The Only Son Amongst The Daughters Of Eros

In the ethereal expanse of the Moonlight Region, Luna was training in the royal family’s magical training field.

It was hidden deep within the Castle of Moonlight’s fortified walls. The field was a vast, enchanted arena, its boundaries shimmering with silvery barriers that mimicked the serene, nightly landscapes of her domain.

Constructed by Mother Selene’s own divine hand, it was a place where the Daughters honed their powers.

The air possessed an invigorating amount of lunar magic and Divinity that amplified their abilities.

Magical beast constructs prowled the simulated terrain, ethereal wolves and shadowy panthers woven from illusions and raw divinity, their eyes gleaming with predatory intent as they reformed endlessly after each defeat.

Luna, the eldest Daughter of Moonlight, was sweating profoundly, but she did not stop training.

She battled the silver constructs tirelessly, her movements relentless and unforgiving.

With a graceful leap, she closed on a construct wolf, her sword slicing through the air in a crescent arc that mimicked the moon’s phase.

The blade connected with a burst of illusory light, severing the beast’s spectral head in one clean stroke.

Another panther lunged from the shadows, and Luna pivoted, summoning a protective veil of moonlight that absorbed the claw strike before countering with a thrust that pierced its core, the construct dissolving into wisps of silver mist.

Her breaths came steady, controlled, but her mind was a storm that no amount of physical exertion could quell.

Aeric.

That damned Son of Starlight haunted her thoughts like a persistent eclipse.

First, he had disgraced her in that inexplicable duel, using a cunning maneuver that she still didn’t understand causing her to be bound by a humiliating Divine Contract to serve his whims.

And now, he forced her to fight for him, to march into the Beast Glade and risk her life for his pathetic Region’s troubles.

Anger boiled within her, fueling each strike.

How dare he command her, the pride of Moonlight?

A roar left her as she cleaved through three constructs at once, her sword trailing arcs of healing light that ironically mended nothing but her own simmering rage.

“Insolent fool!” she snarled under her breath, imagining his face on the next beast as she impaled it with brutal force.

However, she wasn’t being completely truthful with herself.

Why did her mind linger on him this way?

Why did she find what he was doing: allying allies, negotiating with those scheming branching families, focusing solely on saving his people.

Why did she find it admirable?

He cared not a whit for her opinion, his eyes were always fixed on the horizon, on his Region and his legacy.

It was infuriating, this reluctant respect bubbling beneath her fury.

How could a boy from the weakest Region command such presence?

These thoughts only made her angrier, her strikes growing more savage.

She unleashed a barrage of illusions, phantom blades multiplying her sword into a deadly storm that shredded a pack of constructs, their forms exploding in bursts of mana.

Luna roared, a primal cry echoing through the field, her mana reserves depleting rapidly as she pushed beyond her limits.

Panting heavily, she finally staggered to a halt, her sword embedded in the last beast’s crumbling form.

Her physical strength spent, she dropped to one knee, chest heaving, silver eyes narrowed in exhaustion and unresolved turmoil.

‘I’m so… tired. So confused.’

The doors to the arena groaned open. The magical field deteriorated around her: the rivers faded to smooth stone, and the moon flowers wilted into nothingness.

In stepped her mother, Queen Selene, the most revered of Eros’s wives and ruler of the Moonlight Region.

Selene, with her voluptuous form in a flowing gown of midnight silk, entered silently. Her feet barely made a sound.

Her long silver hair framed a face of stern wisdom, her eyes a piercing silver that missed nothing.

As the goddess of the moon, her powers were unparalleled in healing, illusions, and protection, allowing her to weave barriers that could shield entire armies or mend wounds with a mere glance.

But beneath her icy demeanor lay a calculating ambition.

Ever since Aeric’s birth, first she had wanted to kill him, now she plotted to control him. The Son’s anomaly was a threat to Moonlight’s supremacy, she believed.

The Wave War was coming. Her plans were already set in motion.

Enslave the Son for breeding more Sons to empower their family line.

When Selene was a few steps from her daughter, she paused.

“Luna, my daughter,” she said, her voice a cool melody that carried both concern and authority. “What is the problem?”

Luna looked up at her reverent mother.

She straightened, wiping sweat from her brow, trying to play it off with a dismissive shrug. “It’s nothing, Mother. Just preparing for the battles ahead.”

Selene shook her head. “I know you only train this hard when something troubles you deeply. Do not deflect and tell me what it is. Let your mother help you.”

With a sigh, Luna stood, her sword lowered and her pride cracking under her mother’s gaze.

“I feel like our family is slipping from my fingers. You sent Melina away, and now she’s with that… Son of Eros, entangled in his schemes. Aryanne misses her sister terribly, and I miss the stability we once had. Everything seems upside down ever since Aeric of Starlight appeared.

“It’s like… he’s a curse we can’t shake.”

Selene’s expression softened slightly, but her heart pounded at the underlying accusation.

She drew Luna closer, her hand resting on her daughter’s shoulder. “That is precisely why we must do everything in our power to control him, Luna. Or else, he will control us.”

Luna licked her lips, hiding her gaze from her mother.

Selene continued. “This Wave War presents the perfect opportunity. We capture him, fake his death, and make him our slave. Birthing more Sons will empower our family beyond measure, securing Moonlight’s dominance.”

Luna finally looked up at her mother, sadness and a flicker of doubt crossing her eyes. “But what is wrong with us Daughters, Mother? Are we not enough?”

Selene’s heart raced at the question, a rare vulnerability flashing in her eyes before she masked it with stern resolve.

She pulled Luna into a brief, firm embrace, whispering, “Don’t ask such things, my dear. Nothing is wrong with you, of course.”

“You are perfect, strong, my pride. It is just an undeniable truth that the Starlight Region holds the cards because Mother Guinevere birthed a son. We must face this difficult reality and act accordingly.”

Releasing her, Selene stepped back, her gaze intense. “Are you with me in this, Luna? You are my hand, my executioner, my shoulder to rest on. I need your trust to see it through.”

Luna met her mother’s eyes, her loyalty unwavering despite the turmoil. “I am with you, always, Mother.”

Selene smiled then, a rare, genuine curve of her lips that warmed the cold chamber.

Luna expected a hug, a moment of closeness to seal their pact, but her mother turned gracefully, her gown swirling like moonlight on water.

“Good. Wrap it up in here. The maids have made dinner. Join us soon.”

With that, she glided out, the doors sealing behind her, leaving Luna alone with her thoughts once more.

Back in the Starlight Region, as the night deepened under its natural cycle of stars, Rosette and Misty had returned to the Castle of Starlight.