The air in the sublevel chamber tasted metallic, like rusted wires and static. Dr. Elara Voss adjusted her gloves, the latex creaking as she pressed a palm against the glass wall of the containment unit. Inside, the thing pulsed—slow, rhythmic,…
Mara’s fingers brushed the damp stone as she pressed herself against the lighthouse wall, her breath fogging in the cold air. The storm had died hours ago, leaving only the creak of the rusted lantern and the distant crash of…
Clara stepped off the bus, her boots crunching on gravel as the wind tugged at her coat. The town of Black Hollow sat like a wound in the earth, its buildings hunched against the cold. She hadn’t set foot here…
The sky split above Veyra, not with thunder but with silence. Lira stood on the rusted balcony of her workshop, hands braced against the cold iron railing, watching the twin hemispheres drift apart. One half glowed with the amber light…
The air inside the Arctic research facility was thin, sharp, and humming with the low-frequency buzz of unseen machinery. Dr. Elara Voss adjusted her gloves, her breath fogging the glass of her helmet as she stepped into the containment chamber.…
Mara’s boots crunched over gravel as she climbed the hill, the wind tugging at her jacket like a desperate hand. The lighthouse stood ahead, its white stone weathered to a dull gray, the glass of its dome shattered in places.…
The air reeked of salt and sweat as Elara stepped off the creaking schooner, her boots sinking into the muck of San Francisco’s dock. The bay’s brine stung her eyes, but she blinked it away, scanning the chaos around her—sailors…
The rain fell in relentless sheets, turning the dirt path into a slick ribbon of mud. Lena Voss tightened her coat against the chill, her boots squelching with every step. The town of Black Hollow hadn’t changed in twenty years—except…
The first time Lila found the key, it was tucked inside a hollow in the old oak behind her grandmother’s cottage. She’d been twelve, chasing fireflies through the dunes, when her boot struck something solid. The metal glinted in the…
The air in the underground chamber stank of ozone and rust. Dr. Elara Voss adjusted her gloves, her breath fogging the visor of her suit. The vault door behind her hummed with a low, mechanical growl, its surface etched with…
Dr. Elara Voss adjusted her gloves, the latex creaking as she leaned over the containment unit. The room hummed with the low whir of cooling systems, a sound that had become as familiar as her own breath. Before her, the…
The air inside the facility hummed with a low, electric charge, like the moment before a storm. Dr. Elara Voss adjusted her gloves, the synthetic material creaking as she stepped into the containment chamber. The glass walls shimmered under the…
The air reeked of ozone and rust, a metallic tang that clung to the back of Dr. Elara Voss’s throat as she adjusted the visor on her helmet. Outside the colony’s domed perimeter, the twin suns of Thalassa hung low…
## Trenchsong The salt spray stung Ardea’s face, a familiar slap across her skin. Below, the submersible *Charybdis* descended into Monterey Canyon, its powerful lights cutting through the perpetual twilight. Her fingers danced across the console, calibrating the hydrophones, each…
## The Cartographer’s Echo The scent of scorched paper clung to Ellyn’s nostrils, a phantom limb of the fire that consumed Dorian Voss’s study just weeks ago. Officially, it was an electrical fault, a tragic accident. But Ellyn hadn’t believed…