34. Luna
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
LUNA
While the air in the dungeon cell was thick with the scent of mildew, I was warm enough I didn’t need anything more than my cloak to be comfortable. I paced back and forth in a small circle, trying to keep from going mad with tension.
I’d already tried using my magic, but something about the stones of the walls or the bars made it impossible for me to manifest it.
The single window cast a thin shaft of light into the cell. It was well past dawn. Speculating about what might happen had kept my thoughts swirling with fear and anger.
The sound of footsteps echoed through the corridor. A whiff of myrrh and jasmine perfume before she rounded the corner told me who was coming.
Vala stepped into view. She carried a goblet and wore a flowing dark gown. The velvety material seemed to move on its own, making her look as if she wore living shadows.
The torchlight flickered, casting eerie shadows across her sharp features.
"Oh, Luna," Vala said mildly. "You look dreadful. Life on the road doesn't suit you, does it? Believe me, if there’d been any other way I would have suggested it."
“Believe you?” I choked. "What are you doing here? With the man who drove your eldest son insane?"
I clenched my fists, forcing myself to stand tall.
She sighed. "Sacrifices must be made when the prize is rich enough, and Francesco was always the lesser brother, even if he was older. I appreciate that my lessons in punctuality and faithfulness bore such fruit. You've arrived right on time. Had it been Benedetto alone, he would probably have arrived much too early or late. Or gone to a completely different location."
What was she up to? Whatever it was, it couldn't be good. Her lust for power must've overcome her sense. But she was loyal to family, so it couldn’t involve harming Benedetto. I could try to persuade her to turn on Moonshifter.
I approached the bars and curled my fingers around them. "What are you planning?"
Vala set the goblet on the floor, her expression almost regretful. "Oh, it's a simple thing, really. And for the betterment of the world. We need a conduit, to touch a greater power with the disruption and absorption of the dark moon's magic. And now we have what we need to do so."
A conduit? My stomach dropped as realization dawned. No… she can't mean…
Vala nodded. "Yes. I'm talking about the child."
I took a step back from the bars, both hands moving to my belly, as if to protect it.
"I had my suspicions, but seeing you up close, it's obvious you're pregnant. The flux of magic around you is greater, and your aura more disruptive. Moonshifter noticed it as well. If the baby carries the dark moon's gift, like you, then it's perfect for the ritual. It won't resist being used in the magic, unlike an adult. And it will have a blood link to me, so that I can use its magic, since I can't tap yours. If it carries the dark moon, of course, there's always a chance it takes after its father." She frowned.
I recoiled another step, wishing I had a weapon. "You planned this from the start?"
"Of course. I’ve trained from the start that planning is important, have I not." Vala stepped closer to the bars separating us, her eyes on mine, her tone gentle. "Why do you think I pushed so hard for you to get pregnant? I needed a vessel, one that carried the right kind of magic, that was of my blood. And you, my daughter, were the perfect candidate to create it."
I stared at Vala, my heart pounding as the familiar cold, calculating gaze met mine.
"You see, the beauty of this plan is that Moonshifter believes we're working together. He thinks the ritual will benefit us both equally." Her lips quirked with genuine amusement.
I stared at her in even more shock. Every word that came out of her mouth stunned me anew. "You're planning to betray him. A sorcerer. You're planning to try to betray him and take all the power for yourself while you’re in his void blasted tower?"
She was insane.
Vala shrugged, a delicate gesture. "Well, it would be a shame to share, wouldn't it? He's served his purpose. But after tomorrow, he'll be nothing more than a pawn—a steppingstone to my goal."
My mind raced. She hadn’t threatened me, yet. What did she plan for him?
Before I could ponder it further, Vala gazed down at my belly, her eyes gleaming with the light of a spell. I stiffened, unable to block it.
"Let's make sure, shall we?" she murmured. "Ah, yes, it's there—the dark moon's gift. How fortunate. If it hadn't been, we'd have had to try again, which would have delayed the ritual by a year."
I jerked back, tears welling up. "You're a monster. You’d use an innocent child for your twisted magic? Will she be harmed?"
Weary sorrow flitted across her face. "It will die; being so unformed, it won’t survive the magic channeled through it. You and Benedetto will have plenty of time to make others though. Think of this as a necessary sacrifice on your way to the throne.”
“We don’t want it!” I screamed at her.
“Too bad. Dimare needs an emperor and a god. Benedetto and you will rule, and I’ll take the mantle of godhood and raise the empire to even greater heights.
Become a god?
The fact of her madness chilled me to the bone. "Scald the moon."
Vala laughed. “Perhaps I will. I’ll see you later, Luna.”
Moving with care, she set the goblet in a clever contraption on the cell door that allowed her to pass it into the cell without opening the door. Then she walked away.
I didn't want to drink it, but I was very thirsty. Sniffing, it held notes of hibiscus and honey. I tasted it with my tongue. No aftertaste; it seemed to be a simple tea.
