Title: Shadowbound
In the sprawling metropolis of Ironhaven, crime lurked in every shadow. But in those same shadows, something else watched—someone else. They called her Nyx, the Shadowbound.
By day, Evelyn Kane was a forensic scientist, meticulously analyzing crime scenes. By night, she became something else entirely—a whisper in the dark, a ghost in the city's underbelly. A childhood accident had left her bound to the shadows themselves. She could meld into darkness, vanish from sight, and even manipulate shadows to ensnare her enemies.
It started with a single case: a string of kidnappings tied to a powerful crime syndicate known as the Ashen Veil. No one could track them. No one could stop them. But Evelyn wasn't just anyone. Using her abilities, she infiltrated their hideouts, gathering evidence by listening from unseen corners, slipping unnoticed past guards, and leaving behind messages scrawled in darkness itself.
But the Ashen Veil was watching.
One night, as she closed in on their leader—a man known only as Specter—she realized she had underestimated them. The trap sprang before she could escape, and suddenly, the shadows she commanded turned against her. Specter wasn't just a crime lord; he was like her. Shadowbound.
"You think you're the only one who knows the dark?" he whispered, stepping out of the abyss. "You are just a child lost in it. I was born in it."
For the first time, Evelyn felt fear. But fear was just another shadow—and she had learned to wield them well.
With a burst of power, she turned the darkness between them into a living weapon, striking first. Shadows clashed, the alleyway shifting like a void in war. Evelyn fought not just for herself but for every victim the Ashen Veil had taken. And in the end, it wasn't just strength that won—it was her mind.
She lured Specter into a trap of his own making, binding him in darkness so deep even he couldn't escape. The Ashen Veil crumbled without him.
Ironhaven still had crime, still had darkness. But as long as the shadows stretched over the city, Nyx would be there—watching. Waiting. Protecting.
Shadowbound: The Awakening
With the Ashen Veil dismantled and Specter locked away in a maximum-security black site, Evelyn Kane thought Ironhaven might finally know peace. But the city had other plans.
It started subtly—whispers of something stirring in the dark. Criminals vanishing without a trace. Murders with no physical evidence. Even the police were uneasy, claiming that some crime scenes felt wrong, like the shadows themselves had consumed the victims.
Evelyn had spent years mastering her connection to the darkness, but this? This was something else. Something deeper.
One night, as she patrolled the abandoned rail yards, she felt it—an unnatural stillness, as if the world had held its breath. Then came the voice.
"You are not the only one who listens to the dark, child."
The shadows convulsed, shifting like a living thing, and from the void stepped a figure clad in blackened armor, his presence bending the darkness around him like a second skin. His name
Shadowbound: The Descent
Evelyn sat in her dimly lit lab, pulse hammering. The shadows curled along the walls, whispering secrets in a language she didn't understand. She had spent years mastering her gift, bending darkness to her will. But now, for the first time, it felt like the darkness was bending her.
She needed answers.
Ironhaven had its legends—whispers of something older than the city itself. If Noctis was telling the truth, then her powers weren't just an accident. They were part of something far greater… and far more dangerous.
Her search led her deep into Ironhaven's underbelly, to a forgotten part of the city where the buildings were little more than skeletal remains. The locals called it The Hollow, a place where the light never quite reached. The closer she got, the heavier the air became, as if the night itself was pressing down on her.
Then she saw it.
A symbol—etched into the cracked pavement, pulsating with inky black energy. It was ancient, carved in a language older than civilization. The moment her
Shadowbound: The Veil Unbroken
Evelyn's breath came sharp and ragged, her mind still reeling from the visions that had nearly torn her apart. A brotherhood of shadow-wielders. Something beyond the veil. Noctis stood before her, watching, waiting for her to break.
But she didn't break.
Instead, she stepped forward.
"If you think I'll bow to whatever's hiding in the dark, you don't know me at all," she said, voice steady.
Noctis tilted his head, intrigued. "You believe you have a choice?"
Evelyn's shadow surged to life around her, stretching, twisting—her power still hers, even as the darkness whispered its warnings.
"I make my own choices."
Noctis chuckled. "Then prove it."
The ground beneath them shifted, the inky symbol pulsing as
Shadowbound: The First Trial
Darkness swallowed Evelyn whole. Cold, suffocating, absolute.
She had fought in shadows her entire life, but this was different. This wasn't something she could manipulate or command—this was alive. It wasn't just darkness. It was hunger.
The whispers tore through her mind. You are not worthy. You do not belong. The Veil is not yours to wield.
But Evelyn wasn't one to back down.
She clenched her fists, forcing herself to move, to fight. The shadows resisted, pressing against her limbs like thick tar, but she pushed forward.
Then, a flicker of light.
Not much—just a dim, flickering ember deep within the void. But it was something.
Shadowbound: Awakening
Evelyn gasped as she jolted upright, lungs burning, her body aching as if she had been torn apart and stitched back together. The shadows around her still pulsed, but they no longer fought her. They recognized her.
She wasn't just bound to the darkness anymore. She commanded it.
Noctis stood a few feet away, watching her with something almost like approval. "You survived."
Evelyn pushed herself to her feet, shaking off the weight of the Veil's trial. "Was there ever a choice?"
Noctis smirked. "Not really."
She turned her hands over, feeling the hum of energy beneath her skin. Before, controlling shadows had felt like manipulating something external—something she borrowed. Now, it was instinct. The darkness wasn't just an extension of her will. It was her.
Noctis nodded, sensing the change in her. "Good. You understand now. But that was only the first test."
Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "And the next?"
Noctis's expression darkened. "You came here thinking your power was an accident, something you could control on your own terms.