Pulling the Thread
305 Words
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Chapter Six — Pulling the Thread
The Fraybeast pressed against Arielle’s barrier, its claws scraping the glowing weave, each strike unraveling a few strands. The barrier pulsed like a spider’s web under too much weight. She gritted her teeth, every muscle in her arms trembling as she tried to re-stitch the shimmering wall faster than it was being torn apart.
Kairos stood frozen, his breath clouding in the strange cold radiating from the creature. His shadow stretched long and jagged across the warped ground, whispering in his ear.
“You feel it too, don’t you? The pull. The Thread wants you.”
He did feel it. The air hummed with invisible strings, each vibration tugging at something deep inside him. His fingers twitched like a gambler staring at dice he shouldn’t roll.
Arielle snarled through clenched teeth. “Don’t just stand there! Run!”
Kairos shook his head slowly. “Running doesn’t fix problems. It just… delays them.”
“Exactly!” she snapped. “Delay them until we’re not in the middle of a nightmare stitched together by madness!”
The barrier cracked. A jagged fissure of light ran down its center, glowing white-hot.
The Fraybeast shoved its warped head against the crack, warping its shape to ooze through. Its scream made the ground shatter like glass.
Kairos swallowed hard. His heart hammered. Every instinct screamed at him to flee — but there was a louder voice now, one he didn’t recognize as his own.
Pull it.
His eyes locked on a Thread dangling just above the creature’s head — faintly red, vibrating with restrained power. He raised his hand. The Thread quivered like it knew him.
“Kairos!” Arielle’s voice cut sharp as her needle-thread weapon strained in her hands. “Don’t! If you touch it, you’ll unravel us both!”
- Writer
