Chapter 8: The Path of Broken Glass
Noah wasn't sure if he was more proud of himself for not dying or more horrified that a giant glass centipede monster had just been his warm-up challenge. His sneakers were soaked, his arms trembled from holding the coin too long, and his brain felt like someone had played dodgeball with his thoughts.
Lyra, on the other hand, looked like she'd just gone for a casual evening jog. Not a drop of sweat on her, her coat gleaming faintly as its runes pulsed like a heartbeat.
"You… are annoyingly cool," Noah said between ragged breaths.
Lyra gave him a sideways glance. "You didn't die. That's cool enough."
"Low bar, but I'll take it."
They pushed deeper into Gravewater. The swamp wasn't exactly more welcoming now that the Guardian was gone. In fact, Noah felt like the shadows were paying more attention. The mist clung to his shoulders like cold hands, and every step was met with an unsettling slurp of mud.
"Is it just me," Noah whispered, "or is the swamp… watching us?"
"It is," Lyra said, completely serious. "It's always watching."
"Great. Love that. Totally calming."
They soon reached a clearing where the ground shifted from mud to cracked, jagged stone. The rocks glimmered like broken glass under a faint glow from the shattered sky above. Lyra crouched, pressing her hand against one of the glass-like shards.
"It's close," she murmured.
"What's close?"
"The breach. The thing that tore this part of the Netherveil open."
Noah squinted at the cracked sky, which pulsed faintly like a wound. "And we're… fixing that?"
"You are," Lyra said simply.
"Wait, what? Me?!" Noah's voice cracked. "Look, I barely figured out how to make this coin not explode. Why am I suddenly the chosen—"
"Because you're holding the Veil Coin," she interrupted. "It chose you. It only answers to Veilwalkers. I can't close the breach. You can."
Noah blinked, staring at the coin in his palm. "Did I seriously just get stuck with the magical job nobody else wanted?"
Lyra smirked. "Welcome to the Netherveil."
Before Noah could argue further, a sudden breeze swept through the clearing, carrying with it a sound that froze the words in his throat. A voice. Low. Whistling through the cracks of the glass stones like wind through a broken flute.
Vale… Vale… come closer…
Noah's grip tightened on the coin. "Please tell me you heard that too."
Lyra's expression darkened. "Not a good sign."
The ground trembled, the glass stones vibrating like they were alive. A fissure split open in front of them, black mist spilling out like smoke. Noah stumbled back, his instincts screaming at him to run.
Then something crawled out of the fissure.
It wasn't like the Guardian. This creature was tall, thin, and wrong. Its body was a tangle of shadow and fractured glass, constantly shifting as if reality couldn't decide what it was supposed to look like. Its face… wasn't there. Just a hollow void with jagged edges.
Noah's breath hitched. "What… is that?"
"Wraith," Lyra said, stepping in front of him. Her rune blade hissed as it flared to life again. "It's guarding the breach."
The Wraith tilted its head, and Noah felt the soundless whisper in his mind. Drop the coin. Join us. You don't belong here.
"Uh, yeah, hard pass on that," Noah said, backing up. "Lyra? Game plan?"
"Keep the coin steady," she said. "Focus on the breach. I'll handle it."
Noah gulped. "No pressure."
Lyra darted forward, her blade leaving arcs of blue fire in the air as she clashed with the Wraith. Sparks flew as metal met shadow, every strike releasing an ear-splitting shriek. The Wraith's limbs elongated unnaturally, moving like smoke and glass all at once.
Noah, meanwhile, tried to focus on the breach. He stared at the jagged crack in the ground, the black mist writhing around it like angry snakes. The coin pulsed faintly, matching his heartbeat.
Close it, he thought. Please, just close it.
Silver light bled from the coin, weaving through the mist. The breach shuddered.
"Yes," Noah whispered, pushing harder, forcing his will into it. "Close, close, close!"
The Wraith screamed, sensing the coin's power. It shoved Lyra aside and lunged at Noah.
"Oh no you don't!" Noah yelled, instinctively raising the coin.
A blast of silver light erupted, striking the Wraith full in the chest. It howled, its shadowy form fracturing like shattered glass. Lyra recovered quickly, spinning her blade in a blur of blue fire and slicing the creature in half.
The Wraith dissolved into black mist, vanishing into the swamp.
Noah collapsed to his knees, gasping. The coin's light faded, but the breach had sealed—its jagged edges knitting together until it was just cracked stone again.
Lyra offered him a hand. "Not bad, Veilwalker."
"Not bad?" Noah wheezed. "I nearly got eaten by a… shadow glass demon thing!"
She grinned. "And you lived."
As they rested, Noah glanced at her orb—floating quietly behind her. "So, that thing that follows you around—what's its deal?"
"This?" Lyra tapped it. "This is Aelion. My Watcher."
"It's… alive?"
"In a way," Lyra said. "Think of it like a magical drone with better sarcasm. You'll meet it when it decides you're not a total disaster."
"Wow. Even floating robots judge me now," Noah muttered.
But before Lyra could respond, Aelion suddenly whirred and glowed, scanning the area. A voice—soft but mechanical—spoke for the first time.
"Someone is coming."
Noah froze. "Someone? As in, someone else lives here?"
Lyra's expression tightened. "Not exactly."