The screen flickered back in with a faint static buzz. The water was too calm now, rippling only when Seraphina shifted her boots along the concrete edge. Ethan kept the lens steady, framing her against the reflection of broken ceiling lights.
"Something's still down there," she said softly. Her violet eyes glowed in the dim.
"No kidding," Ethan replied, zooming in on the water. "Feels like we're standing over a loaded gun. Just waiting for the trigger."
The live chat scrolled fast, most messages a blur of emojis.
> [Stream Chat]
🟢 Moonfang: "bruh if cameraman dies i uninstall life"
🟢 DarkCoffee: "nah he won't. dude's immortal at this point."
🟢 BrickEater: "waiting for THAT boss fight let's gooo"
🟢 Hexxie: "something's moving on the left. LEFT. LOOK LEFT."
---
The ripple came again. This time slower, deliberate. The dark water bulged upward, as if something enormous pressed against the surface from below.
Then—silence.
Seraphina raised her hand, summoning light that flared across the room. The reflection lit up the water's surface—and that's when Ethan caught it. For a fraction of a second, a massive eye opened beneath the black water, lidless and glowing faint green.
It stared directly at the camera.
Ethan's breath hitched, but his hands didn't shake. He zoomed in slowly. "Well. That's… big."
The water exploded upward with a deafening roar. A colossal figure rose, skeletal but bloated with dripping flesh, its arms made of tangled rebar and concrete chunks fused into bone. The tower shuddered as the creature dragged itself halfway out of the water, its maw unhinging wider than humanly possible.
The chat went insane.
> [Stream Chat]
🟢 SimpyMage: "WHAT THE F**K IS THAT"
🟢 GoblinSlayer96: "nope nope nope nope"
🟢 Hexxie: "is that… a BUILDING fused into it???"
🟢 Moonfang: "camera guy is still filming calm af lmao"
🟢 DarkCoffee: "legend says cameramen don't even know fear"
---
"Stay behind me," Seraphina hissed, though she already knew Ethan wouldn't. Her magic surged, violet runes burning across her arms. A barrier shimmered into existence as the monster slammed a hand the size of a truck onto the flooded floor, sending waves crashing toward them.
Ethan sidestepped with impossible precision, water splashing everywhere but never hitting his camera. He panned up, capturing the full scale of the monster as though he were born to frame horrors.
Seraphina's voice cut sharp through the air:
"This is no ordinary haunting. It's a concrete amalgam. The dead and the unfinished project fused into one."
"And it's camera shy," Ethan muttered as the beast's eyes narrowed at the glowing lens.
The thing roared again, the sound shaking scaffolding loose from above. Metal clanged into the water, sparking small fires where Seraphina's wards held strong.
---
"Chat's gonna love this," Ethan whispered under his breath.
Seraphina smirked despite the danger. "Then let's give them a finale."
Her hands blazed brighter, spell circles expanding, but the monster lunged, its rebar-arm swinging like a wrecking ball. Ethan ducked under, the camera never flinching, capturing every second for the thousands watching live.
> [Stream Chat]
🟢 BrickEater: "bro out here dodging like he's in Dark Souls"
🟢 Hexxie: "CAMERAMAN VS DEATH itself LET'S GOOO"
🟢 SimpyMage: "witch about to nuke the whole building i can feel it"
The chapter closed as Seraphina raised both arms, her runes blazing bright enough to drown out the shadows—just as the monster swung down with unstoppable force.