The Stars Were Not the Only Ones Watching
Beyond the last station.
Beyond the City of Midnight.
Beyond the place where the stars descend.
Aurelia expected answers.
Instead—
she found a gaze.
Silent. Motionless.
As though the observatory had known she would arrive long before she ever began her journey.
And for the first time since stepping aboard the Celestial Express…
she wondered if she was the explorer—
or the one being discovered.