The Marked One

Chapter 49: The Marked One

Kael-X didn't sleep that night.

He couldn't.

Not because of fear—fear was an old friend he had long since stopped acknowledging—but because his body felt off. There was something different, something crawling just beneath his skin.

Veyros paced nearby, watching him with those eerie, glowing eyes. The shadow beast had been unusually quiet since the encounter in the ruins.

"Still feel weird?" Veyros finally asked.

Kael-X flexed his fingers. The sensation was subtle—like a current running under his skin, just out of reach. "Something's… there. I don't know what."

Veyros sat, his tail flicking. "Yeah. That's usually how curses work."

Kael-X shot him a look. "You think this is a curse?"

The beast shrugged. "Either that, or you're slowly becoming a portal to the void. Both sound terrible."

Kael-X ran a hand through his hair, exhaling. "Great. Just what I needed."

He turned toward the window of Elijah's apartment, staring out at the city below. Neon lights flickered in the distance, casting an eerie glow over the wet streets. The world moved on, unaware that something had changed.

Unaware that something had seen him.

Then, it happened.

A ripple.

A barely perceptible shift in reality. The shadows in the room stretched for a fraction of a second—just long enough for Kael-X to notice.

His breath slowed. His instincts screamed at him.

He wasn't alone.

Kael-X turned sharply—just in time to see something flicker in the corner of the room.

A figure. No, not a figure—a distortion. A ripple in the air, humanoid in shape, but featureless.

It tilted its head. Watching.

Kael-X's eyes narrowed. "You lost?"

The thing didn't respond. It didn't even move. It simply existed.

Then, without a sound, it vanished.

Veyros let out a low growl. "...Yeah, that's not good."

Kael-X clenched his fists. Whatever was happening to him—whatever this mark was—it wasn't just something internal.

Something else was out there.

And it was watching.

Chapter 49 (Continued): The Marked One

Kael-X stood frozen, his gaze locked on the spot where the distortion had vanished. The air still felt off, charged with an unnatural energy that made his skin prickle.

Veyros padded forward, sniffing the space cautiously. "It left no scent," the shadow beast muttered. "Not even a trace."

Kael-X exhaled sharply. "Then what was it?"

"Something that shouldn't be here," Veyros said cryptically. "And something that doesn't fear you."

Kael-X didn't like that answer.

He rolled his shoulders, still feeling that odd sensation under his skin. If this was tied to the mark on his body, then he needed to figure out what was happening—and fast.

A knock at the door broke the tension.

Kael-X and Veyros exchanged a glance before the beast melted into the shadows, disappearing from sight.

Another knock. "Kael? You there?"

Maya's voice.

Kael-X sighed and moved to the door, opening it just enough to see her. She stood there, arms crossed, wearing a hoodie far too big for her.

"Hey," she said. "You okay? You look…" She gestured vaguely. "Tense."

Kael-X debated telling her the truth. He had seen something. It had been real. But dragging her into this?

No. Not yet.

"I'm fine," he said. "Just thinking."

Maya gave him a long look, as if trying to read through his lie. "Uh-huh. Well, Elijah wants to head out for groceries, and I figured you'd wanna stretch your legs too."

Kael-X hesitated. After everything that just happened, was it really a good idea to leave?

Veyros' voice slithered into his mind. "You can't fight the unknown by standing still."

Kael-X sighed. "Fine. Let's go."

Maya grinned. "Great. Try not to scare the cashier this time."

Kael-X gave her a deadpan look. "That was one time."

Maya smirked. "You growled at him."

"It was instinct."

"You were buying cereal."

Kael-X shut the door behind him, choosing to ignore her laughter as they walked into the night.

Whatever was happening to him, whatever had marked him—it could wait.

For now.

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Chapter 49 (Continued): Shadows in the City

The night air was crisp, carrying the distant hum of the city's life. Kael-X walked beside Maya, his hands tucked into his coat pockets, his mind still replaying the encounter with the distortion.

He wasn't used to feeling watched. He was always the hunter. But this time, something had studied him, and it didn't even bother hiding.

That wasn't a good sign.

"You're weirdly quiet," Maya said, breaking the silence as they turned a corner. "And that's saying something."

Kael-X barely acknowledged her. His gaze flickered over every streetlight, every window, scanning for it. He didn't trust the feeling that still lingered in his bones.

Maya nudged him with her elbow. "Seriously, what's up?"

Kael-X exhaled, debating how much to say. Finally, he settled on: "Something's wrong."

Maya raised an eyebrow. "Like… bad-wrong? Or your-usual-wrong?"

He stopped walking.

Maya took a step forward before realizing he wasn't beside her. She turned, looking at him with confusion. "Kael?"

His eyes weren't on her. They were locked on a figure across the street.

A man stood beneath a flickering streetlamp. His face was obscured by shadows, but his posture was too still. His head tilted slightly, as if acknowledging Kael-X's gaze.

Then, in a blink—he was gone.

Vanished.

Kael-X's fingers twitched.

Maya followed his gaze. "What—?" She turned back, but the street was empty. "…Okay, now you're creeping me out."

Kael-X clenched his jaw. "Let's go."

Maya hesitated, but after a moment, she followed.

For the rest of the walk, Kael-X's senses stayed sharp, scanning every alley, every dark corner. He wasn't sure what he had just seen. A person? A hallucination?

Or was it tied to the thing in his room?

One thing was certain—he wasn't alone anymore.

And something was watching him.

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