Between cracked streets and abandoned cars, it was Lira who spotted it first.
— There.
A building.
Not destroyed.Not perfect.But standing.
It was old, simple concrete — maybe residential once. Some windows were shattered, part of the facade had collapsed… but the main structure still held.
The entrance was open.
No signs of collapse.No recent movement.
Rodyn observed for a few seconds, alert.
— Looks empty.
Vance nodded.
— Let's go up.
The interior was dark, filled with dust and silence. The elevator was obviously dead, so they took the stairs.
Second floor.
Third.
They stopped at the fifth.
High enough to avoid quick surprises.Low enough to escape if needed.
The corridor was intact.
A half-open door caught their attention.
Vance pushed it slowly.
A simple apartment.
Small living room.Connected kitchen.Two bedrooms.
No signs of struggle.No signs of recent presence.Just abandonment.
Vivienne ran her fingers across a piece of furniture.
— Clean.
Lira opened the window.
The view overlooked the silent street.
— We can see anything approaching.
Perfect.
Rodyn made one last check of the corridor.
Nothing.
Vance dropped his backpack.
— We found it.
Without ceremony, they adapted the place.
Door closed.Blocked with what they could.Rooms chosen.
It wasn't safe.It wasn't comfortable.But it was high.And that… was enough.
That night, they slept in a building.
The next morning, weak light slipped through the cracks of the broken windows.
Vivienne was the first to move.
— Still alive.
— Big win, Vance muttered, getting up.
Lira was already standing, watching through the window.
Rodyn stayed still for a few seconds…Then his ears twitched.
Something.Not a sound.A presence.
— Someone's here, he said quietly.
Instant silence.
Vance approached the door.Listened.Nothing.
He opened it.Slowly.
The corridor was empty.Or seemed to be.
They stepped out.
And then they saw her.
Tall.Too thin to look stable… yet not fragile.
Her body didn't seem fully owned by gravity.Gray skin, dry and split with black cracks that pulsed slowly — like something breathing beneath it.
Her face wasn't still.It shifted in ways too subtle to follow.A hollow deeper than before.A line that almost formed a smile… then vanished.Expressions trying to exist… and failing.
The eyes.Too large. Wet. Quivering faintly in their sockets.Not reflecting light.Almost breathing.
And the pupils. Jet-black, piercing, alive.They tracked each of them deliberately, measuring, analyzing.Still otherworldly, still unsettling, but now undeniably aware.
Long red strands of hair moved without wind.Each thread drifting slightly, as if reacting to something inside.Like roots searching through empty soil.
Layered black clothing sagged like decay in motion.Leather-like strips clung to her.Textures that resembled dried flesh more than cloth.Everything moved just enough to feel alive.
In her hand… a blade.Not forged. Grown.Bone fused into twisted metal.Petrified flesh caught along its curves.It pulsed slowly, as if remembering old violence.
The system reacted.
[SYSTEM ALERT]Unknown Entity in proximityPower Signature Detected
She didn't attack.She didn't speak.She simply stood there. Waiting.
Vance narrowed his eyes, hand near his weapon.
— Is that thing dead?
The black pupils shifted, following him.Her head tilted slowly.
— My name is Morgha.
Silence.
Then:
— Did you just call me that, you asshole?
She stepped forward.The grotesque blade in her hand pulsed… but didn't rise.
— I want to talk to all of you.
[SYSTEM IDENTIFICATION COMPLETE]Name: MorghaLevel: 30Class: Humanoid AnomalyStatus: AliveIntent: Non-hostile (voluntary)