He smiles upon the fated and smites the fraying opinions caught between wrong and right. Giving judgment, the cruelest of kinds while simultaneously destroying those who carefully construct their lives.

A Fate has smiled upon you.

Let the fates smile upon you.

Old, archaic and damning words.

I remember when lore and legend began surfacing to support the figures men built up. The original sins. The saints they still carve in stone to this very day.

I am not the one he smiles upon, yet it is for Lindon's sake that perishing doesn't chase me.

The King of the Fates, the father of justice.

Karma.

Daniel has been silent since that night. Speaking when necessary and bringing with it the weight of unspoken grief he no longer attempts to hide. It worsens when he looks at me, almost prepared to sob again when making eye contact.

Surely he doesn't know I've solved the puzzle.

Predator and prey.

Feeling watched while keeping an eye on everything taking in breath.

Time feels irrelevant for these passing days, no momentum gained when the eyes are hidden. Remi believes Meika and I are preparing to leave, when really the only truth is the amount of reconnaissance we've done, searching for the killer in the crowd.

Daniel senses something bigger working its way through the city, but says nothing. His intentions keep bringing home protective gear and supplies necessary for their future. He continues to construct a life worth living for them, assuming we leave at dawn each night.

Sweat pours down my back, a refreshing waterfall in the beating sun. My joints ache, my fingers swelling uncomfortably in tension.

I've come to two conclusions.

One being, the very happy people of this town are under some form of intoxication or spell, preventing them from feeling negative emotions. As explained in Human Psychology, they are very susceptible to the addictions of things which release dopamine into their bloodstream on a controlled basis.

The second is the mentions of The Master and Our Lord. Most frequently spoken by the workers of the city, but still thrown often casually into conversation. The night Daniel and I had gone to meet Calvin and Alice, they'd so freely spoken this.

My stomach rolls in the silence, feeling the tension swell in humid sweeps of air. Nauseous as hell, I swallow back my bile and straighten the tight jacket which threatens to turn into a second skin.

Migrating into I shop, I find Daniel browsing something in the weaponry.

He freezes when he sees me, but relaxes. "What errands are you running?"

Something about his voice soothes me. I don't hear the lighthearted banter nearly as much anymore but this conversation strikes an innocent chord. Kind enough for this society.

"I'm not sure," I say, the words tumbling out without thought. Perhaps not a lie, staring at shops wasn't getting me anywhere. My presence likely unnerves most folks, that is if there even capable of malcontent. "I-I honestly don't know what the point of today even is."

"Are you okay Iridian?"

Unconsciously, my head shakes in response and I frown. "I don't know."

He lifts up a small sack and guides me by the base of my spine out the door. "You're exhausting yourself for no reason, shouldn't you and Meika be leaving soon to find Lindon?"

"Something doesn't feel right."

"How do you-"

"I'm not leaving you two alone here without knowing you're safe... Please, don't make me."

Dan's brows furrow for only a moment before he shrugs. "I'm not in charge of you."

"Would you have me leave if you were?"

Guilt flashes in his bright blue eyes and he immediately shakes his head. "No, no... I'm sorry."

"For what?" I ask calmly, matching his pace down an unfamiliar street. "It was an honest question. You don't need to sate me with the outcome. The truth will do just fine."

No one watches us suspiciously or really pays any attention to our small discussion. No one but the eyes burning through the back of my neck.

Clouds shift over the sun and draw a thin darkness overhead. I never guessed it would rain so much in the desert. The scent washes over me first, followed by the wet tingles on my skin. Then thunder hits and Daniel stiffens beside me, drawing closer to my flank and pressing his shoulder into mine.

"We should get inside."

My lips purse, confused by his sudden fear. "Why?"

The drops plop down harder, Instead of explaining, Dan pushes me under a hidden awning towards an alley. "It's in the rain," he whispers.

"What is?"

"The toxins," a feminine purr murmurs from behind the both of us.

We jump, pivoting to see a wicked grin and feral teeth. Meika tosses off her hood and chuckles menacingly. "You two, out and about, are we?"

"Not funny," Daniel growls.

"Absolutely funny, Half-blood."

If freezing ice could seal this moment, we'd be lost to the chilling death glare in Daniels irises. It flickers to me every few seconds but Meika is quick to snuff at it.

"Don't point that dirty look at her, I can smell it on you. It truly shouldn't surprise you that I know, seems more like poor judgment on your part."

I see the millions of sharp jabs and pinpointed words pooling up against his lips but nothing comes out. Instead, Daniel turns away from her with eyes glazing over and head towards the sky.

