Blood, Bone and Secrets

il. All of it felt like a whirlwind that she couldn't escape, a storm of darkness closing in from every side. She had always lived her

ing, the wind cutting through her thin jacket, but it wasn't the cold that made her shiver. It was the knowledge that she was no longer just a spect

exus, the barrier between worlds-it was weakening, and only she could stop it. But how? How could she possibly understa

n the back of her mind, but now it was unmistakable. Her brother had been marked by something, and now she bore the same symbol. She wasn't sure what it

s visible in the dim light. The atmosphere was thick with tension, the feeling of being hunted, of being watched. She quicken

the alleyway ahead, tall, cloaked in darkness. Kael's heart skipped a beat, and she paused, straining her senses

her being screamed at her to turn back, but something else deep, primal curiosity

low gasps. The shadows seemed to close in around her as she stepped furthe

voice broke the stillness low, gravelly voice that

lira

pped out of the darkness, tall and imposing, its eyes glowing with an eerie red hue. It was a man, or at least it

trying to keep her voice stead

xus, the Veil, your brother... all of it is entwined in ways that you cannot ye

led. "What do yo

able menace in the way he moved. "All I want is the same thing you do: answers." H

as she could, but her curiosity-and the desperation to fi

her spine. "There's always a price. But for you, Kaelir

ghting the urge to back do

ys, a seeker of truth, just like you. I have been watching the Nexus for a long time, an

mention of the Nexus, of her brother, of things

d, her voice low. "But

ly. "You won't be able to stop me, Kaelira. Not

but to follow. With each step she took, she felt the weight of the decision settling in her

ir was thick with magic, and something in the distance stirred deep, almos

before a hidden doorway in the alley wall. He ran his fingers over the ancient carvings etche

e said, his voice reverberating of

But there was no turning back now. She had to know th