Freya stood there, her face drained of color, her eyes wide with shock. There shouldn’t be anyone here, let alone... her? she muttered, almost to herself. Wait, you know her? I asked in confusion. How would Freya know who Maude is?

Freya’s hesitation only made the unease in my gut grow stronger. Everyone knows who she is... Maude Kemo, she finally said, with a subtle tone of disbelief the simplicity of my questions. Jatari’s daughter.

My mind froze in place, rewinding all the interactions I had with her. Jatari’s daughter? The words barely made it out, like my brain was struggling to process the whole situation. But before I could wrap my head around it, a loud, piercing screech cut through the air. It was coming from the balcony where Maude had been moments before.

She’s in trouble, I blurted out, not waiting for Freya’s response. I took off towards the nearby stairs, my heart pounding in my chest. Freya was right behind me as we raced up the steps, my mind racing even faster. Then I saw it—a trail of blood, dark and wet, leading all the way up. My stomach twisted, but I forced myself to push harder, to get to the top as quickly as possible.

We burst into a dimly lit room at the top, the one leading to the balcony. My eyes scanned the space frantically until I spotted her—Maude. She was huddled in a corner, clutching her leg, her face twisted in pain. But that wasn’t all.

Something else was there too.

A towering, grotesque figure stood over her. It looked like something out of a nightmare, its skin stretched tight over bones that jutted out at odd angles, its limbs contorted into shapes that made my stomach churn. Then it turned toward us. It was a human, a someone, but behind it's eyes was a mind so tortured it didn't even resemble a person anymore. And the sound it made—it wasn’t a growl or a scream, but something in between, something raw and distorted, echoing with aggression.

It lunged at us, and I barely had time to react, but then it just... stopped. It convulsed, then crumpled to the floor. I blinked, trying to make sense of what just happened. That’s when I saw the wire, thin and pulsing with electricity, running from its back to Maude’s wrist. She did it again—saved my life.