More and more soul shadows rose from the puddle beneath her feet. They ca silently, their shapes distorting and twisting, shifting between formless smoke and sothing half-alive.
Liora’s eyes widened as she slowly began to recognize them.
Hornets. Bees. Mosquitoes. Even a mantis. A few spiders too.
Their bodies were made of black shadows, constantly rippling and bending out of shape the mont they touched anything. Their outlines shimred and glitched like broken reflections in water, yet their presence was undeniable. But they were powerful and creepy.
Liora’s heart beat faster—not from fear, but from wonder.
She counted them slowly. One by one. Then more. And more. Until she realized that over twenty souls had responded to her call. Not just responded—they had co out willingly. They were not in confusion, and intelligence showed in their eyes and willingness.
The black insects, their bodies flickering between form and fog, stood in a neat line in front of her like an army waiting for their queen’s command.
Liora couldn’t help but smile.
She whispered, "Help ."
And the shadows moved instantly.
As if they understood her completely, they surged forward like a wave. Silent and weightless, yet with terrifying speed. They surrounded her protectively, spreading wide, blocking the path between her and the massive beast that stood at the center of the clearing.
The mutated tiger let out another deep roar, one louder than the last. Its red eyes glead with confusion, its muscles tensed, and its tail swung with force again—slamming into the trees beside it. Yet even that didn’t break the quiet discipline of the soul shadows.
It was overwheld by suddenly too many strange presences around him, which he never encountered.
The tiger growled and made the first move. It lunged forward, and its massive iron-clawed paw ca down with a crash—right where several shadow insects hovered. The impact split the earth. Dust flew, and trees were broken in half.
But the shadows were untouched.
The tiger’s paw passed through them like smoke. Like nothing existed.
They didn’t even flinch and soon regained their previous forms.
One of the spider shadows crawled across the beast’s leg, then vanished into its fur. The tiger jerked its body, but it was too late. Another followed. Then the mosquitoes. Then the hornets.
They clung to its body—dozens of them—sinking into its skin like stains. And slowly, they began their work.
Draining its life force.
The tiger let out a pained snarl as its strength started slipping. Its thick muscle began to shrink ever so slightly. Its steps grew heavier, and it howled in pain.
But the shadows didn’t stop.
With a furious roar, it raised its head and spat out a thick stream of blood mixed with a black, sticky fluid. The shadows kept crawling all over its body, ignoring its wild flailing. The tiger thrashed and slamd itself into the trees again and again, desperate to shake them off.
It wasn’t working.
It let out a furious roar that shook the ground, its muscles tensing as it lunged at the writhing shadows. Its claws slashed through the air with deadly force, and its sharp fangs snapped at the strange dark figures.
But none of them landed. Nothing connected. Its claws and teeth passed right through the shadows, as if they weren’t real, as if they were just illusions dancing in front of it.
The tiger growled low in its throat, frustrated, and reared back before spitting out a barrage of tal spikes. They flew like arrows, fast and sharp, each one ant to pierce and destroy.
But those too passed through the shadows like they were smoke. The tiger’s eyes widened slightly, confusion flickering through its gaze. It didn’t understand what it was fighting. It couldn’t hurt them. It couldn’t even touch them.
anwhile, the shadows were relentless. They clung to its legs first, then crawled up its body like snakes, wrapping around its limbs and pressing close against its thick fur. Wherever they touched, they began to drain. Not blood and not flesh, but sothing deeper. They were pulling at its life force—slowly and steadily.
The tiger snarled and thrashed, rolling and swiping, trying to shake them off. But the shadows didn’t let go. They only spread further, climbing up to its back and shoulders, wrapping around its throat. The beast’s flesh began to wither in places where they clung the tightest.
Bits of muscle sank in. Strips of skin turned pale and cracked. But still, the tiger stood. Its body, though weakened in patches, but soon the consud flesh began to grow back as the tiger was healing itself quickly and pushing out the shadows montarily before they crawled right back in.
It was a stalemate. The shadows could drain it, but not fast enough. The tiger could heal, but not fight back.
Liora stood so distance away, arms crossed loosely in front of her, eyes calm as she watched. Her lips curled slightly. It was not a grin, but there was amusent there.
The souls she controlled were weak on their own. Most of them had co from low-level mutated insects, creatures that died quickly and easily. But when gathered together, when turned into a swarm and set loose on sothing stronger, they could wear it down. Bit by bit.
Still, the tiger was impressive. Its power was real. Its level was far beyond what she expected.
The beast stopped moving for a second. Just one breath. Then it slowly turned its head.
And its eyes t hers.
She didn’t flinch, not at first. But the way it looked at her made her feel sothing stir in her chest. It wasn’t blind rage anymore. It was awareness and understanding, like he finally found the cause of his misery. And sothing cold flashed in his eyes, like hatred that had found its source.
The tiger’s glowing eyes narrowed. It opened its mouth wide again, but this ti, it wasn’t tal spikes that rained down.
It was just one.
One single spike, long and thin, shaped like an arrow, and shining with a sharp silver glint. It fired straight at her.
So fast she didn’t even have ti to think. Her body moved before her mind caught up. She dropped to the ground, rolling sideways. The spike cut through the air where she had been just a second ago and slamd into a tree behind her. The trunk exploded on impact, chunks of wood flying in all directions.
Liora lay flat on the ground for a mont, her breath caught in her throat, eyes wide.
That... had almost hit her.
Slowly, she pushed herself up, brushing off dirt from her sleeves. Her smirk was gone now. Her gaze was sharp, locked on the tiger who was still glaring at her.
The shadows on its body hissed and writhed, but they couldn’t stop its fury. Because it had finally found its enemy.
And now it was coming straight for her.
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