The cabin groaned under the weight of the black ice, its wooden frame creaking like a dying animal. Every surface was being consumed—floorboards, beams, even the air felt thick with frost so cold it burned.
Kyle's breath came in sharp bursts, steam curling from his lips. His blade reformed in his grip, blood running freely from his palm.
The masked figure advanced without haste, each step deliberate, as though it already knew they couldn't stop it.
"Felix—flank it!" Kyle barked.
Felix gave a quick nod and sprinted along the right wall. He aimed for the back of the figure's legs again, but the creature shifted—its movement more like a flicker than a step—and Felix's strike cut nothing but air.
"Predictable," the voice murmured, vibrating through the room.
A Brutal Counter
Kyle surged forward, slashing in a wide arc. The figure didn't dodge; instead, it caught the blade with bare fingers. The blood weapon hissed on contact, sizzling as if the thing's touch was acid.
Pain shot up Kyle's arm, and he staggered. Before he could recover, the figure's other hand slammed into his chest—not hard, but with a force that pulled.
He felt something wrench inside him, like the marrow of his bones was being sucked out. His vision blurred.
"KYLE!" Gia's voice was panicked now. She threw open a portal above the enemy, dropping a heavy rusted chain onto it. The metal wrapped around its shoulders, clinking as it locked tight.
For a heartbeat, it stopped moving.
The Desperate Push
Felix didn't waste the opening—he drove his weapon straight into the back of the figure's neck. Sparks burst, and the mask cracked slightly. The figure's head jerked forward, and a faint sound like a hiss escaped.
"Move!" Kyle shouted, shaking off the pull in his chest.
Gia whipped another portal open, this one leading outside into the open forest. Cold, clean air rushed through, fighting the suffocating chill inside.
But the figure tore the chain apart like wet paper and stepped forward, unbothered.
"Leaving? How quaint."
It raised one hand toward Gia. Black ice shot from the floor, spiraling toward her legs. Kyle lunged between them, his blade slashing through the ice before it reached her. The impact jarred his arm, but it bought her time.
"GO!" Kyle roared.
The Escape
Felix grabbed Gia's arm and yanked her toward the portal. Kyle followed, but just as he stepped through, the figure's voice slid into his skull:
"When the blood stops flowing, so will she."
He stumbled as they emerged into the snow-covered forest, the portal snapping shut behind them. His chest ached, the pulling sensation still lingering deep in his bones.
Gia gripped his shoulder. "You okay?"
Kyle forced a smirk, though his voice was rough. "Peachy."
Felix glanced back at the now-empty space where the cabin had been. "It's not gonna stop. That thing's tracking us."
Kyle didn't argue. His mind was still on the figure's words—and the way it looked at Gia.
The bigger threat wasn't just here to kill them. It wanted to break them first.
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