Novels by RainaHR

The jagged scar across the sky screamed with a sound that felt like teeth grinding against cold iron. It was a spatial rift, a raw wound in reality that pulsed with a sickening violet light, and it was currently tearing the atmosphere above the Grand Palace into shreds. Massive chunks of marble and gold-leafed masonry were being sucked upward into the vacuum, swirling like autumn leaves in a hurricane. Below, the survivors of the Syndicate’s elite were huddled against the walls, their faces pale and their eyes reflecting the end of the world. Nicolás did not move from the throne. He kept Renata settled on his lap, his arm draped possessively over her waist while his other hand adjusted the collar of his ruined coat."Is it just me, or is there a terrible draft in here?" Nicolás asked, his voice cutting through the roar of the collapsing sky.Renata looked up at him, her fingers digging into his shoulders. Her silver hair was whipped into a frenzy by the gale-force winds."Nicolás, the

Renata felt the gargoyle give way under her boots. Gravity seized them, pulling the pair down into the gaping maw of the abyss while the dragon’s hellish fire rained down like molten gold. Nicolás did not let go. Instead, he twisted his body in midair, shielding Renata with his own frame as they plummeted toward the jagged palace gardens below. His hand reached out, not toward the dragon, but toward his own pocket. He pulled out a crumpled, neon-glowing energy bar wrapper. He flicked it into the air.[System Ability: Kinetic Absorption Activated]The wrapper expanded into a shimmering, gelatinous dome of pure, solid force. It caught them seconds before they hit the manicured topiary. They bounced twice, the dome absorbing the catastrophic velocity, before they slid to a stop in the dirt. Nicolás stood up instantly, his hand still firmly clasped around Renata’s waist, pulling her upright with a grace that made the adrenaline in her blood feel like liquid heat. He looked up at the drago

The silence in the grand ballroom was not merely quiet. It was the heavy, suffocating pressure of a hundred elite nobles suddenly realizing that their lives were being held in the hands of a man who looked like he had spent the last hour crawling through a sewer. Nicolás shifted his weight, still cradling Renata against his chest. His mud-caked boots left dark, unsightly stains on the polished white marble floor. He looked at the rows of terrified Syndicate lords, then glanced down at his own ruined sleeves with a scowl."I am going to assume that the lack of an immediate response means the service here is as pathetic as your security measures," Nicolás muttered. He shifted Renata slightly, his fingers pressing firmly into the small of her back. She looked up at him, her eyes wide with a mixture of shock and an exhilarating, dangerous heat that he could feel radiating against his ribs. She tucked her head into his shoulder, her laughter bubbling out in a soft, frantic sound that drew

The metal carcass of the car screamed as it spiraled through the freezing night air, tearing through the canopy of ancient, jagged trees lining the bottom of the ravine. Nicolás did not panic. He braced his feet against the dashboard and reached over, wrapping his arm securely around Renata’s waist. He pulled her against his chest, shielding her face from the flying shards of glass and the twisted frame of the vehicle as they slammed into the damp, mossy earth. The impact was a bone-jarring symphony of metal on stone, a final, violent shudder that left the car embedded in the mud like a tombstone.Silence reclaimed the forest. The only sound was the hissing of steam from the shattered engine and the distant, mocking laughter of the wind through the pines. Renata gasped, her lungs burning, her body aching with a thousand bruises. She looked up at Nicolás. He was still holding her, his expression as calm as a summer afternoon, though his jacket was torn and his hair was dusted with dirt

Renata gripped the steering wheel so hard her knuckles turned white, her eyes darting between the road and the rearview mirror. The motorcycle riders fanned out like a lethal black tide, their obsidian chains whistling through the air with a sound that made the hair on her arms stand up. Nicolás stood atop the speeding sedan, his posture as calm as if he were waiting for a morning train. He didn't bother to draw a blade. He simply looked down at the swarm of assassins, his eyes glowing with that lazy, terrifying gold light."You really should have checked the weather report," Nicolás shouted over the roar of the wind.He didn't wait for a reply. He tapped his foot against the roof of the car, and the pavement beneath the approaching motorcycles buckled upward in a jagged wall of asphalt. Three bikes slammed into the sudden barrier, their riders catapulted into the night sky before they could even scream. Nicolás didn't look at them. He pointed a finger at the lead Vanguard member, and

The faceless entity tilted its head, the mirror-like surface of its visage rippling like disturbed water. Renata felt a primal scream rising in her throat, but the sheer intensity of the encroaching shadows stole her breath. Nicolás, the man who had effortlessly vaporized armies with a flick of his wrist, lay slumped against her chest like a discarded doll. The needle in his neck shimmered with a sickly, pulsating violet light that defied his system recovery."Nicolás, wake up!" Renata shrieked, shaking his shoulders. Her hands were slick with the cold, viscous sweat pouring from his skin. "This isn't funny anymore!"The mirrored entity stepped closer, its boots making no sound on the floorboards. It raised a slender hand, and the blades held by the surrounding shadows began to vibrate with a high-pitched frequency that shattered the nearby vanity mirror. Every shard of glass levitated, turning to face them like miniature daggers."The Idle God sleeps," the entity hummed. The voice wa