This audiobook is narrated by a digital voice.

The crimson moon hung low over the ancient forest of Valdris, casting an ominous glow through the twisted branches that seemed to reach toward the heavens like skeletal fingers. In the heart of this primordial woodland stood a tower that had witnessed the rise and fall of empires, its obsidian stones humming with arcane energy that made the very air shimmer with otherworldly power.

Seraphina Blackthorne stood at the highest window of her sanctum, her emerald eyes reflecting the moonlight as she gazed upon the world below. For three centuries, she had dwelt in solitude, perfecting her mastery of the dark arts that had once made her the most feared sorceress in all the known realms. Her raven-black hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall of midnight, and her pale skin seemed to glow with an inner luminescence that spoke of power beyond mortal comprehension.

Tonight was different. Tonight, the ancient prophecies would begin to unfold, and the fate of the world would rest in her capable hands. She could feel it in the very marrow of her bones—a stirring of forces that had slumbered for millennia, waiting for the proper alignment of celestial bodies to awaken once more.

The enchantress turned from the window and walked gracefully across her study, her bare feet making no sound upon the cold stone floor. Ancient tomes lined the walls from floor to ceiling, their leather bindings worn smooth by centuries of use. Crystalline orbs filled with swirling mists of various colors sat upon pedestals throughout the room, each one containing a fragment of knowledge or a captured spell of immense power.