"繁荣——"
一声沉闷的爆炸声紧接着是滚滚黑烟,让北郊陷入了一片混乱.
与此同时,在橡树街的狭窄小巷子里,金色的晨曦轻轻抚摸着老城区的红瓦屋顶,在青石板路面上投下斑驳的阴影.一如既往,橄榄油的香气与浓郁的咖啡香味混合在一起,将这座古老的地区从沉睡中唤醒.
在附近最安静的角落里,矗立着一家商店,上面挂着一个黄铜牌子,上面写着"索恩修复".它的木质外墙早已随着时间的流逝而褪色,但黄铜牌匾却被无数路人的触摸打磨得闪闪发光,在晨光下发出柔和的光芒.
在里面,伊娃·索恩巧妙地将银棕色的头发扎成马尾辫,然后穿上褪色的灰色工作连身裤.她整齐地把袖子卷到前臂,打开电视.
"就在不久前,我们市北郊发生了爆炸.现场报告显示,爆炸中心约 50 米范围内发生严重破坏.两家小店的店面橱窗被完全打碎,六辆停放的汽车变形,车窗被炸毁,地面上到处都是碎片和破碎的广告牌.空气中还弥漫着淡淡的烧焦味.据警方称,目前有三人失踪,大部分居民在警方的指导下已被疏散到安全区域..."
"恐怖袭击..."
伊娃皱着眉头看着新闻中升起的黑烟,目光飘到了商店左侧的货架上.整齐地排列着等待修复的旧钟表和亚麻织物,还有陶器碎片和各种未完成的部件.
伊娃叹了口气,伸手去拿藏在第三个架子角落里的一个红色盒子.
里面放着一系列陶器碎片.
从已经修复的部分,她可以看出这很可能是一个典型的双耳瓶——黑色带有红色图案,隐约透露出一些图形设计.但由于年代久远,这些图案已经严重磨损,使她目前无法辨别它们所描绘的是什么.
她熟练地捡起一块碎片,将棉球浸入一种特殊的溶剂中,仔细地清除破损边缘的沉淀物.她屏住呼吸,涂上精确混合的粘合剂,并将碎片连接到另一块清洁过的碎片上.
当这些部件像拼图一样拼在一起时,她的心砰砰直跳.经过仔细检查,她才继续下一件作品.
伊娃出生于一个修复世家,从小就沉浸在这个世界上,掌握了无数的技巧.她非凡的才华使她在年轻时就被雅典国家考古博物馆的保护部门史无前例地聘用.
多年来,她在工作中表现出色,经常获得赞誉.但三个月前,她的父亲在一场车祸后不幸成为植物人,她的事业很快就步履蹒跚.
别无选择,她从博物馆请了长假,回到了这家家族世代经营的小店.
随着她迅速地处理陶器碎片,她的思绪逐渐安定下来.
就在她贴上第六块碎片时,她注意到容器内壁上有一个微弱的痕迹.
"这个印记..."
她的指尖在内表面描摹着图案.在无影的灯下,碎片上的纹路似乎微微颤抖.
"天哪!这...这是..."
她奶奶送给她的编织梭吊坠!
这个突如其来的发现让伊娃彻底惊呆了.
她赶紧从脖子上取下编织梭挂件,却无意中刺伤了手指.
一阵剧痛让她猛地向后一抽手,一滴深红色的鲜血落在了新修复的陶器碎片上.
"该死!"
伊娃惊慌失措,伸手擦去碎片上的血迹.但当她的手指触碰陶器的那一刻,一股温暖的能量从她的指尖涌上来.
刹那间,碎片表面的金色花纹亮起,像活藤一样缠绕在她的手臂上.
"守护碎片,平衡混乱...不要让他们找到你..."
一个模糊的声音在她的脑海中回荡,她的心开始不受控制地跳动.
她的视线破碎而摇摆,仿佛透过一层厚厚的浑浊油被看到.一股腐臭夹杂着血腥味,让她想剧烈地干呕.屏住呼吸,她看到无数的影子在冰冷的石墙上扭曲跳跃.
每个影子都紧紧地缠绕着一条线——有的明亮,有的黑暗——都紧紧地交织在一起,汇聚在一个躺在石台上的女人身上...
Dressed in white, her eyes closed, the woman suddenly turned her head toward Eva as their gazes met. A sinister grin curled her lips, and her eyes were as hollow as abysses…
In that moment, Eva felt as if an icy hand had seized her soul. A chill seeped from her very marrow, leaving her rigid and numb to her fingertips. She wanted to scream, to retreat, but found herself paralyzed, forced to watch as her soul was slowly dragged into that endless darkness—crushed, along with all warmth and sound, in an boundless void of cold and suffocation…
"Eva!"
At the brink of despair, a startled cry broke through. The door of the restoration shop was flung open.
The ancient copper bell clanged harshly, and a drenched figure stumbled inside.
The vision shattered, and Eva collapsed to the floor.
When she opened her eyes again, she was lying in a hospital bed.
"Uncle Marcus? What are you doing here?" Struggling to sit up, she noticed an IV drip in her arm.
"What am I doing here? If I hadn't arrived in time, you would've strangled yourself!"
"Me? Strangle myself?" Eva's voice was hoarse. She looked down at her hands—they were unharmed, no different from usual aside from feeling weak.
"Child, all hardships will pass…" Marcus said, his face full of concern.
Eva fell silent. She knew what Marcus was referring to, but what she had experienced felt all too real. So real that even now, the putrid smell seemed to linger in her nostrils.
Yet, according to Marcus, she had been alone in the shop—locked in a struggle with herself, her hands around her own throat.
But she had always been resilient. How could she possibly harm herself?
Could it really be, as Uncle Marcus said, that she was hallucinating from extreme stress?
Just as doubt began to cloud her mind, a sharp, raspy cry came from the adjacent hospital bed. "Get away! Get away!"
Startled, Eva turned toward the sound and saw a man and a woman rushing anxiously to the bedside.
"Nina, what's wrong?"
"There—there's someone!"
The little girl named Nina screamed desperately, her thin finger pointing toward the ceiling. "There! He's right there! Make him go away! Make him go away!"
Everyone followed her finger, but found nothing. They exchanged uneasy, somber glances.
"Nina, there's no one there. No one!"
The woman held the trembling girl, tears streaming down her face. The man sighed and turned away.
Only Eva stared fixedly in the direction the girl was pointing.
There, pressed against the ceiling, was a pitch-black face intently watching the girl in the bed.
The face was dark—as dark as charcoal—with indistinguishable features, except for a pair of pale, rolling eyes fixed on the girl.
"What… what is that?"
Thinking back, Eva was almost certain she had never encountered anything like it before.
Her eyes widened as she tried to get a clearer look, but unexpectedly, she met the gaze of those pale eyes.
"Heh heh…"
The white eyes shifted, and the dark face leaned toward Eva. Its mouth split open, revealing stark white teeth, and lunged down to bite her.
"Ah!"