Volume 1 — Chapter 3: Moonflowers and Secrets
The palace gardens were quiet, bathed in silver moonlight. Lyriana slipped out of her chambers, careful not to wake her guards or alert her mother. Her heart still raced from the encounter in the Hall of Mirrors. Aryn Vale—the Shadowmarked intruder—haunted her thoughts like a forbidden melody.
She reached the secluded corner of the gardens, where moonflowers bloomed even in the coldest night. Their petals glowed faintly, reflecting the pulse of the moon above. And there, curled among the shadows, was Aryn.
"Princess…" he whispered, lifting his head. His voice was hoarse but soft, like wind brushing through leaves. "You shouldn't be here."
"I couldn't stay away," she admitted, stepping closer. Her fingers itched to touch the glowing sigil on his wrist, but she restrained herself. "Why did you come to Arvandor? Why risk your life?"
Aryn's eyes flickered with a mixture of pain and determination. "The empire… it's in danger. A prophecy—one no one believes—is unfolding. I bear the mark because it binds me to it. You—" He hesitated. "You might be the only one who can stop what's coming."
Lyriana swallowed. Every instinct screamed for caution. His people were enemies, exiles, traitors. And yet… something in his gaze drew her in. A dangerous, magnetic pull she could neither name nor resist.
"I shouldn't," she whispered, tears threatening to fall. "If anyone finds out—"
"They will," he said, the tension in his shoulders evident. "But I trust you."
For a long moment, the night held them in fragile silence. Then Aryn leaned forward, his forehead nearly touching hers. The air between them shimmered, charged with forbidden longing.
A rustle behind the bushes startled them. Lyriana jumped back, her pulse hammering. But when she turned, only the shadows danced, hiding secrets the moonflowers couldn't reveal.
"I don't have much time," Aryn said, stepping back. "Tomorrow, I will be taken. They will question me, and the council… they will discover the truth. Whatever happens, remember: the empire's fate, and yours, are tied to me now."
Lyriana's chest ached. She wanted to stay, to fight for him, but the weight of duty pressed down like iron.
And yet, under the moon's unyielding glow, she silently vowed: No law, no crown, no fear will stop me from finding him again.