The Midnight Bloom

Previously

…That night, as the village slept fitfully, Elara could not rest. She sat by her window, the smooth, cool stone clutched in her hand, and watched the moon climb higher in the sky. She thought of the shadowy figure, its unseen eyes, its chilling presence. She thought of the prophecy, of her mother’s veiled warnings, and of the fragile hope offered by a flower that bloomed only in the deepest darkness. A sense of profound loneliness washed over her, yet beneath it, a flicker of determination ignited. She would face the night. She had to. The fate of Oakhaven rested on her ability to find and understand the midnight bloom, and she would not falter, not now, not when the shadow was so close.