Everything changed after Maelona got bitten by the Monster.
At first, she barely noticed anything. The bite stung, but it wasn’t unbearable, just a sharp pain that faded quickly.
It felt insignificant compared to the horrors she had seen others go through. For a fleeting moment, she even thought she might be spared from the worst.
But as time passed, an eerie sensation crept through her veins, like something slithering under her skin, unseen yet ever-present. Then came the convulsions—violent, unnatural spasms that took control of her body, twisting her limbs and making her jerk uncontrollably.
A deep, primal fear sank its claws into her.
Her body burned, a searing heat spreading through her muscles and bones, an unbearable fire licking at her insides. It was unlike any fever, unlike any pain she had ever known. Her chest heaved, her breath coming in ragged, broken gasps as if the air itself had turned to fire in her lungs.
She tried to stand, but her legs buckled beneath her, and she crashed onto the floor. Her fingers clawed at the wooden planks, her nails digging in so hard that they splintered. The pain made her dizzy, her vision blurring as a fresh wave of nausea rolled over her.
She had seen this before. Once the monster’s venom took hold, there was no way back. The only thing left to do was kill the infected before they fully turned, before they lost themselves and became nothing but bloodthirsty creatures.
That was the rule. That was the only solution.
But she couldn’t do that.
She couldn’t bring herself to end it—not yet, not when she still had something to hold onto.
Her daughter.
Her son-in-law.
If they found out what had happened to her, if they knew she had been bitten, they would be devastated. The thought of them grieving, of them mourning her death, was far worse than the pain she was currently enduring.
And right now, they were both outside, battling the catastrophe that had already begun, trying to stop the chaos that was spreading across the land. She couldn’t distract them. She couldn’t let them see her like this.
She had to fight.
She locked herself in her room, slamming the door shut behind her with the last bit of strength she had left.
Her body trembled violently as she staggered toward the bed. She collapsed onto it, curling into herself, her arms wrapping around her burning body as if that would somehow keep her from falling apart.
Sweat drenched her skin, her clothes clinging to her like a second layer, suffocating and damp. Her head pounded, every pulse sending shockwaves of pain through her skull. Her mind was unraveling, slipping between consciousness and something else entirely, something dark and terrifying.
“Ha…hah…” Her breath came in shallow pants, her voice rasping as if she had been screaming for hours.
She pressed her forehead against the mattress, her fingers digging into the sheets as she writhed in agony. The pain twisted through her like a thousand needles stabbing into her flesh, each one burrowing deeper, scraping against her bones. She gritted her teeth, biting down so hard that she tasted blood on her tongue.
The metallic tang only made the hunger worse.
It was creeping in.
A dark, insatiable hunger.
“ARRRHH!!”
Her scream tore through the silence, raw and unrestrained, as her body twisted unnaturally. Her skin crawled as though something lurked beneath it, writhing and shifting… But it wasn’t food she craved. It was something else—something warm, something alive.
Meat.
Flesh.
She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head violently. “No… no… I can’t…” she choked out, but even her own voice sounded foreign now, as though it belonged to someone else entirely.
Grrrrrrrrllllll!!
A deep, guttural growl erupted from her stomach, so loud it echoed in the empty room. A sharp pain shot through her abdomen, as though something inside her was clawing its way out. Her hands scrambled across the bed, fingers twitching and grasping at nothing. She could feel her body changing, stretching, warping into something grotesque. Her nails had grown into blackened claws, long and curved, scraping against the wooden frame of the bed. Her limbs had lengthened, her joints bending at odd angles as if her bones were breaking and rearranging themselves.
Tears streamed down her face, but she barely felt them.
“N-No… P-Please…!”
Her voice was barely Elf now, shaking with horror, her words slurred as if her tongue had become too heavy in her mouth. Her legs twisted beneath her, sharp claws raking deep gashes into the bed.
Her once-bright green eyes dulled, fading into an eerie, empty shade as if the monster inside her was consuming her piece by piece.
She was slipping.
Losing herself.
Then—
Tang!
