Golden Facade Novels & Stories

I whisper in her ear, hugging her back full body once the gold completely returns. Once she lefts go, luckily, the gold doesn't flow out again. The feeling of her love enveloping me lingers. "Everything I touch with my...golden tip? Is, um, also turning gold. How are we getting rid of the gilt?" Kilyn practically begs. "Mund ta heqim gishtin." The doctor suggests something with a shrug.

There was no one inside Sunset Shrine, so what was the point of Athena asking them to charge? Alex and Neela glanced at each other and suspected that this new Athena was still being influenced by her original deity body and that perhaps her slightly fragmented memories were stuck in her old body. “Neela, are those real wings?” “There’s some real texture to it. It’s not pure gold, right? Gold is very expensive now, and I heard its price has gone up to record highs. We have two gold wings. If we were to cut it and sell it by the pound, we would be able to get a good price.”

Elio said as he drew out four more shimmering gold instruments, placing them alongside the Buddha's Heart and passing them to Old Madam Jones. Old Madam Jones took them gingerly, letting May slip on her fancy glasses with the floral frames, and peered closely at the ancient seal script etched into the gold. She ran her fingers over the characters, whispering, "Tribulation, Salvation, Virtue, Healing, Justice... These are the legendary Five Golden Instruments, timeless treasures beyond measure!"

The girl was weak, just as he had expected. In the golden grandeur of his celestial chambers, Helios reveled in the satisfaction of his manipulation. His home in the heavens was a palace of pure radiance, walls forged from the first rays of sunlight, casting a perpetual glow that would blind any mortal who dared to look upon it. Tall, arching windows opened to the sky, allowing beams of sunlight to pour in, reflecting off the gilded surfaces of the room. His throne, an elaborate seat of blazing gold, was set atop a dais, encrusted with sunstones that shimmered with every step he took.

Alexander watching us—not just as test subjects, but as something closer to chess pieces—made my stomach twist. “Which means,” Phoenix continued, “he’ll be waiting for us above.” Damien groaned. “Fantastic.” We pushed through a steel door that led to the last staircase before the main exit. The air grew warmer as we climbed, less metallic, carrying traces of pine trees and the faintest whisper of wind. When Phoenix shoved open the hatch, we stepped back into the world—into sunlight streaking through clouds, into cold air that tasted clean after hours of recycled ventilation. The facility entrance looked almost peaceful, hidden beneath layers of earth and stone, the forest surrounding it sway

But my real focus wasn’t my reflection. My focus was on the project. The clients. And the determination not to let Damien Hayes think I am not capable. I wore my old black heels. They pinched slightly, but they made me feel taller. _____________________________________________ At the Grand Arc Hotel, my nerves were like many little sparks tickling my skin. Golden light filtered down through the chandeliers. The chandeliers had a shape similar to an upside down crystal fountain. Light reflected off the marble floor. The floor was polished. Shadows of moving people became moving shadows.

​The "Golden Era" of Aethelgard had ended not with a bang, but with a systemic crash. In the high-altitude offices of the Vane Tower, Leo Vane sat behind a desk of reclaimed obsidian, watching the city below settle into a deceptive peace. To the public, the "Replacement-Sequence" had been a mere glitch, a temporary update that had come and gone. Only Leo knew the truth: the perfect, corporate version of himself was dead, but the cost of that victory had been the total erasure of the two women who had helped him win it.

I said. The word sounded unfamiliar to me. He stared at me for a moment rain dripping from his lashes. Then he got in. The drive to my estate was quiet. Jack sat at the end of the seat, body tense eyes fixed on the window. The storm softened as we left the parts of the city and entered the private roads leading to my property. High gates opened automatically as we approached. Security lights illuminated the driveway. The estate stood large and unyielding against the night. Walls, high windows, dark but watchful.