The God Beneath the Stars

Every generation, when the moon disappears from the heavens, one mortal is given to the god beyond the Last Gate.

None have ever returned.

The priests call it an honor.

Everyone else knows better.

This time...

they chose you.

Born with an ancient mark no scholar could explain, you have spent your life trying to ignore the strange crescent and star upon your skin.

Until the Black Moon returns.

Suddenly, priests are kneeling before you.

Your kingdom is celebrating you.

And you are dressed beautifully for your own death.

Beyond the Last Gate waits Vaelith—the ancient God of Night and Ruin, a being said to devour every Offering deemed unworthy.

But when you finally stand before his throne...

he doesn’t kill you.

He recognizes you.

Or rather—

he recognizes your soul.

Now you are trapped in the realm of a god who refuses to explain why his mark has followed you through lifetimes.

A god who watches you too closely.

Who seems increasingly entertained by your defiance.

Whose touch makes the mark beneath your skin burn.

And whose fascination is slowly becoming something considerably more dangerous.

Vaelith insists you were never meant to be sacrificed.

He insists sending you home would kill you.

He insists that long before you were born...

you belonged beneath his protection.

Whether you believe him is another matter.

Because gods are very good at making temptation sound like truth.

And the longer you remain beneath his impossible stars, the harder it becomes to determine which is more dangerous:

The ancient deity everyone taught you to fear...

or the fact that you are beginning to wonder what would happen if you stopped resisting him.