STARLIGHT UNBOUND by Deus Ex Machina - HTML preview

Chapter 10

The air was thick with the scent of turpentine and dried pigment, a sharp contrast to the sterile world outside. Lyra moved through the cluttered space like a ghost, each step precise, deliberate. This was the only place where the mask came off, where she didn’t have to smile or feign alignment. Here, chaos reigned.

Her fingertips traced the rough edges of a canvas resting on the easel, its surface raw with jagged strokes of black and gold. The painting was unfinished, yet it pulsed beneath her touch—alive, restless.

She dipped her brush into a smear of deep crimson, the color spreading through the chaotic swirls like blood seeping into fabric. At first, her movements were calculated, steady, but soon, the rhythm of her breathing fused with the sweep of her hand. Faster, harder—until control gave way to something primal.

She didn ’t think. She painted.

The familiar black and gold slowly surrendered to softer hues—muted greens, pale yellows, the faintest touch of white. Shapes emerged beneath her brush —the sloping roof of a small house, a wide front porch, and a manicured lawn laced with wildflowers.

Lyra stepped back, blinking rapidly, her pulse quickening.

It didn ’t make sense.

The house stood in stark contrast to everything she had ever created —too quiet, too still. It was... gentle. There were no jagged lines, no sharp edges, just an eerie calm that settled into her like an echo of something lost. Where did

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