A sharp shattering sound echoed through the room.
Maelona flinched violently, her breath hitching as she forced her unfocused gaze toward the floor. Amidst the mess of broken glass, a white liquid spilled across the wooden planks, glistening under the dim light.
The potion.
The one Aether had given her.
Her body trembled violently, her muscles twitching uncontrollably, but she forced herself to move. A low, guttural growl rumbled from her throat, but she wasn’t sure if it was from pain or desperation. Her lips parted, her dry, cracked tongue slipping out as she dragged herself closer to the spilled liquid.
Lick
The moment the potion touched her tongue, a strange sensation washed over her. It was faint, almost imperceptible, but it was there—a flicker of clarity amidst the chaos. Something inside her shifted, pulling her back from the edge of complete transformation.
Her eyes flickered. For a brief moment, her green pupils returned—before vanishing again into the emptiness.
A surge of desperation took hold of her. With the last fragments of strength she had left, she crawled toward the closet, her trembling fingers reaching for the vials hidden inside. She grabbed them in a frantic, uncoordinated motion, her claws scraping against the glass as she brought them to her lips.
One after another, she downed them.
Gulp.
Gulp.
Gulp.
Gulp.
Gulp.
Each sip sent a cool, soothing wave through her broken body, gradually pulling her back from the brink. The unnatural elongation of her limbs reversed, her twisted joints snapping back into place with painful cracks. The razor-sharp claws receded, shrinking back into elf nails. The unbearable heat faded, replaced by an eerie, hollow numbness.
She was back.
Almost.
Her lifeless, pupil-less eyes returned to normal, but instead of their usual vibrant forest green, they were now a deep, unnatural red.
But Maelona was too exhausted to notice.
She had drained every last potion Aether had given her.
Burrfff!!
A soft burp escaped her lips, an oddly satisfied sound, as though she had just finished feasting on the most delicious meal.
Then—
“Mother? Are you alright?”
The voice from outside the door sent a fresh wave of panic through her.
Her gaze darted around the wrecked room. Everything was in shambles—broken furniture, deep claw marks, shattered glass everywhere.
She couldn’t let her daughter see this… especially those potions!
Forcing herself to steady her voice, she took a deep breath. “I… I’m fine,” she managed, though her throat still felt raw.
“Is that so…? Can I come in?”
“No!” she blurted, “I… I’m kind of busy right now. Don’t enter. This is an order. I’m serious!”
A pause. Then—
“…Okay.”
Maelona’s body felt unbearably heavy, as if an unseen force had anchored her down, making even the smallest movements exhausting. Her limbs ached, a deep, bone-crushing fatigue settling over her, weighing her down like chains she could not break free from.
Her head throbbed, a dull pounding at the back of her skull, and her vision blurred as the overwhelming exhaustion clouded her mind.
“What’s… this feeling?”
With sluggish steps, she dragged herself toward the bed, each step feeling as though she was wading through thick mud.
Her legs wobbled beneath her, struggling to support her, but she pushed forward. Finally, she collapsed onto the mattress, sinking into its embrace, her body melting into the softness as if she had been carrying the weight of the world and had finally been allowed to rest.
The room around her was a complete disaster. The furniture was overturned, deep claw marks covered the walls, and broken glass shimmered across the floor like scattered stars.
But none of it mattered to her at this moment. She was too tired to care, too drained even to lift a finger.
She would deal with it later. Right now, all she wanted was sleep.
“hmm…” A soft hum escaped her lips as she closed her eyes, her breathing slowly evening out. Her body barely moved, frozen in place, her mind slipping into a deep, dreamless sleep.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, she felt at peace… Except,
Unaware of the slow, unnatural convulsions beneath her skin.
Something deep within her stomach stirred, a sickening, twisting sensation rippling through her insides. A faint, almost imperceptible movement—something shifting, something growing.
The skin around her belly button tensed before a strange, white substance oozed out, thick and viscous, pooling onto her flesh. It stretched and curled, weaving itself into delicate yet unbreakable threads, layering over her stomach in thin, intricate strands.