Miss Marielle, the researcher, stood in side of a dimly lit room of the research facility, the faint hum of magical energy from the containment wards surrounding her.
The demon’s corpse lay sprawled out on a reinforced slab, its twisted, grotesque features illuminated by the cold blue light of the enchanted sconces on the walls.
She leaned forward, scalpel in hand, her focus unwavering as she cut into the demon’s tough, charred skin.
Across from her stood Rashore, his tall, lanky figure silhouetted against the light. His blonde hair was disheveled, and his brown eyes held a sharp glint of curiosity despite their usual laziness.
He leaned casually against the table, holding a quill in one hand and a notebook in the other, jotting down observations as Marielle worked.
“You’re relentless, you know that?” Rashore remarked, his voice low and smooth, laced with amusement.
Marielle didn’t look up, her attention fixed on the demon’s midsection as she made a precise incision. “This isn’t the time for rest. Something is off about these creatures, Rashore. I can feel it.”
He raised an eyebrow, glancing at the open gash she was working on. “And what do you think you’ll find by tearing it apart? A written confession?”
Marielle shot him a glare, but her lips twitched upward. “If I find something, I’ll be sure to write you a detailed report.”
Rashore chuckled, but his amusement quickly faded as he leaned closer, his gaze narrowing on the exposed muscles and sinews beneath the demon’s tough exterior.
“It’s strange. Look at this.” He gestured with the quill. “These fibers… they’re not what you’d expect from a demon. Too structured. Almost… human.”
Marielle paused, her scalpel hovering mid-air. “Human?”
He nodded. “I’ve studied my fair share of demon corpses, but their anatomy is usually chaotic, like their very existence is rebelling against natural order. This… this is different.”
Marielle frowned, carefully peeling back another layer of tissue. Beneath it, she found something that made her stomach turn—a cluster of veins, blackened and pulsating faintly, as though the corpse still clung to some semblance of life even amidst it’s confirmed death.
“That’s not normal,” she muttered.
Rashore’s expression darkened. “No, it’s not.”
As the hours dragged on, the two researchers continued their work, uncovering more anomalies within the anomaly in front of them.
The demon’s organs were alarmingly intact, their placement eerily similar to that of a human’s.
The heart, though larger and with a faint black glow, was unmistakably a heart. The lungs, though charred and hardened, were functional.
“This isn’t right,” Marielle said, her voice barely above a whisper as she stared at the dissected corpse before them. “Demons don’t have organs like this. They’re… distorted, unstable. This is too close to human anatomy.”
Rashore leaned forward, his brow furrowed as he examined a section of the demon’s ribs. “It’s almost as if this thing started out as human and… changed.”
Marielle froze, her hands gripping the scalpel tightly. “Are you saying these demons were once people?”
“I’m not saying anything definitively,” Rashore replied, though his tone betrayed his unease. “But the evidence is pointing in that direction. Look at this.” He tapped a section of the demon’s spine with the quill. “The vertebrae are nearly identical to a human’s, save for the added mass and reinforcement here. This isn’t something you’d see in a natural demon.”
Marielle’s mind raced as she processed his words. “If these demons were human… then what changed them? And why?”
The room fell silent as the weight of their discovery settled over them.
Marielle glanced at Rashore, her expression grim. “This could explain the disappearances. What if the people who vanished near the ruins weren’t killed, but… turned into these things?”
Rashore leaned back, running a hand through his hair. “That would mean someone—or something—is doing this intentionally. A ritual, maybe. Or a curse.”
Marielle’s stomach churned at the thought. “We need to report this to the council immediately.”
Rashore raised a hand, stopping her. “Hold on. If we go to the council with just speculation, they’ll dismiss us. We need more evidence. Something concrete.”
Marielle hesitated, then nodded reluctantly. “You’re right. But we can’t keep this to ourselves for long. If there’s something—or someone—out there turning humans into demons, we need to act fast.”
Rashore smiled faintly, his usual nonchalance returning. “Don’t worry, Marielle. We’ll get to the bottom of this. But for now, let’s keep digging. There’s more this corpse can tell us.”
The two researchers returned to their work, their movements precise but tinged with urgency as they were indeed short on time. They documented every anomaly, every deviation from standard demon anatomy, their notes growing increasingly detailed.
Hours passed, and the room grew heavy with the scent of blood and burnt flesh belonging to the demon.
The containment wards buzzed softly, a constant reminder of the danger they faced if the corpse were to reanimate—a rare but not entirely impossible occurrence.
As they worked, a thought nagged at the back of Marielle’s mind. If these demons had once been human, what had they gone through to become what they were now?
Her thoughts were interrupted by Rashore’s voice. “Hey, Marielle. Look at this.”
She looked up to see him holding a small, crystalline object he’d pulled from the demon’s chest cavity. It glowed faintly, pulsing with an eerie dark light.
“What is that?” she asked, setting down her scalpel.
“No idea,” Rashore replied, turning it over in his hands. “But it’s definitely not natural. It’s almost like… an essence core, but not quite.”
Marielle stepped closer, her eyes narrowing as she studied the object. “It’s unlike any essence core I’ve ever seen. It’s almost… artificial.”
The two exchanged a glance, their earlier confidence replaced by a growing sense of dread.
“Whatever this is,” Rashore said, his voice low, “it’s not just demonic. There’s something more to it.”
Marielle nodded, her grip tightening on her tools. “We need to find out what.”
Rashore eyes widened after he sensed the essence within the core. “Actually, I think we already know what it is. It’s indeed an essence core.”