Amaranth's Yule

Chapter Two ~ A Wagon Made of Stone, Rolling on a Wooden Road

"A blood moon has risen! A blood moon has risen!"

The guard's frightened screeching echoed through the dark, castle halls. Emira was awake at once. She lay in bed, paralyzed with fear, and watched the ceiling with wide eyes.

Red light was shining through her window, casting a haunting glow across her room.

Heart pounding, she crawled out of bed and crept over to the window. The full moon looked out of place in the starry sky, casting its red, demonic glow over everything. The moon itself was a deep crimson, unlike anything she had ever seen. The flowering, springtime garden with the little birch tree, the eerie Silou Forest, the distant peaks of North Claws, and even the other half of the castle all looked unrecognizable in the strange light. Gazing over the red landscape, Emira recalled the meaning of the horrific phenomenon. When an immortal falls, the moon runs read with their blood, Emira recited. But an immortal can only be harmed by one of their own.

The guard's screeching call came again, closer this time. "A blood moon has risen! An immortal has fallen!"

Emira shoved open the wooden doors to her room, shivering in her nightgown as the frozen air rushed into her room. The guard didn't stop as he careened past her door, still projecting the warning like a siren. She ran in the opposite direction, towards her parent's room, only to be stopped as her brother emerged from his dorm.

"What's going on?" he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes. They gave off a dim, purple glow in the dark.

"Can't you hear that annoying guard screeching?" she replied dryly. "A blood moon has risen." Without waiting for a reply, she dashed off. Emira rounded the corner and found her parents in the hallway, their doors ajar and servants crowding around them.

"King Madara, what should we do!?" someone asked fretfully.

"Everyone calm down," he hushed. "We don't know who it is yet, but for safety, we shall contact our ally immediately."

The order seemed to soothe the crowd, or at least give them something to do. One servant ran off and returned a moment later with an ink pot and a scroll. He handed it to the king.

Emira resisted the desire to run into her mother's arms like a child. She hated all the chaos and panic. Madara headed into their bedroom as she waited for her mother to notice her.

Finally, the queen turned around and caught sight of her and Lassor. "There you are!" she exclaimed, running over and scooping them up in a big hug. She felt her brother stiffen beside her. The embrace lasted a long moment, until Azalea finally let go. "You should get back to bed," she coaxed, a hand on each of their shoulders. "Staying up will do you no good tomorrow."

Emira frowned. She didn't think she could go back to sleep after everything. She looked into her mother's eyes pleadingly, but Azalea shook her head. "We don't want these servants trampling you, now do we," she joked, trying to lighten the mood. Emira and Lassor each reluctantly cracked a smile. "I promise everything will be alright. Goodnight," Azalea said warmly. "I love you both."

Feeling slightly reassured, Emira gave a quick "goodnight" and "I love you too," then sauntered off to her room. But with every step she grew more and more tired until she plopped into bed and fell into an uneasy slumber.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Emira awoke to bright sunlight shining in her eyes. She turned over sleepily and covered her face with her hands. Though, as much as she tried, she didn't feel tired enough to go back to sleep. After a moment, she sat up and decided it was time to start the day.

Emira crawled out of bed and slid her glasses onto her face. She got dressed and picked out her favorite outfit; a short, emerald green dress with loose, black fabric around her waist, shoulders and wrists. She hopped through the doors and into the hallway cheerfully, trying to act as though last night never happened. Her stomach growled pitifully as she made her way up the wide, grand staircase, and into the dining hall.