Zana POV

Sitting on one of the chairs inside the temple, with my eyes closed, I am repeating every single detail that is going to happen during the ceremony.

First, Father will thank everyone for their attendance, and he is going to lead the head Shaman to bless the feast. Then, the drums will announce the entrance of the priestess—me.

I will walk to the center of the temple and lead the prayer part of the ceremony to thank Mother Moon for the blessings and the harvest. I will remove my flower crown and set it at the center of the altar as an offering.

“Wow, that tea is working wonders. I don’t feel nervous anymore,” an intrusive thought interrupts me from continuing with the steps of the ceremony.

Where was I? Ah, yes. The crown.

I will put the crown at the center of the altar. Then, while the drums change rhythm, I will change into my dance gear to start the ritual.

“Woah, I think I should have eaten more. I feel a little light-headed,” I tell myself.

“Lina, would you mind bringing me something to eat before the ceremony starts?”

“Princess, are you okay? You usually don’t like to eat before dancing.”

“Yes, you are right. It might be the nerves. I feel a bit odd.”

“Let me bring you some tea instead.”

“Please, allow me, Your Highness. I will bring it to you.” The maid moves in a hurry to fix the tea for me.

Lina follows her with her eyes. I know what she is thinking.

“What’s wrong, Lina?”

“Sorry, Princess, it’s just that I don’t remember seeing that maid before today.”

“Lina, I don’t remember seeing all the people that have assisted us since yesterday. Being locked away for five years surely changed a lot for us.”

“Yes, you might be right, but…”

“Lina, I know you have worked so hard making sure everything goes beyond perfection. Now it is time for you to relax and my turn to work hard.”

The maid returns with a new cup of steaming hot tea.

This time I make sure to take my time drinking it. My tongue and throat are still sore from the tea I drank earlier.

I take a deep breath and try to concentrate again on reviewing the ceremony details. “What kind of tea is this? I could swear it has a metallic flavor to it. Ugh, concentrate, Zana,” I tell myself once more.

“Is it hot? I feel hot. Why is it so hot in here? I better go walk outside a bit to refresh myself before the ceremony starts. Goddess, why can I not concentrate?” My mind is playing tricks on me.

“Lina, I want to breathe a bit of fresh air before the ceremony. I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“No, thank you. It’s okay. I just need a minute of 'peace and quiet' before starting, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, okay. I guess it’s fine. Just don’t go too far; it is almost time.”

“Yes, don’t worry. I’ll be right outside. Thank you.”

Walking to the back door of the temple, I can see the sun setting. I never appreciated the view much, but the sunset is beautiful.

The sun dips below the horizon, painting the sky with a symphony of colors. Streaks of crimson, gold, and lavender bleed into one another. The day’s final light bathes the valley in a warm, golden embrace, casting long shadows and highlighting the silhouettes of trees and mountains. The clouds, brushed with hues of pink and orange, float lazily, as if reluctant to let go of the day. As the sun's last rays kiss the valley goodbye, a gentle twilight settles in, wrapping the world in a tranquil, ethereal glow, promising the quiet beauty of the full moon to come.

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Breathing in the autumn breeze, I close my eyes to bathe myself in the beauty of the view.

“Zana; Zana!” The voice! She’s back! “You’re back! Hi, sorry, I didn’t recognize you before, I…”

“It doesn’t matter right now. Listen to me. I don’t have much time; there was something in the tea…”

“What? Are you sure? What was in it?”

“It doesn’t matter. Just listen. I don’t know how much time I have…”

“What do you mean? Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“No, I’m not hurt, but I’m being suppressed. I’m not going to be able to help you.”

“Wait, help me with what? What is going on?”

“No matter what, don’t go out th—”

“Don’t go out where? Wait! Are you there? Are you okay?”

What is going on? I tell myself, trying to grasp a little sense of what my Lycan tried to tell me. There was something in the tea? There was something in the tea!

I need to tell someone. I need to tell Lina!

