Chapter 2: Shadows in the Rain

The storm showed no signs of stopping. Kuala Lumpur's skyline shimmered through the downpour, casting fractured reflections on the rain-slicked skybridge. Lin Han stood frozen, mind still replaying the scene from moments ago. The old man's eerie chant echoed in his head, like a whisper from something beyond human comprehension.

"IC. Now." The policewoman's tone sharpened, her patience wearing thin.

Lin Han swallowed and fumbled in his soaked pocket, retrieving his identification card. He cursed internally—of all the nights to get caught up in something this bizarre, he had to run into the police too.

The officer took the card, her brow furrowing slightly as she read his name.

"Lin Han." She tested the name on her tongue before looking back at him with renewed scrutiny. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh… waiting for a friend." He blurted out the lie, knowing full well it sounded unconvincing.

The officer, Noya, wasn't buying it. Her eyes flicked toward the faint smear of blood still visible on the bridge floor, resisting the relentless rain. She took a slow step forward, her fingers instinctively resting on the hilt of a small kris tucked at her waist.

"Someone was just here," she murmured.

Lin Han held his breath. His soaked clothes clung to his skin, the cold creeping into his bones. He knew better than to say too much.

A sound broke through the rain.

It wasn't a phone. It wasn't the wind.

It was a faint chime—metal softly colliding, rhythmic, deliberate.

Noya tensed. She turned sharply, rain dripping from her lashes, but the alertness in her eyes remained razor-sharp.

"Walau eh…" she muttered under her breath, fingers tightening around her kris.

Below the bridge, something in the shadows moved.

And then, faster than a blink, a dark figure lunged toward them! 

Lin Han instinctively stumbled backward, cold rain trickling down his face. There was no time to react. The shadow lunged upward from beneath the bridge, a foul wind accompanying its rapid movement.

"Cilaka!" Noya's reaction was instant. Her kris flashed through the downpour, tracing a deadly arc through the air.

CLANG!

The sharp ring of metal clashing against something solid echoed through the storm. Sparks flared briefly in the darkness.

Lin Han barely caught sight of the figure as it skidded across the slick bridge, landing in an unnatural crouch. It moved on all fours, limbs disturbingly elongated. Its fingers—if they could still be called that—were long, bony, and blackened, the nails twisted and sharp like claws.

"Walau eh! What the hell is that?" Lin Han's breath hitched, his pulse hammering in his ears.

The figure slowly lifted its head. Rainwater dripped from its grotesquely wrinkled skin. It had a human face—or at least, it had once been human. Its milky white eyes rolled upward, unfocused, and its lips were stretched into a grin that split all the way to its ears. From its mouth, black sludge dripped onto the ground, carrying the scent of rot and decay.

"Pontianak…" Noya whispered, her knuckles whitening around the hilt of her dagger.

Lin Han felt his stomach drop.

"Wait, you mean the ghost? The one that sucks the life out of men?"

A Pontianak—the vengeful spirit of a woman who died a violent death. Legend had it that they lurked in dark corners, luring victims with their shrieks before tearing them open with claw-like fingers to feast on their insides.

"This isn't a normal Pontianak." Noya's tone was grim, her eyes never leaving the creature.

The creature remained eerily still for a moment—then, tilting its head in an unnatural angle, it suddenly grinned wider.

And then, it screamed.

"Close your eyes!" Noya yanked Lin Han backward with a forceful grip, sidestepping just in time—

The scream was unlike anything Lin Han had ever heard. It wasn't just loud—it pierced into his skull, vibrating through his very bones. His mind reeled, the world tilting violently. His stomach churned, bile rising in his throat.

"Shit!" he gritted his teeth, fighting to stay conscious.

The Pontianak was already moving again—rushing straight at them!