Chapter 8 — Her Smile Is a Warning
The woods are quiet again. Cainen's still sore from the last ambush. Kaito's leaned against a tree, chewing his god-awful shrimp chips like nothing ever happened.
Then the wind changes.
It's not loud.
It's not sudden.
But it feels wrong.
Cainen's skin crawls.
Cainen (grunting): "You feel that?"
Kaito:"Nope."Crunch.Crunch.
Cainen stands. Looks out into the dark trees. Nothing moves. Not a squirrel. Not a bird. Not even wind.
Then he sees it.
Her.
Twisting out from behind a tree with slow, ballet-like grace. One leg raised behind her, tiptoed. Hair wild. Eyes wide. Lips curled up into the kind of smile that should only exist in nightmares.
Lilith Velka.
She sings as she walks:
"Roses red, violets lie,I see you, love, so don't you die..."
Wrapped around her shoulder is a bat — thick, heavy, coated in dried blood, barbed wire twisted around it like a noose.
Cainen (instinctively stepping back): "Yo, Kaito—"
Kaito (still chewing):"Yeah, I know. Don't run. It only makes her laugh harder."
Lilith's steps stop just outside the firelight. Her head tilts.
And she smiles wider.
Lilith: "Kaito~ You left me again... You're such a mean little ghost. I missed you."
Cainen: "You know her!?"
Kaito (exhaling): "Unfortunately."
She steps forward—closer than any of them want.
Lilith (eyes locked on Kaito): "I wanna be in your little gang. You and your Deadly Six. Let me join… I'm really good with bats~"
Cainen: "Hell. No."
Her smile vanishes. Just like that. One blink and it's gone.
Lilith (cold): "…You're not the one I asked."
Silence.
Cainen doesn't move. Doesn't blink. Even DMK fades in and stays quiet. That's how serious this is.
Kaito finally stands.
Kaito: "…We'll talk."
Lilith:"…Yay."She twirls once like a ballerina, then slinks back into the woods, humming softly.
"If he says no... I'll take his tongue. Then maybe… he'll listen."
Gone.
Cainen stands frozen.
Cainen (low, pissed): "What the fuck was that."
Kaito (sighing): "…Lilith Velka. Walking red flag with a body count. And now... she's following us."
Scene ends with the fire crackling again, but the warmth's gone. Only tension now.