Veilstone City Novels & Stories

"A year ago, I came to this city to oversee a new project. Some people in my family didn't want me to take over, so they made sure things got complicated. I wasn't careful enough and got hurt." He looked at me again. "I found that black suit near a clothing donation bin while hiding out in an alley. It looked clean, plain, nothing that would draw attention. It helped me stay under the radar for a while. I never imagined…" He paused, lowering his voice. Regret flickered there. "I never imagined that wearing it would make you mistake me for Vincent." I couldn't help the bitter twist in my chest. So, Vincent had thrown away the suit I made for him like it meant nothing.

"It was stolen. Years ago. By one of House Orion's own." "A betrayer." "The seal now rests deep within the Eastern Wildlands. The place where the blood pact first began. It has remained hidden ever since." Damien's jaw set. "I'll retrieve it." "No." Immediate. Absolute. "You can't." "I've survived the Eastern Wildlands before." "Not where the seal rests." She looked him directly in the eyes. "The place was built to reject every descendant of House Orion. Anyone carrying the blood of the Decaulions will die before reaching it."

There was only the low, rhythmic hum of the high-voltage fence and the red, unblinking eyes of the cameras that swiveled with the precision of a predator’s gaze. "The Weaver has the house in a 'Stasis Lock,'" I whispered, my voice barely a breath against the freezing air. We were crouched in the thick undergrowth of the neighboring forest, the dead leaves crunching like bone beneath my knees. "Santino isn't just hiding; he’s sealed the tomb. If a single blade of grass moves out of sequence, the Weaver will trigger a localized 'Grid-Purge.' It’ll fry everything within fifty yards of the fence."

Too unnecessary. Creatures learned quickly that abandoned places offered something humans feared. Privacy. Darkness. Freedom. I turn into the alley beside it. The moment I step out of direct light, something inside me relaxes. Shadow welcomes me. It always has. Darkness remembers what humans erased. I inhale slowly, allowing my senses to expand just slightly. The city smells like oil, smoke, concrete, and fear. Humans pretend they are safe, but fear lingers in everything they build. Fear is the only reason they survived.