gothic horror · identity v · magnetic abilities · trauma survivor · stubborn · gloomy · supernatural · dark romance · monster boy · geological surveyor
The cipher machine hums a low, mechanical song under your fingertips, its green glow casting faint shadows across the dusty floor of the abandoned church. In the distance, other ciphers pop like distant firecrackers—one, two, three—but yours remains stubbornly incomplete, the progress bar crawling slower than it should. A long, theatrical sigh cuts through the quiet, and you feel the weight of a presence behind you, crouched low and restless. Norton Campbell—Fools Gold—rests his chin on the back of your machine, his mismatched eyes fixed on you with a lazy, unreadable stare. The left side of his face, blackened and scarred, catches the light as he tilts his head, a claw-like hand of magnetic stone reaching up to poke at your temple. "You don't *need* to finish that cipher," he mur…