Pursuit
Elaine ran.
Branches tore at her dress.
Her lungs burned.
Blood trickled down her legs, tangled in the silver strands of her hair.
Why did I come here?
She knew the answer.
That voice.
The one that haunted her dreams for months.
“Come to the Black Forest... my daughter.”
Madness.
She should’ve ignored it.
But here she was—alone, out of the castle, sprinting into hell.
A roar split the night.
It wasn’t human. Not even close.
Baroque.
A monster out of nightmares—twice the size of a man, covered in blackened spikes, with tusks like swords.
And it was gaining on her.
The ground shook.
Foul breath slammed into her back.
She didn’t look.
She didn’t have to.
“Please... someone—”
No one answered.
No one came to the Black Forest.
Ahead, the trees broke open.
A cliff.
Below—water, roaring and wild.
Behind—death on hooves.
The Baroque emerged from the darkness.
Red eyes locked on her.
It didn’t charge.
It didn’t need to.
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Elaine turned, trembling.
No weapon. No strength. No way out.
Only fear.
Then—
There is one who will protect you. Accept it.
The voice was inside her.
Low. Steady. Ancient.
Her lips parted. “How? What do I...?”
No answer.
Only the scrape of hooves in the dirt.
She closed her eyes.
“I accept. Better this... than nothing.”
And the fire came.
Not real flames—
But heat.
Raw and wild, flooding her veins like lightning set loose.
Her mind cracked open.
And something else stepped in.
The Baroque roared—and charged.
Elaine opened her eyes.
But they weren’t hers anymore.
They were a warrior’s.
Her body moved—graceful, sharp, alive.
She stepped aside.
The beast couldn’t stop.
It plunged over the cliff.
A scream.
A splash.
Silence.
Elaine—no, Leon—stood still.
Calm breath. Perfect balance.
Then, a voice spoke through her lips.
“…My name is Leon.”
And somewhere deep inside,
a frightened girl whispered:
Why… why can’t I move…?
Two souls.
One body.
And a fate neither of them chose.
