Veil of Shadows ๋࣭⭑⚝ Dick Grayson

13 ๋࣭⭑⚝ Just the start

She felt the shift in the air as they came to a stop in front of an abandoned-looking manor. Everything felt off from the very beginning, the silence broken only by their shaky breaths as they dismounted the vehicle and the crunch of snow beneath their boots while they slowly approached the eerie structure.

Łɇŧ mɇ ᵾᵽ- 

WȺɨŧ! 

ȻȺw-ȻȺw.. 

Ɨ đøn'ŧ wȺnŧ ŧø đø ŧħɨs Ⱥnɏmøɍɇ..! 

"Fuck.."

Sŧøᵽ- 

ȻȺw..

-ɌȺȼħ-ɇł!

"J-ugh..!" she felt her body sway, as if getting blown away by the cold wind.

"Jules—hey, hey… what's going on?" Dick rushed to her side, trying to hoist her back to her feet.

"Is it Rachel?" the other woman called out, though at this point, Jules couldn't even tell if she was on the other side of the car or standing right in front of her.

"Something's happening—she's scared. She's really scared, I—" Jules stammered, her words tumbling out in a frantic rush as she struggled to describe what she was seeing before it flashed away again.

"Come on!" Kory yelled, sprinting toward the manor.

The sound of her commanding voice snapped Jules out of her daze. She straightened up, forcing herself to run after Kory, with Dick close behind her.

They cautiously stepped through the wide-open door. The lights inside flickered violently, casting eerie, shifting shadows that made the house feel even more menacing.

"Hello?" Dick called out, his voice echoing ominously through the unsettling silence.

Nø-!

Ⱥħ-

She clutched her forehead, the vision so blinding it made her head throb, the pain intensifying as if the vision itself was growing stronger.

"This way!" she gasped, holding back a pained yelp as she stumbled deeper into the manor. Her hand gripped walls and tables for balance, her legs threatening to give out beneath her.

Driven by an urgent tunnel vision, she didn’t look back. Her only focus was reaching Rachel. A loud thud broke the silence—a body hitting the ground—followed by a demonic scream. Heart racing, she shoved open an old wooden door, entering a large room with tall glass ceilings. Nearly collapsing, she grabbed a metal railing overlooking a lab-like space below.

Dark smoke swirled violently, forming a sinister, underwater-like tornado. In the center stood Rachel, her back turned, facing a glowing purple ring—a portal.

"Rachel!" she screamed, though her voice barely carried. A crushing weight, like a boulder of obsidian, pressed against her fractured skull.

Desperate, she threw herself over the railing, crashing to the floor below, straight into the swirling vortex. Suddenly, black, smoky tentacles erupted from the portal, one striking her chest and sending her flying into a metal table. Tools clattered to the floor as she groaned, struggling to regain her breath.

"Juliette! Rachel!" The sound of Dick’s voice brought her a fleeting sense of relief before it turned to panic as the tentacles shot toward him.

Gritting her teeth, she forced herself up, summoning her dagger with a whispered incantation. Propelling herself into the air with a quick spell, she sliced through the tentacle before it reached Dick.

"Get to her! I’ll handle the portal!" she shouted, charging toward the glowing ring. Her dagger vanished as she pressed her palms against the portal, chanting, "Esolc… esolc…" A golden light flared from her hands, but the tentacles pushed back, battering her like repeated gut punches.

"Rachel!" Dick turned the frightened teen to face him, gripping her shoulders tightly.

"You need to get out of here—both of you—before it’s too late," Rachel sobbed, her voice trembling beneath the sinister echoes of the room.

"Rachel, sweetie, we’re not going anywhere!" Jules called out, masking her pain with determination as she held the portal at bay.

"You’re hurting yourself!"

Dick’s voice softened, his words dripping with sincerity and fear. "Listen, I was wrong. When I told you no one could help you, I was wrong. You’re not on your own. You have me. You have Jules. We’re here, and we’re not going anywhere. Okay? We’re not going anywhere."

He pulled Rachel into a firm, comforting hug, his voice steady despite the chaos. "I’m not going anywhere."

Jules felt the dark smoke begin to dissipate, her strength surging back. Clenching her fists, she summoned all her power and slammed the portal shut as if closing massive double doors. A shockwave erupted, knocking her to the ground. She collapsed onto her hands and knees, her breathing ragged against the cold floor.

Small arms wrapped around her in a fragile embrace.

"I’m so sorry… are you okay?" Rachel’s frail voice broke through the quiet.

Jules let out a soft chuckle, raising an arm to rub the girl’s back. "I’m perfectly fine… thanks to you."

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.

She leaned against Dick’s side as they made their way out of the manor, the tension slowly ebbing away. The gentle chirping of birds and the cool nighttime breeze were a welcome reprieve from the chaos they'd just endured.

Dick carefully opened the car door and helped her into the passenger seat. As he did, their attention was drawn to a group of four strange beings nearby—one of whom appeared to be a robot-like machine. They seemed to be encouraging a familiar green-haired boy to join them.

The boy hesitated but eventually turned to bid a slow, heartfelt farewell to his family before walking toward the group and climbing into their vehicle.

Jules watched the scene unfold, exhaling softly. "This is going to be quite the journey, isn’t it?"

Dick chuckled, leaning down to press a quick kiss to her head. "Yup," he said with a small smile, gently closing the door.