The Regent’s hall was built to inspire awe. High ceilings arched above like the ribs of some great beast, banners of crimson and gold spilling down the stone walls. The lions stitched into their fabric glared with eternal defiance, their claws sharp, their jaws wide. Torches flared in iron sconces, filling the chamber with warmth and the smoke of pitch. But even here, in the heart of power, the air was thick with unease. The murmurs of fear that had spread through Duskmoor seeped into this hall like smoke through cracks in stone. The Regent sat upon his throne, a massive chair carved of black oak and gilded at its edges. The crown on his head was not large, but it weighed heavily. His hair, streaked with gray, clung damp to his temples. Shadows bruised the skin beneath his eyes. He had not slept since the bells had stopped ringing. At his feet, kneeling on the marble floor, was a courier. The boy’s uniform was torn and muddied, his boots caked in blood and filth from the night’s

The moon had sunk low over Duskmoor, veiled by a mist that turned the city into a place of ghosts. The crooked streets were empty of carts, the taverns long since shuttered, and not even the drunkards dared to sing tonight. Somewhere far off, a stray dog barked once and then fell silent, as if it too had remembered the warning whispered across the city—Don’t be outside after midnight.Rian stood at the mouth of an old drainage tunnel in the western quarter, clutching a torch in one hand and the hilt of a dagger in the other. The thief had worked for smugglers, mercenaries, and even a few nobles in his time, but none of those jobs had chilled him like this one.Kael’s voice still rang in his head:> “Find what lies beneath the city before the Regent’s hounds do. If you fail…”He didn’t need Kael to finish. The memory of those glowing crimson chains slithering across the temple floor was warning enough.He muttered a curse under his breath and lit the torch, the sudden flare of light pu

Night fell over Duskmoor like a slow-spilled ink, pooling in alleys, drowning the ruined streets in black. The mist that had drifted over the city all day thickened as the sun sank behind the distant ridges, turning into a thin silver fog that coiled around every broken statue and shattered arch. From the gutted windows of the temple, the city’s few surviving watch-fires were no more than blurred orange sparks, fragile against the heavy dark.Kael stood at the threshold of the temple, the ragged cloak at his shoulders lifting and snapping in the night wind. His red-tinged gaze was fixed on the empty street that led down toward the lower quarters, as if he could already see the tunnels yawning beneath the stones. Behind him, his followers gathered in silence.The soldier came first, her sword strapped across her back, leather gauntlets tied tight at her wrists. The boy held his spear upright like a banner, his jaw clenched, though his fingers were damp with sweat. Lira slipped from the

The sound of boots grew clearer—metal striking stone in a steady march, echoing up the curved tunnels like the heartbeat of an approaching beast. Each clang of iron on wet rock vibrated through the air until it reached the vast chamber where Kael and his followers waited.The lantern’s flame flickered as a draft of colder air swept in, carrying the damp scent of river water and the faint tang of oil from torches. The boy shifted his grip on his spear, his young face pale but his stance firm. The soldier stepped forward, sword drawn, planting her boots wide on the slick floor.Kael raised his hand slightly, and the chains lying near his feet stirred at the unspoken signal. Their links rattled together in a slow rhythm, like a predator breathing through its teeth.“They’re close,” Rian said, barely above a whisper. His voice trembled. “Too many footsteps. At least two squads.”Kael’s eyes glowed faintly in the dim red shimmer of the sigils. “Numbers won’t save them.”From the tunnel’s a

The hollow had never been so quiet. The air was thick, as if holding its breath before the storm. Kael stood at the center of the blood-stained sigil circle, the faint red glow crawling across his boots like veins of fire. Around him, the chains lay coiled in the shallow water, but every few moments their hooked ends twitched, sensing what was coming.The boy was awake now, gripping his spear so tightly that his knuckles were white. His face was pale, his jaw set. Lira crouched near the base of a pillar, sharpening her dagger in slow, careful strokes that hissed in the silence. The soldier paced near the tunnel mouth, her armor plates clicking softly with every step.“They’ll come through the east tunnel first,” Kael said at last, his voice flat, calm. “They always send their best in from the shortest path.”“How many?” the soldier asked without looking back.“Enough to fill the hollow,” Kael replied.Before anyone could speak again, a faint tremor rolled beneath their feet. It grew i