I took a sip and settled to wait for the effects before I took another.
The air around me felt suffocating, but before I could fight it, sleep yanked me under. The chill of the stone against my back faded away, replaced by the familiar barren plain of my dreams.
"Luna," a gentle yet urgent voice called out.
I turned to see Olivia, her ghostly form shimmering like moonlight on water.
"Grandmother, I don't know what to do," I said, tears spilling down my cheeks. "They're going to use my baby in a ritual. I can't stop them."
Olivia's face softened with sympathy. "You can stop them. But you need to learn. There's still a few things more I can teach you."
She stepped closer, reaching out to touch my forehead. A warmth spread through me at her touch, easing some of my despair.
"Your magic is powerful. The dark moon's power is subtle—it can disrupt, yes, but it can also conceal. It can bend the very fabric of reality if you know how to wield it."
I met her gaze, a flicker of hope igniting within me. "What do I need to know to save my child?"
"Listen closely, then. We haven't much time..."
Olivia guided me through a series of exercises, her ghostly hands correcting my form and her gentle instructions echoing in my mind. I focused intently, feeling the dark moon's magic thrumming through my veins, sharper and more controlled than ever before.
"Visualize your power as a cloak," Olivia murmured, her fingertips brushing my temples. "Wrap it around yourself, let it conceal you from sight and sense."
I closed my eyes, picturing the magic as a shimmering, translucent veil. It rippled over my skin, cool and smooth as silk. It settled around me, hugging my form like a second skin.
"Good," Olivia praised, a note of pride in her voice. "Now, extend that cloak outward. Imagine it stretching, expanding, until it encompasses your surroundings."
I obeyed, mentally pushing the boundaries of my power. The veil stretched and grew, enveloping the barren dreamscape around us. A faint hum filled the air as the magic took hold, bending the very fabric of reality to my will. The flickering of my child's magic joined me, forging a delicate link between us.
"Remember," Olivia said, her voice beginning to fade as the dream dissolved at the edges. "The magic is yours to command. Use it wisely, and you can free yourself—and your child. Feel your son’s magic, and link with it. Together, you’re more powerful than apart."
I opened my eyes, meeting her gaze with a fierce determination. "I will, Grandmother. I swear it."
She smiled, a bittersweet curve of her lips as her form shimmered and grew indistinct. "I believe in you. Always have, always will."
With those final words, Olivia vanished, the dream shattering into a thousand glittering shards. I felt myself falling, tumbling through the void between sleep and waking. But even as consciousness beckoned, I clung to the newfound knowledge Olivia had bestowed upon me.
I gasped awake, my body chilled to the bone from the unyielding stone beneath me. But even as the cold seeped into my flesh, my mind burned with a newfound clarity—sharp, focused, and utterly determined.
The fear still lurked within me, an icy shadow that threatened to overwhelm. But it was no match for the fierce resolve that now coursed through my veins.
Pushing myself up from the floor, I brushed off the dust and grime clinging to my skin. My mind raced as I began to piece together a plan, each thought slotting into place like the intricate workings of a timepiece.
I needed to use everything Olivia had taught me in the dreamscape in her visits. Every scrap of knowledge, every whispered secret—it all had to count now. And I couldn't afford to hesitate; the ritual loomed on the horizon, my child's doom.
Pressing a hand to my belly I whispered fiercely, "I promise you I won't let them hurt you. I'll fight for you until my last breath."
The words hung in the air, a solemn vow. This child—my child—would not be a sacrificial lamb for their dark ambitions. They would know a life beyond these cold walls and cruel machinations.
I would make sure of it. When Vala and Moonshifter came for me—and they would come—I'd be ready.
Ready to fight. Ready to win.
I settled back against the wall, letting my body relax even the dark moon's power thrummed through my veins, a constant reminder of the strength I now possessed.
There would be a way out of this nightmare.
But first, I needed information. I needed to know exactly what Vala and Moonshifter were planning, and when the ritual was set to take place.
I closed my eyes again, reaching out with my senses, trying to feel for any hint of their presence nearby. The dark moon's magic rippled outwards like invisible tendrils, probing the corridors beyond my cell.
At first, there was nothing—just the heavy silence of the stone walls and the distant drip of water somewhere in the depths. But then, faintly, I caught a flicker of something else.
A pulse of energy, hot and wild, like a roaring wind that changed the landscape as it blew.
Moonshifter.
My eyes snapped open, my heart pounding against my ribs. He was close—too close for comfort.
But even as fear coiled in my gut, a new determination rose to meet it.
This was my chance. My chance to listen, to learn, and to use that knowledge against them. Perhaps even to find where they’d imprisoned Benedetto.
I took a deep breath, steeling myself for whatever lay ahead.
Now was the time to wait.
To watch.
And to plan my next move in this deadly game of shadows and secrets.