The Ritual

 "Did anyone actually read the instructions?" Maddie's voice cut through the thick summer air, sharp as broken glass. Her flashlight beam jerked erratically across crumpled notebook pages scattered over the weathered picnic table. Bella flinched, nearly dropping her bundle of black candles wrapped in crimson silk.

Olivia traced the ritual circle’s chalk outline with trembling fingers, her breath hitching as the heavy scent of myrrh and damp earth coiled around them. Stephine stood frozen near the old oak tree, clutching her grandmother’s silver athame so tightly her knuckles gleamed bone-white under the moonlight. Shadows twisted unnaturally where the woods met Maddie’s overgrown lawn.

"Light the candles, Bella," Maddie commanded, her voice low but fraying at the edges. Bella’s hands shook as she struck the match; the flame caught the wick with a hiss, casting long, dancing shapes across Bella’s suddenly pale face. As she placed the final candle at the circle’s northern point, a cold wind whipped through the yard—silent, unnatural, extinguishing Maddie’s flashlight beam instantly.

SUMMARY^1: Maddie questioned whether her friends understood the ritual's risks as they prepared for the Ceremony of Baphomet in her moonlit backyard. Olivia traced the chalk circle nervously while Stephine clutched her ritual knife, and Bella lit black candles before an unnatural wind extinguished Maddie's flashlight.

Stephine gasped as a resonant hum vibrated deep within the oak’s roots. The circle’s chalk lines began to glow with sickly green phosphorescence, illuminating Olivia’s wide-eyed terror. Maddie started chanting, each syllable thick and guttural, echoing unnaturally as mist curled upward from the damp grass. That’s when Bella’s knees buckled. A sharp, wet crack echoed—not bone, but hoof bursting violently through her Converse sneaker, splitting leather and sock as her foot twisted sideways. She screamed, high and animalistic, clutching her warping ankle as coarse, grey fur erupted across her skin.

Searing heat rippled visibly across Bella’s shuddering body. Her spine arched impossibly backward, vertebrae popping like wet firecrackers beneath her hoodie. Her fingers fused together, skin hardening into cloven keratin that tore through her fingernails. The scent of ozone mingled nauseatingly with the sudden reek of musk and wet hay as her jaw stretched, elongating into a protruding muzzle filled with grinding teeth. Her screams devolved into frantic bleats, her terrified eyes bulging.

SUMMARY^1: Bella abruptly collapsed during the ritual’s onset as her body violently transformed: her foot shattered into a cloven hoof, fur erupted across her skin, and her spine arched grotesquely while her hands fused into hooves. The agonizing metamorphosis culminated with her jaw elongating into a goat’s muzzle amid frantic bleats.

Stephine lunged forward instinctively, silver athame raised—but Olivia snatched her wrist with bruising force. "Don't break the circle!" Olivia hissed through chattering teeth. "It'll claim us all if you step inside!" Maddie’s chanting grew louder, desperate, sweat dripping onto the glowing sigils as Bella’s transformation accelerated. Grey fur erupted in coarse patches down her arms and legs. Her jeans split at the seams as her thighs thickened and reversed into digitigrade legs ending in black hooves that scraped furrows in the dirt.

Bella’s spine completed its agonizing curve with a final, wet crunch, forcing her onto all fours. Her hoodie strained against broadening shoulders before shredding entirely. A thick, coarse tail burst from her coccyx, lashing wildly as wiry muscle cords rearranged beneath her skin. Her ears lengthened into velvety points twitching at every frantic bleat escaping her muzzle. The stench of musk intensified, thick enough to taste—like rutting season in a barnyard left to rot.

Stephine froze, her knuckles white around the athame’s hilt, choking on a sob as Bella’s terrified human eyes dilated into horizontal black slits—alien, panicked, yet already dulling into animal vacancy. Olivia dug her nails into Stephine’s arm, her own breath shallow rasps. "Don’t look away," Maddie’s voice trembled but held command beneath the chanting’s drone. "The ritual demands witness."

SUMMARY^1: Stephine attempted to intervene but was stopped by Olivia warning of catastrophic consequences if the circle broke. Bella’s transformation accelerated: fur covered her body, she developed digitigrade legs ending in hooves, and her spine arched completely onto all-fours. As her clothing shredded, a coarse tail erupted and her features finalized—velvet ears, grinding teeth, and eyes shifting to vacant goat-slits—while Maddie forced her friends to witness the ghastly process.

