FRACTURES 2After what felt like forever of business words and unfocused nods, the deal was finally struck. Hands were shaken and smiles were exchanged as everyone used their polite words to wrap everything up neatly. But just as they finished up, right as they stepped out of that room, Sebastian felt it at the very moment. There was a shift and the silence landed hard–one that wasn't empty, but loaded with words unspoken. Vanessa kept her pace quick and steady, walking ahead of him as her heels clicked sharply against the marble floor. She clutched her purse tight, her fingers digging into the chic fabric and leaving its mark as she walked faster than usual. Sebastian, aware of his mess up, followed slowly closely behind her, making sure to silence his phone and slip it into his pocket now. For a few seconds–that seemed way longer than it should have–none of them said a single word. As they walked, the hallway seemed to stretch longer and more quieter, the glass walls lining the s

JUST RETHINK IT ALL THROUGHDamien stood there for a few more minutes before taking a step forward. He walked to the other side of the cell and sat down on the tiny bed. The metal underneath creaked softly under his weight with the strain. He put his hands on his knees and sat quietly on the cement slab of a bed, slightly hunched and looking straight ahead as the dim light cast shadows along his face.The silence lasted for a second and then the memories came.Brooks.He could still see that face, that condescending gaze and the posture, suggesting he knew something the rest of the people in the courtroom wouldn't find out for months.And then the tattoo.The image made Damien clench his teeth and ball his hands into fists. He wasn't letting go of the memories they brought either–the blood, the screams, his mother's voice cut short so ruthlessly.He closed his eyes but it wasn't to block it all out. It was to relive it and feel all the anger, pain, and betrayal again. He didn't get ca

PRESS CONFERENCE: THE LIEApplause broke out around her in waves. At first, they all seemed hesitant and uncertain, but then the clap gathered strength and became a powerful force, directly feeding Vanessa’s energy and boosting her ego with every passing second.She stood tall and confident behind the podium, her fingers gently touching its surface as she waited for the wave to die down a little so she could make way for her next moves.Cameras were clicking furiously, taking shots from all the angles possible. Every single second of this announcement was being recorded, and soon Vanessa would make sure it would be the talk of the day.Everything was working out just as she had planned.She smiled gently, with just a hint of her famous charisma that could easily captivate any audience.“Thank you, thank you,” she started when the room became quiet. Her voice sounded rich and deep through the microphones, perfectly carrying to everyone who attended the presentation. “As I understand it

THE PRISON SHIFT 1Something had happened in the prison and even though nobody said it out loud, they all knew.It was a change in the prison’s atmosphere, something that could be sensed, seen. Damien felt it when people's eyes lingered just a little bit too long and when footsteps slowed down whenever he walked by.It was there from the moment he entered the courtyard, spreading through the space like a virus. Nothing had really changed on the surface, at least not with the guards. They still treated him the same, yelled the usual commands, acted like there was no connection between what he did outside and inside the prison.However, this was where things were very different.Walking through the concrete yard with steady steps, Damien kept his usual indifferent demeanor as the sunlight beat down on him, drawing long shadows across the cracked cement. Some conversations in the courtyard grew quieter as he passed by. They didn't drop to a dead silence, but they seemed more subdued now

ELARA’S COUNTERMOVE 1For the first time in many days, the city seemed to sleep. Or rather, it seemed to… shift. Power moved differently now. It no longer came in declarations or statements in desperate press conferences, nor did it come from staged confidence or meaningless promises. Rather, it moved in the silence, breeding in well-thought-out decisions made behind the glass walls and closed doors, when no cameras could catch anything and no applause was needed for it.And in the middle of it all was Elara. She stood at the edge of her office, staring through the glass overlooking the endless skyscrapers visible through the enormous window that stretched from ceiling to floor, lit in the soft morning light. Her reflection stared back, still and serene, unaffected by the chaos around her. Behind her, there was another screen, which showed a completely different story. It displayed the stats of Vanessa's company falling even more. The graphs weren't plummeting as fast anymore, yet,