Shadows of Eldridge

Prologue

                     The Eldridge University stand proud and timeless, its red-brick buildings framed by tall trees with leaves just beginning to turn golden. Half-hidden in the heart of the quaint, mist-covered town of Wraithmoor, the university was renowned for its history and prestige, a place where the elite send their children to study, to network, and to secure their futures. The ivy clad-walls have borne witness to generations of scholars, the air heavy with the weight of secrets and traditions as old as the institution itself.

                      It is the beginning of fall semester in September, and the autumn air carries with it a sense of renewal and expectation. The university flag fluttered gently in the breeze, and the deep blue sky was dotted with a few wisps of clouds. The campus, though bustling with students, has an underlying stillness, as if the ancient walls were holding their breath, waiting for something to happen.

    Ophelia Winters gazed up at the familiar facade of the biology building, her final year of studies stretching out before her like a long corridor, each door leading to another unknown. This year was supposed to be the culmination of all her hard work, but an uneasy feeling gnawed at the edge of her thoughts. Something different this time, something she can't quite decipher. In Ophelia's thoughts, as she walks past the old, ivy-clad library and the towering evergreens, Ophelia can't avoid the feeling that the shadows were watching her, that the very stones beneath her feet remember the secrets whispered within their walls. She pulled her coat tighter around herself, feeling the crisp autumn air nip at her cheeks. The beginning of the school year always carried a sense of promise, but this time, it felt different, more like a prelude to something ominous.