The royal skyship, The Luminous Veil, glided through the clouds like a ghost. Jayden sat near one of the crystal windows, his face pale and drawn, watching the golden towers of Astraeum rise into view.
He hadn't been back to the palace in over a year—not since the day he left without saying goodbye.
Aerin sat across from him, propping her feet on the velvet cushions and helping herself to an entire tray of candied citrus. "You know, for a family that hates you, they sure like traveling in style."
Jayden sighed. "They don't hate me."
Aerin raised an eyebrow.
"…Okay. They hate me a little."
"Jayden," she said, biting into a candied orange, "your siblings once tried to drown you in the royal koi pond because you sneezed during Leonora's harp recital."
"I had a cold."
"They tied you to a boat and pushed it into the lake."
"…It was a very small boat."
Aerin gave him a long look.
"Fine," Jayden muttered. "They hate me a lot."
The Capital: Beautiful and Brutal
The air over Astraeum shimmered with enchantments. Floating gardens drifted between towers of gold and crystal, and the sky itself hummed with power. Spires twisted toward the heavens, and banners depicting crescent moons and phoenixes waved high above the streets.
Jayden tried not to feel the weight of it pressing down on him.
He was still just a boy from the edge of the old kingdoms. A boy who didn't have magic. Who didn't belong.
As the ship docked atop the Moonspire Palace, servants bowed low, and guards snapped to attention. Jayden tried to straighten his shoulders.
Then the voice came.
"Oh stars, he's back."
Leonora.
She stood at the top of the stairs, wrapped in flowing silks and draped in at least three layers of jewelry. Her golden hair was arranged in a gravity-defying updo, and her face looked like it had been carved by a very bitter, very fashionable angel.
She was leaning on a cane, her left leg wrapped in elegant bandages.
"Sister," Jayden said carefully, walking toward her.
"*Step-*brother," Leonora said with a flawless sneer. "They said you were coming. I tried to faint, but I was too tired."
"Good to see you too."
"Mm. No powers yet, I assume?"
Aerin stepped forward, grinning. "Oh, he has powers. Moon stuff. Very mysterious."
Leonora's smile turned to frost. "And who are you?"
"Aerin. Firestarter. Fugitive. Sometimes violent. Depends on my mood."
Leonora blinked. "…Delightful."
Jayden cleared his throat. "The Commander said you were attacked. By shadows?"
Leonora's expression shifted. For a second—just a flicker—there was fear.
"Yes," she said. "But not shadows. Not really."
She leaned forward. "They spoke. One of them said your name."
Jayden froze.
"What did it say?"
Leonora's eyes were hard as glass. "It said you were the Moon's mistake."
That evening, dinner was served in the Hall of Starfire, beneath a chandelier made of real stardust. The royal siblings were all present—and they were all watching Jayden like he was a glowing, ticking artifact.
Prince Thalen, the eldest, was polished and cold, dressed in midnight armor that had never seen battle.Princess Elira, always silent, always scribbling things in her floating spellbook, didn't look up once.Prince Corrin, the youngest, blew bubbles in his enchanted soup and summoned a small tornado of bread rolls for fun.
"Jayden," Thalen said at last, voice silky. "How's it feel to be back among your betters?"
Jayden stabbed a piece of roast fruit. "Didn't realize you missed me so much."
"Of course we did," Elira said softly without looking up. "We even turned your old room into a stable for cursed goats."
"They seem to like it," Corrin offered.
Jayden was about to respond when the King Consort entered.
The room fell silent.
He wasn't a loud man, but his presence made the air freeze. Dressed in deep silver robes and wearing the Moon Crown, his eyes scanned the table until they landed on Jayden.
"You've grown," he said.
"Thank you, Your Grace," Jayden replied.
The king sat, slowly. "Eryndor tells me you've awakened. That you carry the old magic."
Jayden hesitated. "I don't know if I've awakened. But I've seen things. Fought things."
"Then you are already further than I dared hope."
Jayden stared at him. The king had never looked at him like this before—not like a burden or a broken promise. But like… a key.
"To what end?" Jayden asked.
The king raised his goblet. "To salvation. Or to ruin."
Night Whispers
That night, Jayden lay awake in his old room—mostly unchanged except for the strange humming in the walls and the single painting of a moonlit battlefield that hadn't been there before.
The castle felt wrong. Too quiet. Too watched.
A knock came at his door.
He opened it—no one there.
But on the ground lay a note.
In delicate handwriting:
"The darkness knows your name. And one of your siblings is already lost."– L.
Jayden's breath caught.
A whisper rose from the hall.
"…Calix…"
He turned—and saw the faint shimmer of a shadow with silver eyes vanish through the wall.