The Power Behind Her Mask Novels & Stories

He said lying through his teeth. Riona was anything but normal, she had power that anyone within a mile from her could sense, she was a mystery that needed uncovering with a beautiful smile that could make even the worst soul happy and that mask she always wore and hid from the world, he needed to know. "Lennox I am sure I don't need to explain how this works to you," her sinister tone could make your skin crawl. Of course, he did, he stood a chance to be eliminated once he failed. Everybody was disposable here, after all, they were saved from their already faithed death.

Hence, as everyone turned outside again, their creased brows eased as they saw endless radiance converge, and Frank reappeared as they watched. Masked Man was so shocked his jaw almost dropped. "H-How did you get that power?" Frank chuckled. "Someone helped me, naturally—just like how you could trigger explosions by just pointing, but I couldn't." Masked Man laughed bitterly. "That means you were born to be a bad matchup for me. Guess my defeat isn't all that harsh in hindsight, as everything has been predetermined." "You're right that your defeat doesn't seem that bad, but you're wrong about it being predetermined."

Men’s eyes followed me like shadows, but I maintained the flirty, daring charm I’d been taught. “Don’t be scared,” "You’ve got the power. Use it well” The woman had said. The poll stage lights illuminated the women dancing, moving their bodies like liquid gold under the lustful glares of the rich. As I walked slowly but steady after her, I felt so grateful she handed me a mask, a joker mask, to cover my face. And It helped, keeping my shame a little bit away. She led me into a dim, secluded corner and I continued to follow, only stopping halfway and beckoned me to walk alone.

Marcus I watch her from the window of my little house, I watch her cross the garden, I watch her walk toward her house, I watch her wear that mask of ice she puts on for the world, for others, for herself, that mask that says she fears nothing, that she feels nothing, that she needs no one, and that hides a woman who is afraid, who suffers, who needs to be loved, to be protected, to be held, to be told that everything is fine, that everything will be fine, that everything is good, because she is here, because I am here, because we are here, together, at last, after all these years, after all these lies, after all these fears, after all these flights, and I go out, I cross the garden, I walk

Her composure cracked and a spark of dark energy flickered at her fingertips, making the hairs on my arm stand up. “You have no idea what I’m capable of,” she hissed with her voice dropping an octave. The cheerful restaurant sounds around us seemed to muffled like we were suddenly inside a bubble with her. She was showing us a tiny terrifying fraction of her power and it was more than enough. Just as quickly as it appeared, the energy vanished and she smoothed her jacket with the cold mask sliding back into place. “Remember what I said. Stay out of my way.” With a final dismissive glance, she turned and walked away, melting into the shadows like she’d never been there.

"Although the money is decent, this is a masquerade performance. The clients prefer to be anonymous. I agreed right away without thinking. Friday night arrived fast, and before I knew it I was standing backstage at Eclipse, clad in a revealing costume and a black mask half my face. As I watched for my signal, my heart hammered in my chest. Soft, sensual lighting enveloped the stage as I left, the eyes of the patrons tracking every action. Trying to forget where I was and why I was doing this, I turned my attention to the music. The performance passed in a haze, my head disconnected from my body.

The video glitched for a heartbeat. “I wasn’t just hiding. I was building a backdoor. Something small enough they wouldn’t notice. A crack in their glass. You just have to break it. Destroy everything here. Every server. Burn it down.” She looked away, then back. “And when it’s gone, don’t let them turn you into another mask. Be real. Be brutal, if you have to. But be alive.” Vivienne lifted something into a red velvet mask, the one she used to wear as Eve. Then a lighter.

Her fingers gripped the edge of the mask and she lifted it, just a little. I saw skin, a cheek, a scar and then my breath caught. “That…” She then lowered it again, not fully and not enough. “Why stop?” I asked. “Because you will break.” “I will not.” “You already are.” Anger burned in me. “Take it off!” “Not yet.” I then stepped forward. “You do not control this.” “I do.” “You do not!” My power rose again and the ground cracked near my feet. She just watches, she was still and calm.

I'd dated models, actresses, women who made careers out of being beautiful, but none of them had stayed in my head like this masked stranger I'd met for less than five minutes. The door to VIP Room Three stood open, I stepped inside, but she wasn't there yet. I sat on the leather sofa, adjusting my cufflinks out of nervous habit. The door opened. Nyx stepped inside wearing black lace this time. The lingerie left even less to imagination than the crimson from last week. Her red hair cascaded over her shoulders in waves, and that jeweled mask caught the amber light. I couldn’t take my eyes off how stunning she looked in that lace.

The members here were the city's most powerful—CEOs, politicians, celebrities—all shedding their identities like winter coats. I leaned back against the plush velvet cushions of a semi-private alcove, my fingers loosely tracing the rim of my glass. The soft, black silk mask pressed comfortably against my skin, hiding the frantic, easily flustered CEO who had spent the day shouting about European tech holdings and debating the merits of vegetarian catering. Here, I didn't have to be the brilliant trillionaire heir to the Miller fortune. I didn't have to carry the pressure of thousands of employees on my shoulders. The mask was liberating in a way I'd never anticipated when I first joined.