Whispers of the Shadows

Chapter 1

*I rewrote this chapter, and I'm much happier with it! Second chapter hopefully coming soon.*

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The ferry rocked gently below Lily, the salty sea breeze blowing against her cheeks as she leaned against the railing. She breathed in the cool air, letting the ocean rejuvenate her mind. Small waves crashed quietly below her as the ferry cut through the water. Blue rippling waves passed below her as the boat brought her towards Aurora Island.

The port city of Solstice loomed in the distance. And somewhere north of it lay Maple Cove. Lily felt both nostalgia and apprehension at the thought of returning to her hometown after three years in another country.

Three years ago and fed up with her family's toxicity, Lily had fled Maple Cove in an attempt to escape her emotions. Things hadn't quite gone according to plan. After her stint as a vigilante known as The Echo in Maple Cove, she thought she was done with masks and fighting. That was, until she got recruited into the Silent Veil - a secretive group that had unconventional ways of dealing with people who had managed to evade the laws.

Lily reflected on the transformation she had undergone in Spain. She arrived as a rebellious teenager, fiery, and vulnerable. She had left expertly trained in martial arts and archery. She had forged friendships over intense training sessions and missions in the field. The Silent Veil had shaped her into someone else, something else. She was now a force to be reckoned with, a darker, more confident, and calm version of the person she was. She knew how to channel her darkness into her new vigilante alter-ego Veridian.

And after hearing of the threat looming above her hometown, Lily knew it was time to return. She couldn't run from her past anymore. She would face whatever or whoever this was, and maybe process her past while she was at it.

No, not maybe. She would.

"No more running." She whispered into the wind. It rustled the dark brown strands of hair that had managed to come loose from her braid.

Seagulls cried from the back of the ferry, attempting to find a snack in its wake. Lily let the movement of the boat below lull her into relaxation. She knew she couldn't do anything about the mysterious threat on the ferry.

One hour, she promised herself, don't think about Maple Cove for now. She could let the thoughts escape from her mind and just focus on the ocean for a bit. And who knew, maybe the whales would show up to welcome her home. It wasn't unheard of to see them from the ferry. In fact, it was quite common. She hadn't seen one in ages. It would be fitting.

But no matter how hard she stared out into the waves, she didn't see any columns of vapor that were characteristic of whale breaths. No black orca fins cut out of the water.

Lily sighed. Whales were gonna do what they were gonna do. They operated on their own clock. It was part of the reason she loved them. They answered to no one.

In the absence of fins, she allowed herself to take in the scenery. Blue stretches of water, islands swathed in blankets of green pine trees, steep limestone cliffs.

She loved Spain, but this, this. She missed this landscape. It was so typical Pacific Northwest, and it made her heart happy.

Even if her mission went awry, maybe she could rebuild her life on Aurora Island.