The city passed in a blur. She dodged corpses laying at odd angles. I didn’t see a single living person, but the streets were lined with thousands of dead. I avoided looking at any one of them too closely, afraid I might be sick.

  Encore called a warning a few blocks away. The sounds of screaming had largely died down. A strained bellow of rage accompanied Encore’s shout of alarm. It sounded like someone who had screamed as long as their vocal chords would allow, then screamed some more.

  We turned the corner. The doors to the Adventure Guild hung partially ajar two blocks ahead. A man stood between us and the doors. He stood seven feet tall, an elementalkin tera with fragmented platemail hanging by bits of torn leather. His stony skin was covered in a layer of blood and gore. He held half of a torso in one hand, slamming it into another torso, which he held against a wall with his other hand.

  I looked at the clock, surprised at how quickly we had traveled through the city. 2:49 AM. One minute.

  Chanter: Secure that door. Tie yourself down if you can. We are almost in, but I don’t think we’ll make it in time.

  Abernathy: Alright. I should have some rope or something.

  “Shh, put me down,” I said, pulling out my lute as I slid off Katarina’s back. “Stay close.”

  I began playing the Tatsu, picking the first few notes gently, as I had seen Cahl do. The raging elementalkin didn’t notice the sound.

  We walked around the raging behemoth, wrapped in a sphere of silence. He continued slamming one corpse into another. I focused on stepping carefully around the field of mangled bodies scattered across the street.

  A knot formed in the pit of my stomach as the clock hit 02:50 AM. We passed the open doors of the guildhall. It was a mess, same as the streets had been. Bodies lay about at odd angles. Blood covered nearly every surface.

  I stopped playing and ran. Nothing stirred or moved within the Guild. There were only bodies. Countless, motionless bodies.

  Katarina easily outpaced me, jumping over the counter and swinging the door behind it open. I ran through and into the hall. Encore flew in behind, landing on my shoulder. He had avoided stepping in the blood. Katarina closed the door behind us and followed me into the halls.

  I ran down the hall, making a series of turns and hoping that I was going the right way. I glanced at the clock again. 02:51 AM.

  Chanter: Abe, you okay?

  There was no response. I heard someone screaming from deeper in the guildhall, almost to the stairs leading down to the exam chamber. It was deep and raspy. And hauntingly familiar.

  “Please, no,” I whispered as I turned the corner.

  A familiar blonde beard, now stained with blood. A thick braid, likewise stained. One bald section of scalp, bloody, from where a braid had once been.

  Helga turned as we rounded the corner. One of her arms was missing. The other wielded an axe, Kleyn’s bloody and mangled stump of a head wedged against the back spike. She screamed, blood spraying from cracked lips. It seemed like all of the capillaries within her eyes had burst. Tears of blood ran in red rivulets down her cheeks.

  She sprinted towards us. One of her feet was twisted backward and clicked when she stepped. The sprint was more of a hobbled shuffle, but at a grotesquely fast pace.

  Katarina ran to meet her, kicking from one wall to the other and dodging a feeble axe swing. Helga turned, too slowly, and Katarina kicked the axe from her hand. Helga’s wrist broke with an audible snap with the impact.

  Helga’s teeth snapped as she bit at Katarina’s leg, which she pulled back with inches to spare.

  I took one of the web satchels out of my inventory.

  Small Satchels of Enwebbing.Thrown item.

  Detonates on impact, discharging sticky, thick web solution in a small radius. The web is strong, difficult to cut or tear, but susceptible to flames and acid. Deteriorates after an hour.

  “Back up!” I shouted. Katarina glanced at me, shoving herself backwards. I threw the sack, hitting Helga’s legs. It erupted in a small area, affixing her to the ground. She flailed, falling over and getting her shoulder stuck in the web. She continued flailing, screaming, gurgling, and getting herself further entangled.

  I skirted along a narrow section of the hall not coated in webbing and continued running, chased by the steady clicks of Helga’s snapping jaws. I threw a health potion as I ran. It broke over Helga, began healing her. I hoped it would be enough.

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  “It’s right down here,” I said, hurrying down the stairs. I glanced at the clock. 02:51 AM ticked to 02:52 AM. I hoped Abernathy had secured himself. I hoped this would revert whatever had happened to him.

  The door was closed, the mouth open in a silent scream. The… frond? Tongue? Whatever it was, it lay unfurled on the ground. I ran over and pulled out the orb, placing it on the tip of the pointed tongue.

  It suctioned onto the orb with a hollow shunk. I felt a pressure on the hand that was holding the orb. A familiar pressure. Then pain. My blood swirled into the orb. Much more blood than before. The orb drank of my life force, and the door, who I took to be the face of the Oakenfather, whoever that was, began to revitalize.

  Quest Complete! Restore the Oakenfather’s Heart!

  Congratulations! You have prevented a world-wide apocalyptic event. Better late than never, right? Tell that to the countless dead that litter the streets of Verdantbrook. Or don’t. They won’t hear you.

