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Chapter 1 - Chapter 1

 THE NIGHT THE SKY WENT QUIET

The people of Zuwana had waited all year for the Night of the Comet.

It comes once every century.

A bright silver trail that crossed the sky, blessing every newborn and marking their destiny.

Elders said it was the breath of the ancient spirits.

Parents believed it guided the life of every child who saw its light.

So that night, the whole village gathered outside.

Fires burned.

Drums echoed.

Children sat on their mothers' laps, eyes fixed on the stars.

Inside a small hut near the river, a young woman named Mala screamed in labour.

Her hands held tight to an old cloth.

Sweat ran down her face, but her eyes were filled with hope.

"Hold on, Mala," the midwife whispered. "Your child will be born under the comet. This is a blessing."

Mala smiled weakly.

She believed it too.

Every child born under the comet grew strong, wise, or great.

Some became warriors.

Some became healers.

Some became leaders.

But then—

The drums outside stopped.

The air turned cold.

The midwife looked up.

"Why… Why did the music stop?"

A shout came from outside.

"THE COMET IS NOT APPEARING!"

Silence spread through the whole village.

People stared at the sky.

Dark.

Still.

Quiet.

Not a single streak of silver.

The comet… was gone.

It had never failed before.

The midwife felt fear grip her chest.

She turned to Mala.

"No… this cannot be."

Mala's voice trembled.

"What does it mean?"

Before the midwife could answer, the baby cried.

A strong, loud cry — not weak, not sickly, but sharp and full of life.

The sky stayed silent.

The stars did not blink.

The wind did not move.

It felt as if the whole world held its breath.

The midwife lifted the newborn boy, but her hands shook.

There was something strange about him.

Not his body — he looked normal.

But the moment she touched him, she felt a cold rush inside her chest, like something was missing… something that should be there.

Like he had no thread connected to the world.

"What is it?" Mala asked, fear rising in her eyes.

The midwife whispered, almost afraid to speak:

"This child… has no fate."

Outside, the elders began chanting in panic, trying to call the comet back.

It did not return.

The sky stayed empty.

Mala held her baby close, tears falling onto his small face.

And in that quiet, frozen night, the boy opened his eyes for the first time.

They were calm.

Too calm.

Like the eyes of someone who didn't belong to this world.

The midwife swallowed hard.

"His name," she whispered. "What will you call him?"

Mala looked down at her son and felt something she couldn't explain — fear and love mixed together.

"Levie," she said softly.

"My child will be called Levie."

The Silent-Sky Child.

The only one born without the comet

.

The boy with no written future.

The boy who would break the world's old rules… simply by growing up.

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