The morning sun cast an eerie glow over the remains of the gothic mansion, its light muted by the haze of lingering smoke that curled from the blackened rubble. Aeon stood at the edge of the ruins, the crunch of debris underfoot the only sound as he led the police force, he had assembled. The once-grand structure was unrecognizable, reduced to a sprawling wasteland of scorched stone and twisted metal. The ornate stained-glass windows were nothing more than jagged shards glinting in the sunlight, scattered like a cruel mosaic across the ground.
The air was heavy with the acrid stench of ash and charred wood. Aeon’s brow furrowed as he surveyed the devastation, his boots sinking slightly into the soot-covered earth with each step. Though the mansion had been a testament to ominous beauty, i
