The City That Watches
Ezra stood frozen, his breathing steady but sharp.
The city stretched before him— vast, silent, and unsettlingly empty.
Black stone towers loomed over the streets, their surfaces smooth yet weathered , like something ancient had tried to erase their past. Dim blue lights flickered behind narrow windows , but there were no signs of life.
No people.
No voices.
Just watching eyes he couldn't see.
Ezra exhaled slowly. "Alright. This is fine. Just another horrifyingly cursed place to add to the list."
He scanned the area.
No immediate threats. Yet.
The hunger in his chest had calmed, but the Sigil still pulsed faintly , reacting to the city itself.
Whatever this place was— it wasn't normal.
Ezra needed information.
And more importantly— he needed an exit.
He moved carefully, stepping onto the cracked, uneven pavement. His boots made almost no sound , swallowed by the strange, heavy air.
It felt like walking through the aftermath of something.
Like a city that had once been alive , but had since… stopped.
Or worse— paused.
Ezra didn't like that thought.
His fingers twitched, body tense.
The silence stretched.
Then—
Something shifted .
Not loudly. Not obviously.
But just enough.
Ezra whirled around.
Nothing.
The street behind him was empty.
But he was sure—absolutely sure— something had moved.
The Sigil on his chest pulsed once.
A warning.
Ezra clenched his jaw. "Not a fan of whatever that was."
He turned back—
And froze.
Because the city… had changed.
The street ahead of him was different.
Not drastically.
But enough.
The buildings had shifted ever so slightly, their angles just a little sharper. The windows— now wider.
And the lights behind them?
Brighter.
Like whatever was inside was now paying attention.
Ezra's stomach twisted. "That's new."
He took a slow, measured step forward—
And something laughed.
Not nearby. Not in a direction he could pinpoint.
Just… everywhere.
A low, whispering chuckle, as if the entire city was amused.
Ezra's blood ran cold.
The air shifted again.
The ground beneath him cracked.
And then—
The first footstep echoed from the darkness ahead.
Not his.
Not distant.
Something else.
Something that had been waiting.
Ezra's heart pounded.
He didn't wait to see what it was.
He ran.