Chapter Text
THE SMELL OF death drifted through the night air, but the world was still full of sound.
Natalya Nikolaevna was no stranger to the horrid stench. It hadn’t improved since the last time. Somehow it seemed to just get worse each time. Of course, it wasn’t the scent that Natalya was there for. The smell was just a warning sign, the first one.
The moon was barely visible beneath the thick trees of Karenth’s darkest forest, but the glimpses she saw confirmed her timing was right. The light of the moon would’ve been helpful, especially since Natalya couldn’t carry any light-producing source with her. She couldn’t take any chance of scaring it off–or worse, alerting it to her presence. All she had was her mind, a pair of daggers, and a handgun for emergencies only.
And to top it all off: her commanding officer sent her out on this dangerous mission alone.
In a way, it made sense. Less people means less noise–and less victims–and Natalya knew what she was doing. She grew up tracking and killing these monsters during the harsh, dark winter storms of the Khologoran Mountains. Hunting in a lightless forest on a warm night was nothing compared to her training. Either way, the decision still pissed her the fuck off.
So she silently wandered through the forest she didn’t know, waiting for any sign besides that awful smell. She listened to the rustling leaves, the breeze floating between the branches, the occasional crackle of underbrush being disturbed. Twenty minutes was all it took. It must’ve been her lucky day when the world fell silent. The second warning sign. It was on the hunt.
Natalya longed to use the silence to her advantage, but she could only lie in wait. She had no visual, no inkling of where it was or what direction it was headed, so instead she would wait in the silence for it to give itself away.
The forest seemed emptier without the ambience. It was like Natalya was watching a show with headphones on, but someone had shut off the sound and forgot to turn on the subtitles. Like there was half of the story she was missing. Like she wasn’t fully there. It, like death’s scent, was something she’d never grow accustomed to. Her stomach filled quickly with something akin to butterflies, and they violently twisted her stomach into knots the longer the silence went on.
Her stomach didn’t release until a sound–one equally as hellish as the smell permeating the air–echoed through the trees. An uncomfortable wave of relief washed over Natalya as it called out, the celebratory shriek sounding like fingernails against wood. It was the horrifying sound signaling that the hunt was over. Natalya’s response was almost instinctual as she pinpointed a direction to head towards. She was just moving through the motions, stalking her prey among the rustling of underbrush and whispering of the leaves.
Natalya had slipped so far into her subconscious that she lost track of time. She couldn’t say how much had passed until she spotted a blur of white ahead. She couldn’t even recall what that blur was feasting on. The only things keeping her grounded to reality were the crackle of fallen branches and the now overpowering smell of death, but even that couldn’t erase the haze in her brain as she stared at the Moribud before her.
Moonlight was not needed to see the rotting white flesh of this massive creature, some of the exposed bones glinting with a dreadful paleness. Natalya could only see the back of the Moribud, the animal-like haunches covered in fur and stained red with the blood of its victim. The monster was on all fours as it ripped apart the corpse before it, bones cracking and flesh tearing as it feasted. Lucky day, indeed. The Moribud had no idea what was coming.
Natalya took a quick, deep breath and leapt from her hiding spot.
The Moribud cried out to the hidden moon as it felt two daggers buried deep in the center of its back, the howl similar to nails on chalkboard. As the creature arched back, Natalya ripped the daggers out and slashed at its haunches as it was still screaming. The Moribud may have lost its balance, but that didn’t stop it from reaching around and swiping at the small human behind it. Natalya’s head snapped to one side, her cheek stinging in several spots.
Natalya managed to roll out of the way of another swing, narrowing evading the long, sharp claws of the monster. It shrieked again as it tried to step towards her, and that split second gave her the moment she needed to slip behind it. Natalya jumped as high as she could–reaching about the height of its shoulder blade–and dug one dagger into its shoulder to hoist herself the rest of the way up.
The Moribud managed to land another hit, scratching the shit out of her forearm, as Natalya simultaneously slit its throat. She let go of the one dagger and dropped to the ground, rolling out of the way as the Moribud crumpled to the ground. Natalya held still, her grip tight on her remaining dagger and her eyes fixed upon the bleeding Moribud body. It lay unmoving, and Natalya stayed just as unmoving, listening to the rustling leaves above until she deemed the creature was in fact dead.
She stood up out of her crouched position, leisurely making her way over to the body which was still leaking blood on the grassy floor of the forest. A cakewalk, she thought as she pulled her dagger from the Moribud’s shoulder. Just as she had done a million times. Natalya pulled out a cloth and began to wipe the blood off her daggers, though she’d have to thoroughly clean them back at the base.
She didn’t realize what had happened until she slid the first dagger into its sheath and there was no sound. Natalya couldn’t even utter a curse before she flew backwards and the world went dark.
“TELL ME THIS is a bad idea.Talk me out of it right now.”
