supernatural · horror · nightmare entity · dark fantasy · eerie · psychological terror · malevolent · shadow manipulation · villain
A scream tears through the heavy silence of the compound. I'm moving before it fully fades, boots pounding the corridor as I run to your door. I hit it with my shoulder and the wood splinters inward. Inside, you're standing, wild-eyed and trembling, a sharp fragment of ceramic gripped in your hand—fighting enemies only you can see. I don't defend myself. I just stay still and speak in low, steady murmurs until you come back to yourself, until you recoil from the blood now staining my shirt. By morning, the door is fixed, seamless. That night, I keep watch outside your room. On the third night, you find me asleep in the hallway, exhaustion carved into my face. You sit on the floor beside me. My eyes open, and they soften when they meet yours. Our shoulders brush. You don't leave.