The voice came again in the dead of night, soft as silk, sharp as a blade.
"Why fight me?" it whispered, sliding through the cracks of my thoughts. "I can give you strength. I can make them kneel before you. All you have to do… is let me in."
For a moment, the words felt like a promise, a temptation sweet enough to taste. My pulse quickened, not just with fear but with something darker, something dangerously close to desire.
Then its tone shifted, a growl beneath the velvet.
"You are mine. You can struggle, you can scream, but you will never escape me. I am the shadow in your breath, the hunger in your blood. And when you break…"
A pause. The silence pressed against my chest until I could barely breathe.
"…I will be the only one left standing."
I squeezed my eyes shut, my fists trembling against the sheets, but deep down, I knew the truth. The demon wasn't outside, circling me like prey.
It was already within me waiting.