Rhea Alvarez stood at the edge of the cliff, her eyes reflecting the silver Twilight cast over Stella. Her skin, dark and rich like the earth beneath her feet, glistened under the last rays of the sun as she faced the distant call that had haunted her dreams for weeks. The shamans had called: those ancient, unwavering keepers of the old ways were the last arbiters of who was worthy to walk the path she now walked.
They did not call lightly. The whispers of their intention had spread like wildfire. Murmurs of an ancient ordination bestowed only on those who bore the unmistakable mark of Nahuatl. The touch of the deity was a rare thing, often manifest in gifts that frightened others and invoked reverence in those who recognized their power. Rhea had known that day was coming ever since she'd felt the electric pulse of the Spirit of Kukulkan course through her veins for the very first time. Just as inescapable as it was clear: Kukulkan had chosen her to wield its fury, its strength, its unrelenting storm. But for all her power, she knew one thing clearly: to carry the mark of the old gods was no small weight.
The scent of salt and wildflowers carried on the breeze as she turned from the edge of the cliff; her white hair caught the wind, a streak of lightning against the dusk. With each step that she descended from the precipice, she was making decisions more weighty. The path wound down toward her village, nestled deep in the valley below, where green stretched endlessly, blanketing the earth in life. She hadn't been here in months, not since the awakening and the power that came with it.
People heard of the change, some saw it with their own eyes, and a tint of amazement and fear always remained in their gazes whenever they chanced upon her.