"The spell is woven into the clouds and water every night. Whether you simply shower or step in a puddle, you'll be controlled by the demonic happy thoughts and strange behavior plaguing this town. It's designed to be the most elaborate, yet tame method for controlling an entire population," Daniel explains, glancing towards a towering glass silhouette in the distance. "It's not affecting you for the same reason it's not affecting me. Divine blood is the only loophole."

"Of course," I mutter. "He's made himself a very happy home here."

"He?" Daniel asks, swallowing roughly and avoiding eye contact.

I shake it off and meet his gaze. "Nothing."

My brother lurks in the miserable tower of transparent stone and unrequited truth. He surely sits on a throne and bows, not to a single soul. How lonely he is without real subjects to rule or a crown forcing him into submission.

He is the one hunting us, but his eyes are not those in the streets.

"So what do we do then?" Meika sighs, raising her brow skeptically.

I taste the air as light thunder rumbles overhead. "We wait."

"For what?" Daniel says, bitterness consuming his words.

I give Meika a long stare, flicking my attention back in the direction of the apartment. She takes this in stride, flipping up her hood again and disappearing as ordered.

My gaze focuses in on the Demi-god before me.

"We either wait for you to tell us what's scaring you so much, or we enjoy sitting with our thumbs up our asses until something happens. Something far worse than any information you could be harboring, my bet is on the things watching us at night."

"I don't know what to tell you," he mutters.

I roll my eyes and start walking back to the apartment. "You're being selfish, Daniel. Truly selfish by hiding whatever the truth is. But I've done far worse... That being said, get your shit together. Tell me or don't, but I will find out. Contrary to popular belief, I am truth. Lindon is falsehood."

Without so much as a second glance, I duck under a terrace and slip away through a couple of alleys, considering a final course of action. The city is so dark now, lanterns and streetlights glowing but only slightly. Just enough to see the clouds consuming the stars and people concealing themselves away from the human eye.

Right now, it is clear to me how many creatures dwell within these empty roads. High tier demons and Fae alike, several magicless witches and warlocks whose specialties died in the flames that cooked the earth to a crisp.

The breeding ground for chaos.

Even Meika isn't immune to the charms in the sky. Only Daniel and I have any sort of power against it. Yet even still, I feel the tendrils snake through my aura and sizzle upon entry. They continue attempting to creep in. A contagious happiness ready to maul me at any moment.

The boy is stupid. Not telling me the truth about Karma, about his fear. But even more stupid for skirting through the nightlife after me, ducking behind walls as if I wouldn't know he was there.

So stupid, I flash a cheesy grin into the paling metal of a lamp post. It reflects back at him.

I can almost taste the cold sweat running down his back.

Daniel didn't want me to know something, which made it all the more enticing. Such as the nature of any species I suppose. Instantly rebellious yet more than pleased to go rifling through someone else's business to satisfy an itch.

Perhaps, just maybe, I'm taking a walk. Yet that's one way the boy knew me. My actions aren't spontaneous, the patterns in my thought process obvious.

I feel the dead in the streets as I slip through the crowded paths and into the strange clockwork labyrinth they'd built. Streets all finding their way to a central point. The smell of wicked decay stretches around the outskirts. This doesn't faze me.

The unsettling discomfort comes from a gentle, wispy aroma. An unmistakable scent, reminiscent of the very air I travel with. Yet, this is not Daniel.

Another Fate.

The trail drifts around and curves between buildings, around animals and through the few patches of growing grass. Night sweeps over the town completely now. The sun is set, the clouds crackling angrily above and swallowing the stars above.

It's my final decision to follow this to the end for multiple reasons. One, Daniel is following me with an intention. He knows what I smell and he knows why I'm going after it and that scares him. Perhaps partially for my safety, but truly something more. The fact that the truth is at the end of this.

The other being, the answer and assistance I need is only minutes out of my reach.

20 feet back.

Dan is just a few minutes from ruining everything.

That, or saving my life as a sharp scythe curls around my neck and sucks my breath away. 

I    AM    SO    SORRY!

I truly never meant to go this long without an update, but you guys have been absolutely amazing at supporting me with my new job and responsibilities. I couldn't ask for better followers, seriously. 

That being said, I NEEEEEEEED your help. Yes, you. You lovely, dedicated people. I was accepted into The Fiction Awards under Fantasy and let's face it, I kind of want to win. I need your help to do that. Please go and vote for me if you think this story deserves more attention. You can vote AS MANY TIMES AS YOU WANT. Type +1 over and over. 

I hope you enjoy the update Guys! I'm sorry again. I promise I'll be faster this next time XD