The air in the cockpit tasted metallic, like rusted gears and static electricity. Commander Jara Veylo gripped the controls, her knuckles white as the ship lurched through the asteroid field. Behind her, Lieutenant Kael Ren murmured calculations, his voice a…
The air aboard the *Vespera* tasted like static, sharp and metallic, as Captain Mira Voss adjusted the visor of her helmet. Outside the viewport, the planet Eos-9 loomed—a sapphire sphere veiled in swirling bands of violet mist. It had been…
Maeve O’Rourke stepped off the creaking schooner, her boots sinking into the damp dockside mud as the briny air clung to her skin. The year was 1849, and San Francisco’s bay reeked of salt, sweat, and desperation. She adjusted the…
Mara Voss adjusted her gloves, the thick material crunching as she stepped into the cold. The air inside Kryo-7’s maintenance corridor smelled like rust and burnt circuitry, a scent she’d memorized over three years. Her boots echoed against the steel…
The air hummed with the scent of burnt cedar as Kael pressed his palm against the charred oak, feeling the ember pulse beneath his skin. The village had called it a miracle—how he could summon fire without match or flame—but…
The sun hung low over the Sierra Nevada, casting long shadows across the dusty trail as Sarah Hayes tightened her grip on the reins. The air reeked of pine and sweat, a mingling of earthy musk and the acrid tang…
The sky over Thistlebrook burned with a sickly amber, casting long shadows across the stone cottages and fields of withered rye. Kaela stood at the edge of the village, her calloused hands gripping the hilt of her dagger, though she…
The air in Veylan’s Hollow reeked of damp earth and decay, a stench that clung to Kael’s skin like a second layer. He knelt beside the riverbank, fingers sifting through gravel, searching for the shard his mother had whispered about.…
Elara stepped off the wagon in the dust-choked town of Silver Gulch, her boots crunching over gravel like bones. The air smelled of pine resin and gunpowder, a thin veneer of civilization stretched over the raw edge of the Sierra…
The air inside the pod was thin, sharp with the metallic tang of recycled oxygen. Captain Mara Voss adjusted her visor, her gloved fingers brushing the cold polymer of the control panel. Outside, the planet’s surface stretched in jagged ridges…
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 sun hung low over the Sierra Nevada, casting long shadows across the dusty streets of Silver Creek. Clara Voss stepped off the wagon, her boots crunching on gravel as she scanned the town. The air smelled of pine resin…
The air reeked of ozone and rust, a metallic tang that clung to the back of Dr. Lira Voss’s throat as she stepped onto the crimson soil of Erythra. Her boots sank into the fine dust, each footfall sending a…
The salt air bit Mara’s cheeks as she trudged up the cliff, her boots crunching over gravel. The lighthouse loomed ahead, its white paint peeling like dead skin. She’d skipped school again, but the note had been urgent—scrawled in her…
The sun hung low over the Sierra Nevada, casting long shadows across the cracked earth of Red Creek Valley. Clara Voss stepped off the wagon, her boots sinking into the dust as the scent of sagebrush and iron filled her…