The whispers started the moment I stepped into town.
It wasn’t the usual chatter, the idle gossip that accompanied Crescent Ridge. No, this was different. Every time I walked down the main street, every time I passed the little shops and stalls, I could feel it. Eyes flicking toward me, narrowing, pulling away. Half of them stared with awe, some of them trembling as if I carried the moon itself in my veins. The other half… they looked away, muttering under their breath, eyes dark with suspicion.
Moon’s Chosen, some said, in hushed tones.
Mooncursed, others whispered, spitting the words like venom.
It was exhausting, the weight of it pressing down on my shoulders, making the air feel heavier with every step. I could feel the threads along my wrist pulsing, awake and aware, stretching ou
