Page 39 of From Beneath the Moon

By the time the guards arrive, there is nothing left for me to do. I rise, hands stained, heart heavy, and the city seems to recoil, lanterns dimming as if in mourning.

I return to the palace before dawn, slipping back into my chambers. I shed my tunic quietly, wash my hands, and slide into bed. Akemi turns immediately, her eyes open, reflecting the glow.

“You were gone,” she whispers.

“I didn’t want to wake you.” This is the first night she hasn’t suffered from a nightmare since escaping the Jord. She deserves sleep and comfort. I hate that my brother has stripped her of that. Hate that I couldn’t get her sooner. And now our time is nearing an end. I rub my sore chest.

She touches my cheek. “You don’t get to decide that.”

I exhale, forehead resting against hers. “I don’t want to take you to the boats,” I say.

“I don’t want to go.” She pauses. “But I have to.”

“I understand, my Sunrise. I cannot keep a star as bright as you contained forever.” That would be another manacle around her wrist. She wouldn’t have escaped Jord only to be caged once more. The world deserves to see her light. “Let’s go together then.”

She studies my face, then nods. We dress in silence and slip out, down through the canals where water glows from beneath, boats waiting like dark sentinels. I guide us through winding passages, the earth singing softly around us, until the air cools and the ceiling lifts into a cavern lit with pale blue moss. This is just outside the Watch perimeter.

We dock. She steps onto the stone and turns back to me. Her eyes shine.

“We’ll find time to meet. Nightmare can send messages,” she states softly.

“We will,” I promise as I lean in and claim her mouth one final time.

She cups my face, presses her forehead to mine. “Be careful,” she whispers.

I watch her walk away, each step pulling something from my chest. When she disappears into the light, I sag, alone at last. I reach up to adjust my torn sleeve and freeze.

Amidst the swirling black of my tattoos on my forearm—so small I almost missed it—a tiny white dot appears, bright and terrible.

I laugh once, sharp and breathless, and the sound echoes through the cave as the sickness answers in my blood.

13

Orientation

For the first time in months, I take a breath of fresh air. The last dregs of summer still linger in the lush green of the oak trees and plush grasses blowing in the wind. Somewhere nestled along the mountains that jut into the afternoon sky is the familiar bone-white castle of the Watch. Professors have been preparing for the start of another year for weeks, while cadets are just arriving today.

I pick up my pace along the rocky, worn path that leads toward Shadow Pass, not wanting to miss anything and eager to see my friends. I may or may not have also taken a few glowing rocks from Terraguard to share with Ramona and Leaf. It’s been ages since a human ventured into Terraguard, partly because of how hard it is to navigate getting there. So they would appreciate my gift, no matter how little. Besides, if someone tried to find the glowing underground city, they would more than likely get lost traveling there.

Or worse, get trapped by the Jord.

A shiver involuntarily racks my body, and I swear I see a swath of fur in the corner of my eye. I swing around to find—

Trees. Towering pines with needles dancing in the slight breeze.

I let out a breath.

It’s nothing. You’re safe.

I continue along the path, this time at a slow jog. I need to get ready for training again. The level of pure athleticism expected from first years was almost unattainable. Now, I’m returning for my second year and a chance to earn a second channeling stone!

You are on a path to greatness, just as I suspected, Marrow’s voice echoes from the chamber of my mind.

I probably should be concerned about hearing the voice of my dead Master Teller, but I puff up nonetheless over his praise. I’m doing him, and all other students of the Telling craft both current and past, a great honor by pursuing my goals. Taking the lead role in the stories I studied for years.

The sun hangs a little lower, painting the sky with its warmth by the time I reach Shadow Pass and turn its final corner to reveal the view beyond.

The castle sits against a ledge of the mountain, halfway up a path of brutal switchbacks. The first time I arrived here with Castor and Leaf, it was night and there was no one around.