2025-08-14 04:17:23
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Chapter 19: Beneath the Dome
The silence after the Sixth Toll was worse than the noise.Eli stood in the middle of the Shattered Dome, chest heaving, staring at the empty pedestal where the cubes had floated only seconds ago. The light was gone. The Watchers were gone. Callum was gone.Only the faint hum remained, a ghost of vibration that seemed to rise from the floor itself.Lena turned in a slow circle, eyes scanning the jagged ceiling and shadowed corners. “Where did they take him?”Eli crouched, pressing his palm flat against the cold stone. The hum was clearer now like a muffled engine running somewhere deep beneath his feet. “Down,” he said without thinking. “They went down.”Lena’s brow creased. “Down where? There’s no staircase in here.”He didn’t answer, already stepping toward the outer ring of the Dome. The walls here weren’t perfectly solid; narrow seams ran between the stone panels, each one etched with curling serpent’s-eye symbols. He dragged his fingers along the grooves until—Click.A section o
Chapter 8: The Fifth Toll
The first toll rolled through the Crest like thunder trapped in glass.Eli froze mid-step, his breath clouding in the sudden drop of temperature. He’d heard the bell many times before, always measured, clear, and solemn but this wasn’t that. The sound was wrong. Drawn out. Warped. Like it was being rung underwater, the vibrations dragging behind the chime until they scraped against the inside of his skull.Beside him, Lena’s head snapped toward the bell tower. “That’s… not the hour.”The second toll hit, lower this time, deeper than anything the old bronze could produce. It vibrated through the stone floor beneath them, humming in his teeth.They weren’t alone in feeling it. Across the quad, students stopped mid-conversation. Some blinked in confusion; others just stood there, eyes glazed over, lips moving as if reciting something unheard. One boy near the fountain tilted his head back like he was scenting the air, then smiled at nothing.The third toll.Every light in the nearest bui
Chapter 17: When the Bells Tolls
The first chime still echoed through the stacks when Eli stepped toward Callum.“What do you mean ‘containment’s over’?” Eli’s voice was low, but the question carried an edge.Callum’s eyes cut to Lena. “You brought her with you? Into that place?”“She’s the only reason I’m not dead right now,” Eli shot back.“Or the reason you’re about to be.”The second chime rolled through the library, deeper this time, as if something massive was moving beneath the floors. Dust drifted down from the upper shelves.Lena glanced upward. “That’s not the school bell.”“No,” Callum said grimly. “It’s the Founders’ Bell. It hasn’t rung in over a century.”The third toll hit like a physical wave, rattling the glass in the stained windows. Somewhere far below, a hollow grinding sound swelled and then stopped abruptly, unnaturally.Eli felt the cube in his jacket vibrate, faint but steady, in rhythm with his heartbeat.“What’s happening?” he demanded.Callum stepped closer, lowering his voice until Eli had
Chapter 16: The Pedestals Secret
The key was still cold in Eli’s hand when they reached the library.Even through his jacket pocket, he could feel its edges pressing into his palm like it had grown heavier since he’d taken it.They didn’t speak until they were inside — past the silent marble foyer, up the grand staircase, into the dim stillness of the third floor. The rain outside pounded the stained-glass windows, casting fractured pools of red and green over the stacks.Only when they were hidden between the oldest shelves did Lena finally slam her palms on the table.“You know what that thing was, right?”Eli dropped into a chair, leaning back like he could force the adrenaline from his bloodstream by sheer will. “A Watcher.”“Not just any Watcher.” Lena’s voice dropped, her eyes scanning the shadows. “The broken mask. Callum told me about it — the one that’s not supposed to be here anymore. It’s… wrong. Even to the others. The rest don’t go near it.”Eli turned the key over in his hand. The serpent’s-eye engravin
Chapter 15: The East Entrance
The key felt heavier than it looked. Not just in weight — in intent. Eli turned it over in his palm as he and Lena crossed the quad. The storm had eased to a fine mist, but the Crest’s old stone buildings still glistened black in the moonlight. Every window seemed to be watching. “You realize this is a terrible idea, right?” Lena said, her hood up, hands shoved deep in her pockets. “They’re all terrible ideas,” Eli replied. “This one just might have answers.” The east entrance of the North Wing was unlike any other door on campus. Tall, iron, and sunken into a recess of weathered stone, it looked more like the entry to a crypt than a school building. The brass handle was green with age, the keyhole rimmed in strange runes worn smooth by time. Eli slid the silver key into place. It turned with a single, echoing click. The door opened inward, exhaling cold air that smelled faintly of burnt incense and dust. Inside was darkness, not the kind that came from absence of light, but
Chapter 14: The Second Heir
Eli didn’t move. Callum stood framed in the narrow aisle, his posture relaxed but calculated — the kind of ease a predator wore before striking. The stormlight through the tall library windows caught the faint silver chain at his throat, disappearing beneath his collar. “You’ve been following me,” Eli said. It wasn’t a question. Callum’s grin tilted. “Observing, big difference right.” Lena crossed her arms. “That sounds exactly like something a stalker would say.” “I’m not here to hurt him,” Callum replied, as if she weren’t even a threat. His gaze was fixed on Eli, weighing him like he was confirming a rumor. “Your father didn’t tell you, did he?” Eli’s patience thinned. “Tell me what?” “That we’re not the only ones marked for the Rite.” Eli’s brow furrowed. “You’re marked?” Callum stepped closer, unbuttoning his cuff. He rolled back the sleeve to reveal the skin of his forearm — pale, except for a dark, spiraling sigil burned just below the crook of his elbow. The lines wer