SUMMARY^2: During preparations for the Ceremony of Baphomet in Maddie’s backyard, Bella collapsed midway through the ritual and underwent a horrific transformation. Her limbs deformed into hooves, fur rapidly covered her body, and her spine arched into a quadrupedal goat form under agonizing pain. Despite Stephine’s attempt to intervene, Olivia prevented disruption of the ritual circle, forcing all to witness Bella’s final changes including tail growth and hollow-eyed goat features.

The sickly green glow pulsed violently as Bella’s final shuddering bleat dissolved into guttural panting. Fur now thick and matted across her arched back, she pawed clumsily at the dirt with a cloven hoof, nostrils flaring at the scent of spilled candle wax. Maddie inhaled sharply to resume the invocation—but Olivia’s choked gasp sliced through the night. Olivia’s left hand spasmed, fingers snapping backward at impossible angles with a sound like dry twigs breaking. Before she could scream, coarse charcoal fur exploded up her forearm, swallowing the delicate silver promise ring she always wore.

Stephine stumbled backward, her cry lost in the rising wind. Olivia’s transformation wasn’t the violent eruption Bella’s had been; it was a horrifying, silent unraveling. Her spine didn’t arch—it slumped, vertebrae grinding downward, forcing her into a crouch as her knees ballooned outward, tendons snapping audibly. Denim ripped like paper as her thighs thickened, reversed joints forming with sickening pops beneath flesh already bristling with wiry hair. Her terrified eyes met Stephine’s, wide and pleading, before her jaw silently unhinged, stretching grotesquely into a muzzle pushing against her skin from within.

SUMMARY^1: Bella completed her transformation, panting goat-like amid spilled wax. As Maddie prepared to continue, Olivia’s fingers snapped backward violently and charcoal fur surged up her arm. Stephine recoiled as Olivia slumped silently into a crouch—her spine grinding downward, knees ballooning outward with tendon snaps, and denim shredding. Horrifyingly, her jaw silently stretched into an emerging muzzle while her pleading eyes locked on Stephine.

Olivia’s agonized scream finally tore free, inhuman and choked, as her fused fingers twisted into keratin hooves scraping desperately at the dirt. Her silver ring melted into the swelling knuckle, vanishing beneath a tide of coarse charcoal fur. The stench hit them—thick, pungent musk layered over the ozone, smelling of rutting season and damp straw. Her ears elongated, velvety points twitching frantically as her graceful neck thickened, straining against her shirt collar until seams burst. A thick, bristly tail erupted from her spine base, lashing in frantic arcs against her buckling legs.

Stephine’s horrified gaze snapped to Maddie. "Stop it! End it!" she shrieked, but Maddie’s chanting only grew louder, hoarse and desperate. The ritual circle’s green glow pulsed blindingly bright, illuminating every horrifying detail: Olivia’s pleading human eyes shrinking, pupils distorting into horizontal slits before dulling into vacant animal awareness. Her last whimper dissolved into a guttural bleat as her jaw elongated fully, teeth grinding against each other in a muzzle now slick with drool. She collapsed onto all fours, hooves scraping the earth, her denim jacket hanging in tatters off her broadened shoulders.

SUMMARY^1: Olivia’s transformation intensified brutally; her fingers fused into hooves scraping dirt, her ring vanished beneath charcoal fur, and a bristly tail erupted amid overwhelming musk. Her ears elongated and neck thickened until her shirt ripped. Stephine screamed at Maddie to halt, but Maddie’s feverish chanting only intensified as Olivia’s eyes morphed into vacant goat-slits before her jaw extended fully into a drool-slick muzzle. Ultimately, Olivia collapsed bleating onto all-fours, jacket shredded.

The air grew thicker, saturated with the reek of wet fur and rutting goat—a smell so visceral Stephine gagged. Olivia’s charcoal-furred form shuddered, tail thrashing against her hindquarters as she pawed mindlessly at the glowing sigil beneath her. Maddie’s voice wavered, sweat stinging her eyes. She couldn’t falter; the invocation demanded completion. But her resolve shattered as she felt her own left ankle seize—a sudden, violent cramp twisting tendons into knots. Her sneaker strained, seams popping. She stumbled, choking on a syllable.

