The closer they ran to the heart of the palace, the colder the air became.
Alisha kept her eyes locked on the Emperor's golden cloak as it swept across the marble floor. Rowan stayed behind her, one hand gripping a glowing rune, the other ready to steady her if she stumbled. The halls narrowed now, carved from older stone, etched with faded runes that pulsed faintly under the moon's light.
"The Inner Sanctum is ahead," the Emperor said without slowing. "Stay alert."
Another tremor rattled the walls. The flames in the torches guttered, shrinking into thin blue embers. Shadows stretched unnaturally long behind them, whispering in voices Alisha couldn't understand.
"What is this place?" she asked, her heartbeat throbbing painfully in her palms.
"A vault of power," Rowan answered. "Built centuries ago to protect the Celestial Line and the royal bloodline. Only a true heir can open it."
"Then how have we been opening doors this whole time?" Alisha asked.
Rowan gave her a tight smile. "We haven't. The moon has been doing it for you. You've noticed the glow under the floors—that's the Celestial Lines reacting."
The Emperor's voice echoed sharply: "Silence."
They halted at a massive arched door. It stood three times Alisha's height, formed from pure moon-steel. Carvings spiraled across it—moons, constellations, and the symbol she now recognized from the Celestial Lines: a circle surrounded by ten smaller stars.
Rowan stepped forward and pressed a hand to the metal. "This door hasn't been opened in seventeen years."
Alisha swallowed. "Since… I was taken away?"
The Emperor didn't answer.
But she already knew.
Rowan turned to her. "Alisha. Only your touch can reveal the way inside."
The silver light still faintly wrapped around her wrists. Her heart pounded harder. "What if I can't? What if I make it worse?"
Rowan met her gaze steadily. "Then we will protect you. But if you don't try, the shadows will break through—and none of us will survive."
A hiss echoed behind them, closer than before.
Alisha stepped forward.
Her fingertips hovered just inches from the door. As soon as she touched the cold metal, the carvings lit up—first softly, then blinding bright, as if moonlight had been trapped inside for centuries, waiting only for her.
The ground vibrated beneath her feet.
A deep, ancient hum filled the corridor.
The Emperor's eyes widened. "She's unlocking all four seals—at once?"
Rowan exhaled sharply. "That's impossible… unless—"
A burst of light surged outward from Alisha's palm.
The door split open down the center, unfolding like wings.
Inside, everything fell silent.
The room beyond was enormous, circular, and flooded with pale light from a single moon-shaped crystal that floated high above the floor. The Celestial Lines on the ground converged at its base.
"The Moonstone," Rowan whispered. "The heart of the palace."
Alisha stepped forward, drawn by a force she didn't understand. The Moonblood inside her warmed, matching the rhythm of the glowing crystal.
And then—
The shadows screamed.
They burst into the hall behind them, dozens of them, clawing over the stone, stretching toward the light. The Emperor slammed his staff down, creating a barrier of shimmering silver light—but the shadows struck at it relentlessly.
"We can't hold them!" Rowan shouted. "Alisha, go! The Moonstone will stabilize your power—now!"
"But what do I do?" she cried.
The Emperor's gaze locked onto hers. His voice, deep and unyielding, echoed through the chamber:
"Touch the Moonstone and claim your birthright."
Her stomach twisted. Her hands shook.
"I—I'm not ready!"
"You are," Rowan said firmly. "Because ready or not, this is the moment the world has been turning toward since your birth."
The barrier cracked.
A shadow's claw punched through.
Alisha did not think anymore.
She ran.
Her feet pounded across the glowing Lines until she reached the pedestal at the center. The Moonstone pulsed, brightening with every step she took.
Behind her, the Emperor roared a command. Rowan shouted her name.
The shadows shrieked victoriously as the barrier shattered.
Alisha reached up—
And placed both hands on the Moonstone.
Light exploded.
The palace shook as if the moon itself had fallen into the earth. The shadows froze, then screamed in agony as waves of pure celestial force ripped through the chamber. Rowan shielded his face. The Emperor's cloak whipped violently in the storm of silver light.
Alisha felt everything.
Cold. Heat. Power. Stars. Memories that weren't hers—faces, battles, queens before her. A throne of moonlight. A war of darkness. A promise spoken in a language she understood without hearing.
Her heart felt like it might shatter.
Her vision went white.
Then everything went silent.
The light faded slowly.
And when the room cleared, Rowan stared at her with awe.
The Emperor bowed his head, just once.
Because Alisha wasn't just glowing anymore.
The Moonstone had changed her.
The first stage of the Moonblood Awakening had begun.