Oh Goddess, what is going on?

Everything around me is spinning! Lina, I need to go to Lina.

Walking as straight and slow as possible, I reach the room where Lina is standing, looking at the temple’s platform.

“Lina!”

“There you are! Hurry! The Emperor is almost done with the blessing…”

“Wait, I need to tell you something. The tea…”

The sound of the drums starts resounding.

“Go, Princess. It is your turn. This is your last chance!”

“Wait, Lina! I really need to tell you something. The tea; the tea…”

“Go now! You cannot embarrass the Emperor.”

Those were the words that sent me to the platform. I couldn’t ruin my last chance to recover my father’s trust. So there I go… Goddess, please help me.

With a deep breath I start my walk to the open space at the center of the platform, I can feel everyone’s eyes following my every movement, there is not a single sound except forthe drums resounding loud and ceremonic echoing all around the temple’s walls.

Struggling to keep my sight focused on the point where I supposed to raise my prayer, I finally fell to my knees, my face and arms lifted to the sky facing to the Moon, now glowing in perfect harmony with the celebration.

“Oh, beautiful mother moon, who illuminates our nights and guides our steps in the darkness, today we raise our hearts in gratitude.

You, who watch from the sky with your radiant eyes, have blessed our lands with abundance and life. The fertile soil that sustains the creatures that feed our people, for the nourishing that fill our bodies with strength, and for all the blessings you have bestowed upon us.

We offer these sacrifices as a sign of our respect and eternal gratitude. May your light continue to protect and guide us, and may abundance never be lacking in our homes.

Oh, mother of the night and guardian of cycles, accept our humble gratitude and hear our prayers. Under your mantle of stars, we feel blessed and protected.

Great moon goddess, for your generosity and for the life you give us.”

I did it! I kept thinking while slowly my hands reached the crown on my head, removing it and carefully placing it on the altar at the center of the platform before standing back on my feet.

The silence went broken by a deaffing howl by all the high ranked Lycans that were invited to the ceremony. Followed by the rest of the attendees.

“There is no time to enjoy yourself Zana, hurry!” I snapped myself out from the glorious moment to give place for the next step of the ceremony.

I returned to the Back of the temple trying to remain steady on my walk, feeling more and more dizzy with each passing minute.

I reached the place where I should change to my gear, Lina wasn’t there but there was no time to lose, the drums were marking the time in a perfect tune. With extreme care to not being observed by anyone I removed my dress and covered my body with it while trying to wear my chest piece. I’m not going to make it in time!

“Princess are you ready?”

“Lina?”

“No; Xali, are you ok?”

“No, I don’t know where Lina is and I cannot dress by myself”

“Oh, goddess, let me.”

“Thank you Xali, please hurry!”

“Ok, done, now, the crown.”

“Got it!”

“Now, now, now; go!”

I made it! I can’t believe I made it in time, and thanks to Xali! from all people she was the one helping me!

Where is Lina? she would never leave in a moment so important for us… Focus Zana, you will have time to ask later…

The drums are marking the auspicious moment for the celebration, I feel my body tingling and my sight is blurry but I know, even sleeping I can do this, I just need to make it until the end of the dance ritual then everything will be ok. Come on Zana you can do this, I CAN DO THIS!

Slowly, I walked out from the temple approaching the place dedicated to the dance. I can hear everyone’s gasping in awe and murmuring from the distance, but I can barely se anything. I’m moving more by instinct and memory.

I reached the highest part of the platform, the floor has been heavely adorned with a tapestry of white Flowers, I didn’t know about this, ‘dancing on a bed of flowers will definitely be… interesting not at all what I was expecting or what it was accostumed’ I told myself. standing in the center, with my eyes closed, my ears focusing on the drums thunder. NOW!

My feet reacted like if they had life on their own. I could feel my blood boiling with the force of a fire menacing to burst my body in flames, I never felt more alive!

This is it, this is the moment I was waiting for.

Mom, I made it!