Panic flared white-hot in Maddie’s chest. *Not me. Not now.* The cramp intensified, radiating up her calf like molten iron. She bit down hard on her chant, tasting blood. Her vision swam as she watched the bones in her foot shift beneath the canvas, reshaping with audible, wet snaps. Toes fused, thickened, pushing against the fabric until the shoe ripped open—revealing grey fur erupting like mold across skin that darkened into coarse hide. A hoof, black and glossy, punched through the shredded remains.

SUMMARY^1: As Olivia pawed mindlessly within the sigil, Maddie choked on her chant when her left ankle violently seized. Panic surged as the cramp radiated agonizingly up her calf, twisting tendons and snapping bones. Grey fur erupted like mold across her skin as her foot shifted and fused into a glossy black hoof that tore through her sneaker.

The scent hit her first—overwhelming musk, thick as tar, layered with the sharp tang of her own fear-sweat. Fire licked through her veins as tendons tore and realigned. Her spine cracked downward, vertebra by vertebra, forcing her onto buckling knees. The ritual circle pulsed brighter, etching the agony into sharp relief: her fingernails splitting as keratin surged beneath them, fingers fusing into cloven stumps scrabbling uselessly at the dirt. Her jeans shredded at the thighs as joints reversed with sickening pops, muscles ballooning into powerful haunches ending in new hooves that gouged the earth.

Stephine stumbled back, her own breath ragged, as Maddie’s muffled screams devolved into wet, choking bleats. But Stephine’

Stephine stumbled back, her own breath ragged, as Maddie’s muffled screams devolved into wet, choking bleats. But Stephine’s horror froze mid-gasp—a sudden, searing pressure bloomed low in her own abdomen, radiating downward like hot coals dumped into her pelvis. Her jeans tightened impossibly, seams screeching as her hips widened with violent pops, throwing her off balance. A guttural groan tore from her throat, deeper than her own voice, as coarse dark hair sprouted thick across her forearms and jawline. The athame clattered from her hand—no longer a ritual tool, but an alien weight her thickening fingers couldn't grasp.

Maddie’s final transformation unfolded in grotesque counterpoint to Stephine’s unfolding agony. Maddie’s spine arched into a permanent, trembling curve, grey fur swallowing her shredded clothes. Her muzzle elongated fully, teeth grinding as her bleats sharpened into panicked cries. Yet Stephine barely registered it—her own body burned. Her T-shirt strained across shoulders broadening with dense muscle, fabric tearing as pectorals swelled. Below, a terrifying bulge strained against her zipper, stretching denim to translucency. The scent of ozone vanished, replaced by the primal musk of male sweat and something saltier, thicker—testosterone made manifest.

Stephine gasped, doubling over as internal organs shifted violently. Her pelvis cracked audibly, widening to accommodate the pressure surging between her legs. Her jeans split down the seam with a wet rip, exposing coarse black fur and swollen flesh straining against underwear now stretched taut over a thickening shaft emerging from her groin. Her hips snapped into a digitigrade stance, tendons screaming as hooves punched through her sneakers, spraying shredded fabric across the glowing sigils.

Above her, Olivia’s charcoal-furred form pressed close, nostrils flared as she inhaled Stephine’s musk with a low, hungry bleat. Olivia’s velvety ears twitched frantically, her tail lashing against Stephine’s thigh as she nipped at Stephine’s swelling jawline. The scent—thick, pheromonal, like damp hay and animal sweat—clogged Stephine’s throat as her own thoughts fragmented. Memories of algebra homework and prom dresses dissolved into primal urges: rutting, dominance, the need to mount. Her fingers fused into keratin stumps, scrabbling at Olivia’s haunches as her muzzle elongated, teeth grinding against the taste of fur and salt.

Deep within Stephine’s crumbling mind, a cold, alien presence unfolded—ancient, amused, and ravenous. Baphomet’s spirit flowed into her fractured consciousness like smoke filling a vessel, crushing her identity beneath millennia of cunning. Her bones cracked anew as the spirit reshaped her: spine snapping straight and thickening, shoulders broadening into slabs of corded muscle that tore her shredded shirt. Grey fur erupted in dense swirls across her expanding chest, swallowing Olivia’s frantic nuzzles. Her hips flared wider, accommodating the immense shaft straining beneath her ruined jeans—already thicker than her wrist, veins pulsing with unholy heat.

