powers of projection to cast an elemental and celestial display before the children. “Long ago, the Realm existed as one mass of land.” Her astro-projection showed a large continent, thriving. “But then a comet fell from the sky, shaking the earth.” The floor beneath the children shook, and Cerilla clung to Callahan even tighter. “And when the dust had settled, the land had divided into three islands. And they were wrought with war, each land jealous of the assets the others got in the Great Divide. These lands became known as the Triad Islands, and they lived in chaos, constantly battling for supremacy. Each land thought their power the best and themselves deserving of controlling the Realm and all its resources.” Images of war, famine, and death flashed before them before dissolving into an idyllic image of the sibling deities – the Sun god, Moon goddess, and Earth goddess. “Then they found a better way.”
With a sweeping motion, she continued, “The Kings of each nation gathered together, and with prayers to our deities the Isle rose from the waters, located directly in the middle of their three lands. Then they were each given the same message. Every ten years they were to send a champion of their own blood and a clan of twenty-four warriors from their nation to spend a week at the Triad Isle Castle. After that week the clans and champion would battle in the Wilds for the remainder of the one-hundred days to determine which nation would rule and receive the blessings of the deities for the next decade. The competition would prove who was worthy of ruling and the blood of the fallen would cleanse the land as a sacrifice to the deities.” With a sweeping gesture she cleared one projection, only to replace it with another. “The Trial is broken into three parts, marked by three gatherings of the clans. The first is the Exhibition, at which the Champions show off their prowess. Next is the Medial where clans report their remaining clan numbers and are given either a reward or a challenge from the priestesses. To end it all is the Denouement. This is the final stand of the Trial in which the champions and their clans have one last opportunity to defeat their competitors. Whichever clan has the most surviving members at the end of the Trial will be the undisputed ruler, until the time comes that the Trial will happen again.” A flourishing Realm was portrayed for a few moments before ruin appeared again.
The priestesses face fell. “This worked for many centuries until one Sun King decided to forfeit his place in the Trial, sending the Realm into chaos once more. And ever since then, we have kept this tradition, for the blood of our peoples cleanses the land and renews us for another thriving decade.” She motioned to herself and her sisters, “The priestesses keep this tradition alive, and care for the Isle and castle when it is not in use by the Realm.” A horn blew in the distance, and they watched as the sun dipped below the horizon.
In the previous Trial the Moon Monarchy had won, giving them a slight edge in the Trial. As they get their power from the moon, the Moon goddess would grant them one hundred days of Lunar Solstice, in which the moon would be present for most of the day. The Lunar Solstice would give the Moon Monarchy an advantage to charge their powers and battle in their element, which had the exact opposite effect on the Sun Dominion.
“You children will stay here for the night, observing the Trial, we will be present shall you need aid, but you’ll do well to remember that though they are battling – you all are not enemies, but allies.” She bowed before them and left the room with her sisters trailing behind her.
Sebastian worked the room, using his rare time out from under the watchful eye of his parents to engage in all matters of behavior. Cerilla and Callahan spent most of the night together, hands clasped and heads leaned against one another’s as they talked. Though the priestesses insisted they were not enemies, it often felt that way. The nations lived in tempestuous harmony, there was no longer war between them, but that didn’t mean they got along.
As Cerilla sat there with her hand in Callahan’s she realized with sobering clarity that their nations would always be divided in some way. Because no matter how sweet the boy beside her was, they could never be together. One day soon she would be betrothed to a Moon Monarchy lordling, and the world would continue on as it always had. Divided.
Chapter One
164th Triad Trial
The golden sun kissed the horizon and Cerilla couldn’t help but sigh in pleasure at the thought that it would soon be gone for the night. She only felt truly alive in the glow of the moon as she saw the sun as a hindrance to her joy.
Cerilla had taken to a nocturnal lifestyle at a young age, much to the displeasure of her father. The King woke with the sun, worked by the sun, and slept in a moonbeam. Though he too got his power from the moon, ever since his tentative alliance with the Earth nation he had encouraged his Monarchy to keep time like the other nations of the Realm did – awake by the sun and asleep by the moon. Many of the Monarchy had failed to do so, preferring to live by the moon. Cerilla found the idea preposterous, and mused if she ever became queen this would be the first law she changed – but it was more likely the moon would freeze in the sky permanently than she become queen. This she didn’t mind though, because being the youngest Princess had its perks, namely, being able to come and go largely unnoticed by most people. So, despite her father’s urging, she had carried on hunkering down when the sun was up and then living and loving by the moon. Most days she wasn’t even awake to see the sun disappear, but this day was different, because the Earth King and Prince Callahan were coming to speak to her father.
Her father was trying to be sneaky, having the King and his son over while his youngest daughter would likely still be sleeping, but she was sneakier still.
The Earth King visited often, and in turn they visited him as well. Though in recent years the Kings had worked hard to keep their children apart after Cerilla’s betrothal and their notice of the palpable flirtatious energy between Cerilla and Callahan.
Cerilla waltzed to the window, glancing at her Monarchy with loving eyes. Hues of purple and blue swirled in the sky as the sun prepared to bid goodnight to the moon. The mountains in the distance wore a crown of clouds, and a gentle wind was blowing the branches of a vine against her window. A smile tugged at her lip because this tapping vine was a sign from Callahan.
With another contented sigh Cerilla glanced at the bustling streets in the distance. Like her, the Moon Monarchy came to life at night. From her perch in the Palace, she could see the city proper coming alive. Fairy lights flicked on over café tables as chefs prepared for their busiest time of day and street artists set up their nightly demonstrations of music and painting. Cerilla loved being amongst her people, and most nights she made it down to the city below to be amongst them – but this was not one of those nights. Not even the biggest festival or best food would draw her attention when the Prince of the Earth nation was nearby.
