Moonfall, #2
The Ballad of Falling Dragons
by Sarah A. Parker
Contents
Chapter 52
Overview
Raeve is captured and taken to the Scavenger King’s hoard, a cavern crowned by a throne of moonshards. The king reveals himself as Arkyn, Ostern’s burned bastard, devoted to an ancient Elding Bird and intent on seizing the bronze throne. Learning Raeve’s tie to Kaan, Arkyn orders a mind‑rifler to extract what she knows, escalating the threat to Kaan and Raeve’s mission.
Summary
Raeve wakes shackled, hauled through soot‑lit tunnels by bronze‑masked captors and dumped in a vast cavern stacked with scavenged relics. Flames expose a dais and a throne built of moonshards, including silver fragments tied to Slátra. The ominous setting signals power and danger, forcing Raeve to gauge escape while weakened by her wound.
A cloaked ruler takes the throne, naming the place his palace and revealing foreknowledge of Raeve and her past. He is Arkyn, the Scavenger King of the under‑mountain pits. An immense Elding Bird, Cliár, answers his whistle, displaying a bond that proves legendary creatures endure under his protection and control.
Arkyn probes Raeve’s loyalties, steering the exchange into a tale of his origin: a bastard of Ostern Vaegor, overshadowed by Kaan’s legitimacy and nurtured status. He recounts seeking an Elding Bird’s egg to win approval, only for Ostern to crush it and order him to run, leading to Arkyn’s disfiguring burn and rescue by Cliár. This trauma hardens his claim against the bronze throne and his hatred for Kaan.
Raeve defends Kaan’s character, but Arkyn contrasts their upbringings and fixates on vengeance. When Raeve slips and implies Kaan loves someone, Arkyn seizes on the leverage. He crowns himself and commands his underling to fetch Guíll to rifle Raeve’s mind, placing Kaan and Raeve’s secrets in immediate peril.
Who Appears
- Raeve (Veya Vaegor)Captured, wounded, and shackled; confronts the Scavenger King, defends Kaan, and risks revealing Kaan’s love.
- Arkyn (Scavenger King)Ostern’s burned bastard; rules the pits, bonded to an Elding Bird, covets the bronze throne, orders mind‑rifling.
- CliárMajestic Elding Bird bonded to Arkyn; protects him and underscores his legend and power.
- WorinArkyn’s underling; sent to summon Guíll for mind‑rifling Raeve.
- GuíllA mind‑rifler Arkyn intends to use to extract Raeve’s secrets.
- Bronze-masked escortsArkyn’s men who capture and drag Raeve to the hoard cavern.