CHAPTER 3: “The Festival of Moons”
The city gleams with light, music, and masks. But in the middle of the celebration, two souls feel the pull of something far older than memory.
Capital City of Aurell – Evening. The Festival of Moons fills the city with golden lanterns, mask parades, and crowded marketplaces.
Rael[ML](Present)
(stepping down from a merchant’s wagon, cloaked, dust on his boots)
"So this is the capital..."
(Towers rise in the distance, music echoes through the stone streets. Fireworks bloom over the city walls.)
Rael[ML](Present)
(I’ve seen these towers. But only in dreams...)
Rael[ML](Present)
(He joins the stream of festival-goers. Lanterns sway above. People laugh and dance, faces hidden behind masks of birds, beasts, and stars.)
Rael[ML](Present)
(passing a vendor handing out silver masks)
"One silver wolf, please."
Vendor
(grinning)
"Here you go, stranger. Keep your secrets and smile wide—tonight, no one’s who they seem!"
Rael[ML](Present)
(pulls on the mask. The silver glints under torchlight.)
Rael[ML](Present)
(I’m no longer Rael tonight… but maybe I’ll find who I used to be.)
Royal Pavilion – Grand balcony overlooking the crowd.
(Princess Elira stands in a flowing white gown. A silver crescent crown rests on her brow. Her mask is pale gold, like the first light of dawn.)
Elira [FL](Present)
(smiling stiffly at nobles below)
"Thank you all for joining the celebration. May the moons guide your hearts."
KING REGENTREGENT(FL father)
(whispers in her ear)
"Tavrok arrives tomorrow. Try not to look bored tonight."
Elira [FL](Present)
(murmurs coldly)
"If he arrives tomorrow… then tonight is mine."
Elira [FL](Present)
(I don’t know what I’m waiting for. But I feel it. Closer.)
Elira [FL](Present)
(walks down the stairs into the crowd, unnoticed. She slips away from the guards, blending with the revelers.)
Guard-1
"Where did the princess go?"
Guard-2
"It’s the masks. Damn things make everyone vanish."
The central courtyard – people dancing in circles to lute music, masks gleaming in lantern light.
Rael[ML](Present)
(stopping near the fountain, catching his breath)
Rael[ML](Present)
(spots her across the crowd—gown glowing, mask golden)
"That can’t be..."
Rael[ML](Present)
(It’s her. I don’t know how, but it’s her.)
Elira [FL](Present)
(Elira turns, sensing something. Her eyes land on Rael. Their gazes lock.)
Elira [FL](Present)
(barely whispers)
"You..."
Elira [FL](Present)
(Why do I feel like I know you?)
Rael[ML](Present)
(moving closer, heart racing)
"Have we... met?"
Elira [FL](Present)
(tilts her head, hesitant smile)
"I was about to ask the same."
A pause. The music fades into background noise as the world narrows to the two of them.
Rael[ML](Present)
"Would you dance, masked stranger?"
Elira [FL](Present)
(softly)
"I don’t even know your name."
Rael[ML](Present)
"Then let’s dance before we remember."
They step into the circle of dancers. Hands touch. Sparks.
The crowd spins, masks blur, but they only see each other.
Rael[ML](Present)
(Why does this feel like coming home?)
Elira [FL](Present)
(Why do I want this moment to never end?)
Elira [FL](Present)
(voice trembling)
"When I look at you… I feel like I’ve lost you before."
Rael[ML](Present)
(blinks)
"I... I think I did lose you."
Elira [FL](Present)
(touching her pendant)
"Do you believe in souls meeting again?"
Rael[ML](Present)
"Only when they weren’t finished the first time."
(A deep bell tolls in the distance.)
Herald
(shouting from the palace tower)
"The warlord Tavrok arrives with dawn. The engagement procession begins at sunrise!"
Elira [FL](Present)
(stiffens)
(Her smile fades.)
Rael[ML](Present)
"Wait. Engagement?"
Elira [FL](Present)
(stepping back, breath caught)
"I… I have to go."
Rael[ML](Present)
(grabs her hand gently)
"Please. Tell me your name."
Elira [FL](Present)
(hesitates)
( A tear at the edge of her lashes.)
Elira [FL](Present)
"Elira."
Elira [FL](Present)
(She pulls away—disappearing into the sea of masks.)
Rael[ML](Present)
(staring after her, stunned)
"Elira..."
Rael[ML](Present)
(It’s real. It’s her. She’s still alive. But she’s promised to another.)
Far above, on a rooftop, the cloaked stranger (from Chapter 2) watches.
STRANGER
(murmurs to the wind)
"Two stars have met again… but darkness rises with morning."
(A shadow moves behind him. A soldier in dark armor kneels.)
Dark Soldier
"We found the boy. He’s in the city."
STRANGER
"Then so is fate."
Author
Glimpse of next episode -
Beneath the palace, hidden truths stir. Rael searches for her. But someone else is watching… someone who remembers his face from a past life.
Author
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