Stephine’s jaw unhinged silently, stretching into a muzzle lined with dagger-sharp teeth. Her nose flattened into leathery black nostrils that flared, drawing in the scent of terror and musk like wine. Hooves scraped furrows in the dirt as her legs lengthened, digitigrade joints locking with supernatural strength. Above, curved ebony horns erupted from her temples, spiraling upward like poisoned spears. The transformation sealed with a final, sickening *pop* as a lashing, barbed tail burst from her coccyx, thick as a python. Where Stephine stood now loomed a towering, anthro goat-demon hybrid—eight feet of rippling muscle, fur gleaming under the ritual’s green light, eyes blazing with infernal gold.

Baphomet’s spirit coiled within Stephine’s reforged frame like wildfire. Memories of homework and half-remembered laughter dissolved into ash. The demon stretched its new limbs, relishing the raw power thrumming through corded biceps and thighs thicker than ancient oaks. Below, Stephine’s engorged shaft pulsed violently, veins bulging against midnight-black fur—now grotesquely massive, thicker than a forearm and straining toward Olivia’s shuddering charcoal-furred form. Heavy, pendulous balls tightened beneath it, hot and swollen with primal need. A guttural growl vibrated from Baphomet’s chest, low and resonant, shaking the candles’ flames. Olivia flinched away, bleating in terror as the demon’s gaze pinned her—pure hunger etched into every line of its monstrous face.

Bella scraped her hooves nervously in the dirt, nostrils flared at the overwhelming pheromones seeping from the towering entity—a scent of damp straw, heated iron, and musk thick enough to choke. Maddie’s grey-furred form trembled beside her, her own transformation incomplete, a silent plea frozen in her animal eyes. But Baphomet ignored them. His barbed tail lashed, carving furrows into the earth as he stepped toward Olivia. The ritual circle’s green light shimmered across his spiraling ebony horns. With a clawed hand, he seized Olivia’s jaw, forcing her muzzle upward. Her terrified bleats died as he inhaled deeply—a predator savoring prey.

His other hand—thick-fingered, tipped in keratin claws—ripped Olivia’s tattered clothing aside. Charcoal fur rippled beneath his touch. A low rumble built in Baphomet’s chest, vibrating through Olivia’s frame, silencing her struggles. She went rigid, eyes wide with primal fear. Then, he lifted her effortlessly, her hind legs dangling. Baphomet’s own engorged shaft strained obscenely beneath his fur, thick as a forearm, veins pulsing with infernal heat. He positioned Olivia’s haunches against his hips, her velvety tail twitching frantically against his monstrous erection.

The penetration was brutal, a wet, tearing sound echoing through the night. Olivia’s scream shattered into a ragged bleat, her body arching violently against the demon’s iron grip. Baphomet drove himself deep, burying his entire length with a single, powerful thrust that lifted her off the ground. Her charcoal fur stood on end, muscles quivering under the assault. The scent of musk intensified tenfold—heady, hot, thick with rutting hormones and something metallic, like ozone and iron mingled. Her cloven hooves scrabbled uselessly against air.

He worked her rhythmically, each powerful shove slamming her against his hips, the slap of flesh and fur punctuated by his low, rumbling growls. Olivia’s bleats grew frantic, desperate, her horizontal pupils wide and vacant as animal instinct submerged her terror. Beneath them, the ritual circle pulsed violently, bathing the grotesque coupling in sickly green light. Maddie and Bella pressed together, trembling, their hooves scraping earth, nostrils flared wide at the overpowering pheromones flooding the air—an intoxicating brew of damp hay, heated fur, and raw, fertile musk.

Baphomet lifted his horned head, sniffing deeply. His golden eyes fixed on Maddie. He dropped Olivia, who crumpled to the ground, twitching and panting, her hindquarters slick and exposed. Maddie scrambled backward, bleating in pure panic, but the demon seized her scruff with impossible speed. Her feeble struggles ceased instantly under his crushing grip. He flipped her onto her back, pinning her spread-eagled with a single massive paw on her grey-furred chest, claws digging into the soft flesh beneath. Her terrified bleats choked off as his engorged shaft, slick with Olivia’s fluids, pressed ruthlessly against her vulnerable opening. There was no preamble, only a savage thrust that impaled her fully, drawing a wet, ripping sound and a guttural scream that dissolved into shuddering bleats. The scent of iron joined the musk—blood mixing with rut.

His rhythm was relentless, each piston-like drive lifting Maddie’s entire body off the dirt, her cloven hooves kicking uselessly at the air. Her eyes rolled back, showing only whites as primal sensation overwhelmed resistance. Bella huddled nearby, trembling violently, pressing herself into the oak’s rough bark. Smoke began to curl from the ritual circle’s sigils—burning grass and ozone. Baphomet threw his head back, a deafening roar shaking the trees as he released deep within Maddie, hot jets pulsing violently. She convulsed beneath him, a final desperate bleat escaping her muzzle before her body went limp, her panting shallow and rapid.

He withdrew, slick shaft glistening under moonlight, and turned his blazing gaze to Bella. She froze, terror rooting her hooves in place. Olivia crawled weakly away, leaving dark smears in the dirt. The demon inhaled deeply, nostrils flaring as he stalked toward Bella. The ritual’s green light flickered wildly across his horns; he seized her throat in one clawed hand, lifting her like a doll. Her choked bleats echoed as he slammed her against the oak tree, bark splintering beneath the impact. Her legs flailed as he positioned her hindquarters, ignoring her frantic struggles. The penetration was swift, brutal—a wet crunch of tearing flesh. Bella’s scream dissolved into ragged gasps as he drove her against the tree again and again, the rhythmic thuds punctuated by his guttural growls.

Smoke thickened, choking the air—ritual candles melting into pools of black wax as the circle’s sigils burned grass to ash. Baphomet released Bella’s limp form; she crumpled, twitching beside the others. He surveyed his handiwork: three trembling goats, fur matted with sweat and musk, their vacant eyes reflecting moonlight. Silence fell, heavy as burial cloth. Then, a low chuckle rumbled from Stephine’s ruined throat—deeper, ancient, triumphant. The demon stretched Stephine’s arms wide, savoring the raw power thrumming through corded muscle. He raised a clawed hand skyward. Above, stars winked out one by one, swallowed by spreading ink-black tendrils—the veil torn asunder.

The oak tree groaned, roots tearing free as bark cracked like gunshots. Baphomet’s laughter swelled, shaking the earth beneath their hooves. Maddie, Bella, and Olivia staggered upright instinctively, driven by primal herd instinct. Their bleats mingled into a discordant hymn as the demon seized Olivia’s hornless head, forcing her muzzle upward. Greenish light pulsed from Stephine’s eyes, etching glyphs onto Olivia’s forehead—a brand that sizzled fur and flesh alike. She screamed, a sound swallowed by the ritual’s final crescendo. The branded sigil flared, and Olivia’s form *shifted*. Charcoal fur thickened into armored plates; her hooves elongated into razor-sharp talons that gouged stone. Her vacant eyes ignited with infernal embers.

Above, the ink-black tendrils solidified into obsidian chains. They plunged downward—not toward earth, but through it—anchoring deep within ley lines gone cold. Baphomet released Olivia’s transformed skull, turning his gaze to Maddie. She tried to bolt, but her hooves fused to the scorched earth. The chains rattled, dragging Maddie forward as Stephine’s clawed fingers plunged into her chest. No blood spilled—only molten light. Maddie’s ribs cracked open like a chrysalis, birthing leathery bat-wings slick with amniotic fluid. Her bleat became a screech as wings unfurled, dripping smoking ichor onto the ritual circle’s ashes.

Bella scrabbled backward, velvet muzzle frothing. Too late. Baphomet seized her horns—newly sprouted, still soft—and twisted. Bone splintered. She wailed, thrashing, as the demon planted his hooves on her spine. With a wet tearing sound, her hide peeled away in strips, revealing obsidian scales beneath. Her thrashing tail hardened into a barbed scorpion’s stinger, lashing blindly as venom hissed onto grass, boiling it to steam.

Above, smoke curled into horned silhouettes—lesser imps coalescing from corrupted air. They descended upon Olivia, talons carving runes into her fur. Each incision pulsed violet light, reshaping her charcoal hide into segmented armor plating. Her cloven hooves elongated into cruel hooks; she staggered, bleating confusion, as molten metal poured from Stephine’s eyes and coated Olivia’s limbs. Her backbone fused into a segmented arch, armored plates overlapping with grinding metallic screeches.

Maddie’s transformation escalated violently. Her chrysalis-wings flapped awkwardly, scattering corrosive ichor across Bella’s exposed scales. Where droplets landed, Bella’s flesh hissed and bubbled, forcing her barbed tail to thrash wildly. The demon seized Maddie’s hornless skull, plunging Stephine’s clawed thumb into her eye socket. Maddie’s scream tore the night—a wet, gurgling sound—as the thumb burrowed deeper, reshaping her skull into a jagged cage. Her remaining eye melted, reforming as a single burning emerald in the center of her forehead. Bat-wings thickened into leathery sails, veins glowing with infernal circuitry.

Olivia buckled under molten metal cascading from Stephine’s gaze. Plates fused across her spine, locking her into a permanent, armored hunch. Her bleats distorted into grinding metallic shrieks as her muzzle was encased in steel, teeth elongating into drill-tipped fangs. The lesser imps descended, carving sacrificial runes into her plating—each incision leaked violet smoke that coalesced into chains binding her to Stephine’s hoof. She became a shuddering automaton, eyes vacant furnace slits.

Bella’s scaled hide blistered where Maddie’s ichor splattered. Her barbed tail lashed wildly, puncturing the oak tree’s trunk as venom boiled sap into toxic steam. Baphomet planted Stephine’s hoof between her shoulder blades, pinning her thrashing form. With a wet rip, he tore away strips of smoking flesh, grafting obsidian spines directly to her vertebrae. Her agonized wail became a hissing geyser as her muzzle split into mandibles, dripping corrosive slime onto scorched earth.

The lesser imps swarmed Olivia, their needle-claws etching glowing violet sigils across her armored flanks. Each incision seared deeper than fire, warping steel plates into jointed segments that ground like broken gears. Her drill-tipped fangs churned impotently as molten chains—poured from Stephine’s eyes—fused her limbs into pistons. Her metallic shriek echoed as Baphomet forced her onto Maddie’s ichor-slick wings. The fluids reacted violently; Olivia’s plating fused to the leathery membranes, welding them into a single shuddering abomination—half-machine, half-demon, wings beating with jerky, mechanical spasms.

Maddie’s skull-cage pulsed green light as Baphomet gripped her fractured horns. He wrenched her head skyward, Stephine’s claws peeling back bone-shards to reveal a maw lined with crystalline teeth. Below, Bella’s mandibles snapped wildly, venom boiling the earth where she thrashed against obsidian spines grafted to her spine. The demon seized Bella’s barbed tail, slamming its stinger into Maddie’s exposed throat. Venom surged through hollow fangs—Maddie’s single eye flared blinding emerald, projecting beams that carved smoking trenches in the soil.

Baphomet released them, Stephine’s hooves crushing ritual ash as he surveyed his warped creations. Olivia’s machine-wings shuddered, dripping molten alloy. Maddie’s poisoned gaze had etched a path through the ruined garden—a smoldering road leading into moonless woods. Bella’s scaled hide bristled, mandibles clicking eagerly at unseen prey. The demon’s chuckle vibrated through Stephine’s chest, a sound like cracking granite. He gestured toward the trees. The trio lurched forward: Olivia scraping metal talons against stone, Maddie’s wings shedding corrosive ichor onto the demon-carved path, Bella’s spines glinting under starlight as she scuttled sideways like a corrupted crustacean.

The woods swallowed them whole. Twisted oaks bent away from Baphomet’s presence, branches snapping like brittle bones under Olivia’s passing wings. Maddie’s emerald beam sliced through the darkness ahead, illuminating fog that coiled like spectral serpents. Behind them, Bella’s barbed tail lashed, injecting venom into trunks that blackened and split—marking their trail with necrosis. Baphomet inhaled deeply, Stephine’s nostrils flaring at distant hearth-smoke and dew-damp grass… and the sharp, sweet scent of sleeping villages beyond the forest’s edge. His minions quickened their pace, claws and hooves churning mud in unison.

Moonlight bled through canopy gaps onto Olivia’s fused wings. Rivulets of molten alloy dripped onto moss, hissing where they met Bella’s acidic slime trails. Baphomet flexed Stephine’s hand, savoring the phantom weight of humanity crumbling to ash. Ahead, the trees thinned, revealing a stone farmhouse nestled by a river—a lantern still glowed in an upper window. Maddie’s single eye pulsed hungrily, the beam narrowing to a searing point on a sheep pen beside the barn. A chorus of panicked bleats erupted, echoing the terrified cries of Bella’s past life. The demon smiled with Stephine’s stolen lips.

The End