AVERY
After a series of intense exploring and searching, Grayson, Jameson, and Avery found themselves back in the grand, shadow-filled hall. The eerie whisper of the poem still lingered in the air, the riddle ticking in their minds like a time bomb. The pressure of time closing in was palpable, every second a growing weight. They had *ten breaths* to solve this.
"Touch the goblet, silver bright, lift it high beneath the light," Grayson muttered under his breath, his pacing quickening but controlled. His sharp, calculating gray eyes darted around the room, mentally cataloging every potential clue. He was always the one breaking everything down, trying to see through the puzzle. *There has to be an order to this. A pattern.*
Avery crossed her arms, frustration bubbling under the surface as her eyes swept across the room, filled with ancient artifacts and golden trinkets that blurred together. *There’s no time for this*. “There must be *hundreds* of objects here,” she said, exhaling sharply. “But if the riddle says ‘silver bright,’ that should narrow it down... right?” She was trying to stay calm, but the ticking clock was a constant reminder—one wrong move could change everything.
Jameson, ever the one to leap without looking, gave a lazy grin. His eyes sparkled with excitement—he *lived* for moments like this. “Goblets, silver, and bright? Sounds like something that’s meant to stand out,” he said, cracking his knuckles like this was just another thrilling game. His confidence was almost reckless. “Bet it’s not hidden too well. Whoever wrote this wants us to *find* it, right?”
Grayson shot him a sharp look, his annoyance barely masked. "This isn’t a *game*, Jameson." There was always that edge in his voice when Jameson got too casual, too flippant. *This could go wrong in so many ways*.
Jameson shrugged, completely unfazed. “Sure feels like one,” he shot back, a gleam in his eye that said he was enjoying every second of this. His mind wasn’t bogged down with overthinking—just adrenaline.
Avery stepped in, sensing Grayson’s frustration rising. She needed to keep them on track. “The poem said ‘lift it high beneath the light.’ So we’re not just looking for any goblet—it has to be under a light source.” She could feel the tension thickening. They were running out of time, and every second felt like it weighed more.
Grayson nodded, his mind racing. *Think. There has to be a purpose behind every word in that poem.* “Right. It’s not random. Everything’s placed for a reason. We just need to—”
“Overthink it to death?” Jameson quipped, throwing a glance Grayson’s way, a teasing smirk playing on his lips. His movements were quick, instinctual, already scanning the room with far less method than his brother. *Sometimes Grayson makes things harder than they are,* he thought. “Sometimes you just gotta *look*, Grayson.”
Avery held back a smile despite the tension. *They’ll never stop bickering, will they?* “Well, *do* either of you see any light shining on a silver goblet?”
Jameson was already moving, his eyes narrowing as he spotted something. The long, black marble table in the center of the hall seemed to beckon them forward. The chandeliers overhead cast uneven beams of light across the room, but one beam, focused near the far end of the table, felt... *deliberate*. It was too clean, too focused, cutting through the dimness like a spotlight on a stage. And beneath that light, there it was—a single, silver goblet sitting alone, almost as if waiting for them.
“There!” Avery pointed, her heart skipping a beat. *This has to be it.* “That has to be the one.”
Grayson’s mind was still whirring, assessing every possibility. His eyes locked onto the goblet, analyzing the placement, the light, the surroundings. *But why here? What else is hidden?* He couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to this. Jameson, however, let out a slow, mischievous smirk as his gaze fixed on the object. His heart was already racing with excitement, but he masked it behind that grin, the thrill of mystery lighting him up.
“*Interesting*...” Jameson drawled, his voice low, the word laced with an almost dangerous amusement. *It’s too easy...* but that’s what made it fun.
Avery rolled her eyes, feeling the weight of time pressing in again. “Could you *not* sound like a villain for two seconds?”
Jameson chuckled, clearly enjoying himself. “Villains get the best lines,” he said, his smirk growing wider, but there was an underlying seriousness in his tone. *You never know when something’s going to twist.* That unpredictability was what made him love these moments.
Grayson let out a frustrated sigh, his patience thinning. "Focus, Jameson. This isn’t a game, and we don’t have time for your dramatics." *There could be traps,* he thought, his mind going a mile a minute. *Anything could go wrong.*
“*I* am focused,” Jameson countered, not missing a beat. “I’m just not boring about it.” He flashed a grin at Grayson, but his eyes flickered toward the goblet again, sharper now. *Come on, what’s the catch?*
Avery, torn between their banter and the pressure of solving the riddle, felt her nerves stretching thin. “Let’s just grab it before something explodes,” she said, eyeing the goblet with caution. “We don’t know what could happen when we touch it.”
Grayson’s brow furrowed, his jaw tightening. “Exactly. We don’t know the full consequences yet.” He could feel the tension mounting. *One wrong move, and everything could fall apart.*
Jameson, however, leaned in, his grin widening, heart racing with a mix of excitement and anticipation. “Well, I guess we’re about to find out.” His pulse quickened, but he didn’t hesitate. With a flick of his wrist, he stepped forward, his fingers brushing the cool, polished surface of the silver goblet.
As soon as his fingers touched it, the air in the room seemed to shift. The chandeliers overhead flickered, the light dimming as if something ancient and powerful had stirred. Grayson tensed, his breath catching. Avery’s heart pounded in her chest. And Jameson? He only grinned wider, the thrill of the unknown washing over him. *Now the real game begins.*
YOU ARE READING
The PREDATOR And PREY
Mystery / Thriller"Once who enter **Vermillion Hall**, Never leaves the same at all. Through its gates of stone and glass, Shadows cling as you silently pass. A whispered deal, a stolen breath, Within these walls, there lingers death. Riches gleam, but wh...
