The Red Moon bled into the night sky, slow and relentless, like an omen carved into time. Its crimson light drenched the world like a veil of blood, ancient and foreboding. The air felt thick, as if the earth itself was holding its breath—waiting. Aisha could feel it, as real as the pulse in her chest: something was shifting.
The Academy and Sanathiel
The hallways of the academy had been dressed for the "Red Night" celebration, but the flickering lights and deep red paper ornaments swinging in the wind felt wrong—almost mocking, like someone was celebrating a catastrophe before it struck.
Aisha moved quickly, ignoring the chatter and laughter of her peers. With each step, the tightness in her chest grew, like a shadow pressing against her lungs. As she turned a corner, the unmistakable figure of Sanathiel Rodrigo leaned casually against the wall. His relaxed posture clashed with the suffocating tension in the air.
"Girl with Pretty eyes," he called out, his tone nonchalant, yet carrying a challenge beneath the surface. "I knew you'd come."
Aisha shot him a sidelong glance. There was something about him that always unsettled her—like he held secrets her soul could sense but her mind couldn't name.
"Call me whatever you want," she replied mechanically, not slowing her pace.
"Always so serious?" Sanathiel fell into step beside her, his arrogant smirk catching the hallway's dim light. "You have a different air tonight Is it for the Red Moon?"
She didn't answer. Her mind was spinning, tangled in a web of strange sensations—this magnetic pull between her, the moon… and him.
The Pier and Unspoken Truths:
Hours later, far from the noise of the school, Aisha found herself by the pier. The roar of the ocean beat in time with her heart, and the icy wind whipped strands of her hair across her face. The Red Moon shimmered over the waves, giving the sea an eerie pulse, like it too had fallen under its spell.
"Found you again, pretty eyes," Sanathiel's voice cut through the night as he appeared beside her, just as relaxed as ever. He leaned on the railing, watching the horizon.
"Don't you have anything better to do?" she asked, not bothering to hide her irritation.
"Not when there's someone this interesant standing in front of me," he said, smiling—but his eyes didn't smile with him. He nodded toward the pendant around her neck. "That thing… is it important to you?"
She instinctively covered it with her hand, fingers brushing the cold metal.
"It's a family keepsake," she said carefully. "Something you wouldn't understand."
"Oh?" he replied, taking a slow step closer. His gaze turned sharp, piercing. "Is it a shield? Or a load you never asked for?
Aisha turned toward him, her eyes filled with quiet warning.
"If you knew what it meant, you wouldn't stand so close."
Sanathiel didn't flinch. His smirk faded, revealing something heavier beneath the surface.
"You know… wolves in sheep's clothing are the most dangerous kind. What about you, Aisha? What are you really?"
His words struck her like a slap. The air between them thickened, pulsing with tension. But before she could reply, a sound—distant, haunting—pulled her attention to the forest.
She stood abruptly, eyes locked on his.
"You better keep your distance, Rodrigo. For your own good."
the meeting on the outskirts of the villas
Hours passed, and in a secluded clearing under the red-stained sky, Falco waited. His tall, shadowy form melted into the darkness of the trees, and his eyes—icy and unfeeling—held no trace of warmth.
"You're late," he growled, voice thick with disdain. "Distracted by pathetic humans again?"
"You have no right to question me," Aisha shot back, her voice trying to hold steady. "I'm not your pawn."
Falco stepped forward, gripping her chin with cold fingers that made her flinch.
"Pawn? You're less than that. Do you really think they'll see anything but a monster when the truth comes out? No matter how much you try to save them, in the end we are tools."
Without another word, he dropped a small object into her hand—a beetle-shaped charm, its dark metal throbbing faintly like it was alive.
"Keep this. You'll need it more than you know."
Before she could answer, he disappears into the shadows leaving behind a feeling of emptiness around her like a shroud.
The Clearing Beneath the Red Moon:
Later, deep in the heart of the woods, Aisha stepped into the place she had promised herself to avoid. And there he was—Sanathiel. Waiting. The Red Moon bathed him in crimson light, magnifying the darkness that always clung to him like a second skin.
"You knew tonight would come," he said, calm as death. "The Red Moon binds us, Aisha. You can't run anymore."
She took a step back, her voice barely steady.
"What do you want from me?"
Sanathiel moved closer, eyes locked on hers.
"The truth. Destiny. You've always known… there's no escape. Not anymore. Tonight, it all comes to light."
The wind howled suddenly, whipping the forest into chaos. Dust and leaves spiraled around them, and Aisha felt the weight of his words crush down on her. The tension in the air sharpened like a blade.
Above them, the Red Moon burned brighter—watching. Waiting.
And the world tilted toward a truth that would shatter everything.