The Shadow’s Bargain
The moon hung like a blade in the sky, slicing through the mist that curled along the cobbled streets. Elias stepped into the alley, heart pounding. He had made the bargain, whispered his name into the night, and now the shadow had come to collect.
A figure emerged from the dark—its face shifting, never settling, like smoke trapped in a mirror. “You promised,” it rasped, “and promises must be kept.”
Elias clenched the dagger in his trembling hands. “Just one more night,” he pleaded.
The shadow laughed. “One more night? One more kill?” It gestured behind him, and Elias turned—his latest victim lay sprawled in the filth, lifeless eyes reflecting the void of his soul.
Shaking, Elias fell to his knees, whispering the words of an old, cursed verse.
What price is life, what cost is breath?
A coin for hope, a blade for death.
I sold my soul for borrowed time,
One heartbeat left, one final crime.
The shadow waits, the tally tallied,
Every face, the darkness rallied.
My hands are stained, my fate is spun,
The deal is done. The night has won.
