Blood Under Moonlight

The rain fell in relentless sheets, turning the cobblestone paths of Blackthorn College into slick, glistening ribbons under the dim glow of the streetlamps. Lila pulled her hood tighter around her face, her breath coming in quick, shallow bursts as she darted between the shadows. The campus was eerily quiet tonight, the usual hum of late-night students replaced by an oppressive silence.

*They're watching.*

The thought sent a shiver down her spine. She didn't need to turn around to know the whispers followed her—soft, insidious things that slithered through the air like smoke. The students here had always been cruel, but lately, their cruelty had taken on a darker edge. Eyes too sharp, smiles too wide.

A hand clamped over her mouth, yanking her into the narrow gap between two ivy-choked buildings. Lila's heart lurched, her fingers clawing at the arm around her waist—until she caught the scent of cedar and something faintly metallic.

"Quiet," Elias murmured against her ear, his voice rough with urgency. "They're close."

She stilled, her pulse hammering against his forearm. The warmth of his body pressed against her back was the only anchor in the storm. Outside their hiding place, footsteps splashed through the puddles, slow and deliberate.

"Where did she go?" A voice, honey-sweet and dripping with false concern. *Mira.*

Lila clenched her jaw. Mira had been the first to change, her once-kind eyes now glinting with something predatory.

"Doesn't matter," another voice answered—Dante, his tone lazy, amused. "She can't hide forever."

The footsteps faded, but neither Lila nor Elias moved. Not until the last echo of laughter dissolved into the night.

"You shouldn't be out here," Elias said, finally releasing her. His dark eyes flickered with something unreadable as he stepped back, putting space between them.

Lila swallowed hard, her throat tight. "I had to see you."

His jaw tensed. Moonlight caught the silver scar running down his cheek, a reminder of the night everything had changed. The night the whispers had started.

"It's not safe," he said, voice low. "They're getting stronger."

She knew. The changes were subtle at first—students disappearing for days, only to return with hollow smiles and sharper teeth. The way the air itself seemed to hum with something ancient and hungry.

Lila reached for his hand, her fingers brushing against his. "Then we have to stop them."

Elias flinched, his gaze darting to the sky. The moon hung heavy and full, its pale light painting his face in stark relief. "You don't understand what you're asking."

"I understand enough," she insisted. "They're not just *changing*, Elias. They're being *taken*."

A muscle in his jaw twitched. He looked at her then, really looked at her, and for the first time, she saw the fear beneath the anger. "If we do this, there's no going back."

Lila didn't hesitate. "I'm not leaving you to face this alone."

The wind howled through the alley, carrying with it the faintest echo of laughter. Elias exhaled sharply, his fingers tightening around hers. "Then we go now. Before the ritual starts."

She nodded, her heart pounding. The old chapel on the hill loomed in the distance, its broken spire piercing the sky. That's where they'd find the answers. That's where the whispers led.

Together, they slipped into the night, the rain washing away their footprints as quickly as they were made.

The chapel doors groaned as Elias pushed them open, the scent of damp stone and something older, darker, flooding Lila's senses. Candles flickered in the nave, their flames casting long, twisting shadows against the walls.

And there, in the center of the room, stood Mira.

Her smile was a knife's edge. "I knew you'd come."

Behind her, figures emerged from the darkness—students Lila recognized, their eyes gleaming with the same unnatural light.

Elias stepped in front of her, his voice a growl. "You don't have to do this."

Mira laughed, the sound echoing off the vaulted ceiling. "Oh, but we do. The moon demands it."

Lila's breath caught as the candles flared, their light turning crimson. The whispers surged, filling her skull with voices not her own.

*Join us.*

Elias's hand found hers again, his grip bruising. "Run," he whispered.

But it was too late.

The shadows moved.

And the chapel doors slammed shut.