Chapter 28 The Moon Dance

• The room was lit by lanterns with blue flames, casting dancing shadows on the thick fabric walls. It felt sacred, yet oppressive. The air smelled of sweet incense mixed with bitter herbs, as if time inside the tent had come to a halt.
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• Ellie sat on a stone bench, her body tense, her soul uneasy. Several women from the Blood Moon pack worked on her as if she were an ancestral statue meant to be worshipped… or perhaps modified until she was no longer recognizable. Skilled hands traced her skin with pigments, perfumes, and ornaments. Every movement was ceremonial, but distant.