The city was different after the warehouse—thick with an invisible weight, as if Farrenbridge itself was aware of what Alec had touched. The streets were unnaturally quiet, the usual hum of machinery muted. Shadows seemed deeper, the fog heavier. Alec's every step felt like it echoed too loudly, a reminder that he wasn't alone.
His apartment felt suffocatingly small when he finally returned. He closed the door behind him, but the sense of being watched didn't leave. He was about to pour himself a drink when he saw the figure seated at his desk.
"You've felt it, haven't you?" The man's voice was calm, smooth, but it carried an edge that set Alec's nerves on fire.
Alec's hand instinctively went to his gun. "Who the hell are you?"
The man stood, his movements unnervingly fluid. "My name is Caius. I am here to offer clarity."
"Clarity?" Alec scoffed. "All I've got is more questions. Like why you're in my apartment."
Caius ignored the barb. "You've touched the Shattered Fragment. The Veil has marked you. You're no longer just a detective, Alec. You're a piece on the board."
Alec's pulse quickened. "What are you talking about?"
Caius stepped closer, his dark eyes locking onto Alec's. "The Veil separates our world from the divine and the damned. The artifact you touched is part of a key—a key that will open the Gate. The Convergence is coming, Alec. Forces older than time itself are stirring, and you... you've become their herald."
Alec shook his head, backing away. "I didn't sign up for this. I'm just trying to solve a case."
"You're solving the wrong one," Caius said cryptically. "Olivia Green's disappearance wasn't random. She's tied to this, just as you are. And now, you've seen too much to walk away."
"Walk away?" Alec's laugh was bitter. "You think I want anything to do with this? Gods, gates, convergences—none of it makes sense."
Caius's gaze softened, but his tone remained firm. "It will. Soon."
A tremor ran through the floor, faint but unmistakable. Alec's breath caught as a whisper slid into his mind: *It begins.*
Caius's expression darkened. "The Gate will open, Alec. The only question is whether you'll be ready."
Alec's throat tightened. "You keep saying the Gate. What is it? What happens when it opens?"
Caius moved back to the chair, his movements eerily graceful. "The Gate is the threshold between realms. The Veil exists to keep it closed, to keep what lies beyond from spilling into our world. But the Shattered Fragments… they're pieces of the key to opening it. When the Gate opens, the old gods—those who shaped and nearly destroyed existence—will return."
Alec's chest tightened as flashes of what he'd seen earlier resurfaced. Alien landscapes, monstrous forms, and the suffocating presence of something far greater than himself. "And you're just here to warn me? Why not stop it yourself?"
Caius chuckled, a low, humorless sound. "I'm no savior, Alec. My role is to guide, not interfere. You've been chosen—not by me, but by the Veil itself. And it's not just you. Others will play their parts, whether they want to or not."
Alec's voice hardened. "I don't want any part of this. Let the gods, the Veil, or whatever's out there deal with it. I'm a detective. I solve missing person cases, not… end-of-the-world prophecies."
Caius's eyes narrowed, his calm demeanor shifting slightly. "And yet, here you are. The moment you touched the Fragment, you became part of this. Running won't change that."
A sudden knock at the door made Alec flinch. He turned sharply, his hand hovering near his gun. When he looked back, Caius was gone, the chair empty as if no one had ever been there.
The knock came again, sharper this time.
Alec hesitated before opening the door. Sigrid stood there, her expression a mix of worry and frustration. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
"Might as well have," Alec muttered, stepping aside to let her in.
Sigrid's eyes darted around the room. "What happened?"
Alec slumped into a chair, running a hand through his hair. "Caius. Or at least, that's what he said his name was. He knows about the artifact. Hell, he knows more about me than I'd like."
"Caius?" Sigrid's brow furrowed. "That name's come up before in old Bureau files. He's not human, Alec. At least, not anymore. Some say he's a Herald himself, a servant of the Veil."
"Great," Alec muttered. "So, I've got ancient gods, thinning Veils, and a Herald stalking me. What's next?"
Sigrid didn't smile. "Next, we figure out what to do with the artifact. It's not safe here. If Caius knows you touched it, others will too. We need to move."
Alec glanced at the small satchel where Sigrid had stashed the Fragment. Even now, he could feel its pull, a faint hum at the edge of his senses. "Move it where? Every step we take seems to draw us deeper into this mess."
Sigrid's gaze was steady. "Deeper might be the only way through."
The words hung in the air, heavy and unrelenting. Alec looked out the window, the fog swirling like restless spirits. He'd never believed in fate, but tonight, it felt like the city itself was conspiring against him.
"Fine," Alec said finally, his voice low. "But we're doing this my way. If we're going to walk into hell, I'm not going in blind."
Sigrid nodded, but her expression remained tense. "We'll start with the Bureau archives. If Caius is tied to the Veil, there might be something there we can use."
"And Olivia?" Alec asked.
Sigrid's hesitation was answer enough. "We'll find her. But first, we need to survive long enough to try."
Alec's lips pressed into a thin line. He didn't have a choice anymore, not really. The path was set, and all he could do was follow it—even if it led him straight into the jaws of whatever waited beyond the Veil.
Outside, the city groaned with the weight of unseen forces. Alec watched the fog roll in, the shadows growing darker still. The Convergence had begun, and there was no turning back.