  I tried pulling my hand back, but couldn’t. My health began declining rapidly. I consumed a health potion from my quickbar. My health stopped dropping for a moment, then resumed its decline.

  “Let go!” Katarina shouted.

  “I can’t! I’m trying!” I responded, pulling. I consumed another health potion. Then another. My health dropped to 30%, then 25%, then 20%. Consuming the potions caused nothing more than momentary pauses in the decline, but it was all I could do. I consumed and consumed, potion after potion. My health dropped below 5% and I felt light-headed. I collapsed, my vision fading.

  I awoke some time later. Katarina’s large, blue eyes stared down at me with concern. She was slapping my cheek.

  “Wake up, damn you, wake up,” she said.

  “I’m awake, I’m awake,” I said. She cried out, bringing my head to her chest in an embrace.

  I looked around. We were sitting outside of the Oakenfather’s door. The face had returned to the placid expression, mouth closed. The orb was nowhere to be seen.

  “The Oakenfather released you just before death,” Encore said, stepping over to my shoulder from Katarina’s as I stood.

  Chanter: Abernathy, are you there?

  Katarina: Abe? Abe please respond.

  We looked at one another. I took a deep breath, preparing myself.

  “We need to go see.” I said.

  Abernathy: Mates? Are you alright?

  Katarina: Holy fucking shit!

  Chanter: Oh thank god. Are you alright? Forget us.

  Abernathy: I think I’m alright. I’ll live at least. Arms are killing me. Think I dislocated both shoulders. It was like I went to sleep, then woke up again and everything hurt.

  We made our way past Helga’s limp, bloody corpse. The potion hadn’t been enough. I shoved the pain down. We hurried to Abernathy, prying open the door he had barricaded. Abernathy had bound himself with a series of complicated knots and ropes. We cut him free. He had already healed his wounds with healing potions.

  We made our way out of the Guildhall, and into the now silent city. The silence was deafening after the cacophony of screams.

  “What do we do now?” Abernathy asked.

  “I… don't know. Look for survivors?” Katarina asked.

  We spent several hours looking for survivors in the city. There were none, none that we could see. In a little over half an hour, an entire city, thousands upon thousands of people, had died. Murdered. Killed themselves while trying to attack others.

  We were all shaken by what we saw, but we had been through an… inoculation of sorts. It was horrible. I was worried about Abernathy most of all, but he didn’t shut down.

  We ended our search at the docks as the sun rose. Ships burned. The scent of smoke, blood, and death hung heavy on the salty breeze.

  My lute buzzed as the sun crested the horizon.

  “Chanter?” Cahl asked, his voice muffled, distant, barely discernible.

  I picked up the lute as Abernathy and Katarina stared with wide eyes.

  “Cahl? Are you alright?” I asked.

  “Yes. Helic fled, I underestimated him. This is only the beginning. Meet me in Bornholdt Keep, over the Western Passage.”

  “Aren’t you below? We can meet and travel together,” I said.

  “No, I’m no longer in Verdantbrook. They teleported once the ritual was broken, and I followed. We must stop—” the connection severed. I tried for several minutes, but he didn’t return. A notification appeared.

  New Quest!

  Travel to Bornholdt Keep and meet up with your mentor. Try to outrun the news of Verdantbrook’s destruction, if you can. Otherwise, you may face some… uncomfortable questioning. The eyes of several nations will soon be turning this way. Aid Cahl before disaster strikes again. Will you be quick enough, this time?

  Reward: Silver Survivor’s Chest. Gold Coin x15.

  I noticed a small box at the bottom of the notification, allowing me to share the quest with my current party. I selected it.

  “Did you all get a quest? I just shared it.” I asked.

  “Yeah, it says to travel to Bornholdt Keep.” Katarina replied. “That is… wow, that is really far. Do you see that?”

  I pulled up my map and saw the notification off-map. I zoomed out, then zoomed out again. I compared the distance with Fort Ethers, the furthest distance I had traveled so far.

  “It looks to be at least five times further than the Fort,” I said.

  Abernathy swallowed audibly and nodded. “At least a weeks travel. More if those mountains in the distance are on the way… do… do you think we can stop by the Adventurer’s Guild before we go? I want to get a few things. And see if I can store a crafting table in my inventory.”

  “That’s a good idea.” Katarina agreed.

  “Of course, but let’s be quick.” I said.

  We turned and began walking towards the smoldering ruins of Verdantbrook.

  Book 1 of Veil, first draft completed October 31st, 2025.

  First edit run-through completed November 27th, 2025.

  Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed reading half as much as I enjoyed writing it. Book 2 to release in 2026.

  Much love. Here’s to many more adventures together.

  Brandon Highbaugh.

  Patreon! You can get your hands on the first 20 chapters! (or 20 chapters ahead, depending on when you read this).