Les sighed loud enough for Sera to hear it over the running water and the blaring music. “I’m not talking you out of it.” Of course, she barged into the bathroom while Sera was showering but refused to enable her–not that Sera particularly cared about the shower part.
“Why not?” Sera stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself while Les stared into a mirror as she began her morning routine.
“It’s good for you to go and do this.”
Sera shook out her wet hair, short strands of dark chocolate falling onto her face. “Lies.”
“You’re not backing out of this now, you already made the appointment.”
“What if I’m suddenly sick?”
Les pulled her cinnamon hair back and pursed her lips in the mirror before responding. “Don’t be that bitch, with love.”
Sera sighed and took her place next to Les, tucking her wet hair behind her pointed Faierie ears. Sera reached for her makeup, neither of the girls looking at each other as the conversation carried on.
“You’ll be fine,” Les told Sera.
“There are needles.”
“You signed up for this.”
“Why did I even volunteer for this in the first place?”
Les simply shook her head and shrugged in response since her toothbrush was in her mouth. She said after spitting out the toothpaste, “I don’t know, bestie. I mean, you are donating to a cause you really care about.”
“Why do I care so muchhhhh,” Sera whined, dramatically laying her upper body on the counter.
“You’ll be fine,” Les repeated. “Just get it over it and then you get to spend the rest of the day doing whatever you want.”
“I despise this.”
“I’ll bring home Ben & Jerry’s if you shut up and go to the appointment.”
Sera lifted up her head. “Half-baked?”
“Half-baked and Tiramisu,” Les negotiated.
Sera sighed through her nose. Her two favorite ice cream flavors for dealing with the most horrid invention in history for a one-time appointment… agk.
“Okay.”
“Great. Now, I don’t wanna hear about needles until after you get home.”
“Fine.”
Sera was about to return to applying her makeup when the door swung open again, the third and final roommate Avalon appearing.
“Sera, you left your clothes on the counter. I’m headed to kitchen duty,” he announced.
“Thanks, Av!” Sera replied.
“Have fun!” Les joined in.
“I won’t,” Avalon said, and disappeared.
Sera put a pause on her makeup routine to grab her clothes and change, but Les stopped her before she exited the bathroom. The human turned away from the mirror with an open tube of mascara in her hand.
“Hey, if I leave without seeing you again, be safe.”
Sera gave a small smile, “I will.”
“You got this, now go get dressed!”
The Faierie just laughed and closed the door behind her.
PAIN RIPPED THROUGH Natalya’s back as she collided with a tree, her visions exploding with white as she crumpled momentarily to the floor.
She barely had time to recover her sight as the Moribud began stalking towards her, and Natalya did the first thing that came to mind. She grabbed for the only sheathed dagger she had and blindly chucked it in the direction of the Moribud. Natalya gasped for air on the bloodied ground as she heard her dagger hitting flesh.
The Moribud thankfully stumbled away, giving Natalya time to regain her strength and pull herself off of the ground. She needed to find her other dagger before going to look for the second body–
Heavy footsteps sounded, and Natalya watched the Moribud charging back towards her, her dagger embedded in its shoulder. White ivory gleamed in the moonlight, surrounded by deathly pale patches of fur and flesh. She stared into its eyes of blood and midnight, the fangs of a wolf sticking out of its half-rotted mouth, and she reached for a dagger she didn’t have.
Natalya made the worst instinctive decision to hold up her arm as if it would protect her from the mutation swinging its massive claws at her. Her arm burned viciously as the Moribud ripped it open in several places. Before she could blink, she was falling to the ground again, clutching her leg as the Moribud’s claws sank deeply into her flesh.
Her arms grasped at the bloody grass frantically, looking for her missing dagger, a rock, anything to save her from the looming creature above her. Each step it took closer sent her scrambling further away, trying in vain to prevent what seemed to be her imminent death.
Her bleeding hand stumbled onto her other dagger, and she haphazardly tossed it at the creature, missing wildly. Wow, she hadn’t had that terrible of an aim since she was ten. The Moribud growled at the attempt, winding up for another attack. Its claws connected with her stomach with such force that she was launched back again. She landed on her side, her gun digging into her hip, and felt the hard surface of a rock collide with her temple.
Wait– her gun. Shit, she didn’t want to make too much noise, but–
The Moribud began stalking towards her again as she rolled onto her back, enduring the horrific pain just long enough to unholster her gun. Point. Aim.
Bang.
SERA'S FEET HIT the pavement of the sidewalk to the beat of the music blasting through her earbuds, the fresh coffee warming her cold hand.
Winters in Karenth weren’t nearly as cold as the ones in Aswen, but Sera still disliked the cold of central Karenthian winters. Southern Karenth would be much more tolerable this time of year, but for now Sera shoved one hand deeper into her coat pocket and used the other to grip the coffee cup a bit tighter. Just a couple more months of this cold, then summer would usher in the warmth Sera longed for.
