The city above had already begun to wake when Rick, Lira, and Marrek climbed back to the surface.
The rain had stopped, but the sky over Greyhaven was still heavy with clouds, hanging low like a warning.
Rick had never been so aware of how loud the world was — the engines, the chatter, the sirens. After a night in the Underveil, the noise of the human world felt strange… almost unreal.
He shoved his hands into his pockets and tried not to think about the whisper that had followed him out of the tunnels.
We see you now, Veil-Born.
Even the memory made his skin crawl.
Lira led the way through an alley behind the old docks. She didn't look tired, but Rick could tell by the stiffness in her shoulders that she hadn't rested either. Marrek trailed behind them, his coat fluttering in the cold wind, eyes scanning every rooftop like he expected an ambush.
> "So," Rick began, "this 'first key' Sova mentioned — what exactly is it? A literal key? A metaphor? A magic glowing rock that solves everything?"
Lira glanced at him over her shoulder.
> "It's real. And powerful. The kind of thing that can unmake the Veil if it falls into the wrong hands."
> "Right," Rick muttered. "And I'm guessing the Shadow Court are the 'wrong hands' part."
Marrek gave a grim nod.
> "They've been collecting lost relics for decades. If they get all three keys, they can break the boundary between worlds — no more separation between human and Hidden. Chaos."
Rick frowned. "So we find it first. Sounds simple enough."
Lira gave a humorless chuckle. "Nothing about this life is simple, Rick."
They reached the end of the alley, where a rusted gate led to an abandoned warehouse lot. The ground was cracked and overgrown, but the faint traces of runes shimmered on the asphalt when Lira waved her hand over it.
> "The key is buried under here," she said. "Sova said it was hidden in the ruins of an old shrine — one that was built before Greyhaven existed."
Rick raised an eyebrow. "You're telling me there's a shrine under a parking lot?"
> "The world changes," Marrek said. "But the bones of magic stay where they were laid."
They pried open the gate and slipped through. The air smelled of rust and salt. Inside the largest warehouse, a series of markings led to a trapdoor half-buried in dust and debris. Lira knelt beside it and murmured something in a low voice — the runes glowed, and the door unlocked with a click.
A narrow tunnel descended into darkness.
> "You first," she said to Rick, handing him a flashlight.
> "Ladies first," he tried, but Lira only gave him that sharp, tired look that meant don't argue.
So he went down.
The tunnel opened into a wide chamber filled with stone pillars, cracked and overgrown with roots. Strange murals covered the walls — figures with wings, beasts with multiple eyes, and a sigil that Rick had seen before in his vision: a circle split in half, one side light, the other shadow.
> "That's it," he said quietly. "That symbol. I saw it in the Mirror Well."
Lira and Marrek both looked at him.
> "Then this is the place," Marrek said. "Be ready. The key's energy will attract things."
As if on cue, a low growl echoed through the chamber.
Rick swung his flashlight toward the sound. Shadows moved — not just flickering, crawling. Dozens of them, slithering across the floor and walls like living smoke.
> "What the hell are those?" Rick shouted.
> "Wraiths," Lira said, her hand already glowing with runic fire. "The Court sends them to guard relics. Don't let them touch you."
Marrek bared his fangs. "Too late for peace, then."
The wraiths lunged.
Lira's runes flared, sending a wave of blue fire through the darkness. The nearest creatures hissed and melted back into the stone. Marrek moved like lightning, his claws slicing through the air, scattering shadows with every strike. Rick stumbled back, heart pounding, watching the chaos unfold — until one of the wraiths lunged straight at him.
He raised his hand on instinct, and the mark on his palm — the same one that had burned when the Veil's magic first touched him — flared bright gold.
The wraith screamed.
Light burst from his hand like a shockwave, and the thing dissolved into mist.
When the glow faded, Rick was breathing hard, staring at his hand in disbelief.
> "Okay," he panted. "That was new."
Lira looked at him, eyes wide. "You just used Veillight — pure energy from between worlds. No human should be able to do that."
> "Guess I didn't get the memo," Rick said.
The chamber went still again. The wraiths were gone, and the only sound was dripping water. In the center of the room stood an ancient stone pedestal, half-buried in roots. Something shimmered atop it — a crystal sphere, swirling with both black and gold light.
Lira approached slowly.
> "The First Key," she whispered.
Rick stepped closer, but the moment his fingers brushed the surface, the ground trembled. The murals on the wall began to glow, the light forming a pattern — a map.
> "What is that?" he asked.
> "The location of the Second Key," Lira said. Her voice was steady, but her eyes weren't. "Whoever hid these knew what was coming."
Marrek grunted. "Then we move fast. The Court will know we found it."
Rick picked up the sphere, feeling its pulse through his veins. It was warm, alive, as if it recognized him. For the first time, he wasn't sure if that was comforting… or terrifying.
As they turned to leave, the shadows at the far end of the room shifted again — but this time, they formed a shape.
A man stepped out, dressed in a dark coat, eyes glowing faintly red.
> "Leaving so soon?" the stranger said, smiling. "I was hoping to thank you in person for doing my job."
Lira's expression hardened. "Shadow Court."
Rick tightened his grip on the sphere. His pulse raced, and the mark on his palm began to burn again.
The man took a step forward, his grin widening. "The Veil-Born lives. How fascinating. My masters will be pleased."
Lira drew her blade. Marrek hissed. Rick felt the air thicken with magic.
The fight for the key — and maybe for their lives — was about to begin.