Chapter 2: The Girl with Silver Eyes
Noah decided he was dreaming. Not just dreaming—fever dreaming, like the kind you get after eating gas station sushi and falling asleep on the couch mid-video game.
Because there was absolutely no way he was standing in a cracked-sky nightmare world, staring at a girl with glowing silver eyes and a floating, fire-filled robot thingy.
"Uh," he said intelligently. "What?"
The girl sighed. "Great. Another one who can't form a proper sentence. Typical."
She hopped down from the boulder with the grace of someone who didn't have to worry about gravity like normal humans. Her boots landed without a sound.
I'm Lyra," she said, walking closer. "You're the new Veilwalker. Congratulations. Or condolences. Honestly, it's a coin toss.
Noah backed up a step. "Veil-what now? Look, I don't know what kind of cosplay cult this is, but I just fell through a mirror. I'm probably concussed. So, if you could just point me to the nearest hospital, or, I don't know, reality, that'd be great."
Lyra tilted her head. "You really don't know, do you?"
"Nope. Not even a little."
Figures." She snapped her fingers, and the floating orb zipped over, humming like an angry beehive. It projected a faint blue circle on the ground around Noah.
Hey!" he shouted. "What is that thing?"
"Scout drone," Lyra said. "I'm checking if you're real. You wouldn't believe how many mirror phantoms try to sneak through.
"Mirror phantoms?!" Noah tried not to hyperventilate. "Why does that sound like a rejected horror movie villain?"
"Because it is a horror movie," Lyra said with a deadpan stare. "Just one you're stuck in."
The orb buzzed, emitted a cheerful beep, and then a small holographic screen appeared with a glowing rune. Lyra relaxed slightly.
"Good news: you're not a phantom. Bad news: that means you're stuck here."
"Wait. Wait, wait, wait." Noah rubbed his temples. "Stuck where, exactly? And what even is this place? Why does the sky look like a broken iPhone screen?"
Lyra looked up at the jagged cracks bleeding light. "That's because the Netherveil isn't supposed to exist. It's like... the space between worlds. Where things that don't belong leak through. Monsters. Cursed objects. Lost souls. You know, the usual bedtime story fuel."
Noah stared at her, then at the sky. "Yeah, sure. Makes perfect sense. Totally normal Saturday for me."
"You're taking this well," Lyra said, smirking.
"Oh, no, I'm absolutely losing my mind on the inside," Noah shot back. "I'm just too confused to panic properly."
Lyra grinned at that. "I like you. You might survive."
"Survive what?!"
"Everything," she said simply, as if that explained anything. Then she turned and started walking toward a twisted path between the trees.
"Come on. If we stay here, something hungry will find us."
Noah hesitated. "Hungry… like, wolves? Or, like… demon shadows that want to eat my face?"
"Yes," Lyra called over her shoulder.
Noah groaned and jogged to catch up. "Why does every answer you give me make things worse?"
The path twisted like it couldn't decide what direction it wanted to go. The trees leaned inward, branches curling like fingers. The air was heavy, humming with that same strange energy from the mirror.
"Is this place radioactive or something?" Noah muttered.
Lyra shook her head. "No. It's alive."
Noah stopped walking. "Excuse me? Did you just say the forest is alive?"
"Don't talk to the trees," she warned. "They listen. And they talk back."
Noah immediately zipped his lips shut.
A low rumble echoed in the distance, like thunder but sharper—metallic. Lyra froze. The orb's blue light flickered.
"That's not good," she said.
"What's not good?!" Noah asked, his voice an octave too high.
Lyra pointed. "That."
From the shadows ahead, something crawled out. At first, Noah thought it was a wolf. Then he saw the too-long legs, the face like shattered glass, and the rows—yes, rows—of teeth moving in places that should never have teeth.
"Oh, nope. Nope. Nope!" Noah yelled, stumbling back. "That's illegal! That shouldn't exist!"
The creature hissed, its glassy face reflecting Noah's terrified expression. Lyra raised her hand, and runes on her coat flared bright.
"Lesson one, Veilwalker," she said, a grin on her face that was way too confident. "Try not to die."