
The Hollow Shore
Mara stepped off the creaking ferry, her boots sinking into the damp gravel of the harbor. The salt air stung her nose, sharp and familiar, like the scent of her father’s old coat. She hadn’t set foot in Ironclad Bay…
Mara stepped off the creaking ferry, her boots sinking into the damp gravel of the harbor. The salt air stung her nose, sharp and familiar, like the scent of her father’s old coat. She hadn’t set foot in Ironclad Bay…
Dr. Elara Voss adjusted the neural interface, its cold metal clamps biting into Kieran’s temples. The lab hummed with the low thrum of machines, a sound that had become as familiar as her own heartbeat. Outside, rain lashed the windows,…
Dr. Lila Voss adjusted the sterile gloves on her hands, the latex creaking as she leaned over the observation table. The man lying beneath the thin sheet—Elias Mercer—had no idea how close he was to unraveling everything she believed about…
The rain fell in steady sheets as Mara stepped off the bus, her boots sinking into the muddy path leading to the town of Blackwood. The air smelled of wet pine and something sharper—oil, maybe, or decay. She pulled her…
Clara stepped off the creaking ferry, her boots sinking into the damp sand as the tide whispered against the shore. The lighthouse stood behind her, its white tower weathered by years of salt and wind, its beam sweeping the horizon…
The air smelled of damp earth and pine resin as Mara stepped off the rusted bus, her boots crunching on gravel. The town of Blackmoor clung to the hills like a shadow, its crooked buildings leaning against the wind. She…
The first time she saw him, the sea was a bruise of gray, and the lighthouse beam cut through the storm like a blade. Mara stood at the edge of the cliff, her boots sinking into the mud as wind…
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 rain tapped the window like a stranger knocking for entry. Mara pulled her coat tighter, fingers brushing the cold glass. The town of Black Hollow had always felt like a place between worlds, its pines thick with secrets and…
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 rain fell in sheets as Clara Voss stepped off the creaking bus, her boots sinking into the mud of Cedar Hollow’s main road. The town had not changed—a patchwork of sagging porches, rusted fences, and the acrid tang of…
## Static Bloom The chipped Formica countertop felt cold under Leo Maxwell’s forearms. Rain, not the usual Pacific drizzle, but a violet-streaked downpour, hammered against the diner’s window. It smelled like ozone and regret, a sharp tang that clung to…
## Root & Wire The dust tasted like rust, clinging to Elara’s tongue as she walked the cracked earth of her family’s farm. Fifteen years old, and already a landscape sculptor, carving canyons in the parched soil with each weary…
## The Echo Painter Rain lashed against the corrugated iron roof of the warehouse, a relentless drumming that mirrored Elara’s pulse. The space smelled of damp concrete, stale coffee, and something vaguely metallic – the scent of experimentation. She gripped…
## Echo Bloom The dust tasted like iron and regret. Lena spat, wiping her gloved hand across her cheek. The excavation site hummed – not with the usual clatter of shovels and pickaxes, but a low-frequency thrum emanating from the…