The Night After

The city did not sleep.

No songs echoed through Elaris anymore.

The festival lanterns that had once drifted proudly across the sky now lay crushed beneath hurried footsteps, soaked by spilled wine and muddy rainwater. Stalls stood abandoned, their decorations torn by the frightened crowd that had scattered only hours before.

The moon still hung above the city.

Broken.

A jagged wound stretched across its silver face.

No one dared look at it for long.

Seren sat outside her family's bakery as dawn slowly painted the horizon.

She hadn't spoken since the square had emptied.

Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the man standing beside the restored fountain.

"I remember loving you..."

"My heart is silent."

The words refused to leave her mind.

Her father stepped outside carrying two steaming cups.

"You haven't slept."

Neither had he.

Dark circles rested beneath his eyes.

He handed one cup to Seren before sitting beside her.

For several minutes, neither of them spoke.

Finally, Seren whispered,

"Do you think... he was lying?"

Her father stared into the cup in his hands.

"No."

"But people don't just stop loving someone."

"I know."

"So how—"

"I don't know."

His answer came quietly.

"And I think that's what frightens me most."

By sunrise, the bells of Elaris rang.

Not for celebration.

For assembly.

The entire city gathered once again in the square.

The repaired fountain stood exactly where it had before.

Only the glowing crystal was gone.

The man who had touched it had vanished before sunrise.

Some said soldiers had taken him.

Others claimed he had run away.

Rumors spread faster than truth.

The mayor climbed onto the fountain's edge.

"Citizens of Elaris."

His voice echoed across the silent crowd.

"What happened last night cannot be explained."

Murmurs rippled through the people.

"But until we know more, no one is to approach any glowing stones that may have fallen outside the city."

"If one is found..."

"...report it immediately."

A woman cried out from the crowd.

"My husband says they're blessings!"

Another shouted back,

"My brother watched a man lose his soul!"

Arguments erupted instantly.

"A miracle!"

"A curse!"

"A gift from the heavens!"

"A punishment!"

The square dissolved into shouting.

Seren looked up at the cracked moon.

For the first time in her life...

It frightened her.

That afternoon, travelers began arriving from neighboring villages.

Every one of them carried another story.

A shepherd had touched a crystal and gained the strength to lift an entire wagon.

He no longer laughed.

A healer cured a dying child.

She never cried again.

A hunter could suddenly hear whispers from miles away.

He had forgotten fear.

Each story ended the same way.

Power.

Then loss.

By sunset, people had already given the glowing stones a name.

Moonshards.

The bakery remained strangely quiet.

Most customers came not for bread, but for news.

Seren wrapped another loaf in cloth while listening to frightened conversations.

"They're worth fortunes."

"I heard the king is collecting them."

"They'll start a war."

"They'll save us."

"They'll destroy us."

Everyone had an opinion.

No one had answers.

As the last customer left, Seren locked the front door.

She glanced out the window.

Something moved across the rooftops.

A shadow.

Fast.

Too fast.

It leaped from one building to another before disappearing into the evening mist.

Seren frowned.

"Did you see that?"

Her father looked up.

"See what?"

"...Nothing."

But it hadn't been nothing.

Someone else was searching the city.

Someone who knew exactly what had fallen from the sky.

And high above Elaris...

On the tallest bell tower...

A young man crouched with effortless balance.

A silver crystal rested in his gloved hand.

He smiled.

"Found you."

With one graceful step, he vanished into the moonlight.

The only thing left behind was a faint silver shimmer dancing across the rooftop.

His name...

...was Nalo.

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