2025-09-30 17:10:09
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Chapter 13 — The Shadow Within
The Carter manor’s inner sanctum had not been opened in decades. It was a chamber of carved stone, buried beneath the estate, lit only by braziers burning pale blue flame. Symbols older than kingdoms glowed faintly along the walls, pulsing like a heartbeat.Marcus lay at the center of the circle, his body restrained by silver chains etched with Carter runes. His chest heaved shallowly, every breath threaded with shadow-fire. The mark of Umbrafang burned across his arm, spreading inch by inch toward his heart.Clifford stood at the edge of the circle, fists clenched, every muscle in his jaw tight enough to snap. Knights lined the walls, tense, restless. And Edmond knelt beside Marcus, calm as stone.He rolled up his sleeves, exposing arms scarred with old burns and sigils branded into flesh. He drew his black-forged blade and planted it into the stone, its edge humming faintly with unseen power. “This will hurt,” he said simply.Marcus gave a broken laugh that turned into a cough. “Alr
Chapter 12— The Exile Summoned
The storm outside the Carter estate broke like the world itself was cracking. Rain hammered against stone, lightning clawed the sky, and thunder rolled like cannon fire across the valley.Clifford Carter stood at the gates, his cloak drenched, his face carved from iron. Behind him, knights whispered nervously, watching their lord confront a decision none of them could have imagined.The Council’s hall still burned in his memory: Umbrafang’s roar, Marcus writhing under its curse, Eleanor’s body cold on the bier. And through it all, the beast’s voice, thundering like fate itself: Only Welder.Clifford spat into the mud, fury twisting his gut. To beg help from that man, to call back the convict his daughter had divorced, the stain on their name, was salt in every wound.And yet… the shadows creeping along Marcus’s veins told him there was no choice. “Bring him,” Clifford growled. The gates opened.Edmond Welder strode through the storm as if it parted for him. His uniform, black, marked
Chapter 11 — The Trial of Shadows
The Grand Hall of Judgment had not been used in years. Its vaulted ceiling loomed high above, painted with the victories of ancestors long dead, while rows of stone benches stretched toward a dais carved from obsidian.Tonight, it was not criminals or traitors brought to trial, but the beast itself. Umbrafang.Chains thicker than tree trunks bound it at the center of the hall. Each link glowed with runes of fire and silver.And still, the creature’s presence seemed to dwarf the chamber, its molten eyes sweeping the Council like a predator choosing which throat to tear out first.Beside it, bound in a smaller circle of light, lay Marcus Carter. His skin was ashen, veins black with crawling shadow. His chest rose and fell shallowly, as if each breath was stolen rather than given.The Councilors whispered uneasily. “Why keep them together?”“It’s dangerous.”“No, this is the test. If Carter blood still holds sway, the boy may restrain it.”Chancellor Darius lifted his staff. “Silence. Th
Chapter 10 — The Carter Reckoning
The doors of the Council chamber slammed open. Marcus was dragged inside, his body half-limp, veins glowing faintly with black fire that pulsed beneath his skin.Two knights struggled to restrain him as he thrashed against invisible chains of shadow. His screams were hoarse, raw, not entirely his own.Behind him, Eleanor’s shrouded body was carried on a bier of silver wood. The chamber smelled of blood, ash, and betrayal.Clifford Carter stormed forward, his greatcoat sweeping the floor, fists clenched so tight his knuckles whitened. His eyes, cold, iron-gray, burned with barely controlled rage.“What in hell have you done to my children?” His voice shook the air like a cannon blast.Darius lifted a hand, though his face was grim. “Clifford, control yourself”“Don’t you dare tell me to control myself!” Clifford’s roar cracked across the chamber. He jabbed a finger toward Eleanor’s lifeless form. “My daughter is dead, my son is branded with corruption, and you tell me this is a Council
Chapter 9 — Shadows Against Blood
The Council chamber was colder than stone. Torches hissed along the carved walls, shadows leaping like restless spirits. At the far end of the room, the chains rattled.Umbrafang shifted in the darkness. The beast was not flesh nor smoke, but both, a towering shadow-forged wolf, eyes glowing with molten crimson.Its presence pressed against the lungs, heavy and choking, a predator birthed from bloodlines older than the Council itself. And it was bound. Bound to the Carters. Bound to Eleanor. Or so they believed.Eleanor Carter stood at the dais, shoulders trembling, her hand outstretched as the Council demanded. “Summon it,” said Chancellor Darius, his silver robes gleaming in torchlight. “Show us your claim.”Her lips parted, whispering the ancient words. The chamber quaked as Umbrafang turned its head toward her. But there was no submission in its gaze. Its growl rumbled, low and lethal.Marcus Carter, her younger brother, stepped forward, alarm flashing across his face. “Something’
Chapter 8 — Harbinger
The Carter estate burned. Flames licked the night sky, smoke blotting the stars. Soldiers in black scattered through the ruins, shouts and gunfire echoing like thunder. The ground trembled with detonations.Edmond pulled Selene behind an overturned column, his pistol barking in measured bursts. Every shot was calculated, every kill precise. Beside him, Selene’s chest heaved, ash streaking her face.“Stay down,” he ordered.Her voice shook. “Where’s my father? My mother?”“Alive, for now.” Edmond’s eyes scanned the chaos. “Vincent’s men took them.”The words sank into her bones like ice. From the smoke emerged a figure. Tall. Broad. Armor black as midnight, marked with a crimson sigil that burned against the glow of fire.His face was hidden behind a jagged mask, but his presence carried like a storm. The soldiers fell silent as he advanced. Selene whispered, trembling. “Who is that?”Edmond’s expression hardened, a rare flicker of unease in his eyes. “Harbinger.”The name itself weigh
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