Author: JKMATHEW

“Not this time, rust-bucket,” Alex Sterling muttered, wrench slipping as she tightened a valve on the sputtering purifier. Toxic mist, thick as curdled milk, choked the air of New Horizon. Suddenly, the purifier coughed, then died, plunging her cramped workshop into near silence, save for the rhythmic drip of condensation from the leaky ceiling. Outside,… Read more

Rain lashed against Amelia’s umbrella as she pushed through the somber crowd. The Ravenbrook cemetery, perpetually shrouded in mist even on clear days, was suffocating under the oppressive fog. She adjusted her black gloves, her gaze sharp and observant, missing nothing. A raven, perched atop a tombstone, croaked a mournful sound, mirroring the air of… Read more

Amelia Grant, slender and sharp-eyed, traced the ornate carvings on the coffin. Dust motes danced in the weak light filtering through the stained-glass windows of Blackwood Manor’s chapel. Her gloved hand paused on a raven motif, a shiver tracing her pale skin despite the humid air. A gasp echoed from the front pews, followed by… Read more

Ava Montgomery traced the worn edges of the map, espresso cooling in her slim fingers. Fog, thick as a shroud, clung to Obsidian Harbor’s looming skyscrapers, each a skeletal finger pointing into the gloom. A raven’s caw pierced the industrial clang of the city, and a glint of metal landed beside her boot – a… Read more

Rain lashed against the canvas awning as Clara Bennett, black coffee steaming in her nimble hands, watched the coffin lowered. Not rain, fog condensed and heavy, clinging to Ravenwood Cemetery like a shroud. Her goal: observe, remember, understand. This funeral wasn’t just grief; it was a performance. A raven croaked overhead, a sharp, unsettling sound.… Read more

The Ferris wheel groaned, a metallic leviathan against the bruised twilight sky of Ashbourne’s annual Veridia Festival. Evelyn Hart, perched on a wobbly bench, nursed black coffee, her gaze sharp, missing nothing. Around her, revelers, oblivious to the subtle unease that prickled her skin, jostled and laughed. Then, a child’s thin wail sliced through the… Read more