Threads Of The Devoured

CHAPTER 1: THE GREAT DEVOURING

"Do not look up. Just keep running." Kael shouted. His voice barely cut through the deafening roar of the fracturing sky.

"I cannot ignore it, Kael." Eira stumbled on the jagged cobblestones. "The sky is bleeding."

"I said keep moving." He grabbed her wrist tight. "If the Devouring touches you, there is no coming back. It does not just kill you. It completely erases you from the timeline."

"Where are we even going?"

"Away from the Spire."

"The Crimson Spire is falling apart." Eira gasped for air as they sprinted down the narrow alley.

"Everything is falling apart."

"I know."

"You knew he was going to do this." She pulled back and forced him to stop. "You knew he was going to tear the sky open."

"I knew he was planning something massive." Kael kept his voice low. He scanned the crumbling rooftops. "I did not know it would look like this."

"You lied to me."

"I omitted the worst parts to keep you moving forward."

"That is lying, Kael."

"Call it whatever you want." He pulled her behind a shattered stone wall as a wave of dark energy swept past them. "But we have to survive the next ten minutes. We can argue about my morality later."

"Tell me." She ripped her arm away completely. "Tell me right now or I am not taking another step."

"You are being stubborn and it will get us killed."

He stepped closer. The shadows of the alley hid his expression but his breathing was heavy. Footsteps echoed from the street they just crossed. Heavy boots hitting the wet pavement. "They are not the authorities," he whispered. "They are the Vanguard. If they find you with the drive, they will erase you. Literally."

Her grip on the small metal cylinder tightened. The cold metal pressed against her palm. She looked at the street corner. A flashlight beam swept across the brick wall.

"Fine," she said. "Move."

He turned and sprinted down the narrow passage. She followed close behind. The damp air burned her lungs. Trash bags and broken crates blocked their path. He vaulted over them without slowing down. She scrambled over the debris. A rat scurried across her shoe but she did not scream. Fear kept her silent.

They reached a heavy iron door at the end of the alley. He pulled a rusted key from his pocket. The lock clicked loudly. Too loudly.

A voice shouted from behind them. "There."

Gunfire erupted. Bricks shattered above her head. Dust rained down on her hair. He shoved her through the open doorway and slammed the iron door shut. The heavy deadbolt slid into place just as bullets hammered against the metal on the outside.

She collapsed onto the concrete floor. The darkness inside the room was absolute. She gasped for air. Her legs trembled uncontrollably.

"We made it," he said. His voice sounded strained.

A harsh fluorescent light flickered on above them. She blinked against the sudden glare. The room was not an empty safehouse. It was a fully equipped laboratory. Blood stained the pristine white tiles in the center of the floor.

A man in a sharp suit stood at the far end of the room. He slowly clapped his hands.

"Excellent work bringing her to me," the man said.

She looked up at the person she had trusted. He did not look surprised. He raised his hands and stepped away from her.

"I am sorry," he said. "It was the only way to clear my debt."