The air in Duskspire reeked of damp stone and old blood. Kael pulled his cloak tighter, the fabric stiff with dust from the abandoned cathedral’s forgotten corridors. Shadows clung to the walls like spiders, stretching and twitching as his boots…
The salt-kissed air tasted of brine and possibility as Mara traced the chipped edge of the map with her thumb. The paper had survived decades in her grandmother’s attic, its ink faded to sepia, but the lighthouse symbol still burned…
The salt air tasted like memory when she first saw him. Maren stood at the edge of the dock, her boots sinking into the wet wood as the tide gnawed at the pilings. The lighthouse beam swept across the bay,…
The first time Maya heard the whisper, she was scrubbing the kitchen floor, her fingers raw from the abrasive cleaner. The sound slithered through the house like a snake in the grass—soft, deliberate, and wrong. She froze, the sponge dangling…
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…
Mara stood at the edge of the cliff, her boots sinking into the damp sand as the wind tugged at her wool coat. The lighthouse loomed behind her, its skeletal frame silhouetted against the bruised sky. She hadn’t expected company.…
The wind howled through the skeletal remains of the lighthouse, its hollow corridors swallowing sound like a greedy mouth. Mira tightened her grip on the rusted railing, her boots scuffing the concrete steps as she climbed. The air smelled of…
Mara stepped off the bus, her boots crunching on gravel as the salt-tinged wind tugged at her coat. The town of Seabrook stretched before her, its weathered cottages huddled like secrets against the cliffs. She hadn’t set foot here since…
The air in Veylan’s market hung thick with the scent of burnt amber and iron, a metallic tang that clung to the back of Kael’s throat. He adjusted the leather straps of his satchel, its weight familiar against his shoulder,…
The air smelled of salt and decay when Lila first saw the girl in the mirror. It was 3:17 a.m., and the bathroom light buzzed like a trapped wasp. Lila’s reflection stared back, but the girl in the glass had…
The first time Leo saw Clara, she was kneading dough in the dim light of The Crust, her sleeves rolled to her elbows, flour dusting her forearms like snow. The bell above the door jingled as he stepped inside, and…
The saltwater air bit through Lila Voss’s jacket as she stood at the edge of the dock, her boots sinking into the damp wood. The ocean stretched endless ahead, its surface shimmering under the pale sun, but her eyes were…
The air in Dustspire stank of pine resin and sweat, a thick miasma that clung to Elara’s throat as she stepped off the wagon. Her boots crunched over gravel, each step echoing against the skeletal remains of tents and wagons,…
The first time Jessa found the key, it was buried in the dirt behind the old mill, rusted and cold to the touch. She dug it out with her fingers, nails breaking under the weight of the soil, and held…
Jordan found the journal beneath the floorboard of their father’s study, its leather cover cracked like dried mud. The air smelled of mildew and old paper, the kind that clung to your fingers. They didn’t remember the study having a…