Flashback ( PDFDrive )

FORTY-SEVEN
A HUGE RED MOON FILLED THE dark sky as Sophie and her friends
arrived at the Celestial Festival. A blood moon, as humans sometimes
called it, and it seemed fitting, given the circumstances—not that
anyone in the crowd appeared to be sharing Sophie’s sense of dread.
The mood felt just as joyous as it had the last time Sophie attended
the festival—maybe even more so, since everything was set against a
much more vibrant backdrop. The Prism Peaks must’ve gotten their
name from the unusual striations running along the jagged mountains
—wide, arcing bands of red, blue, green, and white that were vivid
enough to be distinct even in the moonlight. Beyond that, the starflecked
sky stretched like a glittering canvas, ready for Orem’s show to
begin. And while people waited, they set up midnight picnics and
tossed tiny sparkling firecrackers, showering the scene with glints of
colorful light.
No one was paying any attention to Sophie’s group—they were too
distracted by all the sights and conversations—but she still pulled her
hood up over her head to hide her face. Her friends all did the same,
and they blended in perfectly with the rest of the bundled-up crowd
around them—which would’ve been reassuring, except . . . the
Neverseen could also count on the same camouflage.
All right, Magnate Leto transmitted, making all of them jump. We
should get moving. The earlier we spot the enemy, the sooner we’ll be able to