Chapter 12: The Intruder
I felt my breath falter, and my legs tremble. I glanced at Arlo, who was next to me. He looked nervous, biting his lower lip and looking down.
We dashed upstairs, even though we were scared of what was going on. We knew we were no match for whatever was hurting Iris and Ray. We were cowards.
"Ugh! Help..."
We stopped in our tracks when we saw what was in front of us. The monster growled and held Ray's lifeless body in the air as if to taunt us. Iris was nowhere to be seen.
The monster was huge and hairy, with sharp teeth, sharp claws, and red glowing eyes.
It spotted us, but we were too paralyzed to run. I felt a chill run through my body, and I lost sensation in my feet.
"Lo, we have to do something..." Arlo whispered, trying to snap me out of it. "We can't just let it kill her!"
"Are you mad, bro? That thing is massive, and we can't even—" I was interrupted by the monster's roar.
"Run!" Arlo shouted.
I tried to keep my sanity and drag my feet to run. But the monster was faster. It grabbed me by the body and tossed Ray to the floor. It took me as its new plaything.
I sobbed as I witnessed the horror. "Aah! Arlo, please help me!"
I felt a surge of pain as the monster's hands crushed me. I could hear my bones snapping and my organs exploding.
I thought I was going to die. I wished I could see my mom one last time. I wondered if Iris had escaped or if she was also doomed.
But then, something unexpected happened.
The monster's constant crushing grip slowed down drastically. Its eyes were blinking in slow motion; its overall movement got delayed.
Then, a loud electric sound was heard. "BZZT."
I looked downwards to see who was attacking the monster, and my gaze was met with the tall figure of a mature woman dressed in a tight blouse that showed off her curves and a skirt that barely covered her legs. She had a glass staff in her hand, which was glowing with electricity.
She was pointing her glass staff at the monster. I could see electricity traces on the ground where the monster was standing.
"Be gone," she said in a cold tone I had never heard before.
Then, she proceeded to chant some unfamiliar words. The whole atmosphere of the temple changed into an overwhelming chaos.
I felt a wave of relief as the monster's grip loosened. I fell to the floor, gasping for air. I looked at the woman who had saved me.
Then, she raised her glass staff while chanting foreign words relentlessly. The monster exploded in a shower of blood and gore.
I was bathed in its blood and crushed organs. Its intestines were shattered on the floor. I felt sick and disgusted. I wanted to get away from the remains of the monster, but I was too weak to move.
I cried until I had no tears left. I couldn't make sense of what was going on in front of me. It was too much, I was just a girl.
I felt a throbbing pain in my whole body. I wanted to shut my eyes and rest for a bit. I felt dizzy and couldn't resist closing my eyes.
Everything became black, and I passed out.
---
My hand was warm, my hair was gently stroked, and I could hear people talking near me.
"Is she awake?" A soft voice asked from someone who was stroking my hair.
"I think she's awake."
I opened my eyes and saw Ray holding my hand with her expressionless face. I was confused and scared. I didn't know where I was or what had happened.
"Ray?" I whispered, hoping she would answer.
The sword wielder looked at me with her dull eyes. She didn't smile, or frown, or show any emotion. She just said, "Hey."
She looked disheveled, her formerly white shirt was stained with blood.
"You fainted," Iris said.
Iris kept stroking my hair. I felt warm and safe around these women, I felt protected.
A boyish voice was heard, "Thank god, you're okay!"
Arlo wiped his tears away and smiled at me.
I tried to sit up, but I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I groaned and lay back down. I looked at my shirt, which was soaked with blood. I realized I was wounded, and badly.
Iris noticed my discomfort and said, "Don't worry, you'll be fine. We patched you up. You have a broken rib and some internal bleeding, but nothing life-threatening. You just need to rest and heal."
Arlo's bright face immediately went gloomy after hearing Iris's words. He averted his gaze from me and looked to the ground.
"I'm sorry, I can't heal any of you."
As Iris exhaled a deep and tired sigh, I sensed the mood of the room changing to a more tense and uncomfortable one.
"I'm really sorry."
Iris patted the boy's head to reassure him, "It's alright, Arlo. You just wanted to improve yourself, I understand."
"What happened with your ability?" I asked the boy.
He gulped and shrugged, "I um... I didn't know this would happen. I uh..."
The boy eyed Iris, he looked nervous as if he was guilty of something. I was puzzled, what happened?
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone