What shouldn't exist
721 Words
The darkness feels alive.
Heavy. Watching.
My breath comes out uneven as I slowly turn.
There’s something in the corner.
Not fully there.
Not fully gone.
A shape… but not human.
“Elisha…” my voice shakes, “what is that?”
She doesn’t answer immediately.
And that scares me more.
“I was hoping we wouldn’t run into one this soon,” she says quietly.
“One what?”
The thing moves.
Not like a person.
More like a distortion—like the air itself is bending around it.
Then it steps forward.
And the lights flicker back on.
For a split second, I see it clearly.
A figure.
Tall.
Wrong.
Its eyes—
Too dark.
Too empty.
My chest tightens instantly.
“That’s not possible,” Elisha mutters.
“What do you mean not possible?!”
She takes a step in front of me. “Stay back.”
The thing tilts its head.
Just like the hunter did.
But this—
This feels worse.
“You shouldn’t have survived,” it repeats, its voice low and hollow.
A chill runs through my entire body.
It’s talking to me.
“Who are you?” I manage.
It doesn’t respond.
Instead, it lifts its hand slowly.
The air around us shifts again—
But this time—
It’s colder.
Heavier.
Darker.
I gasp.
This isn’t like before.
This isn’t pressure.
This feels like something is pulling.
Like it’s trying to drag something out of me.
“Elisha—”
“I know,” she says sharply.
She steps forward.
And then—
Something changes.
The air around her sharpens.
Her posture shifts.
Her eyes—
They glow.
Not bright.
Not normal.
But enough to make me freeze.
“Get away from her,” Elisha says, her voice deeper now.
The thing pauses.
For the first time—
It reacts.
“You…” it says slowly.
Elisha doesn’t back down. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
“Neither are you.”
Silence crashes between them.
I look from one to the other, my heart racing.
“What is going on?” I whisper.
No one answers me.
The thing moves again—
Faster this time.
Straight toward me.
“Riley!” Elisha snaps.
I don’t think.
I react.
The energy inside me surges instantly.
Stronger than before.
But this time—
It doesn’t feel wild.
It feels… guided.
Like something is helping me.
My hand lifts—
And the moment it gets close—
The power bursts out.
But it’s different.
Darker.
Sharper.
The impact slams into the entity—
But instead of flying back—
It stops it.
Mid-air.
Everything freezes.
My eyes widen.
“What—”
The energy wraps around it.
Like it’s holding it in place.
Like it belongs to me.
Or—
Like I belong to it.
A voice echoes in my head.
Not Elisha.
Not the entity.
Something else.
Something deeper.
“Finally.”
My breath catches.
“What… was that?” I whisper.
Elisha is staring at me now.
Not surprised.
Not confused.
Confirmed.
“You feel it now, don’t you?” she says quietly.
Fear creeps in. “Feel what?”
She takes a slow step closer.
“That power,” she says, “it’s not just something you have.”
My chest tightens.
“Then what is it?”
A pause.
Then—
“It’s something you are.”
Silence.
The words sink in slowly.
Heavy.
Real.
The entity suddenly jerks violently against the energy holding it.
Cracks begin to form in the air around it.
Elisha’s expression sharpens. “Riley, don’t lose focus!”
“I’m trying!”
The voice in my head returns.
Stronger this time.
“Let go.”
My grip weakens slightly.
“No—”
The entity breaks free.
Everything explodes into motion again.
It vanishes instantly.
Gone.
Just like that.
The room goes still.
The lights stabilize.
The air feels normal again.
But I’m not.
I lower my hand slowly, my body trembling.
“What… am I?” I whisper.
Elisha looks at me.
This time—
She doesn’t avoid the question.
“You’re not human,” she says.
The words hit harder than anything else so far.
A sharp silence follows.
My chest feels tight.
My thoughts spiral.
Not human?
Then what am I?
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