The creature stepped out of the dissolving cloud of black ash, its form pulling itself together like shadow deciding to imitate flesh. It wasn’t Gabriel—Gabriel had been consumed, unmade, used as a shell for something older, something that didn’t belong in a body shaped like a man. The thing standing there now was taller, its shoulders too broad for human proportions, its torso stretched as if held together by threads of smoke rather than muscle. Its skin—if it could be called that—shifted constantly, flickering between liquid shadow and the faint silhouette of bone beneath.When it moved, the air bent. The ground under its feet darkened, stone turning porous, drained of color. Every step was silent, yet Emily could feel it—vibrating up her bones, settling like static behind her ribcage.Adrian pressed her back instinctively, his body hardening, his claws flexing. She felt his breath change—shorter, tighter—his instincts trying to decipher what this thing was and finding no reference
Last Updated : 2025-11-21 Read more