Purity lay prone on her bed, crimson streams trickling down her cheeks.
Her body twitched, each spasm a testament to the searing pain coursing through her, leaving her breathless.
Her gasps echoed like the dying cries of a wounded animal, her voice raw and broken.
"Why must I bear this suffering? Why…" she murmured, her voice barely audible.
Her toes curled as she clenched her jaw against the agony. Slowly, the tremors subsided, allowing her to regain a semblance of control.
Yet, her arm shot upward of its own accord, as if reaching for the stars.
Her heart pounded like a caged beast, surging with untapped energy, making her feel as if she could shatter stone with her bare hands.
Her eyes grew heavy, though the night had only just begun.
"I must be tired… consuming three seeds. What would Jack think of me?"
A sad smile touched her lips, her eyelids flickering as she fought to stay awake. Soon, sleep's sweet embrace claimed her.
Outside, a crow flew past her window, its dark silhouette barely visible as it hovered, watching her intently.
A sharp whistle pierced the night, and the crow turned, flying toward a man who beckoned.
He had deep, black eyes like the night sky, and long, wavy brown hair framing a face that was both dangerous and innocent, as if unaware of his own charm.
Wearing a falconer's glove, he scratched the crow's neck, receiving affectionate coos in return. He turned toward his companions, signaling for them to begin.
Behind him, a tree with black leaves rustled. Suddenly, all the "leaves" detached, taking flight and forming a massive swarm of crows, their caws an omen of doom.
He snapped his fingers.
The swarm condensed, forming a dreadful spear of beaks and claws. At his low hum, it shot forward with deadly force.
Inside, Purity's eyes flew open as she sensed her unnatural sleep. She walked toward the living room, drawn by the source of her lethargy.
Lifting the cloche from the food cart, she found an open beaker filled with a gaseous green liquid, its effervescent fumes drifting lazily.
Her nose wrinkled, and panic flashed briefly in her eyes as realization struck.
"Crows!"
The next moment, she heard hundreds of beating wings. Like shadows made flesh, they flooded through the window, glass shattering as the room filled with their frenzied ire.
Their claws slashed her skin, their beaks tearing at her flesh. She barely managed to shield her eyes in time, her body assaulted by hundreds of birds.
Raising her right hand, she channeled her priestly powers, forming an invisible shield. Bloodied and bruised, she caught her breath.
The door burst open, and three men in trench coats appeared. Like a well-oiled machine, they entered, covering each other's backs, their vigilance at a peak as they fired without hesitation.
Blessed rounds shattered her ethereal barrier, piercing her stomach and staining her dress with black blood.
The two in front ejected their bullet casings, preparing to unleash another round.
Her anger surged, her control faltering.
"ENOUGH!" she roared, her voice layered with an eerie, dual resonance.
Her eyes lit up with a ghastly reddish hue, her pupils constricting and her veins bulging.
She clapped her hands, releasing a shockwave that swirled with both darkness and light, tearing through the room.
The blast ravaged the birds, mangling two of the attackers, leaving only one standing.
The room lay in ruins; bird corpses littered the floor, their blood splattered across the walls.
The last man, with tired eyes and a receding hairline, raised his arms as if in worship.
The Captain had arrived.
With a gesture, invisible walls closed in around Purity, binding her limbs and squeezing the air from her lungs.
She struggled to counter him, but her efforts faltered.
'A higher domain..' she realized, gritting her teeth.
In a last-ditch effort, she unleashed the raw demonic power within her, shattering the restraints and freeing her arm.
The Captain staggered, blood seeping from his mouth as he grimaced in pain, recoiling from the backlash of his own spell.
Seizing the moment, she lunged, her claws aimed for his throat like death itself. He backstepped, erecting a wall between them, but it shattered instantly.
Forced backward, he erected several more, only to watch each crumble before her relentless assault.
Soon, he had nowhere to go; all he could do was fight.
With his back against the wall, Purity's claws looming inches from his face.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
Six bullets left the Captain's revolver, sinking into her body. She staggered back, black blood spilling onto the carpet, her breath hitching. Her face a grotesque amalgamation of wounds.
She could no longer contain her anger, her last vestige of reason abandoning her.
"I'LL KILL YOU BASTARDS!" Her voice, like a banshee's scream, shattered glass and ruptured eardrums, filling the air with unbridled rage.
The shockwave struck Captain, sending stars spinning through his vision as his head slammed against the wall. He crumpled, unconscious.
Purity staggered forward, her body and mind precariously hanging in the balance.
'No more pain, no more suffering… I'm sorry, I'm so lonely. Forgive me, please. I just want it all to stop now.'
Despite the agony, Purity surged forward, her claws plunging into the Captain's arm.
She gripped it tightly and tore it free, blood spraying across the room.
Raising the severed arm to her mouth, she bit into it, smearing her lips and mouth with his blood.
'No more..more?'
There was no time she dragged herself away from the delicious human.
Approaching the window, Purity sealed the broken glass with a barrier before seizing her dagger.
She plunged it into her navel, and as the ruby on its pommel glowed, her mutilated face began to heal, though her bullet wounds continued to leak black blood.
"I need more…!" Her eyes widened, scanning her surroundings frantically.
In the hallway, a young man approached, his steps slow and deliberate, his hands in his pockets, whistling a gentle tune.
His hair was red as autumn leaves, his eyes gray like reflections upon a wind-kissed lake.