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"I do not care if I die. I have no friends left. I have no family. I barely have a team I care about, even. When I'll be gone, I want people to remember me. I want to scatter in their memories as their final memory… and as redemption from this world." – Shadow Stalker
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Shadow Stalker had one arrow left in her crossbow. She was bleeding from the three different wounds. The previously-human beast she'd spent all night hunting had just knocked her to the ground and it was about to bite the head off her shoulders.
Behind the two 'things' fighting, was a pile of corpses.
Things were going better than expected, is what Shadow was thinking.
Slime dripped from the monster's maw. Scanning the darkness with her nightseeker goggles, Shadow found neither weapons nor cover around her. She'd tracked the beast to this open patch of plains specifically so it couldn't take cover behind the woods of Lugnica, but that decision left her exposed as well.
Which was fine by her. There's no fun in any easy kill, after all.
How crazy it might sound, Shadow is not fighting back because of her life, she simply hates losing.
The beast was formerly a human, it got corrupted by the poison of the Endbringer Medusa, which was able to turn people into monsters, Witch Beasts, or worse, more Endbringers.
The beast grabbed Shadow by the shoulder, the beast opened its maw, and Shadow noticed rows upon rows of jagged teeth. If its jaws didn't kill Shadow, the poison within the teeth could certainly finish the job.
Shadow thought about her options. She could try to dodge the beast's bite, but that would be a short-term solution at the very best. She could try kick the creature in its stomach and fire her final arrow into it's skull, but she couldn't trust that. Or, she could try something flashy, violent, ridiculous and slightly stupid.
Shadow chose the latter.
She put her entire arm into its mouth. The creature's sharp teeth ripped strips of skin from her knuckles and arm, but Shadow smiled behind her mask… She had the beast right where she wanted it. She felt its jaw closing, ready to bite and rip her limb off. She didn't give it the chance.
Shadow twisted her arm, dragging her crossbow across the inside of the creature's gob until the the silver tip of her final arrow pointed directly at the top of the beast's mouth. With a twist of her wrist, the bolt tore through the monster's skull, shredding its brain.
The beast collapsed, and out of the beast, a little girl appeared. She had beautiful red eyes, brown hair, and she wore a piece of cloth to hide her body.
Yes, just what Shadow assumed… It was "her" after all.
??? : "That was quite quick, wasn't it?"
Shadow tumbled back, and dashed back, a few meters away from the girl, and grabbed her crossbow, pointing towards her.
??? : "I see. You know who I am, don't you?"
Shadow Stalker nodded.
The girl looked towards Shadow Stalker, and noticed a pile of corpses. They were entirely covered in blood.
??? : "Oh, my love, dear… What could have caused such a tragedy?"
Shadow : "You. Daughter of The End."
Suddenly, a wicked smile appeared on her face. She wasn't a person, she was a thing. Shadow Stalker wasn't afraid, she was just highly interested in what would happen next.
??? : "Ha… Hahahaha! Hahahaha!"
Laughing, the girl started pulling hair out of her skull, and suddenly, her body became nothing more than a shadow, until she vanished.
Shadow Stalker stood up, and walked towards the pile of corpses. She grabbed a Fire Mana Stone out of her Crossbow and broke it near the corpses, lighting them on fire, for whatever reason.
In the back of her skull, Shadow Stalker hears footsteps, and immediately, she activates her Semblance. She enters her Shadow State and tumbles to the left. She grabs her Crossbow and turns around.
It was a Warden from her team, Selina. She was beautiful beyond imagining, with hair that caught the sunlight even in the darkness of her fire-lit cabin. The deep scratches on her face, and even the tears that streamed down her cheeks, did nothing to diminish her beauty.
Shadow : "What happened?"
Shadow Stalker asked, with no emotion in her voice. Shadow already knew what was going on, but she preferred to ask anyway.
Selina : "The Screaming Lady has awoken. We must return to the Head Quarters. My parents… They're…"
Exactly, Shadow Stalker knew what was going on.
She grabbed the arrow out of her Crossbow and stabbed Selina right in the throat. A fountain of blood started drizzling from the sky.
Selina : "BLUAGH!"
That moment, Shadow Stalker cut the throat of her teammate with no hesitation. It was quick. Everything happened so quick. Shadow Stalker entered her Shadow State and passed through Selina. She returned to her normal form, and tied her hands together. Then, she kicked her back, and made her fall into the grass with her face.
Selina : "W…What are you…. Doing… Ugh…"
Trying to talk, but with her throat open, she was barely able to do so. Shadow Stalker just stared at her teammate dying, with no feel of regret.
Shadow : "All the people you devoured… Don't you feel bad about yourself? You ate a lot of people, you truly are gluttonous. Don't you think it's time for a break?"
Yes, exactly what Shadow Stalker was thinking would happen. The throat of Selina healed back, but she was still unable to do anything.
Selina : "No! No! How did you knew?! This girl was your friend for so many years, and you just killed her! You aren't—"
Shadow : "Human? Neither are you… Echidna, daughter of The End."
The girl from before, she isn't a shapeshifer, she is able to possess people, things, organisms, devour their soul, and add it to her own body.
Shadow : "Tell me where your real body resides."
Selina : "BAHAHAHAHAHA! YOU FUCKING WHORE!"
Then, Shadow Stalker grabbed her arm, twisted it, and broke it. Selina let out a scream of pain, but it wasn't even her own body.
Selina : "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!"
Shadow : "Is it too late for Selina to return? Did you devour her soul too?"
Selina : "OF… Fucking course…. Shadow Stalker… Tell me, how did you know?"
Selina… No, "Echidna" asked, while she loosed her muscles.
Shadow : "Bite marks on the front of the necks of those corpses, rather than the back, combined with the lack of wounds anywhere else on the bodies, told me that they were attacked by someone they trusted. A Warden. I burned their bodies so you can't enter your real form right here. Go ahead. Try it."
Echidna paused.
Selina : "Try what?"
Shadow : "You're summoning more fallen corpses. Come on. Slash me. Let's see if you can cut my hand before I put a bolt through your forehead"
Not knowing what to say, Echidna, who was possessing the body of Selina, asked Shadow,
Selina : "Why?"
Shadow "Why what?"
Selina : "Why not just walk in and kill me? Why this whole… Presentation?"
Shadow Stalker smiled. A sly, hateful grin appeared on her face, which was hiding behind her mask.
Shadow : "Because I wanted to be sure I was right. Because I wanted you to feel the panic and the fear they felt. But mainly…"
Shadow Stalker tightened her wrist. With a metallic click, a six-inch bolt of cold silver pierced the woman's brain. The girl's eyes rolled back into her head. She collapsed to the ground like a bag of stones.
Shadow : "Because it's fun."