Chapter 6

The world disappeared.

Shaynna felt herself falling, though there was no ground beneath her feet. Blue light spiraled around her body, swallowing the waterfall, the trees, and the last memory of Prince Finio's face. The wind roared inside her ears. Strange symbols flashed before her eyes, appearing and vanishing before she could understand them.

“Help me!” she screamed. “Please! Somebody help me!”

Her hands reached for something—anything—but grasped only shimmering air.

Then, without warning, the light burst.

Shaynna crashed onto a polished marble floor.

She gasped, scrambling backward as golden pillars rose around her. Above her stretched a magnificent ceiling painted with celestial constellations. Beyond enormous arched windows stood the glittering towers of Luminosus, their white-and-gold spires reaching toward a sky filled with magical clouds.

She knew this place.

The capital of Avelia.

But how had she arrived here?

“What… what happened to me?”

A soft cry sounded nearby.

Shaynna turned.

Seven young women lay scattered across the marble chamber, each surrounded by fading wisps of enchanted light. Their garments shimmered in different colors, and each wore an ornament she had never seen before. One clutched her chest in fright. Another stared at her trembling hands. A third crawled toward a towering pillar, desperately searching for an explanation.

“Where are we?” one of them cried.

“I don't know!” another answered. “I was somewhere else just moments ago!”

Shaynna looked from one stranger to another.

“Did you see what happened? Did something bring us here?”

A young woman with dark, flowing hair shook her head violently.

“I was preparing to leave my room. Then everything became blue, and I couldn't breathe. I thought I was dying!”

“I thought so too,” whispered another.

Eight maidens.

Eight frightened faces.

Eight lives suddenly torn from the places they knew.

None understood why they had been brought together. None knew that the same ancient force had reached across Avelia to gather them beneath the roof of the Light Kingdom.

Shaynna pushed herself upright, her knees trembling.

“I need to find someone,” she said. “A prince. His name is Finio.”

The women exchanged confused glances.

Before anyone could answer, enormous doors opened at the far end of the chamber.

Lady Agartha entered with several royal attendants. The moment she saw the eight maidens, she stopped dead in her tracks.

Her face lost its color.

For years, she had waited for the signs. For years, she had protected the secret entrusted to her.

Now, before her eyes, the impossible had happened.

“The eight…” she whispered.

One of the maidens rose unsteadily.

“Who are you? Why are we here?”

Agartha approached them, her expression caught between astonishment and reverence.

“Remain calm, my daughters. You are safe within Luminosus.”

Shaynna stepped forward.

“Please, Lady Agartha. I don't understand. I was at the Falls of Hydranas. Something happened to me, and now I'm here. How did I get here?”

Agartha studied her closely. For one fleeting moment, she noticed a faint blue shimmer beneath Shaynna's skin.

Before she could answer, the distant bells of Lumus Annua thundered throughout the palace.

The ritual had begun.

And the eight maidens had appeared at the very moment the kingdom gathered to witness its king.

The grand gates of Luminosus opened beneath a sky ablaze with golden clouds.

Drakar descended like a shadow torn from the heavens, his black-armored wings beating furiously before he landed upon the royal courtyard. Prince Finio leaped from the saddle before the pegasus had fully folded his wings.

“Akilio!”

He raced past the startled guards and into the Great Shakka Hall, where the Lumus Annua Ritual was already underway.

Thousands of nobles, warriors, and royal delegates filled the magnificent hall. Representatives of all ten kingdoms stood beneath towering banners, their colors mingling in a breathtaking display of Avelian unity. At the center, King Levarro stood before the sacred ceremonial light, preparing to address the gathered realm.

Prince Akilio turned at the sound of hurried footsteps.

“Finio? Where have you been? Father has been asking for you!”

Finio seized his brother's arm.

“Akilio, something terrible has happened!”

Akilio's expression changed immediately.

“What happened?”

“Shaynna—she disappeared!”

Akilio stared at him.

“Disappeared? What do you mean?”

“We were at the Falls of Hydranas. I left to attend the ritual, just as you commanded Drakar to fetch me. Then something happened. The water stopped falling. Blue symbols appeared beneath her feet, and a light surrounded her.”

Finio struggled to catch his breath.

“She screamed, Akilio. I felt something happen even after I had left. I turned Drakar around, but when I reached the falls, she was gone!”

Akilio gripped his brother's shoulders.

“Listen to me. Breathe. Tell me exactly what you saw.”

“There was nothing left. No footprints. No sign of where she went. Only a glowing rune upon the stone!”

For a moment, Akilio could find no words.

He knew about Shaynna. He knew the depth of Finio's love for the maiden, and he had kept their secret because he had seen how genuinely she made his brother happy.

But he had never imagined that their love would lead to something like this.

“Does Father know?” Akilio asked.

“No! And I cannot stand here pretending everything is fine while Shaynna is somewhere in danger!”

Finio turned toward the ceremonial hall, his face pale with panic.

“I have to find her.”

Akilio caught his arm before he could rush away.

“If you leave now, you may create a greater disaster. The ten kingdoms are watching, and Father is about to make another announcement. Let us hear what he has to say. Then we will find a way to search for her.”

Finio looked at his brother, torn between duty and terror.

“What if we are already too late?”

Akilio had no answer.

Across the hall, King Levarro raised his hand. The music faded. The murmuring delegates fell silent.

“People of Avelia,” the king proclaimed, his voice carrying beneath the enchanted arches, “tonight, we celebrate not merely the prosperity of Luminosus, but the enduring bond that unites our ten kingdoms.”

Golden light rose behind his throne.

“But before this sacred gathering concludes, there is one more truth I must reveal.”

Finio froze.

Akilio slowly turned toward their father.

King Levarro’s gaze swept across the assembly until it found his three sons standing together at the edge of the dais. His expression remained composed, yet the lines around his eyes tightened.

“Eight maidens have been chosen by the ancient Signus,” he continued. “Each carries the mark of her kingdom. Each will stand before the Blood Gemstone before dawn.”

Prince Jero shifted in the front row, his jaw set. Beside him, Princess Jewell’s fingers tightened around the edge of her cloak.

“Tonight, the prophecy begins its final unfolding,” King Levarro said. “And every royal house must answer its call.”