The dungeon beneath the Rotting Cathedral was a labyrinth of suffering—chains rattling, walls slick with rot, the air thick with a stench that clawed at the throat.
Kruger barely clung to consciousness. His body burned with Selene's venom, his limbs heavy, his breath shallow. He was dying. But death was no mercy here.
The sound of shuffling feet filled the darkness. He wasn't alone.
Across the cell, a man slumped against the wall. His skin was pallid, his lips dry and cracked, his eyes sunken into his skull. He lifted his head weakly.
"You're… Kruger?" The man's voice was a whisper, barely audible over the distant screams.
Kruger forced his eyes open. Recognition hit like a blade to the gut.
Marcus Holt—once a decorated soldier, now a husk of a man. He had been missing for months. The reports had declared him dead.
Now Kruger knew the truth.
"She… she's turning us." Marcus coughed, his body shuddering. Black veins crept along his arms. "I tried to resist, but… she gets inside your head."
Kruger clenched his jaw. He knew Selene's magic was powerful, but this—this was something else.
Above them, the air shifted. The torches flickered violently. Footsteps echoed down the stone stairs.
The heavy door creaked open.
Selene Nocturna stepped inside, her hood draped over her face, her lips still stained with blood.
"Ah, my dear General." Her voice was silk laced with venom. "How are we feeling?"
Kruger didn't answer. He wouldn't give her the satisfaction.
Selene tilted her head, stepping closer. Her presence was suffocating.
"Still so stubborn." She traced a cold finger along his jawline. "It's a shame, really. You could have been magnificent under my rule."
Kruger gritted his teeth.
Selene turned her gaze to Marcus.
"But you… you've already started to change, haven't you?"
Marcus shuddered. His breathing quickened.
Selene crouched beside him, cupping his face in her gloved hand.
"Don't fight it. Let it consume you."
Marcus gasped. His body convulsed. The black veins spread rapidly, his eyes rolling back.
Kruger lunged, but the chains held him fast.
Marcus screamed. His body arched violently, his bones cracking, twisting.
His skin turned ashen, his fingers elongating into clawed horrors.
By the time the screaming stopped, Marcus was gone.
What remained was something else. Something monstrous.
Selene turned back to Kruger, grinning.
"You see, General," she whispered, her breath cold against his ear. "I don't kill my enemies. I make them mine."
Kruger's rage burned, but in the pit of his soul, fear coiled like a serpent.