Ghoul (Part two)

What stood in her place was no longer Iris. It was a Ghoul.Its eyes blazed with unholy light, the vibrant orange of a dying ember. The Ghoul´s muscles coiled with raw strength, its movements fluid and predatory. In its hand appeared a weapon, summoned from the void: a jagged, obsidian blade that hummed with otherworldly energy. It didn’t question its presence; it simply gripped it, the weight familiar, as if it had always been there. The weapon shone brightly against the gaunt background.The Ghoul moved like a force of nature. The blade cleaved through the air, slicing the first ghoul in two with a single strike.The Ghouls around it stopped for a moment as blood sprayed across the ground. Then they charged at the rogue Ghoul.It turned and slashed through another, then another. Its movements were brutally precise, and the Ghouls fell one by one. But it didn’t stop. It couldn’t.A voice, low and insidious, whispered in the back of the Ghoul’s mind, urging it forward. _Kill them. Destroy them._ The circle beneath it reappeared for a moment and pulsed brighter with each kill as if feeding the power coursing through its body.“Hey, ugly!”Lea’s voice cut through the chaos, sharp and commanding. The Ghoul turned, its glowing eyes locking onto Lea, who stood several feet away, her spear in hand. Recognition was absent in its gaze. Only hunger remained.The Ghoul snarled a guttural sound that reverberated through the battlefield. It took a step toward Lea, the blade trembling in its hand. Lea called, her tone desperate. She took a cautious step forward, lowering her crossbow slightly. But she kept her Iron running."I´m not your enemy," Lea said, trying to keep her voice steady. She´d just seen the rogue Ghoul tear through others of its kind like they were nothing. She gestured to more Ghouls in the distance. "They are your enemy," she said. The Ghoul stopped for a moment as if processing her words. She stared. Then, without warning, it leaped toward Lea, closing the distance between them immediately, and attacked her with the weapon. Lea gasped in horror and just barely managed to dodge sideways, extinguishing her Iron just in time for safety.She leaped with the aid of Arcane, finding a safe spot on a rooftop but keeping an eye on the rogue Ghoul. As soon as she turned, she dodged again. The Ghoul had thrown its dagger straight at her. It missed by millimeters but sliced a bit of Lea´s hair as it passed through. The Ghoul seemed to look upwards for a moment and Lea tensed, not knowing what it would do next. Then, a bright light swallowed the Ghoul´s body as it summoned another weapon seemingly out of thin air. Lea cursed and ducked as the second dagger went flying just above her.The Ghoul leaped after her, landing with a force that cracked the stone roof beneath it. It snarled again and lunged, its glowing blade aimed straight for Lea’s chest. She rolled to the side, the edge of the weapon grazing her armor as sparks flew.“Are you kidding me?” Lea hissed under her breath. She extended her free hand, calling on the power of Arcane and using Aegis to get what little protection she could. A gust of wind exploded outward, forcing her back several feet. But it didn’t stop. It never stopped.The Ghoul charged again, relentless and wild. Lea activated Chrona, but its strikes were still so rapid that she could barely keep up. She moved instinctively, weaving between the attacks, using bursts of Iron and Arcane together to keep herself one step ahead.Lea gritted her teeth, her heart pounding as she leaped to another rooftop. The Ghoul followed without hesitation, its glowing eyes fixed on her like a predator locked onto prey.“Fine,” Lea muttered. “You want a fight? Let’s go.”She turned and sprinted, her movements calculated as she led the Ghoul toward the distant pack of ghouls. The rogue Ghoul’s snarls grew louder, its frustration evident as it struggled to catch her. Lea used every ounce of her skill, using houses as barriers and dodging with Arcane to keep the necessary distance. Finally, they reached the edge of the battlefield, where a cluster of other ghouls had regrouped. Lea skidded to a stop and turned, her crossbow raised defensively as the rogue Ghoul closed in.But the moment it saw the other ghouls, its attention shifted. The hunger in its eyes deepened. Without hesitation, it lunged at the nearest ghoul, its blade slicing through the creature.Lea watched, her chest heaving as she caught her breath. The rogue Ghoul tore through the pack like a storm, its attacks wild and brutal. The other ghouls fought back, but they were no match for the sheer ferocity of their assailant.For a moment, Lea felt a flicker of relief. The plan had worked. The rogue Ghoul was distracted, its rage directed at the others. Yet, the rogue Ghoul didn’t stop. It turned on the few survivors, its blade poised to strike again.The Ghoul hesitated, its blade trembling mid-swing. It seemed torn, its glowing eyes flickering as if something within was struggling to take control. Lea saw her chance and jumped down from the rooftop, landing a safe distance away. She kept her weapon lowered, her free hand raised in a gesture of peace.“It’s over,” she said, her voice steady but soft. “You don’t have to fight anymore.”The Ghoul turned toward her, its eyes locking onto hers. For a terrifying moment, Lea thought it might attack again. But then, the weapon slipped from its grasp, vanishing into the void as quickly as it had appeared. The Ghoul’s body sagged, its knees buckling as it collapsed onto the ground.Lea approached cautiously, kneeling beside the crumpled form. The glowing light in its eyes dimmed, fading until only the faintest glimmer of life remained. What was left wasn’t a monster. It was a girl.Lea’s breath caught in her throat. “You. . .” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “You’re human?”Iris didn’t respond. Her body was limp, her breathing shallow. Whatever power had consumed her was gone, leaving behind only exhaustion and fragility. Lea’s mind raced with questions, but there was no time to ask them.She gently lifted the girl’s arm over her shoulder, steadying her. “We need to get her out of here,” she said, her voice firm.She carried Iris away from the battlefield, leaving behind the scorched ground and the lingering presence of the glowing circle- a haunting reminder of the power that had just been unleashed. Whatever Iris had become, it was something none of them truly understood.What were even Ghouls?One thing was clear. This was only the beginning.