The air thinned as Kael climbed the jagged cliffs, his boots crunching on shale. Below, the city of Varethis clung to the rock like a barnacle, its towers choked with soot and desperation. He paused, pressing a hand to the…
The wind howled through the skeletal trees of Virelle Forest, carrying the scent of damp moss and iron. Kaela tightened her cloak against the chill, her boots crunching over frost-bitten leaves. The village of Elmhollow lay behind her, its thatched…
Clara stepped off the train at Seabrook Station, her boots crunching on gravel as the scent of salt and diesel hung heavy in the air. The town had not changed—same crooked storefronts, same rusted fishing boats bobbing in the harbor—but…
The salt-kissed air bit at Clara’s cheeks as she adjusted the lamp’s wick, its golden glow slicing through the predawn gloom. The lighthouse had been her sanctuary since her father’s death, a place where the roar of the sea drowned…