She was grateful when Andonis positioned his massive body between her and whatever lurked in the dark. Normally she would never shy from a fight, she usually sought them out as entertainment, but being almost entirely drained of divine power changed things. She was still strong, she was still quick, both moreso than one would guess based on her appearance, but without her sister's blessings she was quite human. More importantly, without any magic left, her sister could not save her if she were injured. The prayer ritual had to be done in the morning. Faith did not need to be
in the sunlight, but the sun needed to be up.
Andonis bellowed, and she could feel the soldier in him come to life. Any bandits with half a mind would have turned and fled at his voice, even the greater beasts of the woods should have shied away. She listened as hard as she could and heard... nothing.
Perhaps it had just been a deer, or a fox, or any other woodland creature. Maybe it had been a coincidence that the animals had gone silent.
She was about to chock it all up to frayed nerves, when she saw something between the trees. It was a shadow amidst shadows. An uneven, poorly-defined silhouette of utter black against lesser black. As they approached, the firelight began to reveal them.
It was a person in a long traveling cloak, not unlike the one that Melody wore. The hood was drawn and the figure advanced very slowly. They made no sound, barely a rustle on the ground.
They were creepy, but nothing she and Andonis couldn't handle. Her fear dissipated, replaced by annoyance at being stalked.
"Hey! We see you! Tell us what you're up to!" she called.
No answer. The figure simply advanced. They stepped fully into the firelight, and Melody's fear returned tenfold.
Within the hood was a woman's face. Or.... what
used to be a woman's face. The skin had been torn away from one side, and the exposed jaws hung slack, the naked eyeball staring blindly forwards. She had other wounds, deep cuts and slashes and a clearly broken nose. As the creature approached Andonis, it slowly reached out its hands. The cloak opened and revealed a mangled corpse beneath, yet still it moved.
"The fuck is that?!" Melody cried out in a hoarse whimper. She stepped back and had to catch herself before she walked right through the fire to get away from the
monster.