Sera passed students bundled up in warm winter clothing, backpacks and tote bags slung over shoulders. She had to cross campus to get to the lab her appointment was at, so she absentmindedly dodged both lone walkers and loud friend groups. It was so easy for Sera to slip into her thoughts walking to her classes, just letting autopilot take over as her mind drifted off to the sound of her music.
Maybe she should take up some extra shifts at Moon’s Haven. Sera certainly had the time in the next couple of weeks with her rehearsal schedule– or lack thereof. It would be the perfect time to score some more hours before she’d have to temporarily stop working evenings when the rehearsals inevitably evolved to all-call and tech week. And she wasn’t in a terrible spot financially– she was rich compared to most college kids– but more money was never a bad thing. She’d definitely see what’s up for grabs while she was stuck in the waiting room, maybe ask around during her next shift. She had to do something with her extra free time.
Speaking of free time, Sera needed to set aside some time this week for her and Les to watch their favorite spooky YouTubers together. Recently, the two pairs released some videos investigating haunted locations, and both of the gals had been too busy to catch up. The first two videos on the list were a two-part series created by separate creators Kris and Celina, and Sera was really excited for the series because they were exploring a castle in Aswen– one that Sera had actually visited before when she was young. Of course, the stories of Caenleigh Castle permeated her old schools, mostly just teenagers daring each other to trespass after dark and test the patience of the spirits there, but Sera was too young when she visited to know if it was truly haunted. The final video was the work of Nicky and EJ, two creators who came from the faraway continent of North America– just like Kris and Celina. Unlike Kris and Celina, however, Nicky and EJ were starting a series where they stayed for a week at this legendary haunted place in North America nicknamed “The Conjuring House.” Sera had never seen the movie the nickname came from, but supposedly it was based on a real story of a family who lived in the house several decades ago. Supposedly what they captured there was terrifying, and Sera was so excited to watch it. Maybe she and Les would watch it later that day when Les was home from work–
Sera felt hands on her left side and she stumbled to the right, tripping over her feet. Her coffee hit the pavement and splattered everywhere, her hand now cold again. Sera caught her fall with her shoulder, a dull pain shooting down her arm as she hit the ground like her coffee did. Footsteps sounded around her as Sera tried pushing herself up, but massive hands clenched around her upper arms and lifted her off the ground. Her shoulder took another impact as she was tossed into a nearby brick wall, and the pain went from dull to sharp. Sera let out an involuntary groan, her jaw tightening as the piercing hurt spread through her side, and she pressed her back against the wall to relieve the pressure on her shoulder.
Yet when she turned, Sera found herself face to face with two males– scratch that, men. She could sense the lack of magic in their blood, the signature that marked them so clearly as mortals, as humans. If she was anyone else she could easily overpower them with her magical powers. But she wasn’t. She was a useless Faie, and she highly doubted a silly little rhyme would cause a big enough inconvenience to allow her a getaway.
Sera’s voice faltered a bit as she attempted her best poker face– which should’ve been better than it was seeing as she wanted to be an actor for a living. “Well, that’s a rude way to introduce yourself to someone.”
Shit, she forgot to hide her Aswen accent like she usually did in sketchy situations like this.
“You seem to be a long way from home,” one of the men commented.
Shit, shit, shit.
Both of them were too large and muscular for her to fight her way out. She had no pepper spray, she’d been needing to get some more since she used up her last one. Talking. Maybe, talking? Sure. Talking.
“Listen, boys, I have somewhere important to be, so if you don’t mind…”
She saw it, and it registered in her brain. She was staring down the barrel of a gun. A small one, but a gun.
Fuck.
“You’re valuables, if you please,” the other one, the one with the gun, ordered.
Sera’s mouth dropped immediately, her tongue robbed of the ability to speak. She couldn’t even move. That was bad, very very bad.
The man with the gun pressed his lips into a thin line. “We also have places to be, if you wouldn’t mind picking up the pace.”
Sera began stuttering quietly as she fumbled for her purse. Halfway through struggling to unlatch it with her shaking hands, she realized she didn’t know where her wallet was. She brought it with her, of course, she needed identification for the rest… but was it actually in her purse? Maybe she put it in her back pocket after getting coffee? No, she probably put it in her coat’s inside pocket like usual… or did she? Sera wound up frantically patting herself with one hand while the other continued struggling with her purse. One of the men sighed very audibly through their nose, and a hand wrapped around her arm quickly and tightly.
Sera had a knee jerk reaction.
She pushed the man away, her fingertips tingling as she made contact with his jacket. Sera blinked, and he was hitting the wall across from her, collapsing against the newly frost-covered brick. The gun scattered to the ground.
It was the guy with the gun who grabbed her. And he wasn’t moving.
Sera made eye contact with the guy who was just as stunned as she was. But she acted faster. Sera kicked him in the dick and slapped him across the face as hard as she could. Sera didn’t stick around long enough to watch him crumple to the ground.