The muffled Scream from Rebecca's apartment clawed at Seed's nerves. His heart pounded as he gripped the book, its leathery cover pulsing faintly under his fingers and he ran for Rebecca's apartment. He knocked on her door, shouting, "Rebecca! HEY! Open the door!" But No answer, just another scream, weaker now, and that wet sound, Seed then rammed his shoulder against the door, the wood breaking under his weight. On the third hit, the lock gave in and he stumbled into her apartment.
The sight before him stopped his breath. Rebecca dangled a foot off the ground, her long black hair writhing like living vines, coiling around her throat. The strands had tangled into the blades of a ceiling fan, spinning slowly, pulling tighter with each rotation. Her face was purple, eyes bulging, bloodied nails clawing at the hair as she gasps for air.
The Book slipped from Seed's hands, thudding onto the ground as He lunged for a paper cutter on a desk,
"Hold on, Rebecca!" he yelled, voice cracking. He grabbed a fistful of her hair, the strands unnaturally strong and squirming against his grip. He hacked at them, the cutter's edge was dull but cutting nonetheless. The hair lashed out, grazing his wrist, leaving a stinging pain in his hand but Seed gritted his teeth and kept cutting faster, sweat stinging his eyes.
with a final slice, the last hair strand snapped, Then Rebecca collapsed, hitting the floor with a loud THUD!. coughing and clutching her throat. The hair laid scattered around her, lifeless now.
Just as seed was About to heave a sigh of relief, a dark smoke oozed off Rebecca's hair and seeped into him, Causing pain similar to what he felt earlier to shoot through his body and that devilish voice resounded in his head again.
"ARRGHHH, NOT AGAINN!!!!!"
[Death absorption in progress...]
[Death energy increasing>>>45>>>66>>>124]
[Death energy threshold passed]
[Level increased>>>lvl1]
[death energy: 124/500]
[New Privilege unlocked!]
[5. Stat modifications ]
[Available SP: 5]
[Stats Unlocked]
Strength: 8
Speed: 7
Dexterity: 10
Constitution:10
Perception: 11
[New information Has been updated]
[Read the book to see!]
Seed stumbled back, his legs giving out. He crashed against the wall, chest heaving, the paper cutter clattering from his hand. The voice in his head had now stopped but the echo still gave him a head ache. He crawled to Rebecca, pressing trembling fingers to her neck. Her pulse was faint but there, Relief flooded him for a moment but the pain he just felt didn't let him be comfortable with it. "You're okay," he whispered, more to himself than her.
Fumbling for Rebecca's phone on the coffee table, he dialed 911, his voice shaking as he reported the emergency. "Apartment 3B, Crescent Street. She-...She was choking, please hurry." He stayed by her side until he started hearing the sirens wail outside. The paramedics burst in, their boots tracking paint across the floor. They checked Rebecca's vitals, strapped her to a stretcher, and Rushed her out to the ambulance.
Officer Delgado arrived later with the police, his grizzled face etched with suspicion. The apartment was now a crime scene, cordoned off with yellow tape. Seed, still shaky, stood in the hallway as Delgado approached, notepad in hand. "Wallace, what in tarnation happened here?" His voice low, but his eyes sharp, scanning Seed's dishevelled jacket and the welt on his wrist.
Seed's mind raced with lies. He couldn't mention the book, or the prediction of Rebecca's death. It's too insane, and he's not sure he believes it himself. "I… came to borrow a.... pen," he lied, the words clumsy. "Heard her screaming through the wall. Broke in and found her tangled in her hair, caught in the fan. I cut her free."
Delgado's brow furrows, his pen pausing. "Wow, that's a new one. Her hair? Caught in the fan? how?" He glances at the apartment where officers are photographing the scattered strands, the space between the fan and the ground was too long, even the woman who was just rushed out to the ambulance jumped, her hair shouldn't have been able to reach the fan.
"So, You're saying it just… wrapped around her neck too?"
"Yeah," Seed said, forcing his voice to be steady. "Freak accident man, maybe the fan pulled it." The lie tasted bitter, but the truth is not quite believable. Delgado studied him, his watch ticking loudly in the silence. Seed felt the weight of that gaze, he remembers it, it's obvious Delgado didn't believe a word he just said, this was how Delgado Always looked at criminals that lied back then when he was a rookie cop and Delgado was his mentor.
"Alright," Delgado said finally, snapping his notepad shut. "Come to the station tomorrow morning, 8 a.m. sharp. We need an official statement." He hesitated for a moment then continued speaking..."Hollow Season's got a way of making things weird, Wallace.....How–....How are you holding up? You know, I mean–"
"It's Fine Delgado, Honest, tip top shape , You can ask my psychiatrist, I swear."
"Sigh, Alright Wallace. See you tomorrow."
Seed nodded, his throat tight. As the police and ambulance crew cleared out, he lingered in the hallway, staring at Rebecca's door, now sealed with tape.
"Aw Shit!"
Seed cried out as he stepped into his apartment.
"The Book!"
he'd dropped it in Rebecca's apartment. If the police found it, marked with her name, he be screwed.
But His eyes darted to the desk, and his stomach twisted as he saw it, The Book, Sitting there, untouched, its leathery cover gleaming faintly under the lamp. He hadn't brought it back. It shouldn't be here. A chill crawled up his spine...
He approached cautiously, as if it might bite. His fingers trembled as he opened its pages. the new entry caught his eye: [Rebecca Hayes, Apartment 3B. Strangled by her own hair. 9:10 p.m.] A thick black line slashed through her name, the ink fresh. She's safe, But the relief died as he looked below.
A new entry, written in that same jagged writing:
[Death Prediction]
[Seed Wallace, Apartment 4A. Strangled by Crazy Female Ghost. 12:00 a.m.]
His breath stopped for a moment as he glanced at The clock on the wall reads 10:45 p.m., just over one hour away. His name, his death, predicted in the same chilling detail. Crazy female ghost. The text reminded him of a memory of an urban legend from his childhood: a vengeful spirit with a mutilated mouth, haunting the night, asking victims if she's beautiful before slashing them apart.
Seed's hands shook as the book's pulse synced with his own. This can't be real. But Rebecca's screams still echoed in his mind. He slammed the book shut, his heart racing. One hour. He has one hour to figure out what this book is, what it wants, and how to survive. Lila's photo watches him, He'd failed her once, lost her to this cursed season. He won't let it take him too, not without answers. So he reached for the book of death once again, this time, determined to Fully explore everything about it and find a way to fully use it to his advantage.