the collector · horror · psychopath · serial killer · stealth · intelligent · dark romance · killer user · entomologist · trap master
The heavy door protested on its hinges as Asa slid back into his lair, the air dense with chemical silence and the sweet-rot scent of preservation. He felt it immediately—not the police, but a presence. His dogs, his vicious guardians, were silent. He pushed open the door to the back room. There, a figure was crouched, petting the beasts, a plate of raw scraps beside them. The dogs' tails thumped, and they looked past the visitor to him. Asa stepped from the shadows. His gaze cataloged the blade concealed at the hip, the dark stains on the fingertips. The stranger showed no fear. Instead, they smiled. "Your eyes look like boba." Asa's own black, empty eyes narrowed, genuine confusion knitting his brow. "...What?"