An ordinary woman is torn from her failing modern life when a thief botches an escaping spell, dropping her into the middle of a fight in a world that was never meant to be hers. The Marrowbound clan mistakes her for their long-lost Holy Lord of the Temple of Shadows, but clearing this misunderstanding would result in a tragic death. All she wants to do is to survive long enough in this world to find a way to return home. But as time goes by, strange things happen, leaving her questioning if this is a case of mistaken identity or if she is really their long-lost Holy Lord. Was she pulled into this world by chance, or was she always meant to return?

She is sent to kill the dragon. Instead, she might become his only salvation. *** In a world swallowed by the Ever-Dark, Iva Vernigora is nothing more than a lowly servant in the house of the cruel Voivode Yakub Ivanov, Duke of Highroot. But when Voivode blackmails her with the lives of her parents, Iva is forced to pretend she's his daughter, as she infiltrates the royal academy of magic - Kolegium. Voivode Yakub's order is absolute: poison the Prince Konstantin Veliki. Prince Konstantin is the heir to the throne, the last of the line of Dragons - a Zmey warrior of light, who was blessed with a dragon-shifting gift. At a first glance, he is nothing but a smug, pompous royal, and everything Iva is supposed to hate. Yet every touch, and every shared lesson at Kolegium blurs the line between the enemy she must kill and the man she is beginning to crave. While Iva stalks her prey as a knife in the dark, waiting for the chance to extinguish Konstantin's light, she discovers that the dragon everyone fears is the only thing standing between humanity and the void. As the Ever-Dark Shades rise, Iva must make an impossible choice. Will she carry out her sinister orders and secure her parents' freedom, or will she stand by the Dragon in the battle for the world's last light? *** The Shades are coming. The Dragons are falling. And the Eternal Spark is waiting for its host. © 2026 EvelynHail Exclusively on Wattpad Based on prompts: 97. "When the world slips into endless darkness, something begins to move in the shadows and you must find a way to survive in a night that never ends." 4. "You discover that the dragon everyone fears is in danger, and you are the only one who can save it from the knight sworn to slay it ."

Keywords: romance | haters to lovers | hollywood | mutual pining | murder mystery | time travel | inspired by a song You time-travel back to 2012, only to be cornered by a celebrity who insists you're "the key to saving their future," and they're determined to take you with them. "Because, you know, there's no end to the hypocrisy of the human heart." 🏅 Round 1 Winner | Open Novella Contest (2026) © 2026 EmmaJD The views and actions of the characters in this story do not reflect those of the author. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

EVERYONE THEY TOUCH DIES - EXCEPT EACH OTHER. For 423 years, Libby has been a walking biohazard: one accidental brush of skin and it's game over. Now she's the world's oldest virgin, a shut-in, and a not-so secret romantic who spends her nights writing about the experiences she can never have firsthand. But she isn't alone. For centuries, a robed figure has watched her from the edges of history. Libby assumed he was a hallucination, a coping mechanism for a mind fractured by four centuries of solitude. Then one night he slid into her DMs. And after four centuries of living without a single IRL connection, Libby is ready to be touched by a Reaper - whatever the cost. NOTE: This story is one of my Wattpad ONC 2026 entries. I wrote it in response to Prompt 114: "An immortal being, worn down by centuries and cursed so that anyone they touch dies, starts searching for a way to finally end their endless life. But Death, who has grown possessive and infatuated with them, refuses to let them go." ⚠️ TW: death, dirty language, sexual content, suicidal ideation.

When two ex-best friends turned rival assassins cross paths on a mission, they must work together to uncover the truth, reopening old wounds and buried feelings while battling monsters.

Fallon never meant to survive the night. Broken by grief and haunted by shadows that she can no longer outrun, she throws herself from the cliffs into the storm-torn sea-choosing darkness over another dawn. Instead of death, she finds fire. A dragon rises from the waves and pulls her from the abyss. Ancient. Wounded. Hunted. When the beast vanishes, and a stranger with molten-gold eyes takes his place, Fallon learns the truth: dragons are not the mindless monsters the kingdom fears. They are shifters-rare, powerful, and nearly extinct. And Ambrose is the last of the Draco. The realm has already sent its most revered knight to finish what generations began: the eradication of dragonkind. If Ambrose is found, the Draco will fall forever. Fallon owes her life to the creature the world calls a monster. As soldiers close in and secrets of the old magic awaken in her blood, Fallon must choose between the safety of the kingdom that failed her-or the dragon who saved her. Protecting Ambrose means defying the crown, confronting the knight sworn to destroy him, and risking her heart to a being of fire and shadow. Because the greatest danger isn't the blade hunting dragons. It's falling for one. [Entry for the Open Novella Contest 2026]

When one morning, Zabava finds a wounded man in her garden, there is no doubt she ought to help him. But the more she gets to know about him, the clearer it seems that destiny had delivered a gruesome strike with this stranger. For her unexpected guest is Zmey, the dragon haunting the country of Skazoviya with his endless appetite for the hearts of girls. Everyone knows how this would have to end in the tales-a powerful witch in the woods, a terrible dragon, a dashing hero. But this is no tale. Zabava is no witch. The brave bogatyr has failed to kill his enemy. And the dragon doesn't seem to be quite the kind of monster the rumors make him out to be. Soon enough, he spins Zabava a tale of woe about his innocence and traps her in a bargain to rescue him. Caught between plans to trick this beast and the chains of their pact, she slowly starts to believe Zmey's story ... but what if the tales are true and what's at stake is her very heart? _____ ONC 2026 ENTRY: PROMPTS 3, 4, 11

For Centuries Grim has been collecting souls. It's what he does, it's his purpose. One day, while collecting a soul in the park, he comes across a lost puppy. For reasons he can't explain, the urge to return the small dog to his owner is overwhelming. He soon finds the animal's owner, a woman in her mid-twenties named Maria. He is struck down by her beauty and realizes that he had once claimed the soul of someone she loved. He becomes even more conflicted when he realizes he has just one year to claim her soul.

#ONC OPEN NOVELLA CONTEST 2026 📚 #ROUND ONE ONC QUALIFIER ✨ What do you do when your best friend's brother-who just moved into your shared house-turns out not to be entirely human? You scream into your pillow so no one hears. You question your grip on reality. You start double-locking your bedroom door every night. And then-you begin watching him. *** ONC PROMPT 25: You live with four other housemates, but one of them is secretly an alien trying to learn how to act human. PROMPT 105: Your chatting with someone when you suddenly notice the mirror behind them shows everything except their reflection.